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Nazareth College Arts Center's 2013-2014 season

The Nazareth College Arts Center proudly presents its 2013-2014 season, featuring world-class dance, children’s theater, and international entertainment. Discounted, subscription series tickets and full-price, single tickets go on sale to the general public Wednesday, May 15, 2013 via the Box Office, 585-389-2170 or artscenter.naz.edu.

Honoring its long-standing, popular traditions, the Nazareth College Arts Center 2013-2014 season will include exciting work from the Arts Center’s local partners—Rochester Children’s Theatre, Rochester City Ballet, and Rochester’s own internationally acclaimed Garth Fagan Dance—as well as a mix of visiting artists.

“Our 2013-2014 subscription season showcases the power, beauty, and magic of the performing arts,” says Susan Chekow Lusignan, director, Nazareth College Arts Center. “We’ll present spectacular contemporary dance, including two story ballets, and a multi-media production with aerial artistry; music that celebrates centuries-old Japanese traditions, African vocalists, and American and British Pop artists; family entertainment that includes dazzling electroluminescent creatures, breathtaking, large-scale puppetry, and musical storytelling from Scheherazade to Shrek; and special events, such as our long-standing tradition of offering popular political satire on New Year’s Eve, and an astonishing performance by one of the country’s most sought-after illusionists."

NAZARETH COLLEGE ARTS CENTER 2013-2014 SEASON

Enchantment Theatre Company: Aladdin and Other Enchanting Tales

Enchantment Theatre Company’s original works delight audiences of all ages, with stunning costumes, masks, puppets, and pantomime. In this exquisite production, Scheherazade weaves her captivating tales for the Sultan night after night. Set to music inspired by Rimsky-Korsakov, Aladdin and Other Enchanting Tales is a modern telling of these classic stories of romance and adventure—with dragons, wizards, princesses, and exotic creatures.

Rapunzel! Rapunzel! A Very Hairy Fairy Tale!

Rochester Children’s Theatre co-production with Nazareth College Arts Center

Book, Music, and Lyrics by Janet Yates Vogt and Mark Friedman

A brand new magical, musical re-telling of the classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale! Evil Lady Za Za schemes to rule the kingdom by keeping the beautiful Princess Rapunzel trapped in a tower in the forest. It’s up to Sir Roderick and his hairdresser friend Edgar to rescue her with the help of a slightly neurotic Gypsy Woman and a tired yet witty old dragon named Socrates. In this hilarious adventure, Princess Rapunzel may indeed find a way to escape the tower and take her rightful place on the throne, while discovering her inner strength.

Shanghai Ballet: The Butterfly Lovers

For more than 30 years, the award-winning Shanghai Ballet has mesmerized audiences around the world with its diverse repertoire of classical Western ballet, contemporary dance, and folk-styled Chinese national ballet. One of just five ballet companies in China, the Shanghai Ballet has claimed a predominant position and distinguished itself with its unique and expressive dance language. The Butterfly Lovers, one of the company’s signature titles, is an audience favorite and features a full corps of graceful dancers, gorgeous costumes, and a touching story of love and loss.

Sponsored by Drs. Dawn and Jacques Lipson, Paul and Helga Morgan

Mike Super Magic & Illusion

One of the most sought-after illusionists, Mike Super is the only magician to win a live magic competition on primetime TV (NBC’s hit show Phenomenon). He has amazed audiences worldwide and entertained celebrities such as Ellen DeGeneres, Jay Leno, Regis Philbin, Kim Kardashian, and Joan Rivers. Super’s astonishing predictions and spectacular illusions have astonished millions and earned him numerous awards, including the prestigious Merlin Award, Entertainer of the Year two years in a row, and Campus Entertainer of the Year.

Sponsored by Nazareth College Campus Activities Board, Nancy and Larry Peckham

Garth Fagan Dance

Join internationally acclaimed Garth Fagan Dance in its 43rd season, with premieres by Garth Fagan and Norwood Pennewell, whose choreography “never loses flow or stops looking handsome” (Capitol Critics Circle). Garth Fagan—recently selected as one of “100 Irreplaceable Dance Treasures” by the Dance Heritage Coalition, sharing the list with his mentors Martha Graham, Alvin Ailey, José Limón, George Balanchine, to name a few—brings his astonishing company of dancers to Nazareth College Arts Center for eight performances of premieres and revivals. Discover how “Fagan achieves a clarity of spatial architecture … [that] leaves you intuiting an entire, mysterious new world” (The New York Times).

