Man Without a Home: Joshua Stewart and Courtney Bryan on April 12

A portrait of a man in continual motion

Joshua Stewart captivated Symphony audiences at our Mozart's Requiem concerts last year. The powerful, multifaceted tenor is back on Sunday, April 12 to present Man Without A Home, a deeply personal recital inspired by the culture and legacy of the African diaspora. Stewart will be joined by award-winning pianist and composer Courtney Bryan.

Rather than presenting a single narrative, Man Without a Home allows many musical voices to articulate what it means to search for belonging in spaces not originally designed to hold you. Works by Mozart, Saint-Georges, Leoncavallo, and Chaplin sit alongside spiritual and popular song, revealing how beauty, irony, and suffering often coexist.

Together, these works form a musical portrait of a man not without origin, but in continual motion—finding home not as a fixed place, but as an act of singing, listening, and being fully present.

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JOSHUA STEWART

A leading proponent of contemporary opera, tenor Joshua Stewart has made a name for himself in the world of opera without losing touch with his jazz roots. "He stood out from the very first for his impressive clarion vocality," according to Broadway World; The Stage called him "magnetic and majestic."

Stewart has graced the stages of operas and orchestras around the world. Displaying compelling artistry and versatility, he has performed for world leaders such as King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden and Presidents George H. W. Bush, William J. Clinton, and Barack Obama.

Born and raised in New Orleans, Joshua attended the prestigious New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA) and released his first solo album at age 12. A graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and a former member of Munich’s Bavarian State Opera Studio, Stewart has appeared in productions of directors Christoph Loy, Richard Jones, Olivier Py, and conductors Kent Nagano, Dan Ettinger, and Maurizio Benini. His extraordinary talent has cemented his place as one of the premier tenors of his generation.

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COURTNEY BRYAN

New Orleans native Courtney Bryan is “a pianist and composer of panoramic interests” (New York Times). A Steinway Artist and 2023 MacArthur Fellow, she currently serves as composer-in-residence with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra.

Bryan’s compositions have been performed by Opera Philadelphia, the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Jacksonville Symphony, London Sinfonietta, LA Phil, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and Chicago Sinfonietta in a wide range of renowned venues, including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Walt Disney Concert Hall, and Blue Note Jazz Club.

Recent accolades include the Herb Alpert Award in the Arts (2018), Samuel Barber Rome Prize in Music Composition (2019–2020), United States Artists Fellowship (2020), the Civitella Ranieri Foundation Fellowship (2020–2021), and the Camargo Foundation Fellowship (2025). She is the Albert and Linda Mintz Professor of Music at Newcomb College in the School of Liberal Arts at Tulane University and co-founder of the Jazz Generations Initiative, funded by the Mellon Foundation and sponsored by Jazz Foundation of America.

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🎟️ Tickets are going quickly. 🎟️
reserve yours today!

Our Musician Series performances are held in a smaller, more intimate venue, bringing the musicians up close with the audience. Tickets for this season’s recitals have sold out quickly, leaving some people disappointed. An early purchase is encouraged!

Call Cabrillo Box Office at 831-479-6154 or click the button below to buy tickets online.

Man Without a Home
Joshua Stewart and Courtney Bryan

Sunday, April 12 at 2:00 PM
Samper Hall at Cabrillo College

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Make recitals like this possible

Man Without a Home is generously sponsored by Mary Ann Orr and Burt Rees and co-sponsored by Wendy Gormly-Kester & Kevin Kester. Bringing artists like Joshua Stewart and Courtney Bryan to our community depends on more than ticket sales, which cover just 31% of the true cost of each performance.

A limited number of Co-Sponsorships for this season are still available, offering a meaningful way to support our work, with recognition and opportunities to connect more deeply with the artists and audience.

To learn more, contact Candice Stenstrom, Development Director, at (831) 462-0553 x12 or candice@santacruzsymphony.org.

