While St. Patrick’s Day usually calls to mind traditional Irish tunes, the Irish Baroque Orchestra is charting a different course.
Join Ireland’s time-traveling orchestra on a journey to 18th-century Dublin, where Italian opera stars, European composers, and musical spectacle once captivated the city.
Offering a fresh and historically rich way to mark the holiday, “The Trials of Tenducci” comes to the Center for the Arts Tuesday, Mar. 17, at 7:30 p.m.
Led by artistic director Peter Whelan, the performance explores the extraordinary story of Giusto Tenducci, a celebrated Italian castrato who took Dublin by storm in 1765. “The Trials of Tenducci” features works by Mozart, Gluck, J.C. Bach, JC Fisher, Giordani, and Arne, composers whose music once echoed through Ireland’s theaters and salons during a period of remarkable cultural exchange.
The orchestra is joined by rising star countertenor Hugh Cutting, whose expressive artistry gives voice to this captivating repertoire and its larger-than-life central figure. Its 2026 U.S. tour includes only two stops: Blacksburg and New York City.
The Olivier Award-winning Irish Baroque Orchestra is Ireland’s flagship period music ensemble and delivers world-class performances across Ireland and abroad. The orchestra is led by Whelan, an acclaimed artist with an extensive and award-winning discography as a solo bassoonist and a particular passion for exploring and championing neglected music from the Baroque and Classical eras. Under his artistic direction, scholarship and musical excellence converge in a unique way, creating an original offering unlike any other on the Irish classical music scene. Through this integration of research and practice, the very idea of an orchestra is reimagined, creating an unusual and enriching experience for today’s audiences.
In February 2022 the orchestra made its debut at the Linbury Theatre, Royal Opera House, London with Vivaldi’s “Bajazet,” a co-production from Irish National Opera and the Royal Opera House. The excellence of this work was recognized with an Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Opera. A critically acclaimed return to the Linbury Theatre took place in 2024, with Vivaldi’s “L’Olimpiade.”
The performance is supported in part by gifts from Erv Blythe and Susan M. Hansen. Additional funding is provided by the G. Davis Saunders Jr. Fund for Excellence. The performance is also supported by Culture Ireland and Global Dream Travel. Donor support makes it possible for the Center for the Arts to present world-class performances and meaningful engagement opportunities for students and the community.
Tickets are $25-$65 for general audience and $10 for students and youth 18 and under. Tickets can be purchased online; at the Center for the Arts box office, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday; or by calling 540-231-5300 during box office hours.
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