Caramoor's 79th Summer Season: A Blend of Old and New Featuring Wynton Marsalis, Dance Shows, and Fourth of July Fireworks

Caramoor, an arts center in Katonah, is preparing for its 79th summer season from June 9 to August 16. The season will start with a performance by Wynton Marsalis, a trumpeter-composer, and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. They will be recognized for their ten-year partnership with Caramoor. This performance is a reminder of the 2021 Caramoor gala, where Marsalis and the orchestra honored Duke Ellington.

Dance will return to Caramoor this summer, after an absence since the New York City Ballet's 2003 show. The Baroque group Les Arts Florissants will perform a new version of Henry Purcell’s opera “The Fairy Queen” on July 20. The show will feature street dance by Mourad Merzouki, a French-Algerian choreographer. Edward J. Lewis III, Caramoor’s CEO, is enthusiastic about the mix of old and new elements in the show.

The Mark Morris Dance Group will also perform on August 1. Their show will include works set to music by Bach, Mendelssohn, Stravinsky, and Barber. This is part of Caramoor's plan to attract a wider audience, including those less familiar with Western classical music.

The summer festival will feature works by various composers, performed by Sphinx Virtuosi on July 7. The orchestra, made up of Black and Latinx musicians, is part of the Sphinx Organization, a nonprofit promoting diversity in the arts. Lewis, a Sphinx alumnus, emphasized the close relationship between the orchestra and Caramoor.

The season will also have familiar features, like the return of the Fourth of July fireworks concert. Broadway and country stars Sutton Foster and Rhiannon Giddens will perform again, and a new chamber series will be introduced. The Music Room will host a Pride concert on June 13, in partnership with The LOFT LGBTQ+ Community Center. Other events include a sound art exhibition, afternoon teas, children’s concerts, and music festivals.

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