Guest conductor Dr. Dirk Hillyer and the PSO are pairing up again to ring in another New Year. The evening will also usher in Portsmouth’s 400th Anniversary year of festivities and include remarks from Portsmouth Mayor Deaglan McEachern!

Special guest tenor Ben DiScipio, winner of Boston’s highest musical theater award, brings a variety of talent in Broadway, operetta and jazz to this year’s Champagne Pops! Audiences will enjoy favorites from Stephen Sondheim and Cole Porter along with highlights from Les Miserables, Gypsy, and Carmen and can expect Duke Ellington to “pop” in as well!

Guest conductor Dr. Dirk Hillyer is an award-winning conductor and musician who has performed for over two decades on both the regional and national stage. His experiences range from the classical genre to “pops” music of Broadway and film, including two national tours for Disney’s “Disney in Concert.” His Hillyer Festival Orchestra (HFO) has given 150 performances over the past 23 years on the North Shore and in Boston, including playing Boston’s Hatch Shell on the Esplanade for five consecutive years.

About Portsmouth NH 400

The goal of Portsmouth NH 400th Inc. is to give the community an inclusive opportunity to tell the stories that are important to them through programs, events, exhibits, and legacy projects. Portsmouth NH 400th will celebrate the diverse and animated social, political, intellectual, cultural, economic, and spiritual history of Portsmouth from before settlement in 1623 to the present. Portsmouth NH 400th Inc. invites individuals and organizations considering programs and events for the Portsmouth NH 400th Anniversary celebration to join the collaborative effort. A key intention is for the Portsmouth NH 400th Inc. team to engage the next generation(s) in exploring what the City’s 2023 legacy might be and how they might steward Portsmouth and its history beyond 2023. For more information, visit portsmouthnh400.org.