Hanover Theatre to Celebrate Legacy of Music Worcester

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Jeffrey Starr, GoLocalWorcester Contributor

Stasia Hovensian was the executive director of Music Worcester for almost 39 years and oversaw many beneficial changes.

The Hanover Theatre will be honoring the Legacy of Music Worcester this Sunday as part of the ongoing Access Hanover Lyceum. The special tribute will take a look at the many milestones of this 152 year old organization, from the early years to its golden age, when guest stars included Arthur Fieldler, Beverly Sills, Isaac Stern, Duke Ellington and Itzhak Perlman, among many more of some of the world's most famous musicians. Music Worcester is still enriching the Central Mass community to this day, building on the important legacy of the nation's oldest music festival.

The main speaker at the event will be Stasia Hovensian, who was a very successful executive director of Music Worcester for almost 39 years. She will be sharing perspectives, insights and remembrances from an incredible time in Worcester's cultural history.

Stasia Hovensian

"Stasia served as Executive Director of Music Worcester for almost 39 years. During that time so many significant events happened both to Music Worcester and Worcester itself - Worcester Auditorium serving as the main venue for cultural events, the re-opening of Mechanics Hall as an acoustic concert venue, the opening of The Hanover Theatre where she still serves on the Board, the switch from Music Worcester being a festival to a series, etc," remarks Adrien Finlay, the current executive director of Music Worcester.

"Central to her tenure at Music Worcester was an unwavering commitment to artistic excellence. She is responsible for bringing Dave Brubeck, Academy of St Martin in the Fields, Natalie MacMaster, professional ballet companies, Chris Botti, and so many others to Worcester for the first time. The current range of programming offered by Music Worcester, from folk and jazz to classical, is a reflection of her decades of work, and effort."

Adrien will also be in attendance, giving a presentation on what Music Worcester has accomplished during its long and illustrious existence.

Troy Siebels, executive director of the Hanover Theatre, will be leading the discussion with Stasia.

"We thought it would be interesting to hear her perspectives on how the city and the cultural sector in particular has changed during that time, and we thought it a fitting way to pay tribute to Stasia as she has departed the position this past year," says Siebels.

"We do a series of Access Hanover Lyceum Series events; this function is a part of that series. Stasia Hovenesian served as Music Worcester’s executive director and was a leader in Worcester’s cultural scene for many years."

The Worcester Cultural Community's Proud History

Above all, the event is intended to benefit the greater Worcester cultural community, being designed to make the general public aware of Music Worcester's incredibly interesting and important past all while celebrating it at the same time. All are welcome to attend, especially those who at one point or another have contributed to this history.

"It’s... about being a good community partner. I expect that those who have worked with Stasia or been involved or members of Music Worcester in recent decades will likely be most interested, but all are welcome," Siebels remarks.

For more information on this and other events involving the Hanover Theatre or Music Worcester please click here and here. This Access Hanover Lyceum event is free for members of the Hanover Theatre and Music Worcester and their guests and $10 for the general public.