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Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
The Mann Center said that Rice, George W. Bush's one-time secretary of state, will play piano accompaniment as R-and-B singer Franklin performs her classic hits "Say a Little Prayer" and "Natural Woman."
Rice will also accompany Franklin on selections from her new album, "A Woman Falling Out of Love."
The former top US diplomat is due to perform selections from Mozart and a 20-minute set with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Mann Center said.
The collaboration is unusual on many fronts.
Rice, while an accomplished classical pianist who has performed with famed cellist Yo-Yo Ma and other classical music legends, is not generally known for performing contemporary music.
Franklin, meanwhile, is scheduled to sing several selection of classical arias -- also well out of her musical comfort zone.
The two women have markedly different political views. Franklin is a staunch Democrat who performed at President Barack Obama's inauguration while Rice, a dyed-in-the-wool Republican, was a mainstay for all eight years of the Bush administration.
But Franklin, who is currently working on an opera record featuring well-known arias, told the New York Post the pair would put aside those differences for their outing next month.
"Ms Rice is a consummate classical pianist and since I sing the arias, I thought we could do something -- a bipartisan effort for our favorite charities," the soul diva said.
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Rice will also accompany Franklin on selections from her new album, "A Woman Falling Out of Love."
The former top US diplomat is due to perform selections from Mozart and a 20-minute set with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Mann Center said.
The collaboration is unusual on many fronts.
Rice, while an accomplished classical pianist who has performed with famed cellist Yo-Yo Ma and other classical music legends, is not generally known for performing contemporary music.
Franklin, meanwhile, is scheduled to sing several selection of classical arias -- also well out of her musical comfort zone.
The two women have markedly different political views. Franklin is a staunch Democrat who performed at President Barack Obama's inauguration while Rice, a dyed-in-the-wool Republican, was a mainstay for all eight years of the Bush administration.
But Franklin, who is currently working on an opera record featuring well-known arias, told the New York Post the pair would put aside those differences for their outing next month.
"Ms Rice is a consummate classical pianist and since I sing the arias, I thought we could do something -- a bipartisan effort for our favorite charities," the soul diva said.
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