Tony winner André De Shields (Cats: "The Jellicle Ball") will host opening-weekend concerts for Connecticut's Orchestra Lumos October 5 and 6 at Stamford's The Palace Theatre. De Shields is the first-ever speaker invited for one of the ensemble's mainstage performances.

De Shields will be hosting a program titled Orpheus Sings, the first of the group's four planned concert programs that will "traverse the complex arc of the human experience," according to press notes.

The performance, which will also feature wunderkind pianist Anwen Deng and conductor Michael Stern, will include performances of Liszt's Orpheus, Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Walker's Orpheus for Narrator and Chamber Orchestra, Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice: Dance of the Blessed Spirits, and Offenbach's Overture to Orpheus in the Underworld.

The program will reunite De Shields with the world of Greek mythology, after his Tony-winning turn as the mischievous messenger Hermes in Broadway's Hadestown.

Formerly the Stamford Symphony, Orchestra Lumos brings musical experiences to Fairfield County, Connecticut, performing in local libraries, schools, museums, and more. Stamford's Palace Theatre is their most frequent home.

Tickets are available at OrchestraLumos.org.