Santa Rosa Symphony unveils 2016-2017 Family Concert Series

The Santa Rosa Symphony Family Concert Series will celebrate its fifth anniversary in 2016-2017 with three concerts held from October through April at the Green Music Center's Weill Hall.

The three-concert series has been newly named in honor of opera singer Peggy Anne Covington, who left her entire estate worth more than $1 million to the symphony in 2015. Covington began her career with the San Francisco Opera in 1959. After she retired, she and her husband moved to Windsor and attended the Santa Rosa Symphony concerts for several years.

The Peggy Anne Covington Family Concert Series launches on October 16 with “Land of Make Believe,” a program based on musical works created to tell stories, from “Mother Goose” to “Harry Potter.” Roustabout Theater will help bring the program to life, and children are invited to dress up as a character from their favorite story.

The series continues of Jan. 22, 2017 with “The Listener,” which explores the relationship between audience and musicians through a comic tale about a conductor and two, rambunctious audience members. The Magic Circle Mime Company will help bring the tale to life.

The series concludes on April 30, 2017 with “Presto, Mambo!”, an interactive concert that explores Latin rhythms through the tale of Max, a boy who explores the lands of Latin American with his new friend, Mambo the dog. The Platypus Theater will show the audience how to dance to the lively music.

All concerts take place at 3 p.m. on Sunday afternoons. Pre-concert activities include an Instrument Petting Zoo, where members of the Santa Rosa Symphony Youth Ensembles help introduce children and adults to their instruments.

Subscriptions are $45 adults, $30 for children 12 and under. To subscribe, call 546-8742. Single tickets will go on sale on Aug. 8. srsymphony.org.

Staff writer Diane Peterson can be reached at 521-5287 or diane.peterson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @dianepete56.