CONTACT: Louisa Spier Jeanette Peach Cal Performances Cal Performances (510) 919-6649 (949) 378-7338 [email protected] [email protected]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 5, 2020 Press Room Cal Performances at Home online press kit

CAL PERFORMANCES AT UC BERKELEY PRESENTS AN EVENING WITH YO-YO MA AS PART OF CAL PERFORMANCES AT HOME, PERFORMING ARTS STREAMING SERIES FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27 AT 7PM (PST)

This performance will be viewable for two weeks following the streaming premiere

Fall 2020 streaming series features a premiere each week through January 14, 2021

This performance will be free for all currently registered UC Berkeley undergraduate and graduate students

Berkeley, November 5, 2020 — Cal Performances at UC Berkeley presents Yo-Yo Ma in a virtual recital premiere that will begin streaming on Friday, November 27 at 7pm (PST). The performance is one of 16 new, professionally produced full-length performances in the Cal Performances at Home performing arts streaming series, and will be available free of charge to all currently registered UC Berkeley undergraduate and graduate students. A recording of a new performance will premiere each week through January 14, 2021. On the evenings of each streaming premiere, a special digital “watch party” will feature a participatory live chat element. More information about Cal Performances at Home can be found at calperformances.org/at-home.

WHO World-renowned cellist and humanitarian Yo-Yo Ma returns to Cal Performances for a special online performance. Ma was originally scheduled to perform this fall at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley alongside , , , and vocalist Aoife O'Donovan in Not Our First Goat Rodeo, and Cal Performances is pleased to be able to present him instead as part of the inaugural Cal Performances at Home season. Cal Performances has been presenting Ma since 1997, in solo recital and with world renowned artists including the Mark Morris Dance Group, pianist Emanuel Ax, and the Silkroad Ensemble. In 2014 Ma was honored with the Cal Performances Award of Distinction, recognizing his dedication to and

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exceptional achievements in the performing arts. Since the start of the pandemic Ma has been posting videos of himself playing “Songs of Comfort,” to provide hope and comfort in this unprecedented time.

WHAT Professionally produced, full-length streaming performance.

Program to be announced.

WHEN Streaming premiere Friday, November 27 at 7pm (PST). Following the premiere, this performance will be available for on-demand viewing for two weeks, from November 28 to December 12, 2020.

WHERE Viewable online, streamed to any device with an internet connection. Access to the event will be provided upon registration. For more information on how to view Cal Performances at Home, please visit calperformances.org/at-home/frequently-asked- questions.

TICKETS $15 for a single viewer, $30 for two viewers, and $60 per household viewing. Tickets are available at calperformances.org/at-home or by phone at (510) 642-9988.

This performance will be available free of charge to all currently registered UC Berkeley undergraduate and graduate students. Students can reserve their free access to the streamed program at calperformances.org/events/2020-21/at-home/an- evening-with-yo-yo-ma/; CalNet student authentication is required.

Cal Performances at Home content is also a benefit for Cal Performances donors at the $225 level and above. For more information on becoming a donor, please visit calperformances.org/friends.

MORE CONTENT: By the time Yo-Yo Ma’s performance premieres on November 27, the Cal Performances at Home library of offerings will feature performances streamable on demand by violinist Tessa Lark and pianist Andrew Armstrong, the Tetzlaff Quartet, Nathalie Joachim and Spektral Quartet, Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society, Manual Cinema, the Matthew Whitaker Quartet, and cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han. All performances are available for three months following their premiere date except where indicated, and can be found at calperformances.org/at-home.

Over 40 Now, More Than Ever YouTube playlists of the performing arts, curated by Jeremy Geffen since the beginning of sheltering-in-place orders, can be found at news.calperformances.org/now-more-than-ever.

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PRESS Complimentary press passes are available for reviewing journalists who wish to view the streaming premiere live on Friday, November 27 at 7pm (PST). To request a press pass for the streaming premiere, please email [email protected].

Video of a conversation between Yo-Yo Ma and Cal Performances executive and artistic director Jeremy Geffen, featuring questions sourced from UC Berkeley students, will be live beginning one half-hour before the streaming premiere. Advance access to the interview is available for journalists by request. Send inquiries to [email protected].

Photos of Yo-Yo Ma are available to download from the online press kit.

CALENDAR EDITORS, PLEASE NOTE: CAL PERFORMANCES PRESENTS

STREAM PREMIERE Friday, November 27, 7pm (PST)

An Evening with Yo-Yo Ma

World-renowned cellist and humanitarian Yo-Yo Ma returns to Cal Performances for a special online performance. Ma was originally scheduled to perform this fall at the Hearst Greek Theatre in Berkeley alongside Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer, Chris Thile, and vocalist Aoife O'Donovan in Not Our First Goat Rodeo, and Cal Performances is pleased to be able to present him instead as part of the inaugural Cal Performances at Home season. Cal Performances has been presenting Ma since 1997, in solo recital and with world renowned artists including the Mark Morris Dance Group, pianist Emanuel Ax, and the Silkroad Ensemble. In 2014 Ma was honored with the Cal Performances Award of Distinction, recognizing his dedication to and exceptional achievements in the performing arts. Since the start of the pandemic Ma has been posting videos of himself playing “Songs of Comfort,” to provide hope and comfort in this unprecedented time.

Tickets: $15 for a single viewer, $30 for two viewers, and $60 per household viewing. This performance will be available free of charge to all currently registered UC Berkeley undergraduate and graduate students.

Following the premiere, this performance will be available for on-demand viewing for two weeks, from November 28 to December 12, 2020.

Pre-performance programming begins at 6:30pm (PST).

– Cal Performances –