Written by Mary Dan Eades on November 14, 2019
Join us for some holiday cheer!
Santa Barbara’s annual favorite, The Hallelujah! Project, returns to the Lobero stage for the seventh consecutive year with its trademark blend of holiday classics and seasonal favorites. Conductor Jo Anne Wasserman leads the Santa Barbara Choral Society and Orchestra in this enchanted performance of holiday merriment that is not to be missed!
The repertoire has something for everyone, including Franz Schubert’s Magnificat, intricate, joyous carols sung with the young voices of the Goleta Valley Junior High Choir, and of course the grand sing-along Hallelujah! Chorus.
In the rocking chair this year, giving his rendition of Clement Moore’s holiday classic ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, is guest of honor and local celebrity Andrew Firestone, best known for his television role on “The Bachelor.” Rumor has it that there could also be a visit from “Jolly Old St. Nick” himself, so bring the kids, and come see for yourself.
Family and friends of all ages, make this your cherished holiday tradition.
VIP tickets include festival tent wine reception.
The Hallelujah! Project 7
Saturday, December 14 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, December 15 at 3:00 p.m.
Lobero Theatre
Box Office: 805-963-0761
Click HERE for tickets
Major funding provided by Richard and Marilyn Mazess | Diane Dodds Reichert and David Reichert | The Towbes Fund for the Performing Arts at the Santa Barbara Foundation | The Walter and Holly O. Thomson Foundation
American baritone, Ralph Cato has travelled the world extensively, telling stories in song with his warm, clarion baritone voice.
Tenor, Benjamin Brecher has performed over fifty operatic roles with many of the world’s most prestigious opera companies, specializing in the high lying lyric tenor repertoire. He has performed 16 roles with New York City Opera alone. Career highlights include performances with Opera Orchestra of New York, L’Opera de Nice, Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, L’Opera de Montreal, Santa Fe Opera, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, among many others. His orchestral solo repertoire includes Mozart, Handel, Orff, Bach, Haydn, as well as many performances of Britten. In 2000 he began performing the great Irish Tenor songs in a concert produced for him entitled A Celtic Celebration, Twenty years later, the show has become a North American hit with performances with 45 Symphonies in North America. Ben continues his discography having added his twelfth recording in 2016 Forgotten Liszt, with pianist Robert Koenig, and will record a new release in 2022 entitled “Three Centuries of Thomas Moore” including the music of Britten, Berlioz, and Sarah Gibson on MSR Classics. He is a Professor of Voice at University of California Santa Barbara, where he has served as the Head of Voice.
Born and raised in Southern California, April Amante is a versatile soprano with expertise and facility in repertoire spanning from early music to contemporary musical theater.
Tracy Van Fleet is pleased to return to the Santa Barbara Choral Society. As a soloist, she has performed with the Los Angeles Master Chorale, Lüneburg Symphony in Germany, Orquesta Filarmónica de Boca del Río in Mexico, Pasadena Symphony, Naples Philharmonic, Los Angeles Bach Festival, San Diego Chamber Orchestra, Colorado Philharmonic, USC Symphony and Chorus, and others. She has had many appearances with the Los Angeles Opera, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Pacific Symphony, Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Opera Pacific, San Diego Opera and Opera Colorado.