The Wizard of Oz

Rochester Children’s Theatre co-production with Nazareth College Arts Center

By L. Frank Baum; Adapted by Frank Gabrielson; With Music and Lyrics of the MGM Motion Picture; Score by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg; Background Music by Herbert Stothart

The classic tale that inspired countless productions comes to life in this delightful musical. Like so many girls her age, little Dorothy Gale of Kansas dreams of what lies over the rainbow. When a twister hits the family farm and carries her to another world, Dorothy—along with her beloved dog Toto and new friends the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion—travels the universe of her imagination down the fabled yellow-brick road. Along her journey, Dorothy learns how magical friendship can be and how wonderful it is to return home.

The Capitol Steps

For nearly two decades, The Capitol Steps have delighted Rochester audiences with their bipartisan political satire and song parodies of current headlines. What began as a group of Senate staffers satirizing the people and places that employed them has now become a nationally acclaimed company—they have even performed for five Presidents! The Capitol Steps have recorded more than 30 albums, including Take the Money and Run for President; have been featured numerous times on primetime TV; and can be heard nationwide four times a year on their popular National Public Radio “Politics Takes a Holiday” specials.

Sponsored by Margaret R. Colacino

CORBIAN Visual Arts and Dance in collaboration with Lightwire Theater: DiNO-Light

As seen on NBC’s America’s Got Talent, electro-luminescent creatures light up the darkness in this heartwarming original tale that features fantasy, dance, storytelling, and technologically dazzling visuals. Professor Henslow, a famous scientist with magical powers, creates a wild and primitive dinosaur in his workshop. When the two become separated, DiNO meets many creatures, learns something new about himself and the world around him, and ultimately discovers the true meaning of love.

Rochester City Ballet’s Ballet: RCB Style

Rochester City Ballet continues to push the boundaries and expectations of ballet with exciting collaborations and cutting-edge contemporary choreography. Join RCB’s Artistic Director Jamey Leverett as the company explores “Who is Rochester City Ballet?” This unique program features the world premiere of InCantation, an exciting new work with composer Adrienne Elisha, world-renowned double-bassist James VanDemark, and all-new choreography by Jamey Leverett. The fascinating collaboration will feature VanDemark on stage with the company—an integral part of the dancing and performance. Hear and see how RCB is preserving and celebrating the beauty and significance of dance with performance excerpts from great classical ballets alongside selections from RCB’s signature contemporary repertoire.

Shrek The Musical

Rochester Children’s Theatre co-production with Nazareth College Arts Center

Music by Jeanine Tesori; Book and Lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire; Based on the DreamWorks Animation Motion Picture and the Book by William Steig

Shrek The Musical—based on the Oscar® Award-winning film—brings the hilarious story of everyone’s favorite ogre to life onstage with all-new songs. In a faraway kingdom turned upside down, things get ugly when an unseemly ogre shows up to rescue a feisty princess. With beloved characters including an over-zealous donkey, a bad guy with a short temper, a cookie with an attitude, and more than a dozen fairy tale misfits, this is an all-ages story about what it means to be a hero.

Soweto Gospel Choir

The Emmy and Grammy Award-winning Soweto Gospel Choir has been bringing audiences around the world to their feet with the joy and power of authentic African gospel music and dynamic renditions of Western spirituals and pop tunes, including “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” “Amazing Grace,” “This Little Light of Mine,” and “Walking on Sunshine.” The 52-member choir has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Sydney Opera House, London’s Royal Festival Hall, soccer’s World Cup, and the Academy Awards; collaborated with Peter Gabriel, U2, Josh Groban, Stevie Wonder, and the Harlem Gospel Choir; and performed for Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela, Bill Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, and Prince Charles.

