The Academy of Music Ballroom was a dazzling backdrop for the 400 guests who attended the President's Reception Saturday before the academy's annual white-tie fund-raiser, the
153d Anniversary Concert and Ball
. The room, newly restored to its 1857 splendor, sparkled with its French chandeliers, gold gilt mirrors, and the newly uncovered windows that showed the snow lightly falling outside on Broad Street.
Donors and board members were greeted by Joanna McNeil Lewis, chairman, president, and chief executive officer of the academy; ball cochairs Angela Hudson and Joseph A. Frick; Philadelphia Orchestra chairman Richard B. Worley; and Allison Vulgamore, who began two weeks ago as the new president and chief executive officer of the orchestra.
The Anniversary Concert, which drew a nearly sold-out audience of 2,800, featured pop star Sting, who performed a selection of his hit songs, including "Every Breath You Take," with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
The concert opened with a special salute to the Academy Ballroom. It featured a chorus comprising students from the University of the Arts, singers from the High School for Creative and Performing Arts, and dancers from Ballet II of Pennsylvania Ballet. The program, conducted by Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos, also included a performance by Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Florez.
After the concert, 2,100 guests walked to the nearby Park Hyatt at the Bellevue for the champagne dinner and ball, which boasted seven bands, including the Bob Hardwick Sound, Rosalyn McClore Dance Orchestra, and Pete and J. The evening grossed $2.9 million for the Academy of Music and the orchestra. An additional $1.1 million was raised for the restoration fund.