Bienvenue, maestro Stéphane Denève (pictured at top). The new, 13th music director of our St. Louis Symphony Orchestra will inherit the baton full time from David Robertson for the 2019-20 season. Denève, a frequent guest conductor here, is currently music director of the Brussels Philharmonic and is a graduate of and prize-winner from the Paris Conservatoire.
At the Urban League’s Salute to Women in Leadership gala, gospel recording artist Yolanda Adams (left) and R&B singer and actress Freda Payne were honored with Lifetime Achievement Awards. Congratulations, ladies!
St. Louis’ Fabulous Fox Theatre is the final stop on the farewell tour of the popular musical Mamma Mia. After 15 years on the road (mamma mia!), the show plays here July 28 through 30.
Major props go out to St. Louisans Elizabeth Rohrbaugh (Clayton ‘97) and Daniel Powell (MICDS ‘96) for the recognition earned by their full-length film, Becks. The drama about a Brooklyn musician who relocates to be near her lover and ends up moving in with her disapproving mother premiered last week at the L.A. Film Festival.
It also was chosen as the centerpiece film at the Frameline Festival in San Francisco, the international LGBTQ film competition. Becks stars Lena Hall and Mena Suvari.
In a major philanthropic move the Edison family has gifted Washington University School of Medicine $10 million to support the Center for Genome Sciences and Systems Biology. Among the research enhanced by this gift are efforts to better understand the gut microbiome, the microbes that colonize the human gut and impact human health. Pictured: Dr. Jeffrey Gordon with postdoctoral researchers Carrie Cowardin and Dr. Vanderlene Kung
