Prager Family Center for the Arts
Prager Family Center for the Arts serves the Eastern Shore with a diverse season of world-class performances, educational activities, and collaborative partnerships. In addition to being a cultural leader for the region, Prager Family Center for the Arts is committed to inspiring the next generation of Arts professionals and patrons.
Gabriela Montero at Prager
Inspired by the storied associations of individual artists with unique places - from Argerich and Lugano to Bernstein and The Berkshires - Venezuelan pianist and composer Gabriela Montero brings world-class musicians, mentorship and community engagement to her new hometown on Maryland's Eastern Shore.
A regular soloist on the world’s leading concert stages, celebrated pianist-composer Gabriela Montero is the first female to have performed her own piano concerto at Carnegie Hall. A Latin Grammy winner and Grammy nominee, the recipient of the International Beethoven Prize, the Rockefeller Award, and two Echo Awards, Gabriela is also a committed human rights advocate. Appointed Honorary Consul of Amnesty International, she has addressed the World Economic Forum at Davos and London’s Women of the World Forum, and featured in special reports from the BBC World Service to The Economist. In 2009, Gabriela was invited to play at the inauguration of President Barack Obama. In 2024 Gabriela was awarded the Havel Prize for Creative Dissent at the Oslo Freedom Forum.
Read more at MonteroPrager.com
Chamber Music, Jazz, and so much more!
Since its founding in 1985, Chesapeake Music brings world-class music to a growing audience of all ages on Maryland’s Eastern Shore and beyond, while exporting something of the Chesapeake’s uniqueness to musicians who take part in the Festival, Competition and Interlude concerts.
Prager Family Center for the Arts has been home to Chesapeake Music since 2021.
Our
Story
Prager Family Center for the Arts
Originally the Ebenezer Methodist Church, completed in 1856, 17 South Washington served the town's Methodist Episcopal congregation for over one hundred years until the merger of Easton's three Methodist churches. Upon completion, it was described as a "monument of good taste." The building has undergone several remodels over the years, but the original structure remains.
Paul and Joanne Prager added the building to their growing portfolio of hospitality concepts in 2014. Bluepoint Hospitality began the extensive theater renovation in 2020. An eclectic mixture of the Aesthetic Movement and Victorian Gothic, the design is in keeping with the time period of construction and resonates with the original stained-glass windows and gothic arches throughout. The historic Bradbury & Bradburry "Jeffrey" wallpaper flanking the stage is named after the Victorian era printing firm that sought to elevate wallpaper to a high level of art. Intricate finishing touches like the 24-karat gold-leaf ceiling and the stage's celestial arch design were hand painted by Maryland artist Kelly Walker.
The restoration includes a state-of-the-art sound system to be enjoyed by performers and listeners alike for many years to come.
In 2021, The Ebenezer Theater became the new home to Chesapeake Music.
In 2022, The Ebenezer welcomed Artist-in-Residence Gabriela Montero and the Gabriela Montero at Prager concert series.