Sponsored by Barbara and John Lovenheim

Pilobolus

Pilobolus is a perennial Arts Center favorite. The award-winning, non-traditional performance collective is world-renowned for contortions that verge on gymnastics; improvised, creative play on stage; and taking movement to the extreme. For more than 40 years, Pilobolus has forged collaborations with choreographers, dancers, puppeteers, jugglers, and engineers to create inventive, athletic, witty performance works using the human body as a medium for expression.

Sponsored by Susan and Steven Eisinger, an anonymous donor

TAO: The Art of the Drum

TAO’s last Arts Center performance received standing ovations and rave reviews! Athletic bodies and exquisite costumes meet explosive Taiko drumming and innovative choreography in a spectacle that has entertained more than five million at sold out shows worldwide—including the Vancouver Olympics. Critics and audiences marvel at TAO’s extraordinary precision, energy, and stamina as the musicians strike their massive drums and take command of the stage. With performers who have also trained as rock musicians, gymnasts, and composers, TAO offers a vibrantly modern take on an authentic, traditional art form. All new production for 2014!

Sponsored by Josephine M. Perini

Jim Witter’s Piano Men (A Musical Journey Through the ’70s Featuring the Music of Elton John and Billy Joel)

Piano Men salutes two of the world’s most popular contemporary songwriters—Elton John and Billy Joel. Led by Dove and Juno Award nominee Jim Witter and his live band, this multimedia concert also brings back the memorable headlines, automobiles, people, events, toys, and TV shows that shaped a decade. With classic hits like “Your Song,” “My Life,” “Candle in the Wind,” and “Just the Way You Are,” Piano Men promises to be an entertaining evening celebrating the music of a generation.

Sponsored by Kathleen and Jim Leo

Rochester City Ballet’s Cinderella

A special invitation to the Ball is delivered and hilarity ensues as the evil stepmother and her daughters plan their future with the Prince. Will the Fairy Godmother step in to help Cinderella? Will the stepsisters entice the Prince with their “feminine” wiles? These questions and more will be answered when Rochester City Ballet brings this classic fairy tale to life. This family favorite, complete with gorgeous sets, brilliant costumes, exquisite dancing, and comical moments, reminds us all that dreams really can come true! Magical in its scope, RCB’s Cinderella is a visual treat for all ages—an experience that makes the beauty and artistry of ballet accessible for children and adults alike.

Dance Festival

After a one-year hiatus, the Nazareth College Arts Center Dance Festival will return during the 2013–2014 academic year to better serve Nazareth students and support the Department of Theatre Arts’ growing dance program. The Dance Festival will continue to present programming that examines the question “What is dance?” when it returns in May 2014, featuring Kaleidescopika (The Art of Unfolding). The Festival will also retain some of its most successful elements, including discussions with choreographers and dancers, master classes, and the popular “Dancing on the Grass” performances. Information on non-ticketed events will be posted prior to the Festival.

Kaleidescopika (The Art of Unfolding) featuring Cordis Quartet with LehrerDance

LehrerDance returns to Rochester with the critically acclaimed Cordis Quartet to present Kaleidescopika (The Art of Unfolding), a dazzling, sensory experience. This electrifying new work combines the most thrilling elements in contemporary performing arts—athletic yet theatrical contemporary dance; cirque-type acrobatics and aerial artistry; an emotional, hypnotic, textural musical score; and a vivid, multimedia backdrop—to create a breathtaking performance with a whimsical, fairy tale aura.

Sponsored by Kathleen and Jim Leo, Glenna and Norman Spindelman

NAZARETH COLLEGE ARTS CENTER TICKETS

Discounted, subscription series tickets and full-price, single tickets go on sale to the general public Wednesday, May 15, 2013 via the Box Office, 585-389-2170 or artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. and 11 a.m. until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2013-2014 subscription series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts.

2012-2013 PRESS RELEASES

Nazareth College Department of Art presents Shared Spaces 2013, beginning May 31

Nazareth College Arts Center Gallery; May 31-June 14, 2013; Special Gallery Hours: Tuesday-Friday 4-8 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday 12-5 p.m.

The Nazareth College Department of Art is pleased to present Shared Spaces 2013 beginning May 31 through June 14, 2013.

