By Brooklynn Wong
On Sunday, Jan. 21, the Orange County Symphonic Pops put on a production entitled “From Page to Stage to Silver Screen” at the Anaheim Center for the Performing Arts on the lovely, sprawling campus of Servite High School.
Conductor Pollyanna Gorman gave a pre-concert talk, and then the lights went down, the musicians tuned up, and the performance began.
The first piece set the tone nicely, as a microcosm of the entire evening, as it was a composite piece of highlights from several soundtracks, including those of “A Summer Place” and “42nd Street.”
A lengthier musical visit was then paid to 10 different works of stage and cinema.
Gorman briefly spoke between each piece, introducing it, giving a short summary of the show it came from, or giving historical context.
Particularly poignant and engaging were the selections from “Jurassic Park,” “Les Miserables,” “Mary Poppins,” and “My Fair Lady.”
The Pops are a sub-division of the Orange County Symphony, along with the Orange County Wind Symphony.
The group is not-for-profit and relies on donors, but their funding goes towards putting music education back in Anaheim area schools.
The group was made up of 36 members, ranging in age.
The conductor is originally from Orange County, but has toured and performed across Europe and is one of the first female conductors for a community group in the area. She is also a musician herself and has played French Horn on a movie soundtrack.
Save for a few technical difficulties and seams, the show was a delight, displaying very talented local musicians and their passionate conductor.
Orange County is fortunate to have a plethora of performing groups in its backyard, and a ticket to an evening of performance by the Orange County Symphony is well worth it. Their next performance is in March, again at Servite High School.
