Vocal and Instrumental Interpretations of Patsy Cline’s Famous Songs, Café Dinner Menu, and FREE Student and SU Faculty Admission to Highlight the Night

Winchester, VA 11/06/13…Musicians from Shenandoah Conservatory’s Musical Theatre Department will pay tribute to Patsy Cline in a cabaret that will highlight a special nighttime opening of the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley (MSV) this Friday, November 8.

The students will perform at 6 p.m., and the MSV galleries—including the special Becoming Patsy Cline exhibition—will be open until 8 p.m. Wine and beer will be available for purchase in the Museum lobby for $5 a glass, and the Museum Café by Bonnie Blue will be open from 5 to 8 p.m.

This special evening at the MSV is free to MSV Members, all Shenandoah University students and faculty (with identification), and youth ages 12 and under. For all others, cost is just $5 and includes the performance and admission to all Museum galleries and the Patsy Cline exhibition. Those planning to attend Friday night’s performance are encouraged to arrive early; seating is limited and will be on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets for performance seating will be available at the Visitor Information Desk beginning at 10 a.m. on Friday.

In their cabaret tribute to Patsy Cline, Shenandoah Conservatory students will present modern interpretations of songs recorded by Patsy Cline throughout her career. The show will include new arrangements of some of the singing legend’s greatest hits, including “Crazy,” “Walkin’ After Midnight,” and “Faded Love.” The cabaret will also feature interpretations of songs that Patsy Cline recorded early in her career, such as “Honky-Tonk Merry-Go-Round.” The cabaret will include at least 8 songs and feature both vocal and instrumental performances. The mandolin, fiddle, guitar, and keyboard will be featured. Conservatory students scheduled to perform include senior Zane Rerek, junior Julia Hoffman, sophomore Jessica James, and freshman Freya Falkenstein.

Patsy Cline (1932–1963) was the first female solo artist inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Today many consider her to be the most popular and influential female country singer in recording history. Despite a career that was cut short by her death in an airplane crash at the age of 30, Patsy Cline recorded 102 songs and three, full-length albums. Her recordings have sold millions of copies worldwide, and she has a star on Hollywood Boulevard and her own stamp with the U.S. Postal Service. Patsy Cline also has received numerous posthumous honors and has been the subject of biographies, musicals, plays, and films. Fifty years after her death, the popularity of her hit recordings, such as “Crazy,” “Walkin’ After Midnight,” “I Fall to Pieces,” and “Sweet Dreams,” endures.

Organized by the MSV in partnership with the Winchester-based organization Celebrating Patsy Cline, Inc. (CPC), Becoming Patsy Cline uses objects, rare photographs, video and audio recordings, and clothing—much of which is on first-time public display—to illustrate Patsy Cline’s Shenandoah Valley story. The exhibition describes the singer’s family history, examines her early influences, and introduces the people whose support and guidance helped Patsy realize her dream of becoming a professional singer. On view in the MSV through July 6, 2014, Becoming Patsy Cline received critical underwriting support from Grove’s Winchester Harley–Davidson, Shenandoah Country Q102, and Winchester Printers, Inc.

The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley is located at 901 Amherst Street in Winchester, Virginia. The MSV complex—which includes galleries, the Glen Burnie House, and six acres of gardens—is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. The Museum galleries are open year-round; the gardens are open April through October. Daytime admission is $10 or $8 for seniors and youth ages 13 to 18. The Museum is always free to youth ages 12 and under and to MSV Members, and it is free to all every Wednesday from 10 a.m. until noon. Additional information is available at www.theMSV.org or by calling 540-662-1473, ext. 235.