Boise Phil cancels 2021-22 opening concert at Morrison Center, will up COVID measures
Idaho’s COVID-19 crisis has struck another blow against the Boise arts world.
On Sunday, the Velma V. Morrison Center and the Boise Philharmonic made a joint announcement that the Boise Phil’s Sept. 18 opening-night concert, “Sounds of Celebration,” had been canceled. And the orchestra’s Encore Ball fundraiser, also scheduled to happen that evening, was postponed until spring.
“Live music will return to our community, but we need your help,” Phil Executive Director Laura Reynolds said in a statement. “We need our community to get vaccinated, wear masks to help slow the spread of this virus, and ease the burden our health care workers are facing. Our musicians are eager to perform and we do look forward to presenting live concerts for you safely in the future.”
The Boise Phil, along with Boise’s other arts groups — Ballet Idaho, Boise Contemporary Theater, Opera Idaho and the Boise Art Museum — shut down their 2020-21 seasons. Many went digital. The Boise Phil produced its 2020-21 season on a Digital Stage. It is available for viewing on various platforms from the BoisePhil.org website.
This concert was the first local arts performance scheduled at the Morrison Center for the 2021-22 season. Although the cancellation was a difficult decision, it was the right one, Reynolds said in a phone interview.
“It was a hard call, but I feel good about it,” Reynolds said. “We will see what happens in the future, but we have good practice in pivoting.”
The Phil will provide options for its audience, including digital access to performances, easy ways to change dates and return tickets as the situation changes.
“I think flexibility will be the theme for the season. We just want everyone to feel safe and just be able to enjoy the music,” Reynolds said.
This opening concert was to be a special event, followed by a $250-a-ticket fundraiser, and not part of the regular season, which is set to kick off in October.
The decision came right after the Morrison Center optimistically, and successfully, pulled off a Reopening Block Party on Saturday, with small outdoor and indoor performances by dance companies Bandaloop and LED.
Masks were mandated while in the building.
In an interview before those shows, Morrison Center Executive Director Laura Kendall foreshadowed the reality of the wait-and-see world that local arts groups are navigating.
“We’re all crossing our fingers and being super responsible and cautious on how we do everything, realizing that we still are in a pandemic,” Kendall said. “We are ready to pivot at any time.”
Kendall said the Morrison Center is prepared to support all the Boise-based arts organizations as they work through a process to return to live performances with additional COVID-19 protocols for audiences. Kendall and her staff will make shifting performance dates as easy as possible for the groups, put in place an easy ticket return policy, and offer timely communications on what to expect, she said.
Plans still are moving ahead for the remainder of the Boise Phil’s Classical Concert Series. The orchestra is working with both its venues — the Morrison and Northwest Nazarene University’s Brandt Center — to create consistent COVID safety protocols, mask mandates, requiring proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test result, and limiting audience capacity. More details will be released shortly, Reynolds said.
The orchestra also will produce a Digital Stage version of its season for patrons who want to watch from home.
The next live concert event for the Boise Phil season is scheduled for Oct. 16-17: “The Shape of Water” features Duke Ellington’s Selections from The River Suite, Garth Neustadter’s Seabourne, with guest artists The Percussion Collective, and the orchestra playing Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade.
Find information on the rest of the season at BoisePhil.org.
Season Tickets:
- Boise mini-series (4 concerts): $100 to $320 general; Full series (7 concerts): $175-$560 general.
- Nampa mini-series (4 concerts): $100 -$240 general; Full series (7 concerts): $175-$420 general.
- Individual tickets: $28 to $89 general in Boise; $28 to $67 general in Nampa.
This story was originally published September 13, 2021 at 4:16 PM.
