The New Rochelle Opera in collaboration with the Iona College Council on the Arts presented “It’s De-Lovely,” a celebration of the music of Cole Porter in the Murphy Auditorium on Sept.15.

Cole Porter was an American composer who wrote hundreds of songs and produced music for several successful musicals including “Kiss Me, Kate” and “Anything Goes,” which celebrates its eighty-fifth anniversary.

“It’s De-Lovely” highlighted several of Porter’s most popular songs including “Night and Day” from “The Gay Divorcee,” a 1934 musical featuring Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire.

The performance highlighted four singers from the New Rochelle Opera. Each of the songs was performed by at least one of the singers while some songs were performed as duets.

The first song in the program “Another Opening, Another Show” from Kiss Me, Kate was performed as an ensemble, as was the closing song “It’s De-Lovely” from “Anything Goes.”

Each of the songs was accompanied by a pianist, and two dance sequences were performed by professional ballroom dancers.

Coordinator of the Council on the Arts Madalyn Barbero-Jordan spoke about the performance in an email interview. The Council seeks to offer a variety of performances on campus through the visual arts, theatre and dance, as well as support art groups in the local New Rochelle community.

“Our main goal is to provide quality classical performances and exhibitions in the arts to Iona students so that they can be moved by the transformative power of the experience,” Barbero Jordan said. “If we can reach even one student at each event in a way that changes them somehow, we feel we’ve done our job.”

The New Rochelle Opera will present “3 Tenors and a Bass,” a highlight of male voices in opera, operetta and musical theater in Murphy Auditorium on Nov. 3. Tickets are free to Iona students who present their school ID.

The Council of the Arts hosts several events throughout the semester. The full calendar of events can be found at Iona.edu under the Arts Events calendar.