STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

The Vienna Boys Choir and the Salzburg Marionette Theater will offer Sun Valley audiences a way to toast the 60th anniversary of “The Sound of Music.”

And creative visionary Steve Hackman will premiere his newest SYMPHONYFUSE based on Taylor Swift’s Eras tour as The Argyros Center for Performing Arts heads towards fall.

The Argyros pulled the curtain back on the new shows coming this way Wednesday night as it thanked patrons with “Gratitude Cocktails” and little bites.

Kathy and Brad Nysether, who divide their time between Sun Valley and Lake Stevens, Wash., said they had never seen the Tierney Theatre’s retractable seats rolled back before Wednesday’s Gratitude Party.

Pianist and composer Steve Hackman said the Taylor Swift work will be a little different from the earlier reimagining he did of the Beatles and Bob Dylan music. It will have journal entries interwoven amidst some 50 Swift songs as it explores such themes as overcoming and heartbreak.

“So far, I’ve got 8 minutes written and 72 to go,” Hackman quipped of the show that will have its world premiere at The Argyros Aug. 24 and 25. “So, if you’ve got any requests…”

Board President Dave Olsen welcomed those attending the unveiling in the Tierney Theater, thanking them for their support, which keeps the lights on and makes sure audiences have “exceptional experiences” every time they walk through the doors.

“We mean it when we say, ‘Thank you.’ This event is called gratitude and we mean it.”

Steve Hackman has just over a month to finish his new work featuring Taylor Swift music before presenting its world premiere at The Argyros.

The Argyros is about more than entertainment. It brings people together,” added Executive Director Melissa S. Mathews: “Every performance, workshop, and gathering helps create a vibrant community where inspiration thrives, ideas flourish, and meaningful connections are made. To continue building that sense of belonging and shared experience, we’re excited to introduce our new membership program, designed to enhance your connection with The Argyros.”

Longtime patron Ali Long said she may have been the first to sign up for the new membership program, which gives members the chance to purchase tickets before they go on sale to the general public and even attend select rehearsals.

“I already buy tickets to every show, and, if I can’t use them, I give them away,” she said. “If there were no patrons of the art, there would be no art. The first thing that gets cut is the arts, but the arts are such an accessible vehicle to explore sometimes uncomfortable topics. Plus, I like how (Argyros Artistic Director) Casey Mott strives for premieres. You’ll see posters of something and it’ll say it premiered in Sun Valley, so he’s putting Sun Valley on the map.”

Mott noted that BodyTraffic, which will perform at The Argyros for the third year in a row on July 24 and 25 is the hottest residency dance company in the country. Isabella Boylston is a hometown hero, he added, and she will be screening excerpts from her upcoming documentary for the first time on Aug. 9 and 10, in addition to offering a live dance performance.

Lisa Holley and Trudi Schneider help themselves to hors d’oeuvres during Wednesday’s Gratitude Party.

Comedian Eddie Ifft is doing two back-to-back shows in a single evening on Aug. 29, throwing his 85 mph fastball quips around the Tierney Theater earlier in the evening and continuing the fun in the smaller Bailey Studio afterwards.

“American treasure” Bella Flick, who will perform Sept. 1, is one of the most celebrated of living instrumentalists with 17 Grammy Awards and 39 Grammy nominations. And The Argyros will celebrate the 50th anniversary of “Jaws” on Sept. 12.

“As you can see, we offer a whole diversity of kinds of programs—not just music,” Mott said. “We provide music of every genre, dancing, even puppets.”

Kathy and Brad Nysether, who divide their time between Sun Valley and Lake Stevens, Wash., said they always try to take in a show at The Argyros when in town. Their favorites: Fun shows like the Beach Boys and the Beatles review.

Don Boss who with Judy Whitmyre was among the first to arrive, said he loves artists like Lyle Lovett.