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🎼 Amadeus: A tale of genius and jealousy

Last spring the Symphony dazzled us with a powerful production of Mozart's Requiem. On March 28/29, Mozart is back again as we dive deeper into his life and work through a world premiere of Amadeus, a new adaptation of the award-winning play. This unique production was specially created by Maestro Stewart for the concert stage.

The story of the life and death of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart has it all: artistic genius, professional jealousy, 18th-century court drama, and unforgettably beautiful music.

Santa Cruz Symphony will join with Cabrillo Symphonic Chorus and guest artists from Santa Cruz Shakespeare and beyond for a collaboration that will have you applauding for more!

Though most people know Amadeus as the most famous movie ever produced about classical music, the story of a toxic rivalry between Mozart and Antonio Salieri began as an 1830 play by Alexander Pushkin. Award-winning playwright Peter Shaffer was inspired to write his own version for Broadway in 1979, which garnered five Tony awards.

Shaffer then adapted his play for the Miloš Forman-directed film Amadeus, a huge commercial and critical hit that swept the Academy Awards in 1984. Like the plays that came before it, the film Amadeus interweaves fact and fiction to create a fantasia on the theme of Salieri and his love/hate relationship with Mozart.

While some have bemoaned the historical inaccuracies of the plays and film, many critics have become more accepting of the creative license taken by Shaffer and his collaborators. Since Amadeus came out, academia's tolerance has grown for movies that question the reputations of exalted geniuses like Mozart.

According to critic Simon Keefe, Amadeus gives us insight into how Mozart approached complex structures as a composer. It also encourages us to reflect on "the blurred line between fact and fiction, and between scholarly and popular perceptions of the man and his music."

Now it's Santa Cruz Symphony's turn to explore this compelling tale. Created by Maestro Stewart for the concert stage, our unique adaptation of Amadeus features the Symphony along with Santa Cruz Shakespeare's Artistic Director Charles Pasternak and actors Anjoli Aguilar, Will Block, and Shaun Carroll in a melding of live theater and symphonic music.

If you attended our Symphonic Shakespeare concerts last spring, you witnessed the enchantment of our collaboration with this incredible organization.

As one audience member told us after the concerts: "What a unique and superbly executed concept -- I had chills on multiple occasions and cried twice! I'm a lover of both music and theater, so this was a magical combination for me. Thank you!"

Our collaboration also includes Cabrillo Symphonic Chorus under the direction of Carlin Truong as they bring the beauty and resonance of their voices to Mozart's choral works.

Join us as we explore and celebrate the complex brilliance of one of the greatest composers of all time. Get your tickets now for this one-of-a-kind concert!

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Meet the actors who bring the story to life

Charles Pasternak is known nationally as a dynamic, compelling actor and director. The Artistic Director of Santa Cruz Shakespeare, his roles with the company have included the title role in Hamlet; Oliver in As You Like It; the Gentleman Caller in The Glass Menagerie (which he also directed); and the adaptor and director of A Christmas Carol. In 2025, he directed Pericles, which played alongside A Midsummer Night's Dream, Into the Woods, and "Master Harold"...and the Boys, and A Christmas Carol.

Charles was the Founding Artistic Director of The Porters of Hellsgate in Los Angeles, CA for over fifteen years. Selected regional credits include American Players Theatre, Shakespeare Center LA, three seasons at Shakespeare Festival, St. Louis and four seasons with Shakespeare Santa Cruz.

“Like a Shakespearean Fred Astaire, he’s so good at his craft that he makes his partners look good.” — PlayShakespeare

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Will Block is thrilled to be making his debut with Santa Cruz Symphony, and to be returning to Santa Cruz Shakespeare, where he appeared as Algy in The Importance of Being Earnest and Tom in The Glass Menagerie in 2024. He will return again to appear as Claudio in Much Ado About Nothing this summer.

