By Lori EhdeLove is in the air at Luverne’s Palace Theatre — at least in the music planned for Saturday.Local mezzo soprano Emily Lodine will present "Love on Broadway," at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, in the Palace Theatre just in time to set the mood for Valentine’s Day.Dubbed "A Valentine Event," Lodine will perform a line-up of Broadway musical hits based on the theme of Valentine’s Day and love.Richard Rodger’s "My Funny Valentine," will be among the songs that premiered on Broadway productions.Others that the audience will likely recognize include a song from "The Merry Widow," and an operetta number, "Indian Love Call."Lodine, who’s accustomed to performing pure opera, describes Sunday’s show as "light stuff."In fact much of the second half of the show will be Broadway in nature, including songs from George and Ira Gershwin and from Cole Porter.But that doesn’t mean the audience won’t hear classic Emily Lodine opera."I wanted to start with operetta, because that’s my genre and that’s where Broadway came from," Lodine said.She’ll take stage with accompanist Karen Carr."She plays for me all the time and she’s so talented," Lodine said of Carr. "She doesn’t live here, but it’s so generous of her to come up here whenever I ask her to."Still in love …As a side note, Lodine answered questions about her own love life, and confirmed without hesitation that yes, she’s still in love.Lodine, who hails from the Chicago area, met Magnolia farmer Gary Overgaard on a plane ride to London. She was going to perform and he was on his way to Denmark. That chance meeting turned out to be a long-distance romance, and they were eventually married in 1996.She joked that Norwegians are stubborn and that she and Gary are first-born children in their families, and she said relationships worth having require nurturing."It’s a great life," she said about her marriage and career. "I’m lucky I can do it from here."She said e-mail, cell phones and faxes allow her to live on the acreage near Magnolia and still travel to various musical engagements.For example, on Feb. 19 she’ll perform in San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral, and during the first week in March she’ll perform "Beethoven’s Ninth" symphony in Chicago. Not long after that she’ll be with the Wichita Symphony for "The Verdi Requiem."But she always comes home to Rock County."This is such a great community," she said. "People are so kind. They’re very, very giving."Upcoming local dates to mark on the calendar include events at the Washington Pavilion, Sioux Falls.On April 1 Lodine will perform with the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra with international bass-baritone Louis Otey. On May 14, she’ll sing with the South Dakota Chamber Orchestra premiering a new song cycle by composer Nathan Pawelek.Tickets for Saturday’s concert are available for $10 for adults and $5 for students at the Luverne Area Chamber of Commerce, Carnegie Cultural Center, Luverne Style Shop and at the Coffey Haus.‘Fountains of Chocolate’ Valentine socialFollowing the Valentine’s Day theme, the Coffey Haus across the street from the Palace Theatre will host a "Fountains of Chocolate Valentine Social."Starting at 9 p.m. concertgoers can enjoy a chocolate fondue social for a dollar off by presenting their concert tickets.