Trudi Schneider noted that she is sponsoring two upcoming December concerts featuring cabaret performer Adrienne Haan, who will perform an evening of Irvin Berlin.

“I like her style,” Schneider said of the Haan, who sang a night of cabaret at The Argyros last year. “She can sing. And she can sing in 13, 14 languages. She is absolutely amazing.”

COMING UP AT THE ARGYROS:

***BodyTraffic, an internationally renowned dance company from Los Angeles, features a high-energy repertoire that spans ballet, contemporary, modern, Afro-Cuban and hip hop generes.7: 30 p.m. July 24 and 25

***Isabella on Stage and Screen will feature live performances of classic and neoclassical ballet excerpts by ballet star Isabella Boylston, who got her start on stage in Sun Valley. It also will offer an exclusive first screening of excerpts from her upcoming documentary directed by Oscar, Emmy and Tony award winner Jon Avnet, followed by a conversation with Boylston and her American Ballet Theatre costars. 7:30 p.m. Aug. 9 and 3 p.m. Aug. 10.

***Steve Hackman will stage the world premiere of his newest SYMPHONYFUSE titled “Taylor Swift: The Symphony Era World Premiere.” 7:30 p.m. Aug. 24 and 25.

***Comedian Eddie Ifft, who has sold out shows from the Sydney Opera House to Montreal Just for Laughs, returns. 7:30 p.m. Aug. 29

***Bela Fleck & the Flecktones features banjo player Bela Fleck who draws from classic, jazz, bluegrass, African, electric blues and Eastern European folk music. 5:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Sept. 1

***JAWS 50th Anniversary screening starring Richard Dreyfuss, who has Sun Valley connections. 7:30 p.m. Sept. 12.

***“Love Loss & What I Wore,” play reading explores themes of motherhood, prom dresses, and buying bras. In partnership with Sawtooth Productions. 7 p.m. Sept. 18-20 and 6 p.m. Sept. 21.

***Karla Bonoff, singer songwriter whose songs found success with Linda Ronstadt, eventually winning a Grammy for “All My Life.” 7:30 p.m. Oct. 3.

***Young Dubliners, a Celtic rock band. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 4.

***Story Pirates features songs from The Story Pirates Podcast and improvised comedy based on ideas from kids in the audience. 7 p.m. Oct. 13.

***Riley Mlhektar, a Juilliard graduate and uber hip modern trumpeter, will perform alongside pianist Chris Pattishall, upright bass player Barry Stephenson and drummer Jason Burger. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 26.

***Nightmare at The Argyros will emerge as the town’s premiere Halloween costume party featuring headliner DJ BearSkinRug with a special appearance by DJ Rowdy. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 31.

***Vienna Boys Choir, founded in 1498 by Emperor Maximilian I, consists of four boy’s choirs who perform nearly 300 concerts annually and one of them is making its way to Sun Valley. 7:30 p.m. Nov. 7.

The Robert Cray Band, featuring Robert Cray, a blues, soul and rock icon who has five Grammys, a place in the Blues Hall of Fame and 19 albums. 7:30 p.m. Nov. 12

Salzburg Marionette Theater, which has been enchanting audiences since 1913 with fairy tales and Mozart operas, will celebrate the 60th anniversary of “The Sound of Music” and its story of a free-spirited postulant who left her abbey to become a governess to Capt. Von Trapp’s seven children as the Nazis rose to power. 4 and 7:30 p.m. Nov. 16.

Adrienne Haan will celebrate the life of music of Irving Berlin, charting Berlin’s journey from Imperial Russia to the Lower East Side of New York and finally to Broadway and Hollywood. It will include some of his most beautiful Christmas songs, as well as some of his lesser-known oeuvres. 7 p.m. Dec. 11 and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 12.

The Argyros is also working to bring such groups as Yellowjackets, Ailey II, the Derina Harvey Band, Tyler Hubbard, Mat Kearney and Emmet Cohen for its winter season.