Wolf Trap To Hold Summer 2021 Performances With Limited Capacity

VIENNA, VA — Performances will be back at Wolf Trap in summer 2021, albeit with limited capacity and socially-distanced pods.

After Filene Center summer performances were canceled in 2020 for the first time in nearly 50 years, Wolf Trap will celebrate its 50th anniversary season of the Filene Center in 2021. This will be the first time Wolf Trap hosts live music since December 2019.

"Our pandemic intermission is nearing its end, and the resumption of concerts can finally begin – an important first step forward for us all," said Arvind Manocha, president and CEO of Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. "We couldn’t be happier to welcome patrons back to Wolf Trap this summer, as we celebrate the 50th anniversary. For our initial summer 2021 shows, we celebrate 50 years of being part of the community, 50 years of uniquely broad programming, 50 years of partnership with the National Symphony Orchestra, and 50 years of nurturing the next generation of artists and audiences."

Wolf Trap Foundation and the National Park Service worked with local, state and federal health officials to ensure its reopening follows health and safety guidelines. Wolf Trap's Filene Center will have reduced capacity with socially-distanced pod seating, a mask requirement and other safety measures. Summer 2021 tickets will be sold in socially-distanced pods of two to eight tickets. Ticket buyers will buy a full pod, and no single tickets will be sold. Guidelines are subject to updates.

Wolf Trap will kick off the performances with four free concerts for front-line healthcare workers, education workers and volunteers in late June. June 24 will feature the Wolf Trap debut of Marin Alsop conducting the National Orchestral Institute Philharmonic, followed by three performances by "The President’s Own" United States Marine Band on June 25, 26 and 27. The June 27 show will be themed "Celebrating 50 Years at Wolf Trap."

Another highlight of the season will be a special anniversary concert Fifty Years Together: A Celebration of Wolf Trap, featuring the National Symphony Orchestra and all-female special guest artists, including Broadway and film star Cynthia Erivo, world-renowned soprano and Wolf Trap Opera alumna Christine Goerke, and Van Cliburn International Piano Competition's silver medal winner Joyce Yang. The concert will pay tribute to Wolf Trap Foundation’s founder, Catherine Filene Shouse, who championed the arts and advancement of women. The program will celebrate Filene Center's opening gala concert that happened on July 1, 1971.

Following the 50th anniversary gala concert will be July performances. Highlights include Americana-folk duo Watchhouse on July 7, The E Street Band’s Max Weinberg, for Max Weinberg’s Jukebox on July 10 and 11, New Orleans jazz legends Preservation Hall Jazz Band on July 17, DC go-go music icons Big Tony and Trouble Funk on July 18, An Evening with Amos Lee on July 21 and 22, internationally-renowned mandolinist Chris Thile on July 24 and 25, Grammy Award-winning Americana singer-songwriter Aoife O’Donovan with members of The Knights on July 28, and The War and Treaty on July 29.

This year also marks the 50th anniversary of Wolf Trap's partnership with the National Symphony Orchestra. The first part of the 50th anniversary season puts a focus on the National Symphony Orchestra with an extended residency. Summer performances will include Beethoven and Bologne on July 8 and 9, and American stage and screen actor and singer Norm Lewis with the orchestra on July 30 and 31.

The Wolf Trap Opera will continue to introduce emerging talent to the region with its summer residency performance. As part of the 50th anniversary season, all performances will be at the Filene Center.

The Wolf Trap Opera performances kick off with Bologne’s 1780 chamber opera The "Anonymous Lover" (L’Amant Anonyme) in Concert on June 18), followed by Emma Griffin directing Stephen Sondheim’s "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Concert" on July 2 and 3. A special double bill of Viardot’s "Cinderella" (Cendrillon) and Holst’s "Sāvitri in Concert" will be performed with Wolf Trap Orchestra conducted by Kelly Kuo and directed by Amanda Consol on July 16. The performances will conclude with "STARias: Opera’s Most Powerful Moments" featuring Wolf Trap Opera alumni Tamara Wilson (soprano), Michelle DeYoung (mezzo-soprano), Paul Groves (tenor), Ryan Speedo Green (bass-baritone), and more on July 23.

Wolf Trap Opera will also stream digital programs this summer, including "Aria Jukebox" beginning on July 10, and the new "Salon Series: Intimate Evenings of Song."

Children's Theatre-in-the-Woods will also return for socially-distanced performances for younger audiences. For the first time, Children's Theatre-in-the-Woods will be held at the Filene Center. Performances include Inez Barlatier's "Ayiti: Stories and Songs From Haiti" on July 20, award-winning clarinetist Oran Etkin’s Timbalooloo's Finding Friends Far From Home on July 21, popular children’s performers Dan + Claudia Zanes With Friends' "New Beginnings" on July 24, Grammy winner for "Best Children’s Album" Joanie Leeds' "All The Ladies" on July 27, Korean American folk artist Elena Moon Park and Friends on July 28, and Maryland Youth Ballet performing "Snow White" on July 31.

Wolf Trap plans to announce concerts for August and September at a late time.

Tickets for June and July shows will go on sale to the public at 10 a.m. on May 7. Tickets will be available at wolftrap.org or by phone at 877.WOLFTRAP. Wolf Trap members can access presales, with memberships starting at $50. All tickets will be delivered electronically.

To see all performances, visit www.wolftrap.org/calendar.