The Missouri S&T choirs and symphony orchestra will perform “Da Vinci at the River,” a new cantata written for the university’s 150th anniversary celebration. Dr. Kyle Wernke, assistant teaching professor of music, composed the music and Taylor Gruenloh, assistant teaching professor of theatre, wrote the libretto. The role of Leonardo da Vinci will be performed by local baritone, John Francis.

The concert will begin at 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 5, in Leach Theatre of Castleman Hall, located at the corner of 10th and Main streets on the Missouri S&T campus. For those not able to attend in person, the concert will be livestreamed on YouTube. 

The synopsis of the cantata is that an ancient power conjures the ghost of Leonardo da Vinci and demands that a machine be built. The ghost of da Vinci has doubts about this machine and will languish for over a hundred years caught between innovation and purpose, forced to remember his great deeds and his unfinished promises in life.

The livestream on YouTube can be viewed for free. Tickets to attend the performance in person are $5 in advance or $7 at the door for the public and free to youth, ages 18 and under, and Missouri S&T students with a valid ID. Tickets can be purchased at the Leach Theatre Box Office, located inside the main entrance of Castleman Hall, facing 10th Street. The Leach Theatre Box Office is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets can also be purchased online at leachtheatre.mst.edu or by calling 573-341-4219. Service fees may apply to tickets purchased online or by phone.

For more information on the performance or Missouri S&T’s performing arts programs, contact the arts, languages, and philosophy department by phone at 573-341-4185 or by email at alp@mst.edu.