On Saturday, February 7th the Bucks County Opera Association held their annual gala in New Hope, PA. This year it was called Putting on the Ritz for Peggy.
Peggy Hoffman Adams, who passed away in November 2008, was more than a member of BCOA. She was a force in Bucks County- a business woman, an art lover - but more than that, a lover of AVA. Peggy enjoyed a good party and this one would have been right up her alley!
The decorations were pure speakeasy and the AVA singers, Michelle Johnson, Taylor Staylon and Steven LaBrie, under the musical direction of Jose Melendez, sang some Gershwin and classic Broadway along with the opera selections.
Along with the dinner and concert was a silent auction with some incredible items, such as dinner for six in a Revolutionary War Era house.
Yours truly was there to rouse the guests at the Cash Appeal. All monies raised will go towards the Bucks County Opera Association Fellowship at AVA. I needed something to "grab the crowd", so to speak, so I plied them with homemade apple fritters from the Quakertown (Bucks County) Farmer’s Market. Everyone who donated at the Cash Appeal Auction were given a fritter…and from what I hear, they were a hit!
Thanks to crack photographer Heather Chalmers for sending me these great shots.
1. Tenor Taylor Stayton and soprano Michelle Johnson
2. Executive Director of AVA Kevin McDowell, board member P. Jeffrey Warden, and me
3. Taylor Stayton, board member and gala co-chair Barbara Donnelly, South Jersey Opera Association vice-president John McCarthy, Michelle Johnson, Steven LaBrie, and Jose Melendez
4. AVA board member Ann Stephenson
5. Co-chairs of the event, and AVA board members Susan Kane and Barbara Donnelly (telling someone to donate!)
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