The Music Department at Mary Baldwin University is pleased to announce the first Sunday Recital of the season. At 3 p.m. on Sunday, September 30, soprano Anne Wick and pianist William McCorkle will take the stage at Francis Auditorium. Their program, “Double-Trouble,” is part of Staunton’s Queen City Mischief & Magic weekend, and they will perform a variety of selections from art song, opera, film, and musical theatre.
“We chose songs which should appeal to a wide range of listeners,” said Wick. “It was fun putting together a program that ties in with the ‘Mischief and Magic’ weekend.” Most selections are in English, including songs from Into the Woods, Jekyll and Hyde, Secret Garden, Harry Potter, and Chicago. They’ll also perform a selection from Dante’s Divine Comedy, German songs about supernatural beings, a few moody French pieces, and a Mermaid singing to the moon in Czech. (English translations will be provided.)
“For this special concert, audience members are encouraged to come in costume,” said Wick. “This is a family-friendly event, but beware — there will be lots of songs about witches, ghosts, and other strange creatures!”
Wick has an extensive history of performing in the Valley area. Her experience includes performing music theater, concert and opera roles with Waynesboro Players, Oak Grove Theater, Blue Ridge Theater Festival, ShenanArts, Broadway and Beyond, Community Concert Series, Ash-Lawn Opera, and Luray Opera, and as guest soloist with Staunton Ovation Singers, Shenandoah Valley Choral Society, Rockbridge Choral Society and other regional groups. She also has been a first place winner in both the Classical and Musical Theater Advanced Women’s categories at the VA NATS (Virginia Chapter of National Association of Teachers of Singing) competitions. She earned her DMA in Vocal performance, Pedagogy and Literature at James Madison University, Master of Music at University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) and BA at Converse College. She is on the faculties of Mary Baldwin University and James Madison University.
A versatile keyboard artist, McCorkle has performed as organist, pianist, and harpsichordist in solo and ensemble performances throughout the eastern United States and Europe. He is an adjunct keyboard instructor at Washington and Lee University and is artistic director of the Rockbridge Choral Society in Lexington, Virginia. He holds degrees from Amherst College and Yale University, and he studied in France with legendary teachers Nadia Boulanger and William Christie. McCorkle remarks that he “is delighted to return to Francis Auditorium, where some 30 years ago he performed on several occasions with the late violinist Margaret Pinkston, then a professor of chemistry at Mary Baldwin.”
Mary Baldwin’s Sunday Recital Series also includes performances by guitarist Rafael Scarfullery (November 4); pianist David Berry (November 11); violist Diane Phoenix-Neal (February 3); pianist Lise Keiter (March 17); and the L + M Duo (percussion and piano—April 28). Audiences will also not want to miss the opening Carl Broman Concert — world-renowned soprano Julia Bullock performs at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, October 29.
Single tickets for September 30 may be purchased at the door and are $5 for the general public and $4 for students and seniors (free for Mary Baldwin students). Season tickets are also available. To purchase tickets online or find more information, please visit marybaldwin.edu/arts/music or call 540-887-7294.
