November 7, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • Page 11 The Ridgewood Symphony Orchestra will begin its 2012-13 season with a concert featuring soprano Michelle Trovato in a performance of the “Woman’s Love and Life” song cycle by Robert Schumann. The concert will take place Nov. 16 at 8 p.m. at West Side Presbyterian Church, 6 South Monroe Street in Ridgewood. The concert will also include Walton’s “Crown Imperial Coronation March” and Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Scheherazade,” with violin solos played by RSO concertmistress Jina Choi. Advance general admission tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for seniors, and $10 for students. At the door, ticket prices will be $23, $18, and $13, respectively. “Our soprano soloist, Michelle Trovato, is on her way to becoming internationally known for her magnificent voice and wonderful acting,” said Dr. Knarig Khatchadurian Meyer, president of the Ridgewood Symphony Trovato to open Ridgewood Symphony’s new season Orchestra. “The RSO is thrilled to introduce this young star to our audience.” Trovato grew up on Long Island and in Virginia. After graduating from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 2003, she gained further training at the New York Opera Studio, Caramoor Festival, Seattle Young Artist’s Program, and Montreal’s International Vocal Arts Institute. Trovato has gone on to perform major operatic roles in New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Denver, and Utah. In 2011, she made her European debut in Yalta, Ukraine. She has also won numerous competitions and grants, including prestigious awards from the Liederkranz Foundation, the International Festival Society, and the Schuyler Foundation for Career Bridges. The Ridgewood Symphony is among the largest volunteer symphonies in the country, with players from 48 different municipalities in Bergen, Passaic, and Rockland counties. The orchestra is directed by Arkady Leytush. This season’s remaining subscription concerts will take place on March 1 and May 3, 2013. In addition, the RSO will present a free young people’s concert Feb. 28. The RSO’s programs have been made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/ Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information on programs, subscriptions, or advance ticket sales, call (201) 612-0118, or visit the RSO website at www.ridgewoodsymphony.org. On Nov. 18, the Unitarian Society of Ridgewood will present “Freedom for Birth,” a documentary that reframes human rights as the most pressing issue in childbirth. The film will be shown at 6:30 p.m. at the Unitarian Society of Ridgewood at 113 Cottage Place. After the film, midwife and author Ina May Gaskin will lead a question and answer session on these critical freedoms in women’s lives. In many countries, women are being denied the most basic human right: autonomy over their bodies. They cannot choose how and where to give birth. Those who persist in their desire to have a normal, physiological birth are sometimes forced to surrender to surgery or threatened with having their babies taken away by child welfare. In ‘Freedom for Birth’ to be presented many countries, midwives face criminal prosecution and imprisonment for attending home births. “Freedom for Birth” calls for radical reform so these human rights violations stop. For the last 40 years, Gaskin, founder of the Farm Midwifery Center, has stood at the forefront of the midwifery movement. She is the author of several books. Tickets are $20 and may be purchased at http://FreedomForBirthAndInaMayGaskin.eventbrite.com. Seating is limited. Refreshments will be served. This event is sponsored by BirthNet of Rockland & Bergen Counties and the Reproductive Justice Committee of the Unitarian Society of Ridgewood.