It’s a year of transition for The Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra.
Now in its 36th season, the WSO, previously known as the Williamsburg Symphonia, is undergoing more than a name change.
Historically having performed at the Kimball Theatre, an intimate 410-seat venue, this season the WSO will have the majority of its concerts at the Williamsburg Community Chapel, a fully functional church that seats nearly 1,200.
The venue change, prompted by Colonial Williamsburg’s announcement to close Kimball in July 2017 and its subsequent leasing to the College of William & Mary, is an opportunity for growth, said Carolyn Keurajian, executive director of the WSO.
“We wanted the opportunity to invite more people, add new subscribers, and have more flexibility,” Keurajian said.
With a larger venue, the WSO can now sell more single tickets, a plus for concert-goers as oftentimes concerts are largely sold out, Keurajian said.
“One big change [however], is that we’ll be going from performing two performances of each concert, to only performing one time. One night,” Keurajian said.
Despite that, the WSO will still offer crowd-favorite performances, including: the Masterworks Concert Series, Holiday Pops, Cabaret and Cocktails, and the Side-by-Side: Williamsburg Youth Orchestra concerts.
“This year is a trial to see if it works for us,” Keurajian added.
In addition to the new venue, the WSO is also undergoing a national search for a new music director. From a pool of nearly 200 applicants, five candidates have been selected to audition for the position, each having the opportunity to win over Williamsburg’s music fans during their individual Masterworks Concert performances. The audience of each concert will be an active part of the feedback and selection process.
So, what’s next for the WSO?
“Our goal is not to become a huge orchestra,” Keurajian said. “We are a small community and we want to continue doing what we do well, to serve our community, and to remain financially stable. The new music director will in large help determine [our] next steps.”
The new director will be announced in May of 2020, but until then, Keurajian hopes the WSO will continue to entertain, inspire, and educate. The WSO “brings people together to experience something extraordinary, [to] experience beautiful music among friends. And we do our very best to make this music accessible to them.”
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Season subscriptions to the Masterworks concerts range from $210-$258 per subscription depending on section preference, while single tickets start at $48. For students, tickets are $10.
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