Renée Fleming
with The Philadelphia Orchestra
Friday • Aug 15, 2025 • 7:30pm
One of the most beloved and celebrated singers of our time, five-time GRAMMY-winner Renée Fleming returns to SPAC with an all-new program alongside The Philadelphia Orchestra.
This breathtaking performance begins with inspiration from the GRAMMY Award-winning album Voice of Nature: the Anthropocene, in which Fleming explores humankind’s evolving relationship with nature, performing works from ranging from Handel to Björk and The Lord of the Rings, with a beautiful projected film created for the program by National Geographic. The second half of the program features beloved arias and songs, from Puccini to Rodgers and Hammerstein.
Program
| Dickens | Pretty bird |
| Handel | “Care Selve” from Atalanta |
| Nico Muhly | “Endless Space” |
| Canteloube | “Bailero” from Songs of the Auvergne |
| Schneider | “Our Finch Feeder” from Winter Morning Walks |
| Bjork | “All is Full of Love” |
| Villa-lobos | “Epilogo” from Floresta do Amazonas |
| Howard Shore | “Twilight and Shadow” from Lord of the Rings |
| Kevin Puts | “Evening” |
| Curtis Green | “Red Mountains Sometimes Cry” |
| Bacharach/David | “What the World Needs Now” |
| Second Half Selections to be Announced |
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Performers
Robert Moody* | conductor
Renée Fleming | soprano
*Indicates SPAC debut
Conductor Robert Moody celebrates his ninth season as Music Director of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra and eighteenth season as Music Director of Arizona Musicfest. He was named Music Director of the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra in June 2024. Under his leadership, the Memphis Symphony has enjoyed exponential growth in programming, recording, new commissions, and endowment growth to well over $25 Million dollars, while AZ Musicfest has become the premiere winter music festival orchestra in North America, boasting a roster of players from the world’s greatest orchestras.
In 2022, Moody was invited to conduct the Lakeland Symphony Orchestra in Florida in a gala concert with Renee Fleming. Following that experience, he was immediately named Principal Opera Conductor for Lakeland Symphony/Opera.
Prior to Memphis, Moody was music director of both the Portland Symphony (Maine) and the Winston-Salem Symphony (North Carolina). Earlier in his career, he held conducting positions with the Phoenix Symphony, Evansville Philharmonic, Santa Fe Opera, Brevard Music Center, Interschool Orchestras of New York City, and apprenticed at Landestheater Opera in Linz, Austria.
During the 2024-25 season, Moody makes his debut with the Lyric Opera of Kansas City and Tulsa Opera, both in performances with Renee Fleming; the Tampere Philharmonic and Romania’s Filarmonica Banatul; and returns to conduct the Portland and Greensboro symphony orchestras.
He has led many of the major orchestras and opera companies of the world, including the Chicago, Dallas, Houston, and Toronto symphony orchestras; Los Angeles and Buffalo Philharmonics, Minnesota Orchestra, and Washington National Opera. Internationally, his recent engagements include the Aachen and Baden Baden Symphony Orchestras in Germany, Orquesta Filarmonica de Bogotá (Colombia), and the Vienna Chamber Orchestra (Austria). He made his debut in China in 2024 with the Shen Zhen Symphony Orchestra. He is a frequent guest conductor in South Africa, returning this season for the third time to conduct the three major orchestras there – Cape Town, Johannesburg, and KZN Philharmonic in Durban.
Passionate about mentoring the next generation of musicians, Moody has spent recent summers conducting at the Sewanee Summer Music Festival, National Repertory Orchestra, and Highlands Opera Festival.
Moody’s work is available on several commercial recordings, including the Canadian Brass albums Bach and Legends, R. Carlos Nokai’s Fourth World album, and with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra and trumpet legend Ryan Anthony on his Re:Mission Rubato album.
Robert is a close friend and collaborator with Grammy winning composer Mason Bates. Their friendship spans over 30 years, and Moody was the first conductor to commission a full orchestral work from Bates. Robert also commissioned several major works of Mason’s, including Rusty Air in Carolina, and the much-lauded Desert Transport.
A South Carolina native, Moody holds degrees from Furman University and the Eastman School of Music, where he earned his conducting degree with Donald Neuen. Additional studies included an undergraduate term abroad in Vienna, Austria, and a summer of study with Otto Werner Mueller at Le Domaine Forget in Quebec. He is a Rotarian and has served on the boards of AIDS Care Services, Winston-Salem YMCA, WDAV Classical Radio, and the Charlotte Master Chorale.
Renée Fleming is one of the most highly acclaimed singers of our time, performing on the stages of the world’s great opera houses and concert halls. A 2023 Kennedy Center Honoree, winner of five Grammy® awards and the US National Medal of Arts, she has sung for momentous occasions from the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony to the Diamond Jubilee for Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. A groundbreaking distinction came in 2008 when she became the first woman in the 125-year history of the Metropolitan Opera to solo headline an opening night gala. In 2023, the World Health Organization appointed her as a Goodwill Ambassador for Arts and Health, and this year, she became an inaugural member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Arts and Culture Council.
