Francine Kay: To Dance to Dream
Pianist Francine Kay presents *To Dance to Dream*, a free Millennium Stage recital at the Kennedy Center’s Justice Forum in The REACH. The program explores the dreamlike and dance-inspired worlds of Ravel, Debussy, and Chopin, moving from elegant waltzes and fantastical figures to poetic mazurkas and Chopin’s sweeping, transcendent *Polonaise-Fantaisie*.
Kay is recognized for her ardent lyricism and broad range of tonal color. Her career has included appearances at Carnegie Recital Hall, Lincoln Center’s Rose Studio, Salle Gaveau in Paris, the National Gallery of Art, and the Dame Myra Hess Concerts series, as well as performances at festivals in Poland, Czechia, France, and the United States. She is a Princeton University faculty member specializing in piano and chamber music.
When: Saturday, October 24, 2026
Showtime: 6 p.m.
Venue: Justice Forum at The REACH, Kennedy Center
Tickets: Free
Entry: Walk-ins are welcome, with no advance registration or tickets required. Seating is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Genre: Classical music
Program: Maurice Ravel’s *Valses nobles et sentimentales*; Claude Debussy’s *Three Preludes: Les fées sont d’exquises danseuses*, *La Puerta del Vino*, and *La danse de Puck*; and Frédéric Chopin’s *Polonaise-Fantaisie*, Op. 61, *Mazurka*, Op. 59 No. 2, *Mazurka*, Op. 24 No. 4, and *Scherzo No. 1 in B minor*, Op. 20.
Performer: Francine Kay, piano
Artist background: Kay won the Women’s Musical Club of Toronto Career Development Award and later made her solo debut at Carnegie Recital Hall after winning first prize and Recitalist of the Year honors in the New York Pro Piano Competition. She has performed as an orchestral soloist internationally, including a summer 2026 debut with the Filarmonica Ploiesti in Romania under conductor Stacie Goniksberg.
Recordings: Kay’s JUNO-nominated Debussy recording was named Disc of the Month by Germany’s *Fono Forum*. Her 2023 album *Things Lived and Dreamt* was selected by CBC Radio as one of the best releases of 2023 and received additional recognition from *Gramophone*, WWFM, and Ireland’s RTÉ. Her performances are also broadcast by CBC, NPR, the BBC, the European Broadcasting Union, Radio France, SiriusXM’s Symphony Hall, and Chicago’s WMFT.
Education: Kay studied in Montreal at the École de musique Vincent-d’Indy, earned an Artist Diploma from the Glenn Gould School, bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Juilliard School, and a Doctor of Musical Arts from SUNY Stony Brook. Her principal mentors included Marek Jablonski, Gilbert Kalish, and Leon Fleisher.
Run time: Not specified.
Ages: Not specified.
Accessibility and logistics: Concessions and beverages are available on-site. Guests may bring picnics to the REACH’s outdoor areas during non-event times, subject to campus regulations. Events and artists are subject to change without prior notice.