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Delight in the unique artistry of the world-renowned Cashore Marionettes! Simple Gifts, accompanied by organist Marvin Mills, will be in @KimmelCenter’s Verizon Hall on 3/21! The show is part of the Kimmel Center’s Family Discovery Series! More info @ Kimmelcenter.org
Press Contact:
Lauren Woodard
215-790-5835
LWoodard@kimmelcenter.org
Jessica Christopher
267-765-3738
jchristopher@alliedglobalmarketing.com
KIMMEL CENTER CULTURAL CAMPUS PRESENTS
WORLD-RENOWNED PUPPET MASTER JOSEPH CASHORE AND HIS
AWARD-WINNING CASHORE MARIONETTES FOR
SIMPLE GIFTS WITH PHILADELPHIA NATIVE,
ORGANIST MARVIN MILLS
MARCH 21, 2020
“…beautifully constructed and move with such realism.”
– LOS ANGELES TIMES
“Cashore Marionettes make magic without words.”
– READING EAGLE
“Each creation is a slice of life, awe-inspiring in the minutest details.”
– THE TORONTO SUN
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Philadelphia, PA, February 12, 2020) – The Kimmel Center Cultural Campus presents world-renowned puppet master Joseph Cashore and his award-winning Cashore Marionettesfor Simple Gifts, in Verizon Hall on Saturday, March 21, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. The show will be accompanied by Philadelphia native, organist Marvin Mills, and will be the Cashore Marionettes first show with organ. This show is part of the Kimmel Center Cultural Campus’ Family Discovery Series, sponsored by Santander.
Unmatched in artistry, grace, and refinement of movement, The Cashore Marionettes reinvent the art of puppetry for a compelling and unforgettable theatrical experience.
“Through the Kimmel Center Cultural Campus’ Family Discovery Series, we offer a breadth of programming, intending to cultivate an appreciation of a variety of art forms in our youngest guests,” said Anne Ewers, President and CEO of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. “The Cashore Marionettes is a unique theatrical experience for young and old alike. Notably, the audience will feel as though they are part of the story, strategically seated behind the stage in the Conductor’s Circle for a close-up, birds’ eye view of the performance.”
Simple Gifts is a series of touching portrayals and poignant scenes from everyday life set to stunning music by composers such as Vivaldi, Strauss, Beethoven, and Copland. Through a combination of virtuoso manipulation, beautiful music, theatrical illusion, and artistic insight, the original vignettes presented in Simple Gifts provide an entertaining and sensitive vision of what it is to be human. The performance explores a range of emotions with characters and actions that are amazingly convincing. The marionettes are engineering marvels and the quality of the movement is extraordinary.
Award-winning artist Joseph Cashore creates and manipulates the amazingly lifelike marionettes. Cashore has been working with puppets for more than 30 years, and he created his first marionettes from clothespins, wood, string, and a tin can when he was 11 years old.
He has garnered many awards throughout his illustrious career, including the UNIMA Citation of Excellence, the highest honor an American puppeteer can earn, from the oldest international theater organization. Citations are “awarded to shows that touch their audience deeply; that totally engage, enchant and enthrall.”
He also earned the Henson Foundation Grant, an award intended to help promote puppetry to adult audiences, and the Pew Fellowship for Performance Art. Additionally, he was named a PennPAT Roster Artist. PennPAT Roster Artists “maintain the highest standards of artistic quality and professionalism.” The Cashore Marionettes were in the Spring/Summer 2010 issue of Puppetry International.
Native Philadelphian Marvin Mills is organist at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Kensington, Maryland. He is also music director of the acclaimed National Spiritual Ensemble, and guest artist with the Ritz Chamber Players, based in Jacksonville, Florida. He has performed throughout the United States in such venues as Philadelphia’s Academy of Music, The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, The Barns at Wolf Trap, as well as historic churches in Krakow, Poland. He has appeared as guest artist with numerous choral groups.
For over a decade, Mr. Mills has been a featured artist at the Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival as recitalist, chamber musician, and choral conductor – preparing the Festival Chorus for major works such as: Haydn’s “Creation”, the Requiems of Mozart, Brahms and Verdi, Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 9”, and Handel’s “Samson”. A prize-winning composer, his “Four Spirituals for Denyce Graves” have been performed throughout the country at colleges and universities by aspiring singers.
Simple Gifts with The Cashore Marionettes & Organist Marvin Mills is a part of the Kimmel Center Cultural Campus’ Family Discovery Series, sponsored by Santander. As a part of the Family Discovery Series, Simple Gifts is eligible for 3-show packages starting at just $10 per show.
Other upcoming shows in the Family Discovery Series include: Ballet Folclórico Nacional de México de SILVIA LOZANO (March 12, 2020, Verizon Hall), MasterChef Junior Live! (March 12, 2020, Merriam Theater), Wild Kratts Live 2.0! (April 18, 2020, Merriam Theater), and Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood LIVE! (May 9, 2020, Merriam Theater).
SIMPLE GIFTS WITH THE CASHORE MARIONETTES & ORGANIST
MARVIN MILLS
Kimmel Center Cultural Campus’ Verizon Hall
March 21, 2020, 10:00 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.
Tickets
Tickets are on sale now starting at $25.00. Tickets can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999, online at www.kimmelcenter.org, or at the Kimmel Center Box Office. Group sales are available for groups of 10 or more and can be purchased by calling 215-790-5883. See www.kimmelcenter.org for more information.
Organ programming on the Kimmel Center Cultural Campus is generously supported by the Wyncote Foundation.
The Kimmel Center Cultural Campus
Located in the heart of Center City, Philadelphia, our mission is to engage the region’s diverse communities with art through performance and education. Our Cultural Campus serves more than 1 million guests per year and includes the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, the Academy of Music, and the Merriam Theater- representing more than 160 years of rich history for the performing arts along Philadelphia’s Avenue of the Arts. We are home to eight esteemed Resident Companies: The Philadelphia Orchestra, Opera Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Ballet, The Philly POPS, PHILADANCO, The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, The Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, and Curtis Institute of Music. With nearly 9,000 seats per night, we are the region’s most impactful performing arts center, and the second largest in the country. Our Cultural Campus serves as a preeminent and inclusive place to enjoy exceptional experiences that reflect the spirit of our region by cultivating a creative and socially-responsible environment where our community shares experiences that are delivered with pride, integrity, and respect. As a 501 c 3 nonprofit organization, we collaborate on, present, and produce a broad range of relevant and meaningful events, we serve as an active gathering space for social and community events, we educate the region’s young people through access to quality arts experiences, and we provide support to artists in the creation of new work. TD Bank, America’s Most Convenient Bank, is our proud sponsor of the Kimmel Center’s 2019-2020 Season. American Airlines is the official airline of Broadway Philadelphia. For additional information, visit www.kimmelcenter.org.
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