Shared Spaces is an annual high school art teacher/student show, designed to celebrate the unique apprenticeship process that occurs between teacher and student. Each teacher submits one piece of his/her own work that was created within the last 3 years and selects one student to show with. To honor the concept of gallery space being equal, the work is displayed without identifying whether a teacher or a student created it.

This year’s exhibit features 53 teacher/student pairs.

Nazareth College musical theatre students cast in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Geva Theatre Center

Nazareth College is pleased to announce that four musical theatre majors from its Department of Theatre Arts have been cast in Geva Theatre Center’s 2012-2013 production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Nazareth College juniors Henry DuRocher (East Rochester, New York), Chris Mauro (Webster, New York), and Ashley Squairs (Baldwinsville, New York) along with sophomore Hannah Karpenko (Rochester, New York) were cast in the production’s ensemble.

The students have been cast in multiple ensemble roles in the production, giving them an opportunity to learn from Geva’s professional cast and crew. In addition to maintaining their course loads, the four students started rehearsing at Geva in April, and will appear in up to 10 performances each week beginning May 8th.

Skip Greer, Geva Theatre Center artist in residence and director of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, speaks highly of the Nazareth students and the importance of this internship opportunity. “All four interns, Hannah Karpenko, Ashley Squairs. Henry Du Rocher, and Chris Mauro gave inspired, well conceived auditions and will be superb additions to our acting company” he offers. “Theatre is built on apprenticeship, and connecting young, talented, and disciplined interns to seasoned veterans is one of our greatest joys. When we do, we’re actually touching the future.”

After being seen in several local productions at the JCC CenterStage, and RAPA, DuRocher is particularly thrilled for this opportunity. “I'm excited to be working at Geva for the first time and I'm especially excited with what I've seen of the production design.”

Mauro, who has also performed locally at RAPA, Fairport Summer Performing Arts, and Stages, echoes DuRocher’s excitement surrounding the design of the show. “From what I have seen thus far, the costumes, designs and sets are really going to be spectacular and quite magical,” he says.

Karpenko has a long history with Geva. “Geva has always been a part of my life. I attended their Summer Academy for three years in high school,” she explains. “I am a firm believer that the wonderful staff there helped to shape my artistry in an invaluable way.”

Similar to Karpenko, Squairs also has a history with Geva, having served as an intern in A Christmas Carol during the winter. “That was an amazing experience that I will never forget, and that makes me so excited for this production. This is an amazing opportunity for all of us and I'm so thankful for it.” says Squairs.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream runs on Geva Theatre Center’s Elaine P. Wilson Mainstage from Wednesday, May 8 through Sunday, June 2, 2013.

Nazareth College music student awarded prestigious marketing internship with Jazz at Lincoln Center

Sophomore Kristopher Sullivan to promote Center’s Chick Corea festival!

Nazareth College is pleased to announce that sophomore Kristopher Sullivan (Buffalo, New York), a music business student in the Department of Music, has been awarded a summer internship with Jazz at Lincoln Center. Sullivan will work in the organization’s marketing department during the summer of 2013, assisting with high-profile events.

“My first project will be a Chick Corea festival, a series of concerts and surrounding events May 16-18 by pianist-composer Chick Corea, including a performance with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis,” Sullivan said.

Sullivan studies jazz and classical guitar with Rochester musicians Bob Sneider and Petar Kodzas—also a Nazareth College Department of Music faculty—respectively, and is a member of the Nazareth College Jazz Ensemble, directed by Paul Smoker. He credits his dual background as a music business major and performer with helping him earn the position, which he sees as an opportunity of a lifetime.

“I can’t express how happy I am to have this experience,” he said. “Jazz at Lincoln Center is the heart of the whole jazz scene, and I plan to combine my great enthusiasm for jazz performance and my training in music business to support their goals!”

“The Nazareth College Music Department is delighted for Kristopher,” added Dr. James Douthit, chairperson. “It is an honor not only for him, but also for the Department and the College, to have a student affiliated with an organization as renowned as Jazz at Lincoln Center.”

