The UNLV Performing Arts Center welcomes a true living legend of classical music, Pepe Romero, at 8 p.m. on Saturday, January 8 as part of the Charles Vanda Master Series. Dubbed the "ambassador of classical guitar" in a career that has spanned nearly six decades, The New York Times calls his artistry "subtle, ... spontaneous, and virtuosic."
At age seven, Romero set foot on stage for the first time, performing at the Teatro Lope de Vega in Sevilla, Spain. Now, more than 50 years later, he has given literally thousands of concerts worldwide, many with the remarkable Romero Quartet, and many as a solo instrumentalist. He has worked with almost every major conductor alive, and has to his credit more than 60 recordings, among which are 20 concerto recordings with the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, with both Neville Marriner and Iona Brown.
Romero has performed at the White House, the Vatican for Pope John Paul II, for HRH Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, King Juan Carlos and Queen Sophia of Spain, and Queen Beatrice of Holland. He has been a special guest at music festivals in Salzburg, Israel, Schleswig-Holstein, Menuhin Festival, Osaka, Granada, Istanbul, Ravinia, Garden State, Hollywood Bowl, Blossom, Wolf Trap, and Saratoga, among many others.
In the United States, he has appeared with leading symphony orchestras in Philadelphia, Cleveland, Chicago, Houston, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Boston, San Francisco, Dallas, New York, and Los Angeles, as well as with the Orpheus Chamber Ensemble and Boston Pops.
Tickets to Pepe Romero are $30, $45, and $65 and can be purchased at the Performing Arts Center Box Office at 895-ARTS (2787) or by visiting pac.unlv.edu. Student rush tickets are $13 each and available one hour prior to each event, based on availability and with valid student I.D. UNLV faculty and staff discounts also are available. A $1.25 facilities fee, in addition to the ticket price, is charged on all Performing Arts Center tickets. The box office is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. Information about all of the season's performances can be found on the Performing Arts Center website, located at pac.unlv.edu.
Founded in 1976, the Performing Arts Center at UNLV continues to be Southern Nevada's premier performing arts venue. Located on the north end of the UNLV campus, the PAC hosts a variety of performances each year in three distinct series - the Charles Vanda Master Series, the New York Stage & Beyond Series, and the UNLV Classical Guitar Series. UNLV and Vegas PBS are graciously sponsoring the season.
