Grammy-Winning Family Rocker Dan Zanes to Perform

Five-Member Backup Band, Young Local Steel Drummers to Join Zanes

”Good ol’ fashioned pop music for all ages.”—Esquire, on Dan Zanes

The Wexner Center presents family-music superstar Dan Zanes and Friends in a special engagement Saturday, March 28 at 11 am in Mershon Auditorium as part of the International Performing Arts Series for Families.
A Grammy Award-winner, Zanes is known for incorporating music as culturally diverse as contemporary Spanish salsa and old English maritime tunes, and this concert for all ages will include one of his famous “dance parties” with the audience. Zanes will be accompanied by Colin Brooks, Sonia de los Santos, John Foti, Saskia Sunshine Lane, and Elena Moon Park—and in a special collaboration, he will also be joined by 10 young members of the Steel Drum Ensemble from Columbus City Schools' Arts Impact Middle School.

SHOW INFORMATION: Dan Zanes and Friends will perform on Saturday, March 28 at 11 a.m. in Mershon Auditorium at the Wexner Center for the Arts, 1871 N. High St. Tickets are $25 for the general public, $20 for members, students, and senior citizens, and $17 for kids 18 and under. Free for children 1 and under. For tickets, (614) 292-3535 or ticketmaster.com.

Zanes began his career in the ’80s with indie rock band The Del Fuegos before turning his focus to music for kids. He has since gained recognition through appearances on the Disney Channel and the international stage, as well as top-selling CDs. His Catch That Train won the 2007 Grammy for best musical album for children, and last year’s Spanish-language release, ¡Nueva York! (2008), explores rhythms and melodies inspired by the Latino community around the world. His brand-new CD The Welcome Table—Songs of Inspiration, Mystery, and Good Times is a collection of new and old songs inspired by North American gospel traditions. The New York Times writes about Zanes’s music: “True children’s music, but executed with such sweet (and un-gooey!) humor, casual multiculturalism and shambling groove that you can call it your own.”

See videos of Zanes’s “All Around the Kitchen” and “Jump Up” here and here.
For more information on Dan Zanes and Friends, visit www.danzanes.com.

This season’s International Performing Arts Series for Families will conclude April 24–25 with Sursaut compaigne de danse from Canada in a performance of the fantasy At Nightfall.

 

SUPPORT:

 

Major support for the Wexner Center’s 2008–09 education season is generously provided by Battelle.

The Wexner Center’s 2008-09 International Performing Arts Series for Families is presented with generous support from Bob Evans Farms, Target, and Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams.

Promotional support for the series is provided by Suburban News Publications.

All education programs and events also receive support from the Corporate Annual Fund of the Wexner Center Foundation and Wexner Center members, as well as from the Greater Columbus Arts Council, The Columbus Foundation, Nationwide Foundation, and the Ohio Arts Council.