Jazz at Lincoln Center, celebrating it’s 25th anniversary this year, is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit dedicated to inspiring and growing audiences for jazz. Jazz at Lincoln Center advances a unique vision for the continued development of the art of jazz by producing a year-round schedule of performance, education and broadcast events for audiences of all ages.

Nazareth College Department of Art presents annual Art Education Graduate Art Show beginning May 3

Show runs May 3-May 12, 2013; Opening Reception Friday May 3, 5-8 p.m., featuring live music by Alexandra Vasilius; Arts Center Gallery is open Tuesday-Thursday 12-5 p.m.; Friday-Saturday 12-8 p.m.; Sunday 12-5 p.m.; automated info line: 585-389-5073

The Nazareth College Department of Art is pleased to present its annual Art Education Graduate Art Show, featuring the work of eight students: Anastasia Arriaga (exhibit director), Amanda Bucholtz, Katie Cole, Sage Cox, Danielle Keefe, Scott Martin, Melissa Salatino, and Brendan Shea.

Numerous pieces on display represent a variety of styles and media, including paintings, photography, prints, ceramics, mixed media, and more. Some pieces are available for purchase.

This exhibit is on display May 3-May 12, 2013, with an Opening Reception Friday May 3, 5-8 p.m. featuring live music by Alexandra Vasilius.

Nazareth College to create New Media exhibit space in Arts Center Gallery with grant from Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation

Nazareth College has been awarded a $33,605 grant from the Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation to create a New Media exhibit space within its Arts Center Gallery. The space will be the region’s first academic New Media gallery.

New Media exhibit spaces furnished with special equipment are used throughout the art world as artists seek ways to share their work globally without the labor and fees associated with shipping it. This grant will allow the Nazareth College Arts Center Gallery to introduce digital and video formats into its exhibits, and give participating artists new levels of interactivity between themselves and their audiences.

"New Media is an exciting new frontier in the art world,” explains Ron Netsky, chairperson, Nazareth College Department of Art (pictured surveying the New Media equipment in the Arts Center Gallery). “In some cases it involves art that only exists electronically. The digital equipment we were able to purchase with the grant money will make it possible to bring cutting-edge work from around the world to Nazareth. It will also provide the means for our students to create and present works involving New Media."

The grant was obtained by former Nazareth College Gallery Director, Cathy Sweet, whose proposal states, “In addition to providing artists with new methods for creative expression, it is important to note that New Media is also helping to redefine our notion of aesthetics.”

The College will begin using the New Media exhibit space with the Department of Art's Undergraduate Show, on display March 29-April 21.

Nazareth College Arts Center presents breathtaking performance by critically acclaimed Cashore Marionettes

Beautifully constructed, and move with such realism” Los Angeles Times

Sunday May 5, 2013; 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.; suggested for ages 8+; 60 minutes with no intermission

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present the Cashore Marionettes: Simple Gifts, on Sunday, May 5, 2013, at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. in the Callahan Theater. The 60-minute performance will run without an intermission, and is recommended for children ages 8+ and their families.

The program is also suitable for adults and seniors without children, who will appreciate the beauty of the marionettes and music, as well as the emotions shared within the stories. Artists, engineers, and students of related disciplines will also appreciate the beauty and detail with which master craftsman, Joseph Cashore, constructs the marionettes.

“This collection of puppet vignettes, set to well-chosen music, is a simple but brilliant production that carries the audience through a range of feelings…this show is highly recommended even for adults who don’t happen to have kids.” Calgary Herald

A lecture/demonstration with Joseph Cashore, who has been designing and performing with his marionettes for more than 30 years, will follow the 4 p.m. performance.

THE PERFORMANCE

The Cashore Marionettes are world renowned for redefining the art of puppetry. Their program, Simple Gifts, is a series of touching portrayals and poignant scenes from everyday life that have been set to stunning music to create an unforgettable theatrical experience. Joyous, humorous, and nostalgic, Simple Gifts celebrates the wonder and richness of life, and the hand-made marionettes are so realistic that they appear alive on stage.

