Family Holiday Show in New Haven to Support Refugees

The Bethesda Music Series presents a performance of the family-friendly holiday opera Amahl and the Night Visitors at Bethesda Lutheran Church, 450 Whitney Avenue, New Haven, on Sunday, December 11, at 7:00 p.m. The one-act opera by Gian Carlo Menotti was first performed on Christmas Eve, 1951, by the NBC Television Theater.

Amahl features a child in the lead role. Catchy music, colorful costumes, and captivating dance scenes make up the hour-long performance. Front rows are reserved for children. The event is free and open to the public.

A free-will offering will be collected with all proceeds going to IRIS, a refugee resettlement agency in New Haven featured in the media for their welcome extended to Syrian refugees. The Bethesda Music Series is proud to help people in need in our city and around the world. We appreciate any gifts to the important work of helping refugees, which is so appropriate during the Christmas season.

Amahl and the Night Visitors is a story of a poor shepherd boy’s encounter with three kings and the miraculous healing of his crippled leg when he offers his crutch as a gift to the holy child. Performed by opera students from Western Connecticut State University, directed by Margaret Astrup, Amahl has become an annual tradition for the Bethesda Music Series.

About the Bethesda Music Series

For over twenty years, the Bethesda Music Series has presented concerts to raise funds for social outreach in Greater New Haven, supporting agencies such as Life Haven, Immanuel Baptist Shelter, Christian Community Action, Habitat for Humanity, area summer camps, and after-school tutoring. Concerts are free. Handicap accessible, free parking. Go online to http://www.bethesdanewhaven.org for information or to join our electronic mailing list.

Contact Information: Dr. Lars Gjerde, Artistic Director, [email protected], (585) 200-8903.
Dr. Margaret Astrup, Music Series Chair, [email protected], (860) 796-3444