Will is an actor, director, producer, and educator known for his work in This is Us, Nick McDow Musleh's Love's Labours Lost, and the original web series The Game. Other credits include Hamlet in Hamlet (ETC Santa Barbara) and roles with the Kingsman Shakespeare Festival, Sierra Rep, La Mirada, Sacramento Theatre Company, and as Flute in Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream with the LA Phil. He is the Artistic Director of the Porters of Hellsgate Theatre Company in Los Angeles.

“Block is a powerhouse!" — Good Times

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Anjoli Aguilar (she/her) is happy to be performing with Santa Cruz Symphony and Santa Cruz Shakespeare.

A San Francisco-based actor who received her BA in Theater from SFSU, her recent credits include Miranda/Ariel in The Tempest with Pacific Repertory Theater, Malcolm in MacBeth with We Players, and a five-clown retelling of The Odyssey performed for the Society of Classical Studies. Catch Anjoli this summer playing Ophelia in Hamlet with SPARC Theatre in Livermore! 

"Aguilar in particular is compelling as Miranda/Ariel through her acrobatic skills and grace." —from a Monterey County Now review of The Tempest

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Shaun Carroll was a staff member of the Jewel Theatre Company in Santa Cruz. There he appeared onstage in Me & My Girl, The Odd Couple, All My Sons, Sylvia, Fallen Angels, and Woman in Mind.

Previously, he has appeared around the greater Bay Area with Sierra Rep, TheatreWorks, Lake Tahoe and San Francisco Shakespeare Festivals, Willows Theatre Company, and CapStage, among others. A craftsman as well as an actor, Shaun also designs props for various companies around the Bay Area.

"A lively evening of theater, thanks in large measure to Carroll!" — Sentinel review of Me and My Girl

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Saturday, March 28 ~ 7:30 PM
Civic Auditorium in Santa Cruz

Sunday, March 29 ~ 2:00 PM
Mello Center in Watsonville

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We are grateful to our Amadeus sponsors:

Concert Sponsors: Owen Brown & Mary Akin, Bob Edmund, Phil & Linda Segal in memory of Helen Jones, Todd & Corinne Wipke

Concert Co-Sponsors: Lee & Emily Duffus

Artist Sponsor: Redtree Partners LLP

Artist Co-Sponsors: Jeannette & Patricia Moretti; Janis O’Driscoll

🇫🇷 Who was the better composer—Debussy or Ravel?

French composers Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel, both creating in the Impressionist style, were often viewed as competitors. Critics regarded Ravel as a lesser imitator of the older Debussy. But is that true?

On Sunday, March 15, piano virtuoso Dr. Gwendolyn Mok will perform selected compositions side-by-side, each on a similar topic. This will allow you to make your own judgments. How are the composers similar? How are they different? Does Ravel really try to imitate Debussy, or does he have his own distinct style?

The Moonlight and Mirrors recital will feature Debussy’s Moonlight Sonata and Ravel’s Miroirs, among other pieces. Dr. Mok will use the piano and visual aids to help you understand and appreciate how the two composers differed and how they were similar even while composing in the same Impressionist style.

Sunday, March 15 at 2:00 PM
Samper Hall at Cabrillo College

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🎟️ For best results, purchase tickets now! 🎟️

Our Musician Series performances are held in a smaller, more intimate venue, bringing the musicians up close with the audience. Tickets for this season’s recitals have sold out quickly, leaving some people disappointed. An early purchase is encouraged! Call Cabrillo Box Office at 831-479-6154 or click the button below to buy tickets online.

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Dr. Gwendolyn Mok has been recognized as one of the top interpreters of Maurice Ravel. Gramophone recently described her rendition of Le Tombeau de Couperin as one of the best four performances from the last century of recordings.

Dr. Mok has taught and performed the complete works of Ravel around the world. Her recent podcasts about his piano concertos have been viewed over 180,000 times, and her lessons on Ravel are featured on Tonebase, a popular teaching platform.

