Northridge, California:  Climb aboard the “Chattanooga Choo-Choo” as Five by Design’s RADIO DAYS takes its Northridge audience on a ride over the radio airwaves on Saturday, February 24 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, February 25, at 2:00 p.m. at the Plaza del Sol Performance Hall, (formerly the Performing Arts Center) at Cal State Northridge, featuring a 13-piece BIG BAND orchestra LIVE on stage!  

Honoring American’s greatest generation, Five by Design recreates a poignant time capsule of American life during the war years.  As “Sentimental Journey” opens the production, the audience is transported to a seemingly simpler time when an evening’s entertainment emanated from the amber glow of vacuum tubes in a wooden cabinet.   

Radio Days is an affectionate look at the programming, soap operas, game shows, adventure serials, commercials, and the songs that were etched in the nation’s psyche.  Paying tribute to the vocal groups fronting the big bands in the 1940’s, Radio Days interweaves music from the likes of Glenn Miller and Tommy Dorsey.

The hit parade continues with musical memories like the Lone Ranger, soap operas (Our Gal Sunday), game shows (Kollege of Musical Knowledge), and celebrity “appearances” by Kay Kyser, Betty Grable, and Carmen Miranda.  And of course, that timeless music: I’ve Got a Gal in Kalamazoo, Big Noise From Winnetka, Moonlight in Vermont, Juke Box Saturday Night, I’ll be Seeing You…you get the idea!

The purpose of this production is to reflect and remember the men and women who served during World War II.  Radio Days provides us with a time capsule of those experiences as America wept, fought and survived a war.  “…Radio Days teases the imagination and the funny bone…one of the concert delights of the year.” (--Ottawa Sun).

Minneapolis-based Five by Design has toured extensively throughout the continental US and Canada—even Istanbul, Turkey! The ensemble has gained national exposure with appearances on syndicated media broadcasts, including National Public Radio’s “Weekend Edition Sunday,” and “Swingin’ Down the Lane” and have been featured in “Symphony” magazine.

For further information on Five By Design’s activities, visit the ensemble’s website at www.fivebydesign.com.

Radio Days will be at the Plaza del Sol Performance Hall (formerly the Performing Arts Center) at California State University, Northridge, on days noted.  Tickets are available at variable prices, depending on the performance, from $55-$20.  There are a limited number of student tickets available at $20 each (limit 2 per student) with proper ID.  20% Group Discounts for 12 or more are available by calling 818-677-7686.  Parking is $4 at all times! All regular priced single tickets can be purchased by calling the Ticket Office at 818-677-2488 or log on to: www.ArtsNorthridge.csun.com