The Metropolitan Opera’s 2014 Summer Recital Series
Will Begin June 23 at SummerStage in Central Park with
a Performance By Amber Wagner, Jamie Barton, and Russell Thomas
The series, in collaboration with City Parks Foundation,
will once again offer free recitals in all five boroughs
The Met’s Summer HD Festival will return August 23;
for 10 consecutive nights, free encore screenings of Met
productions will be broadcast in Lincoln Center Plaza
New York, NY (March 31, 2014) — The Metropolitan Opera’s two popular series of free summer events, the Summer Recital Series and the Summer HD Festival, will return in 2014. For the sixth consecutive year, the Met will present operatic recitals in parks in all five boroughs, as well as a ten-day outdoor festival at Lincoln Center featuring encore screenings from the Met’s popular Live in HD transmissions.
The Met’s 2014 Summer Recital Series, presented in collaboration with City Parks Foundation, will feature six free concerts beginning June 23 and concluding July 10. The series begins on Monday, June 23 at SummerStage in Central Park with an 8:00 p.m. recital featuring three Met stars: soprano Amber Wagner, mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton, and tenor Russell Thomas, joined by pianist Dan Saunders. The same four artists will perform on Wednesday, June 25 at 7:00 p.m. in Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 1 (Brooklyn).
Four additional recitals, starring soprano Mary-Jane Lee, mezzo-soprano Ginger Costa-Jackson, and baritone Yunpeng Wang, again joined by Saunders, will take place according to this schedule: Tuesday, July 1 at 7 p.m. in Crotona Park (The Bronx); Thursday, July 3 at 7 p.m. in Clove Lakes Park (Staten Island); Tuesday, July 8 at 7 p.m. in Jackie Robinson Park (Manhattan); and Thursday, July 10 at 7 p.m. in Socrates Sculpture Park (Queens). No tickets are required for any of the performances; a complete schedule is below.
The popular Summer HD Festival, which projects encore screenings from the Met’s Grammy, Peabody, and Emmy Award-winning Live in HD series on a large screen in Lincoln Center Plaza, returns August 23. The festival, which will once again offer ten consecutive nights of free screenings, runs through September 1. Titles and starting times for the screenings will be announced at a later date. More than 3,100 seats will be available each night, plus space for overflow crowds on the plaza.
“Our recitals in the parks offer a chance to hear some of our hottest young stars, while our late summer HD encore screenings on the façade of the Met recreate recent past glories from our stage—both at unbeatable free ticket prices,” said Met General Manager Peter Gelb. “These events are part of our efforts to make opera accessible to the broadest audience.”
The Summer HD Festival is made possible by the Ford Foundation. The Met: Live in HD series is made possible by a generous grant from its founding sponsor, The Neubauer Family Foundation. Global corporate sponsorship of The Met: Live in HD is provided by Bloomberg. The Met: Live in HD is produced in association with WNET and PBS.
About The Met’s Summer Recital Series
The Met’s Summer Recital Series will feature arias and duets from a variety of operas, along with selections from the American Songbook. The 8:00 pm SummerStage in Central Park recital on June 23 is approximately two hours long, and the 7:00 pm Brooklyn Bridge Park recital on June 25 will run approximately ninety minutes. All subsequent recitals in the series—held on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from July 1 through July 10—will begin at 7:00 pm and run approximately one hour. There are no rain dates for any of the park recitals.
“City Parks Foundation is thrilled to be able to continue this wonderful partnership with the Met Opera to present these free performances in all five boroughs. These recitals are the perfect complement to our SummerStage festival, which brings high quality performing arts events to all New Yorkers in their own neighborhood parks,” said Alison Tocci, President of City Parks Foundation. “We hope you’ll join us this summer to celebrate your park and community, and of course enjoy some world class music.”
The Met’s Summer Recital Series is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council, and in collaboration with the Department of Parks and Recreation. Funding has also been provided by The Elizabeth B. McGraw Foundation, in honor of Mrs. McGraw, and the Robert Wood Johnson, Jr. Charitable Trust’s Met Parks Concert Fund.
Schedule: The Met’s Summer Recital Series
Monday, June 23 at 8:00 pm: SummerStage in Central Park, Manhattan
Amber Wagner, soprano
Jamie Barton, mezzo-soprano
Russell Thomas, tenor
Dan Saunders, pianist
Wednesday, June 25 at 7:00 pm: Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 1, Brooklyn
Amber Wagner, soprano
Jamie Barton, mezzo-soprano
Russell Thomas, tenor
Dan Saunders, pianist
Tuesday, July 1 at 7:00 pm: Crotona Park, Bronx
Mary-Jane Lee, soprano
Ginger Costa-Jackson, mezzo-soprano
Yunpeng Wang, baritone
Dan Saunders, pianist
Thursday, July 3 at 7:00 pm: Clove Lakes Park, Staten Island
Mary-Jane Lee, soprano
Ginger Costa-Jackson, mezzo-soprano
Yunpeng Wang, baritone
Dan Saunders, pianist
Tuesday, July 8 at 7:00 pm: Jackie Robinson Park, Manhattan
Mary-Jane Lee, soprano
Ginger Costa-Jackson, mezzo-soprano
Yunpeng Wang, baritone
Dan Saunders, pianist
Thursday, July 10 at 7:00 pm: Socrates Sculpture Park, Queens
Mary-Jane Lee, soprano
Ginger Costa-Jackson, mezzo-soprano
Yunpeng Wang, baritone
Dan Saunders, pianist
All recitals are free and no tickets are required. For additional information, please call (212) 362-6000 or visit the Met website at www.metopera.org/parks.
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