A frequent collaborator, Dr. Mok has appeared as soloist with many Bay Area organizations including the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, Symphony Silicon Valley, and Livermore-Amadore Symphony Orchestra. She has been a regular guest in the San Francisco Chamber Series in Davies Hall, the Chamber Music Sundaes series, and the Berkeley Chamber Performances. She is often featured with the Ives Collective and the Alexander String Quartet, and has appeared as a featured artist in the San Francisco International Piano Festival. Dr. Mok maintains a busy teaching and performing schedule. Learn more here.

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We are grateful to our recital sponsors:

Recital Sponsors: Catharine and James Gill
Recital Co-sponsors: Michael and Colleen Harrison

🦩For the price of a trip to the movies, the entire family can enjoy Santa Cruz Symphony!

Want to experience the Symphony with your family? Bring them to our Family Concert!

On Sunday, March 1, join Maestro Daniel Stewart, beloved Master of Ceremonies Omari Tau, Santa Cruz Symphony, Santa Cruz County Youth Symphony, Cabrillo Youth Chorus, El Sistema, Kuumbwa Jazz Honor Band, International Academy of Dance, and Esperanza del Valle Folklórico for our annual Family Concert. You may even know some of the performers!

This is the perfect way to enjoy an affordable family outing as Santa Cruz Symphony presents Camille Saint-Saëns' The Carnival of the Animals alongside these community partners in the arts.

Sunday, March 1 at 2:00 PM
Civic Auditorium in Santa Cruz

SPECIAL LOW PRICING FOR FAMILIES!

Our Family Concert is the finale of weeks of incredible educational experiences that reach more than 5,000 students, plus their teachers and parents, in Santa Cruz County and beyond.

Santa Cruz Symphony is a partner orchestra with Carnegie Hall for its Link Up program, in which students grades 4–5 at over 50 schools learn to sing and play an instrument in their classrooms.

This year, kids discover the elements that contribute to that magical moment when musicians start to swing in a program called The Orchestra Swings. Though swing is characteristic of jazz, an orchestra can also swing!

During the week before the Sunday Family Concert, we offer a series of rousing weekday Youth Concerts where students from local schools bring their instruments and voices to perform from their seats with Santa Cruz Symphony.

For many students, this is their first time experiencing live orchestral music.

Finally, at the Family Concert on Sunday, March 1, the whole community has the opportunity to see and hear this year's Link Up program (the same energetic repertoire from our Youth Concerts!) performed by Santa Cruz Symphony and our community partners, followed by the timeless classic The Carnival of the Animals.

After the concert, kids get the chance talk to Symphony musicians and hold real musical instruments at the Instrument Petting Zoo!

The Family Concert is a vibrant musical event with entertainment for all ages. Bring the kids—we promise they'll love it, and so will you!

Sunday, March 1 at 2:00 PM
Civic Auditorium in Santa Cruz

These sponsors make our education INITIATIVES possible. Thank you! 🫶

Major Program Sponsor: Monterey Peninsula Foundation

Program Sponsor: The Joseph & Vera Long Foundation

Concert Sponsors: Lee & Emily Duffus; Santa Cruz County Office of Education; Scharf Investments

Concert Co-Sponsors: Catharine & James Gill; Marie & Kent Imai; Rotary Club of Santa Cruz

Civic Auditorium Handrail Installation Project – Update on January 15, 2026

We have exciting news! Installation of the new handrails at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium has officially begun. 

This long-awaited improvement will make moving through the Civic more comfortable and accessible for everyone attending our concerts.

The project is scheduled to be completed by January 24, 2026. We want to thank the City of Santa Cruz staff, Mayor Fred Keely, and the City Council for finding and allocating scarce funds to enhance your concert experience at the Civic Auditorium.

Thank you for your continued support, your patience, and your enthusiasm for both our music and the improvements that make our venues more welcoming. We look forward to seeing you at the Civic Auditorium, the Mello Center, and Samper Hall soon.