Wednesday, June 30, 2010
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Aretha Franklin will take the stage next month with an accomplished accompanist more famous for diplomacy: Condoleezza Rice.
The pair will play at Philadelphia’s Mann Center for the Performing Arts July 27 in show that will feature Franklin’s music and classical composers.
Rice, a former U.S. Secretary of State, will accompany Franklin on piano for “Say A Little Prayer” and “Natural Woman,” and “selections from Mozart and more,” according to the Mann Center’s website.
“Ms. Rice is a consummate classical pianist and since I sing the arias, I thought that we could do something, a bipartisan effort for our favorite charities,” Franklin said in a statement released Tuesday.
The venue says the performance is a benefit for programs that support inner-city children and its own education initiatives.