Virginia Symphony returns to William & Mary for concert under the stars
Under the Stars: The Virginia Symphony Orchestra plays at the Martha Wren Briggs Amphitheatre at Lake Matoaka in 2019. The VSO returns to W&M this year on Sept. 2 for another concert under the stars. Photo by Skip Rowland '83
The Virginia Symphony Orchestra returns to William & Mary Sept. 2 to present a free concert at the Martha Wren Briggs Amphitheatre at Lake Matoaka.
The event, which is part of the “Symphony Under the Stars'' series, begins at 7:30 p.m., with gates opening at 6:30 p.m. The concert is presented by the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, William & Mary, the W&M Student Assembly and the City of Williamsburg.
While the admission is free, wristbands are required for admittance and will be available beginning at 6 p.m. in the amphitheatre’s ticket booth area. The wristbands will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis for community guests and W&M students until capacity is reached.
While masks are not required outdoors at W&M, they are recommended for large, outdoor gatherings. However, masks are required indoors at W&M, including the restrooms at the venue.
Beach chairs and blankets are welcome. Guests are also invited to bring personal coolers and picnic baskets; however, glass bottles and external alcoholic beverages are not permitted. All bags and coolers will be inspected prior to entry. Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase inside the venue, along with a limited selection of food items.
General parking will be available at William & Mary’s parking deck, which is located at 201 Ukrop Way, until it reaches capacity. Larger vehicles should park at Kaplan Arena, where overflow parking will be available.
Handicap parking spaces are available in the Boswell Hall (formerly Morton Hall) parking lot, and golf carts will provide transportation to the venue for guests with limited mobility.
Because parking spaces are expected to open at the end of the workday, visitors to campus are encouraged to wait until after 5 to seek parking.
The concert’s program will include a variety of pieces, ranging from “Shall We Dance?” from “The King and I” to Pharrell Williams’ hit song “Happy,” which was featured in “Despicable Me 2.” No intermission is planned.
Several members of the VSO are also members of the W&M music faculty, including Joanne White, an instructor of flute; Sherie Aguirre, an instructor of oboe and principal oboist for the orchestra; and David Vonderheide, an instructor of trumpet and principal trumpet with VSO.
In case of inclement weather, the concert is expected to be rescheduled for Sept. 8.
