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BOCA RATON, FLORIDA (October 3, 2017) – The 12thAnnual Festival of the Arts BOCA, presented by the Schmidt Family Centre for the Arts, will bring an unprecedented parade of stars to the Mizner Park Amphitheater (MPA), 590 Plaza Real and Mizner Park Cultural Arts Center, 201 Plaza Real (2nd Floor) in Boca Raton, February 23 – March 4, 2018. “This season’s Festival of the Arts BOCA promises 10 days of superstar talent, excitement, and culture that will appeal to everyone,” said Charlie Siemon, Chair and Co-Executive Producer of the Festival of the Arts BOCA. “We are looking forward to our biggest and best festival yet!” The Festival opens on Friday, February 23 at 7:30 p.m.with legendary American soprano and five-time Grammy Award winner, Kathleen Battle, making a rare concert appearance in a program of songs by Gershwin and spirituals with the Lynn Philharmonia, led by Constantine Kitsopoulos. Completing the program will be Brahms’ Symphony No. 1. On Saturday, February 24 at 8 p.m., superstar violinist Itzhak Perlman returns to Mizner Park with his popularIn the Fiddler’s House program in a Florida exclusive. In this concert, Perlman and a 10-piece Klezmer ensembleexplore the vitality of klezmer music in this charmingly humorous guide where he journeys from New York's Lower East Side to a Jewish Festival in Krakow, Poland. The Authors & Ideas Program kicks off on Sunday, February 25 at 4 p.m. with Hannah Tinti, best-selling author of The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley and The Good Thief and founder and editor of One Storymagazine, who will present Cabinets of Wonder. Also on Sunday, February 25 at 7 p.m., Grupo Compay Segundo from Cuba will make its first US appearance in almost 20 years. Founded by legendary musicians from the Buena Vista Social Club whose best-selling albums defined the sound of Cuban music in America, this nine-member ensemble tours the world as official ambassadors of Cuba’s cultural heritage while still continuing to perform every week in Havana at Cuba’s National Hotel. Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations and author of A World in Disarray: American Foreign Policy and the Crisis of the Old Order, will appear at the Festival’s Authors & Ideas Program onMonday, February 26 at 7 p.m. with A World In Disarray: Causes, Consequences, Choices. On Wednesday, February 28 at 7 p.m., the Festival will welcome Peter Diamandis, entrepreneur, author and CEO of the X PRIZE Foundation, best known for the $10 million dollar Ansari Prize for private spaceflight. Diamandis is the New York Times bestselling author of Abundance – The Future Is Better Than You Thinkand BOLD – How to Go Big, Create Wealth & Impact the World. He will present Transforming Scarcity to Abundance. On Thursday, March 1 at 7:30 p.m., Academy Award-winner and 13-time Grammy Award winner, T Bone Burnett, a first-rate innovative artist, songwriter, performer, film and concert producer, record company owner and artist advocate will talk about music, film and art with On the Road with T Bone Burnett: Stories, Music & Movies. On Friday, March 2 at 7:30 p.m., the legendary actor Bill Murray, will team up with distinguished German cellist, Jan Vogler, violinist Mira Wang and pianist Vanessa Perez to present a spirited evening of music and literature with “New Worlds.” On Saturday, March 3 at 8 p.m., Grammy Award-winning Midori, one of the most admired and accomplished violinists of our time, will perform the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with The Symphonia Boca Raton, led by Constantine Kitsopoulos. Also in the program will be the Festival debut of young Russian pianist Nikolay Khozyainov performing Rachmaninoff’s fiendishly difficult Piano Concerto No. 3. Closing the Festival on Sunday, March 4 at 6 p.m. will be E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial screened on a giant LED wall above the stage while John Williams’ memorable Academy Award-winning score is performed live by the Symphonia, Boca Raton led by Constantine Kitsopoulos. Tickets for the 12th Annual Festival of the Arts BOCA range from $15 to $250 per person and are available starting October 15, 2017 at www.festivalboca.org or by calling (866) 571-ARTS (866-571-2787). Early bird tickets will be available starting at $39 through December first for select performances at the Mizner Park Amphitheater. Multi-event and full Festival packages are also available. For program details and ticket information visit:www.festivalboca.org. # # Joanne Polin Ph 561-350-8784 email jpolin@polinpr.com www.polinpr.com