Critics have called the Cashore Marionettes’ phenomenal masterworks—including a mother trying to quiet a restless infant, a spirited horse frolicking with a dragonfly, and a child flying a kite on a windy day—“a symphony of movement” (The Philadelphia Inquirer) and “artistry with insight and illusion” (The Atlanta Journal Constitution).

Through a combination of virtuoso manipulation by puppeteer Joseph Cashore; beautiful music by composers such as Vivaldi, Strauss, Beethoven, and Copland; theatrical illusion; and artistic insight, the original vignettes that make up Simple Gifts provide an entertaining and sensitive vision of what it means to be human. The marionettes are engineering marvels and their quality of movement is extraordinary, and the performance explores a range of emotions with amazingly convincing characters and actions. According to the performers’ website, “A performance by the Cashore Marionettes is a celebration of life. The program consists of a collection of engaging pieces encompassing a broad range of themes, each delivered with a simplicity that expresses the essence of the moment.”

THE PUPPETEER

Joseph Cashore has been designing and performing with his marionettes for more than 30 years.

At the age of 11, Cashore fashioned his first marionette from clothespins, string, wood, and a tin can, and was astonished by the realism of its movement. Nonetheless, it wasn’t until after he graduated from college that he built his second marionette, discovering that in order to achieve the fluid motion and depth of expression he sought, he’d also have to also design his own puppet control mechanisms.

For 19 years Cashore experimented, finally achieving the subtle control that allowed him to create a puppet that was a turning point in his career and an impetus for his current productions: Maestro Janos Zelinka, a marionette that performs a violin solo so realistically and with such artistry and expression that it appears to be human.

Since 1990, Cashore has performed his moving, often humorous, works full time. He has toured Asia, Europe, and North America, performing at such notable venues as the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts; the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; and the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach.

Cashore is also the recipient of numerous awards, including a Pew Charitable Trust Fellowship for Performance Art for artistic accomplishments; a Henson Foundation Grant to promote puppetry to adult audiences; and a Citation of Excellence from UNIMA (the International Puppetry Association), the highest honor an American puppeteer can receive. UNIMA states that such citations are “awarded to shows that touch their audiences deeply; that totally engage, enchant, and enthrall.”

The Cashore Marionettes have also been featured in Puppetry International.

TICKETS

Tickets to Cashore Marionettes: Simple Gifts are $15-$18. For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm and 11am until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts. The performance by Cashore Marionettes is sponsored by Nancy and Larry Peckham.

Nazareth College Department of Art presents annual Undergraduate Art Show beginning March 29

Show runs March 29-April 21, 2013; Opening Reception Friday, April 5, 5-7 p.m.; Arts Center Gallery is open Wednesday-Sunday; noon-5 p.m.; automated info line: 585-389-5073

The Nazareth College Department of Art is pleased to present its annual Undergraduate Art Show, March 29-April 21, featuring the work of 65 students. Collectively, the more than 225 pieces on display represent a variety of styles and media, including aquatints, ceramics, etchings, illustrations, metals, paintings, photography, prints, sculpture, and more. Some pieces are available for purchase.

The Nazareth College Undergraduate Art Show will also utilize the recently installed New Media exhibit space within the Nazareth College Arts Center Gallery. New Media exhibit spaces furnished with special equipment provide artists with new ways to create and share work. Nazareth College’s space is the region’s first academic New Media gallery.

This exhibit is free and open to the public between noon-5 p.m. Wednesdays-Sundays from March 29-April 21, 2013; with an Opening Reception: Friday, April 5, from 5-7 p.m.

Nazareth College Department of Music Symphony Orchestra presents Alumni Back on Stage!, conducted by Nancy Strelau

Alumni and guest artists to join Orchestra on stage Friday, April 12, 2013; 7:30 p.m.

The Nazareth College Department of Music Symphony Orchestra will be joined on stage by Department of Music alumni and guest artists for Alumni Back on Stage!, Friday, April 12, 2013; 7:30 p.m., in Linehan Chapel. The program, featuring performances of classics and original compositions, including a world premiere by Tony Bisbano, will be conducted by Nazareth College Department of Music Assistant Professor and Instrumental Coordinator/Orchestra Conductor, Nancy Strelau, with David Labman on piano.

