Singer and actress Rebecca Spencer came up with the concept behind her CD "Fair Warning" on a July afternoon in Vermont.
She was walking to the theater, where she played the role of Dolly Levi in "Hello, Dolly!" when she saw about 50 women wearing purple dresses and red hats.
"It literally took my breath away," Spencer said.
Later, Spencer did some research and found the women were members of the Red Hat Society, an organization for women over age 50. They are known for their purple and red attire.
When Spencer shared the encounter with her musical director Philip Fortenberry, she said he was speechless. The very day that Spencer had seen the women, Fortenberry and composer Keith Thompson had been making good on a promise to a recently deceased mentor to release red and purple balloons in Times Square in her honor.
From those two events, "Fair Warning" was born.
"The idea was to create an album inspired by the Red Hat Society and dedicated to the human spirit," Spencer said.
Spencer and Fortenberry will hold a concert at 2 p.m. on Sunday at the Clark County Library, 1401 E. Flamingo Road. Tickets are $15 for unreserved seats. Spencer will sing songs from "Fair Warning," as well as from her first CD "Wide Awake and Dreaming," for which she received the 2004 Back Stage Magazine Bistro Award for Outstanding Achievement in a Recording.
Spencer currently lives in Las Vegas, although she also owns a home on the East Coast. She has performed in more than 60 operas, regional and off-Broadway productions and was an original principal cast member of "Jekyll and Hyde." Now, she performs as Madame Giry in "Phantom-The Las Vegas Spectacular" at The Venetian.
Fortenberry is the associate conductor for "Mama Mia!" at Mandalay Bay and has served as musical director and played in several Broadway productions and national tours. He plays piano with Spencer.
Spencer said the musical relationship between her voice and Fortenberry's piano is more of a duet than accompaniment.
"We speak to each other. I don't think a lot of people have that," she said.
Fortenberry said the process is very much a collaboration.
"I create a pianistic perspective on which she can ride. Ultimately, it's not about the singing or the playing, it's about the truth inside the music. What we bring to it is where it lives inside our souls," he said.
Fortenberry said he and Spencer choose songs based on lyrics.
"I know her voice really well, so we always go inside the lyric of the music. The lyric always informs us of the truth within each of us," he said.
The tracks on "Fair Warning" are a combination of original compositions and classics. Spencer said she and Fortenberry created acoustic, art song interpretations of the songs that still remain true to the original intent. A guest artist, Las Vegas Philharmonic and "Producers" cellist Moonlight Tran, will play at the concert.
Four of the original songs were composed by "Producers" conductor Keith Thompson. "Virginia's Response" is a tribute to Fortenberry and Thompson's deceased mentor Virginia Scott.
The lyrics were written by Scott herself, in a response to the poem "Warning" by Jenny Joseph, which is coincidentally the poem adopted by the Red Hat Society.
According to Fortenberry, Scott was not a member of the Red Hat Society, but was a "woman who lived her life according to her own terms." Scott was the dean of students at Fortenberry and Thompson's college in Mississippi.
"She created opportunities for those of us who wanted some kind of performance outside our required performances. She would create activities that gave us the opportunity to hone our craft," Fortenberry said.
Fortenberry said the poem was read at Scott's funeral and contains several references to when he attended school.
"She refers to marching down 59th Street singing 'Stars and Stripes Forever.' It's referred to in the song," he said, explaining that Scott used to know the piccolo part and would sing it as the group walked down the street.
"She was one of those people. She was a character -- an amazing character at that," he said.
Spencer never met Scott, and she is not old enough to be a member of the Red Hat Society, but she was inspired by the group just the same.
"It's a record you can drink wine to or sip tea to," she said.
Spencer said she is working on a new CD with Fortenberry, although she would not reveal the details. She said the events surrounding the release of the CD led her to Las Vegas. She had to rehearse with Fortenberry in Las Vegas, and found out about "Phantom" on a trip.
"It's been a journey. It's been something I didn't expect," Spencer said. "Sometimes, if you just sit still long enough, you get the chance to listen."
For more information on Spencer, visit www.rebeccaspencer.com. To reserve tickets for Sunday's show, call 658-6741.
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