Oscar-Winning Duo The Swell Season Performs Works from New Album Strict Joy at the Merriam Theater, November 8
OCTOBER 19, 2009
"Achingly tender and brazenly passionate performance"—Boston Herald
Oscar-winning singer-songwriter duo The Swell Season performs works from their forthcoming album Strict Joy on Sunday, November 8, 2009 at 8pm at the Merriam Theater, as part of a 25-city North American tour. The duo features Glen Hansard, lead singer of the Irish band The Frames, and classically trained Czech pianist and vocalist Markéta Irglová, who both catapulted to fame after their Academy Award® win in February 2008 for "Falling Slowly" from the independent film Once. The follow-up to their surprise hit film and soundtrack, Strict Joy is scheduled for release on October 27 and already has been described as "lovely and heartsick" by the New York Times. Special guest indie pop-rock artist Doveman will open the show.
"Rich and completely satisfying"—Los Angeles Times
Tickets for The Swell Season are $35 in advance and $38 day of show. Tickets can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999, online at www.kimmelcenter.org, or at the Kimmel Center box office, open daily from 10am to 6pm and later on performance evenings. (Additional fees may apply.) For group sales call 215-790-5883.
Dublin native Glen Hansard and Czech Republic-born Markéta Irglová first came to critical acclaim with the release of the 2006 album The Swell Season, a moniker the duo later adopted when they started touring. The album’s haunting songs contributed hugely to the success of the film Once, which featured the duo playing opposite one another in leading roles. The low-budget film became one of the most successful independent features of 2007, winning the World Audience Cinema Award at the Sundance Film Festival and the Film Independent’s Spirit Award for Best Foreign Film. In addition to an Academy Award®, the soundtrack was nominated for Grammy® Awards for Best Song for a Motion Picture and Best Compilation Soundtrack, propelling it to No. 27 on the Billboard Top 200. "Falling Slowly" was named "Best Original Song" at the Critics' Choice Awards in 2008.
Since then, Hansard and Irglová have performed in sold-out venues worldwide, from Radio City Music Hall in New York City to the 3,600-seat Chicago Theatre. They have appeared on a number of high profile TV shows including "The Late Show with David Letterman," "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," Jimmy Kimmel Live" and "Good Morning America." In 2007, the duo contributed their cover of Bob Dylan's "You Ain't Goin' Nowhere" to the soundtrack of the biopic I'm Not There.
Kimmel Center Presents 2009/10 Season is sponsored by Citi. American Airlines is the Official Airline of Kimmel Center Presents.
Free at the Kimmel programming and subsidized tickets offered to the community and social service groups for $10 are made possible through the Wachovia Gateway to the Arts Community Access Program, supported by a generous grant from the Wachovia Foundation.
The Kimmel Center is a recipient of partnership funding through the nationally recognized PNC "Grow Up Great" initiative, a ten-year, $100 million investment preparing children for success in school and life. Funding gives support to the Kimmel Center’s early childhood program "Bop and Swing," an arts program for children 1-5 years old, designed to promote an appreciation for American culture.
KIMMEL CENTER PRESENTS SPONSORED BY CITI
Sunday, November 8, 2009 | 8pm
Merriam Theater
The Swell Season
With Special Guest Doveman
Glen Hansard, vocals/guitar
Markéta Irglová, vocals/piano
Robert Bochnik, guitar
Joseph Doyle, bass
Colm Mac Con Iomaire, violin
Graham Hopkins, drums
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