“I am always looking for new programs, and with so many talented alumni I couldn’t pass up the chance to bring them together,” Strelau explains. “This program will highlight their work as composers and soloists in a concert of old and new music, with a few surprises.”

Highlights of Alumni Back on Stage! include Beethoven: Symphony No. 5, Allegro-Presto (Mvt. 4); Labman: Piano Concerto, Bold-Fiery (Mvt. 3); Tony Bisbano: Finding Me (world premiere); arr. Bisbano: Ave Maria, featuring soprano Jessica Bess; and Peter Maxwell Davies: Orkney Wedding with Sunrise, featuring guest soloist Graham Thompson on Scottish pipes.

This performance is free and open to the public.

ABOUT NANCY STRELAU

Nancy Strelau is music director and conductor of the Nazareth College Symphony Orchestra, Nazareth College Chamber Orchestra, Hochstein Youth Symphony Orchestra, Hochstein Virtuosi Scholarship Chamber Orchestra, and Greater Rochester Women's Philharmonic. In addition, she is coordinator of the String Area and auditions coordinator of the Nazareth College Department of Music and teaches applied conducting, composition, and string pedagogy. Strelau also serves as president-elect of the New York chapter of American String Teachers Association.

Before coming to Rochester in 1986, Strelau was a violinist with the Florida Philharmonic and assistant conductor of the Miami Youth Orchestra. She was director of orchestras and string coordinator for the Penfield Central School District (1986-2000), conductor of the Finger Lakes Symphony Orchestra (1994-2005), and co-conductor of the Brighton Symphony Orchestra (1990-1994). She is a frequent guest conductor of high school orchestra festivals, all-county and all-state orchestras, as well as guest conductor at local and national music conferences. Strelau has received numerous awards including the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra Musicians Award for Outstanding Music Educator in String Education, the Hochstein Music School Faculty Service Award, and the Richard Snook Memorial Award from the Monroe County School Music Association.

Nazareth College receives gift from renowned glass artist, Michael Taylor

“Right Place/Right Time” installed in Nazareth College Arts Center

Nazareth College is pleased to unveil “Right Place/Right Time,” a 38-foot long, two-story wall installation generously donated to the College by artist Michael Taylor. Visitors can view this permanent installation in the foyer of the Nazareth College Arts Center.

“‘Right Place/Right Time’ is a generous gift from Michael Taylor to Nazareth College,” says Kelly E. Gagan, Vice President, Institutional Advancement, Nazareth College. “Michael's work is included in public collections at Carnegie Hall and the Smithsonian, as well as internationally, and we are honored that he chose Nazareth for this installation.”

“Michael Taylor is an acclaimed artist with a national reputation, and we are proud to display his work here,” adds Susan Chekow Lusignan, Director, Nazareth College Arts Center. "The piece is a fitting addition to the Arts Center, and we are delighted to have it on permanent display.”

ABOUT RIGHT PLACE/RIGHT TIME

“Right Place/Right Time” serves as a visual interpretation of the college experience. It portrays the process from student matriculation to graduation in a linear chart format.

“The fundamental narrative of this installation represents the visual commonalities that remain constant throughout, and continue beyond, the student’s college experience,” Taylor explains. “The piece speaks of student accomplishments from the foundation years to the assertion of independence of personal interests. Each arm of the 18 objects is at a different place and a different time, corresponding to primary locations on the analogue clock and the compass. The work is ultimately about being prepared for the inevitable moment of being at the right place at the right time.”

ABOUT MICHAEL TAYLOR

Taylor’s exceptional career in visual arts and education spans 40 years. He has received many prestigious scholarships and grants, including the Fulbright-Hays Research Grant, the National Endowment for the Arts, Visual Arts Fellowship; the New York State Foundation for the Arts Grant; the New York State Council on the Arts, Visual Artist Fellowship; The Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Grant; The Thord-Gray Fellowship of the American-Scandinavian Foundation; Korean – American Cultural Exchange, Samsung/Corning Foundation Grant; Grand Prize at the International Exhibition of Glass, Kanazawa, Japan; the Danforth Foundation for Humanities Grant; the United States Department of Information Services, Cultural Specialist Award, Mexico; and the Portuguese -American Foundation Grant.

