An American Story
Nmon Ford, YPC choreographer Jacquelyn Bird; Ashley Brown; Artistic Director Francisco J. Nunez; Assoc. Artistic Director and gala host Elizabeth Nunez; and Associate Conductor Sophia Papoulis
An American Story: March 19, 2019
By David Patrick Columbia
Last Tuesday night at the Rose Theater at Jazz at Lincoln Center, in a concert sung in a chorales of youth of ages ranging from ages 6 to 16, completely a pleasure of watching and listening to The Young People’s Chorus of New York City (YPC) with its “Listen to the Music” Gala.
Hosted by Elizabeth Núñez and featuring more than 400 of YPC’s award-winning choristers, it was a spectacular evening of music and dance. All presented with the joy and freshness of youth. The evening was conducted by Artistic Director and Founder Francisco J. Núñez, in a musically diverse program directed by Jacquelyn Bird, which included an excursion back to the sounds of “The Seventies.”
Helping to celebrate the occasion, the choristers were joined by special guests Nmon Ford, fresh from his recent triumph in Bernstein’s Mass at Mostly Mozart last summer, and Ashley Brown, who originated the role of Mary Poppins on Broadway.
After the concert there was a celebratory dinner in the Ballroom of the Mandarin Oriental, where Mr. Núñez honored the extraordinary generosity and support of two dynamic women. He first presented YPC’s Humanitarian Award to Alexa Davidson Suskin, Executive Director of The Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Foundation, whose support has made YPC’s home across from Lincoln Center possible and who is also supporting the work of YPC National.
Maestro Nunez then presented YPC’s Corporate Leadership Award to Laura Schwab, President of Aston Martin-The Americas. Because of their mutual commitment to excellence, YPC and Aston Martin are collaborating on a program to strength opportunities for young people.
To begin the evening, Adam Chinn, Chairman of the YPC Board, shared some exciting news with the audience: the announcement of YPC National, an independent non-profit organization to create and develop YPC-inspired youth choruses nationwide.
Click on this link for more information. The result that keeps us going back for more is the joy these children and young people share with any audience. Good for what ails ‘ya.