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BHS Chorus 2014 Trip to Spain
In what is being talked about all over town as “shocking, unbelievable” or simply “you’re kidding” is the announcement yesterday that legendary music teacher, musical director, and choreographer of Branford High’s spring musicals, Cathyann Roding, is retiring after a 38-year career, the last 32 at Branford.
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In an email announcement to friends she wrote, “It’s finally time for me to stop… breathe… and relax just a little.” She added, “Anyway… I am leaving with no regrets, feeling very proud of all that my students and I have done over the years.” She indicated she has no plans and wants to just take it easy for a while. “I’d even just like to stay in bed and get some extra sleep for a change,” she said with a smile.
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Over the years, her remarkable career at Branford led to her groups singing at many historic places such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and the Kennedy Center. And they have been regulars at the annual Branford Festival for over 25 years.(pictured.) They will perform again this year on Friday, June 16, in what will be her final performance.
Starting in 1985 with her first musical “Pippin” and ending last month with the production of “Titanic,” Roding has choreographed many outstanding Broadway musicals, including “42nd Street,” “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Phantom of the Opera,” and “Les Miserables” among others, before sellout audiences. They even performed for the late Pope John Paul II in Rome in 1996.
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At Practice
Over the years, she has taken her choral group on tour to France, England, Ireland, Germany Switzerland, Scotland, Spain, and last year to Austria and the Czech Republic, where they developed the idea for their upcoming concert at Yale’s Woolsey Hall on April 30.
“It was suggested by a former member of our choral group that if we ever visit Prague we stop at the John Lennon Peace Wall near the French Embassy,” said Roding. It’s been called the Lennon Wall after the late Beatle since the 1980s when people began to fill it with John Lennon inspired graffiti and pieces of lyrics from the Beatles songs.
“Our group sang there for anyone who came by, and it inspired us to do the concert at Woolsey Hall,” Roding said. The concert is on Sunday, April 30, at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15 and those who prefer not to drive can reserve a seat on a bus for an extra $5.
This is not the first time the choral group has performed at Woolsey Hall. They held the “Rock ‘n Roll Over Beethoven” concert there in 2011 and the Prayer Cycle in 2013.
A native of Long Island, Roding first taught in New York and South Carolina before coming to Branford to begin her memorable career. “After a lot of reflection, I realize that I feel fulfilled and blessed with the most wonderful career and amazing memories… so therefore… it is time,” she added to her announcement .
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