PRESS RELEASES
| FLY ME TO THE MOON: A TRIBUTE TO QUINCY JONES Featuring the Pacific Jazz Orchestra with special guests Ms. Lisa Fischer and José James
The Soraya will pay homage to the giant of American music, Quincy Jones, on Saturday, Oct. 18 at 8 p.m. The concert, featuring vocalists Ms. Lisa Fisher and José James, will be led by Chris Walden as conductor of his Pacific Jazz Orchestra’s 17-piece big band. This carefully curated concert will celebrate the artist’s work from the 1960’s to 1978, immersing audiences in the quintessential sounds of Quincy Jones.
| The Soraya Launches its 2025-26 Classical Music Series with the Colburn Orchestra on Sunday, Oct. 26 at 3 p.m.
Acclaimed for its passion, exuberance, and virtuosity, The Colburn Orchestra will return to The Soraya for the opening of the 2025-26 Classical Series on Sunday afternoon, October 26. Mexican conductor and GRAMMY Award-winner Carlos Miguel Prieto takes the podium in The Soraya’s tradition of presenting major figures of the orchestral world conducting the flagship orchestra from the Colburn Conservatory of Music. As an influential cultural leader, Maestro Prieto is a champion of new music and music education, and for the occasion here, he has chosen a program that highlights the talents of the next generation of classical musicians.
| Escape the Outside World and Fly Down the Rabbit Hole when The Soraya Presents MOMIX’s Newest Production Alice
Get ready to fall down the rabbit hole, Los Angeles! The internationally acclaimed dance-illusionist company MOMIX is bringing their mesmerizing production, ALICE, a magical journey inspired by a classic, to The Soraya for one performance only on Saturday, Nov. 22 at 3 p.m.
| GRAHAM100 The Soraya Presents the Culmination of a Three-Season Celebration of the Martha Graham Dance Company’s 100th Anniversary
The final season of Martha Graham Dance Company’s (MGDC) three-year centennial celebration premieres at The Soraya with three monumental pieces: The World Premiere of En Masse; Graham’s 1947 Night Journey with music by William Schuman, a rarely seen work based on Oedipus; and We the People, by choreographer Jamar Roberts with a folk score by Rhiannon Giddens, a 2024 creation inspired by Graham’s longstanding sociopolitical critique.
| Mariachi Herencia de México Opens The Soraya’s Hecho en Las Américas Series with Special Guest Leonardo Aguilar
The Soraya’s Hecho en Las Américas Series returns for its 11th season, premiering at 8 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 26 with Mariachi Herencia de México and special guest Leonardo Aguilar. Tickets start at $52 and are now available at TheSoraya.org.
| Through the Eyes of David Labkovski: Sholem Aleichem and His Heroes On Display in The Soraya’s Art Gallery Sept. through Dec. 2025
A new art exhibition titled, Through the Eyes of David Labkovski: Sholem Aleichem and His Heroes, will be unveiled during The Soraya’s Season Opening Weekend performances of Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish, Sept. 13 and 14, 2025. The display, located in the performing art center’s Loge Level Art Gallery creates a living bridge from the lessons of the Holocaust to the realities of today’s world and will share a special selection of original works from the renowned Lithuanian Israeli Jewish Artist David Labkovski (1906-1991).
| CAST JUST ANNOUNCED: A Soraya Concert Production and West Coast Premiere of National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene’s Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish
Casting has been announced for The Soraya’s concert production of National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene’s Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish. The Soraya will open its 2025-26 Season with a lively concert production of this beloved musical, led by Tony Award nominee Steven Skybell. For this West Coast premiere, most of the original cast members will return, joined by a Los Angeles-based ensemble and orchestra.
| Announcing The Soraya’s 2025–26 Season
The Soraya’s 15th Anniversary Season was unveiled last evening at the annual Executive Director’s Dinner held at the award-winning performing arts center on the CSUN campus. Executive and Artistic Director Thor Steingraber shared details of the 2025–26 Season which includes 41 performances across 32 events, and will run from Sept. 13, 2025, to Apr. 25, 2026.
| Renowned Jazz Artist Diana Krall Returns to The Soraya in Her Only L.A. Appearance
GRAMMY® Award-winning and multi-platinum jazz singer Diana Krall returns to The Soraya for one night on May 14, 2025, as her only Los Angeles stop on her nationwide 35-city U.S. tour. Spanning over four months, the tour will make stops in Las Vegas, San Diego, Portland, Pittsburgh, Nashville, and more before concluding in Atlanta, GA on July 11. Krall will return to The Soraya for the first time in 10 years for one night only at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, May 14. Tickets are Limited and can be found at TheSoraya.org.