Renée’s latest recital and concert program, Voice of Nature: the Anthropocene, inspired by her 2023 Grammy -winning album, includes an original film created by the National Geographic Society to reflect the musical selections. In 2024 at the Metropolitan Opera, she reprised her role in The Hours, an opera based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and award-winning film. In 2023, she portrayed Pat Nixon in a new production of Nixon in China at the Opéra de Paris.
Renée’s anthology, Music and Mind: Harnessing the Arts for Health and Wellness, was published in 2024. A prominent advocate for research at the intersection of arts, health, and neuroscience, as Artistic Advisor to the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Renée launched the first ongoing collaboration between America’s national cultural center and its largest health research institute, the National Institutes of Health. She created her own program called Music and the Mind, which she has presented in more than fifty cities around the world. She is now an advisor for major initiatives in this field, including the Sound Health Network at the University of California San Francisco and the NeuroArts Blueprint at Johns Hopkins University.
Renée has recorded everything from complete operas and song recitals to indie rock and jazz. In 2023, Decca released a special double-length album of live recordings from Renée’s greatest performances at the Metropolitan Opera. The same year Renée received the Grammy Award for Best Classical Vocal Solo for her album Voice of Nature: The Anthropocene, with Yannick Nézet-Seguin as pianist. Known for bringing new audiences to classical music and opera, Renée has sung not only with Luciano Pavarotti and Andrea Bocelli, but also with Elton John, Paul Simon, Sting, Josh Groban, and Joan Baez. Renée’s voice is featured on the soundtracks of Best Picture Oscar winners The Shape of Water and The Lord of the Rings.
Co-Artistic Director of the Aspen Opera Center and VocalArts at the Aspen Music Festival, Renée is also Advisor for Special Projects at LA Opera. Renée’s other awards include the 2023 Crystal Award from the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Fulbright Lifetime Achievement Medal, Germany’s Cross of the Order of Merit, Sweden’s Polar Music Prize, and honorary doctorates from 10 major universities. www.reneefleming.com
SPAC Amphitheater
Our main stage has a 25,000 person capacity with sheltered seats for 5,200 people and a sloping lawn for an additional 20,000 people.
SPAC Amphitheater Ground Rules
Applicable for classical events including New York City Ballet and The Philadelphia Orchestra. View Live Nation event ground rules here.
Permitted Items
- Food, beverages, and disposable utensils (compostable, plastic, reusable, etc).
- Picnic blankets and breathable ground coverings.
- Umbrellas and chairs are permitted, but will be restricted by sizing for use on the main amphitheater lawn, as follows:
- Lawn chairs must not exceed 43” when collapsed.
- Lawn chairs on the center amphitheater lawn must not exceed 26″ in height when opened.
- Only personal-sized umbrellas will be permitted on the lawn.
- NO tents of any size will be permitted on the amphitheater lawn.
Items Not Permitted
- Metal utensils
- Plastic tarps
- Tents are prohibited from the Amphitheater lawn.
- Grills, cooking equipment, or any flame that uses a liquid, gas, or gel accelerant.
- Laser pointers
- Drones
- Professional audio or video recording equipment
- Cameras with detachable lenses
- Bikes, rollerblades, skateboards, scooters, etc.
- Pets (except ADA approved service animals)
- Illegal drugs or substances
- Weapons of any kind
Grounds:
- To ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for all SPAC visitors and staff, all containers and packages will be inspected. This includes coolers, baskets, tote bags, purses, diaper bags, strollers, and all other containers.Any item that is not permitted to come onto the SPAC grounds should be disposed of or returned to your vehicle.
- Smoking is permitted on the SPAC grounds in designated areas only.Please ensure that all cigarette butts are disposed of properly.
- Guests are welcome to bring blankets and umbrellas but please consider others around you- if your items are disruptive to others, you may be asked to remove them.
- In the event that guests are unable to sit through the entire performance, please note that there is a grassy area behind the Julie Bonacio Family Pavilion with access to a video screen which would allow guests to continue watching the performance.
House:
- Beverages are permitted in the amphitheater, but food is not.
- As a courtesy to the performers and the audience, latecomers won’t be seated until the earliest appropriate opportunity in the performance at the discretion of the House Staff.
- Please turn off or silence all mobile devices prior to the start of the program.Texting and making calls in the theater is not allowed. Should an emergency arise in which you must use a mobile device, we ask that you step outside of the theater to avoid disturbing other guests.
- Video, photography, audio, or cell phone recording during performances is prohibited.
- SPAC has a zero-tolerance policy for harassment of any kind, including but not limited to race, national origin, gender, gender identity, gender presentation, sexual orientation, age, ability, religion, and citizenship. Harassment includes but is not limited to stalking, verbal or physical intimidation, offensive verbal comments, physical assault and/or battery, inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome physical attention. If you are made to feel uncomfortable or unsafe, please immediately report any concerns to SPAC staff or security personnel so appropriate action can be taken.
All SPAC ground rules are subject to change. By entering the SPAC grounds, guests agree to abide by the rules listed above. Management reserves the right to modify these rules or can request to see the contents of any belongings brought on property at their discretion. We appreciate your cooperation in maintaining the utmost levels of safety and convenience for our guests and staff.
Group Sales
Experience SPAC together! From groups of friends and family to corporate outings, senior centers, summer camps, and arts schools, we can curate a special experience for your group of 10 or more. We offer discounts, flexible options and can work with your group leader to tailor your needs for a memorable day.