Musical Treats from The Nutcracker—for Kids!

Juan Sebastian Cruz is thrilled to once again join the Houston Symphony as a host. As a band member throughout middle and high school, he is incredibly grateful for the opportunity to combine his talents of public speaking with his love for classical music. As a professional stage actor, he has worked with theaters, including Stages Repertory, 4th Wall, TUTS, and Alley Theatre.

He also works as a teaching artist for both TUTS and the Alley where he has engaged with students and adults throughout the city. Some of his favorite residencies include working the Wesley House Community Center senior citizens and singing and playing with pediatric patients at Memorial Hermann Children’s Hospital.

Juan’s interests have led him to work as a circus acrobat where he has performed at well-known locations such as Discovery Green, the Galleria, and the Texas Renaissance Festival. Juan has a bachelor’s degree in visual and dramatic arts with a concentration in theater from Rice University. He loves sharing his passion for the arts with the Houston community.

The Houston Symphony Chorus is one of Houston’s oldest and most distinguished musical organizations. Founded in 1946 as the Houston Chorale, it became the Houston Symphony Chorale in 1968, and the Houston Symphony Chorus in 1986.  The Chorus has enjoyed the leadership of seven directors, Alfred Urbach (1946–1986), A. Clyde Roller (1967–1968), Wayne Bedford (1968 – 1969), Don Strong (1969–1977), Virginia Babikian (1977–1986), and Charles Hausmann (1986–2014).  Because of Dr. Hausmann’s extraordinarily long service, he was named Director Emeritus upon his retirement.  Current director, Betsy Cook Weber, was appointed in the fall of 2014.

Over the years, the Chorus has sung with dozens of the world’s most notable conductors, including Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Steven Reineke, Michael Krajewski, Robert Shaw, André Previn, Leopold Stokowski, Christoph Eschenbach, Sir John Barbirolli, Ferenc Fricsay, Lawrence Foster, and Hans Graf, to name only a very few.

In addition to performances in Jones Hall, the Symphony’s home venue, the Chorus has also delighted audiences in various concert halls throughout the United States, Europe, and Mexico.

The Chorus consists entirely of volunteer singers who have considerable musical skill, vocal talent, and choral experience. They audition for placement each year.  The Chorus performance schedule is possibly the busiest in the country, consisting of up to fourteen different sets of repertoire for a total of 45 concerts.