RPO Brings The Snowman Story to Life

Rochester, NY – Since its publication in 1978, Raymond Briggs’ charming book, The Snowman, brought to life by its soft, wintry watercolor images, has become a beloved children’s classic.  In 1982, the wordless book about the friendship between a little boy and the snowman he creates, was made into a 26-minute animated film and shown in Great Britain that Christmas Eve, becoming an immediate hit and subsequent perennial holiday favorite.  On Sunday afternoon December 14 at 2:00 pm at the Eastman Theatre, the film – with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra performing the live musical score by Howard Blake – will be the centerpiece of the RPO’s orKIDStra Holiday concert conducted by Michael Butterman (the Louise and Henry Epstein Family Chair).

The orKIDStra Holiday concert opens with seasonal “March of the Toys” from the film Babes in Toyland, followed by Jeff Tyzik’s “Chanukah Suite,” Leroy Anderson’s “Sleigh Ride,” and a fun holiday sing-along with well-known tunes like “Deck the Halls,” “Jingle Bells,” and more.  The concert provides the perfect opportunity for families to share a musical holiday tradition.

As an added bonus, The Snowman also will feature the talents of 10 singers from The Boys Choir of the Bach Children’s Chorus (Karla Krogstad, director) who were chosen specifically for this special opportunity to sing the signature melody at the end of the film.  The Choir is composed of talented young boys ages 8-15.

General admission tickets are $15 for adults; $10 for children, available online 24/7 at www.rpo.org, by phone (454-2100) in person from the RPO Box Office, Monday-Saturday, 10:00 am-5:00 pm (non-concert Saturdays, 10:00 am-3:00 pm); and seven days a week at area Wegmans.  A convenience fee may apply.

Celebrating its 86th season in 2008-09, the RPO inspires and enriches the community through the art of music, presenting nearly 200 performances each season to a combined audience of an estimated quarter of a million people, including more than 70,000 who experience the RPO’s broad range of educational and community programs.  The Orchestra is passionately dedicated to outstanding musical performance at the highest artistic levels, and has a unique tradition of musical versatility, commitment to music education in the broadest sense and a deep and enduring engagement with the community.  The RPO has been honored with the New York State Governor’s Arts Award and two recent ASCAP awards for adventurous programming.  RPO performances are made possible in part with grants from the National Endowment for the Arts; the New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency; the State of New York; Monroe County and the City of Rochester.