February 25, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Union Bank & Trust LolliPops Concert – The Story of Babar: The Little Elephant
Saturday, March 2^nd at 11AM

Pre-concert Festivities starting at 10AM

Dominion Energy Center for the Performing Arts

February 25, 2019 – Richmond, Virginia: Pack your trunks! You’re invited to Babar’s coronation at this Union Bank and Trust Lollipops concert, Saturday March 2^nd at 11AM in the Dominion Energy Center for the Performing Arts. Jean de Brunhoff’s popular children’s story of Babar the little elephant’s epic rise from rags to riches is eloquently set to music by Francis Poulenc and expressively re-imagined by Really Inventive Stuff, an animated ensemble of performers. With all the enthusiasm and pomp worthy of a royal gathering, this family-friendly event is the perfect Saturday morning event! Join us at 10AM for pre-coronation festivities. Long live King Babar!

Francis Poulenc completed his Story of Babar: The Little Elephant for narrator and piano in 1945, fifteen years after Jean de Brunhoff’s famous children’s book was first published in 1930. De Brunhoff’s son, Laurent subsequently published many more iterations of Babar that appear daily in the pages of books and on television and movie screens today. As a result, Babar is a well-loved and favorite character of both children and parents across the world. Poulenc’s score that brings the timeless tale to life was orchestrated by Jean Françaix in 1963 and has since found its way to many larger concert halls, including Richmond’s own Dominion Energy Center for the Performing Arts!

The Richmond Symphony will be led by Associate Conductor Chia-Hsuan Lin with special guest Michael Boudewyns of Really Inventive Stuff. Our pre-concert festival is presented by the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU. Sponsors will be presenting fun activities for kids of all ages including a delightful photo booth, an instrument safari, a crown-making craft with Children’s Museum of Richmond, and an opportunity to design royal clothing for Babar. The festival begins at 10AM in Rhythm Hall, setting the mood for a royal coronation! The family-friendly concert begins in the Carpenter Theatre at 11AM.

Union Bank & Trust LolliPops concerts are Sensory-Friendly and designed to create a performance experience where all audiences are welcome, including those with autism or other sensory sensitivities. An ASL Interpreter will be available at the pre-concert festival and during all LolliPops performances.

Find more details at: https://www.richmondsymphony.com/event/story-barbar-little-elephant/2019-03-02/

Tickets are $10 for children and $20 for adults at richmondsymphony.com or by calling 1.800.514.ETIX.  Active members of the military receive four tickets for free courtesy of Dominion Energy.

The LolliPops Series is sponsored by Union Bank & Trust. Pre-concert festivities are sponsored by the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU. The series media sponsor is Richmond Family Magazine. Special thanks to Music & Arts for providing the instrument petting zoo.

About the Narrator: In 2004, Michael Boudewyns and Sara Valentine co-founded Really Inventive Stuff, a classically trained ensemble of performers committed to sharing inspiring and memorable experiences with audiences of all ages. Really Inventive Stuff has performed family concerts with orchestras internationally (Singapore), in England (Airedale), in Canada (Victoria and Winnipeg), and around the United States. The group’s productions are created with a core commitment to imaginative, playful, and entertaining storytelling.  With a sprinkling of child-like enthusiasm, Really Inventive Stuff creates skillful, delightful performances that combine their love of vaudeville and passion for classic theatre, while keeping the music in the spotlight.

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Saturday, March 2, 2019 at 11:00 AM

Richmond Symphony

LolliPops 4

Chia-Hsuan Lin, conductor

Really Inventive Stuff’s Michael Boudewyns, actor

About the Richmond Symphony

Kicking off its 61st Season in September 2018, the Richmond Symphony is the largest performing arts organization in Central Virginia. The organization includes an orchestra of more than 70 professional musicians, the 150-voice Richmond Symphony Chorus and more than 260 students in the Richmond Symphony Youth Orchestra programs. Each season, more than 200,000 members of the community enjoy live concerts and radio broadcasts. The Symphony also provides educational outreach programs to over 55,000 students and teachers each year. The Symphony was recently named one of 21 American orchestras selected as a leader in orchestra innovation by the League of American Orchestras through its Futures Fund Initiative. The Richmond Symphony is partially funded by the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. Visit www.richmondsymphony.com for more information.

Contacts:
Erin Frye
Marketing and PR Manager
804.788.4717 ext. 121
efrye@richmondsymphony.com

Scott Dodson
Director of Advancement and Patron Communications
804.788.4717 ext. 120
sdodson@richmondsymphony.com