Composer Sergei
Prokofiev’s "Peter and the Wolf" has been a staple
of classical music since its premiere in 1936, because it’s a
wonderful introduction to children (and audiences of all ages)
of how an orchestra works.
Each character in the inventive score is represented by a separate
instrument and melodic line, and Prokofiev’s effortless ability
to create wondrous music out of the simplest of materials is
on display throughout this utterly charming composition.
"Peter and the Wolf" also never wears out its welcome
because the narrator of the piece brings his own stamp to the
work at every performance; the recent Grammy winner for Best
Spoken-Word Album for Children was a "Peter and the Wolf"
recording with an unlikely trio of narrators: Sting, Mikhail
Gorbachev and Sophia Loren. The narrator for this performance
of "Peter" is actor Joshua Kane.
At the Walt Whitman Theatre, on the Brooklyn College campus,
on Feb. 29, the Brooklyn College Conservatory Orchestra’s "Peter
and the Wolf" will be the main attraction of an afternoon’s
worth of music that appeals to the entire family. This program
– part of the Brooklyn Center’s Family Fun Series – also includes
favorite Broadway tunes and even a chance for some lucky young
concertgoers to come onstage and conduct the orchestra themselves.
For the rest of the concert, the conductor is Paul Shelden (pictured).
"Peter and the Wolf" will be performed at Brooklyn
Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College on Feb. 29
at 2 pm. Tickets are $15. The Walt Whitman Theatre is located
on the Brooklyn College campus, one block from the junction of
Nostrand and Flatbush avenues. For more information, call (718)
951-4500 or visit the Web site at www.brooklyncenter.com.
