Event

Halfway Home - A Cabaret of Art Song

Dana- Joel Belkholm: Bass-baritone
Gregory Smith: Piano

Art Song is classical music's version of a poem - short, self-contained that more describes a feeling than tells a story. This performance is part theatre, part recital, part cabaret. Simple staging is used to present the milestones a Gay Man's life: Birth, Education, Exploration of the world and love, Finding love, relationship and adulthood and moving toward death and what might be beyond.

This performance, presented by The Muse Collective, tries to break the stiff, formal barriers between classical music performers and the audience with a more relaxed atmosphere and creating a simple plot structure.

Most of the composers and poets used are also gay.

Music (All in English): Bernstein, Barber, Vaughan Williams, jake Heggie, Ricky Ian Gordon, Copland and others.
Poetry: Walt Whitman, Mary Oliver, David Whyte, RL Stephenson, Tony Hoagland and others

Dana-Joel Belkholm has been a performer his entire life and spent some time in Germany pursuing a career in Opera. After returning to the States, he expanded his Pilates business and took a hiatus from singing. Now in the middle of his life, he has returned to performing starting with this first semi-autobiographical performance.

Gregory Smith is a graduate of Cornish College of the Arts with a degree in Piano Performance. He has, in the last few years, specialized in collaborative performance with singers and other performers.