No Name Pops will begin its second season with Broadway’s Jessica Vosk and conductor Chris Dragon’s ‘California Dreamin’: Jessica Vosk Sings the Songs of Laurel Canyon‘ at the Kimmel Center.
The show spotlights California songwriters of the 1960s and ‘70s, whose music formed the soundtrack to the West Coast pop sound that defined an era. It features the music of such iconic songwriters as Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, David Crosby, Linda Ronstadt, The Mamas & the Papas, and the Eagles’ Don Henley and Glenn Frey.
‘California Dreamin’ was conceived by Mary-Mitchell Campbell and Jessica Vosk and first produced for orchestra by Colorado Symphony, based on the original production at 92nd Street Y, New York as part of Tisch Music’s Lyrics & Lyricists series.
Vosk is a celebrated musical theater and concert artist. She is best known for her role as Elphaba in the Broadway production of ‘Wicked’, and playing the role of The Narrator in the 50th anniversary of ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’ at Lincoln Center. Her career highlights include playing Anita in a Grammy-nominated concert with the San Francisco Symphony presenting the music of ‘West Side Story’, performing a sold-out solo show at Carnegie Hall and headline performance in a Judy Garland celebration, and releasing successful solo albums.
Conductor Christopher Dragon is the Music Director of the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra and Resident Conductor of the Colorado Symphony. Dragon’s versatile portfolio ranges from live-to-picture performances including ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’, ‘Toy Story’ and ‘Star Wars: Return of the Jedi’, a wide variety of collaborations with artists such as Cynthia Erivo and Joshua Bell, to standard and contemporary orchestral repertoire such as Danny Elfman’s Violin Concerto, Eleven Eleven.
“We are excited to welcome Jessica Vosk and Chris Dragon to our opening concert of our 24-25 season,” said No Name Pops’ Executive Director Matt Koveal. “It’s been a long road to solidify our organization on the Avenue of the Arts and in the greater Philadelphia area, but this past year it’s been clear that the community wants and needs these amazing musicians to keep performing.”
‘California Dreamin’ will take place on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 3 p.m. in Marian Anderson Hall at the Kimmel Center. For information and tickets, visit nonamepops.org.
