Metro Detroiters can get a taste of the Vatican next week when a contingent from the pope’s Sistine Chapel Choir performs at Saint John’s Resort in Plymouth. “The Voice of Beauty and the Hand of Grace” will feature a quintet from the historic choir and a presentation from art historian Elizabeth Lev, Ph.D., on the Sistine Chapel. The event is produced by Northville-based travel agency and tour operator Corporate Travel Service in honor of the company’s 60th anniversary.
“It’s a 360-degree experience of one of the world’s most famous spaces…,” said John Hale, president of Corporate Travel Service. “You will see visually (and) hear both the history, and more importantly, the current relevance and purpose (of the Sistine Chapel).”
Lev is an art history professor at Duquesne University’s Italian campus in Rome and a sought-after expert on the Sistine Chapel, whose presentations have included a 2016 TED Talk, “The Unheard Story of the Sistine Chapel.”
She said the connection between the art and music of the chapel was part of the vision of Pope Sixtus IV, who oversaw its construction.
“Just as Sixtus drew together the greatest painters to decorate his chapel, he invited the finest singers to form his choir…” Lev said. “His idea was that between art, music, and liturgy, the soul would be spiritually transported, and that is exactly what we hope the attendees will experience as they see amazing paintings by Michelangelo and hear glorious hymns by some of the most brilliant papal composers.”
Hale said Lev puts the history and significance of the Sistine Chapel into context.
“What was the historical setting? What was the backdrop? What was some of the drama of the age? Why has it endured all these years, and why is it still as relevant today as it was when it was in the 16th century when it was painted?” he said. “That’s what Liz brilliantly brings together.”
Lev said the quintet will perform music that includes ancient Gregorian chants as well as modern compositions from the most recent directors of the Sistine Chapel Choir.
“This is a chance to hear the same hymns that the Cardinals listened to before they elected Pope Leo, but also to experience some of the beautiful music produced by Christian culture,” she said.
Corporate Travel Service has a longstanding relationship with the choir and produced an American tour for them in 2017, which included a performance in Detroit at the Detroit Opera House.
Hale said it was part of their mission to create experiences that enhance people’s lives and build culture, even if they can’t travel.
“(The concert) is a great way for people to relive an experience that they may have had in Rome, to anticipate an experience they’re going to have,” he said, “or to go to Rome without having to go to Rome.”
‘The Voice of Beauty and the Hand of Grace’
7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 4
Saint John’s Resort
44045 Five Mile, Plymouth
General tickets: $100; VIP experience, $500 and includes a dinner with a private concert and presentation and a private mass starting at 4:30 p.m.
Visit www.ctscentral.net.