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By Lookout Staff

October 13, 2011 -- Santa Monica College's Performing Arts Center will host “The Glory of Gershwin,” a celebration of the life of the seminal American composer George Gershwin Friday.

The event is not a concert exactly, SMC Community Relations Director Judy Neveau told the Lookout Tuesday. But “The Glory of Gershwin” will feature some live piano music, she said.

Gershwin biographer Rodney Greenberg will host the event and he “will indeed tickle the ivories,” said Neveau, since he is an accomplished pianist himself. He has also directed and produced many television music programs, including several of Gilbert and Sullivan's operas for the BBC.

Greenberg will lead the audience through a multimedia presentation of rare photos, vintage film, video and music clips.

There will also be a sing-along to one of Gershwin’s memorable hits as well as stories about Gershwin's lyric-writing partner and brother, Ira.

Gershwin is arguably one of the most influential American composers of the 20th Century. His standards, such as “Someone to Watch Over Me” and “They Can't Take That Away From Me” have become a soundtrack of a whole generation. He also raised jazz to the level of high art with his famous composition “Rhapsody in Blue” and the musical “Porgy and Bess,” which he wrote with his brother.

Friday's event is co-sponsored by the SMC Associates and the Media Policy Center. It starts at 7:30 PM at the at The Broad Stage on Santa Monica Boulevard at 11th Street. Tickets range from $20 to $45. For more information call (310) 434-3005 or visit http://www.smc.edu/eventsinfo.