MUSE/IQUE's Uncorked Series resumes on Sunday, February 8th with LIBERTY/CONCEIVED as part of Pasadena Civic Center's Exhibition Hall C ribbon-cutting ceremony.

MUSE/IQUE's Uncorked Series resumes on Sunday, February 8th with LIBERTY/CONCEIVED as part of Pasadena Civic Center's Exhibition Hall C ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Special guest narrator Courtney B. Vance, Naomi O'Connell and Brenton Ryan to join Rachael Worby, along with the orchestra of MUSE/IQUE and the DfK Vocal Ensemble.

PASADENA, Calif., Jan. 23, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- MUSE/IQUE, the innovative counter-conventional orchestral organization led by visionary conductor Rachael Worby, will be taking the stage in the Civic Exhibition Hall C on February 8(th) for LIBERTY/CONCEIVED. After nearly 40 years of closure due to renovations, this extraordinary event will serve as Pasadena Center Operating Company's (PCOC) inaugural event for the re-opening of the historic Exhibition Hall C.

http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnvar/20150123/171082

"MUSE/IQUE is a unique and inspired live musical organization. It's appropriate that MUSE/IQUE's Uncorked Series tribute to Abraham Lincoln will be the first major event to fill Pasadena's renovated historic exhibition hall," said Michael Ross, Chief Executive Officer of the Pasadena Center Operating Company, which includes the Pasadena Convention Center and Pasadena Civic Auditorium. "We are thrilled that an event of this stature and importance will re-open the hall. This is the ideal location for what we know will be an exciting and exceptional experience for the audience and the performers alike."

Artistic Director Rachael Worby traces Lincoln's love of music and art with special guest narrator, Courtney B. Vance, and features deep American favorites like "Battle Hymn of the Republic," "Go Down Moses," and "I Wish I Was in Dixie's Land." The performance culminates with the work of Aaron Copland. In his brilliant composition, Lincoln Portrait, the dean of American composers and the hero of our history come together to set our national imagination aloft.

Award-winning stage and screen actor Courtney B. Vance will join Ms. Worby and the artists of MUSE/IQUE with the narration of Lincoln Portrait and special readings of the Gettysburg Address and Walt Whitman.

From studying history at Harvard to making history in Hollywood, Courtney B. Vance has carefully cultivated an exceptional career that showcases his passion, talent, and intellect. His penchant for successfully finding the dignity and honor in each character he explores has made this award-winning actor a powerful presence from the theatrical boards to the silver screen.

Currently, Courtney appears in NBC's new series "State of Affairs" as the First Gentlemen to Alfre Woodard's President Payton; and will also be seen in a pivotal episode on ABC's "Scandal." He has been honored with a NAACP Image Award Nomination for his portrayal of Dr. Charles Hendricks, Chief of Staff at Buell Green Hospital on Showtime's "Masters of Sex." He was honored as the winner of the 2013 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play and received a Drama League Distinguished Performance Award nomination for his stellar performance as Hap Hairston in Nora Ephron's Lucky Guy.

Harvard was where Courtney began to hone his craft by appearing with the Boston Shakespeare Company and Shakespeare and Company. During his tenure at the Yale School of Drama, he appeared with Yale Repertory Theatre and at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center. His first Tony Award nomination, the Theater World Award and the Clarence Derwent Award were all earned for his Broadway debut performance in August Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Fences starring James Earl Jones and directed by the late Lloyd Richards. Courtney received his second Tony Award nomination when he starred in John Guare's Six Degrees of Separation with the luminous Stockard Channing and directed by Jerry Zaks.

Courtney was also the recipient of an Obie Award for his work in Athol Fugard's My Children! My Africa! He also starred at the Public Theater in Vaclav Havel's Temptation with David Strathairn, and as Mercutio in Romeo & Juliet. He and his wife, Angela Bassett, starred together in John Guare's U.S. premiere of the stage adaptation of His Girl Friday and The Front Page at Minneapolis' renowned Guthrie Theater.

Some of Courtney's prolific Film and Television work includes: Hurricane Season, Cookie's Fortune, Final Destination 5, The Divide, The Preacher's Wife, Space Cowboys, Hamburger Hill, Huck Finn, The Hunt For Red October, Joyful Noise, USA's "Graceland," ABC's "Revenge," CBS's "Extraordinary Measures," ABC/Disney's "Flash Forward," Showtime's "Blind Faith" and "Twelve Angry Men" with the late George C. Scott & Jack Lemmon, August Wilson's "The Piano Lesson" for Hallmark, HBO's Emmy-nominated "The Tuskegee Airmen," TNT's "The Closer," NBC's "ER" (playing husband to his real life wife Angela Bassett), and NBC's long-running "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," in which he played asst. DA Ron Carver. Courtney was the recipient of an NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Drama series for his long-time portrayal of this role.

A native Detroiter, Courtney graduated with a BA from Harvard, received his MFA from Yale School of Drama, and is a proud Ambassador of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. He and Angela are the proud parents of 9-year-old twins, Bronwyn Golden and Slater Josiah.

LIBERTY/CONCEIVED is part of MUSE/IQUE's signature 2014/2015 UNCORKED Series. Uncorked Series events take place in improvised urban venues and feature a rule-breaking mix of artists, performance disciplines and music genres. Each performance is preceded by wine, mingling and opportunities to explore the iconic locales that serve as the impromptu concert halls for the series.

"The Uncorked Series is a musical tiger by the tail," said Artistic Director Rachael Worby. "We started with a few friends and folding chairs in a warehouse three years ago, and we discovered an audience that is curious and hungry for new adventures. Through Uncorked events, we built a vibrant member base that packs every event we create. In these latest editions to the series, we are thanking that audience with breathtaking new locations, thrilling new artists and as always a wild mix of the unexpected."

MUSE/IQUE is a nonprofit (501c3) charitable organization.

AUDIENCE AND TICKET INFO

Members of the general public may attend for free with unreserved seating or standing around the perimeter of the ballroom. Member check-in will take place as usual near the member designated preferred seating.

Sunday, February 8, 2015
6:00 p.m. Ribbon-cutting ceremony outside the Exhibition Hall C.
6:30 p.m. Mingling and rediscovering this landmark building
7:30 p.m. Music begins

Tickets are free with a MUSE/IQUE membership, which ranges from $125 to $1,000. For tickets and additional membership information, please call the Box Office at (626) 539-7085 or visit www.muse-ique.org.

Paid parking is available in two different locations: Marengo Avenue to the west and Euclid Avenue to the east between Green Street and Cordova

PR Contact: Elliot Jackson
Phone: (626) 539-7085
elliot@muse-ique.com

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150123/171082

SOURCE MUSE/IQUE

Photo:http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150123/171082
http://photoarchive.ap.org/
MUSE/IQUE

Web Site: http://muse-ique.com


-------
Profile: intent