Taylor was head of the Glass Department at Rochester Institute of Technology's College of Imaging Arts and Sciences in Rochester, N.Y. for 20 years, and served in the Visual Arts Department at Vanderbilt University in Peabody College in Nashville, Tennessee nine years prior. For additional information, visit michaeletaylor-glass.com.

Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts to present The Threepenny Opera by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill beginning April 12

The Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts and Theatre League will present The Threepenny Opera by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill as the final production of its 2012-2013 season. The show runs April 12, 13, 19, and 20, 2013 at 8 p.m.; and April 14 and 21, 2013 at 2 p.m.; in the Callahan Theatre at the Nazareth College Arts Center.

The Threepenny Opera is considered to be Kurt Weill’s best-known work. It is based on The Beggar’s Opera, a piece created in 1728 by John Gay. It opened in Berlin on August 31, 1928 and has been reincarnated several times, both on and off-Broadway. The first off-Broadway production opened in 1956 and played for 2,707 performances. Most recently, it was revived by the Roundabout Theatre Company in 2006 starring Alan Cumming and Cyndi Lauper. It received a nomination for Best Musical Revival.

Director Lindsay Reading Korth has expressed great enthusiasm for this piece, stating, “This is classic material… The play’s themes challenge social values that applaud profit over all other definitions of success. The play takes us on a journey through the darkest alleys inspired both by Victorian London and post WWI Berlin. The setting is bleak and raw and profit is king.” The play centers on Macheath, also known as Mack the Knife, the most terrifying criminal around. When Mack takes the young, naïve Polly Peachum for his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Peachum become active in trying to put an end to Macheath’s deceitful ways

When asked about The Threepenny Opera, several of the cast members responded adamantly about its significance. Courtney Scheer, who plays the Street Singer, explains that this material is a challenge for the actor that “gives us a change to discover layers upon layers within the material.” Cast member Chris Mauro, who will be portraying the role of Tiger Brown, speaks frankly about what the audience may expect to see. “Life isn’t always like your typical Golden Age musical where it is happy and love prevails in the end. Life is dark and bad people get off the hook sometimes. This play really proves that.” Despite its darkness and grim exterior, Bre Melino who plays Lucy Brown, is sure that this is a show worth seeing. She says, “The genius of Threepenny is that it challenges not only the actors, but the audience, forcing them to reason with the characters’ decisions and draw parallels to their own society.”

When it comes to concept and artistic vision, each production of The Threepenny Opera has run the gamut. Nazareth College’s production is no exception. Rather than setting the story in typical Victorian times, scenic and costume designer Allen Shannon has gone in a new direction, giving this production a Steam Punk theme. Steam Punk features the idea of steam-powered machinery with a flavor of the Victorian era. Lindsay Reading Korth explains, “We were searching for a look and sensibility that would capture our audience’s imagination.”

The Threepenny Opera cast consists of Nazareth College students: Taylor Carlson (Buffalo, New York), Lainey Catalino (Warren, Pennsylvania), Matthew Combs (Marion, New York), Nicole Cupo (Randolph, New Jersey), Marissa Davis (Frankfort, New York), Tess DeFlyer (East Aurora, New York), Henry DuRocher (East Rochester, New York), Chelsea Goodrich (Henrietta, New York), Francis V. Grunfeld (Worcester, New York), Seth Hatch (Franklinville, New York), Shane Heidecker (Oneonta, New York), Hannah Karpenko (Rochester, New York), Adam Marino (Webster, New York), Chris Mauro (Webster, New York), Bre Melino (Ontario, New York), Morgan Naum (Liverpool, New York), Gerald “Ged” Owen (Bartlett, New Hampshire), Kayla Perconti (Irondequoit, New York), Amanda Popielarz (Hamburg, New York), Courtney Scheer (Victor, New York), Ashley Squairs (Baldwinsville, New York), and Sam Vaccaro (Webster, New York).

The production is directed by Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts Chairperson, Lindsay Reading Korth; music directed by Nazareth musical theatre graduate, Audra Cramer; and choreographed by Department of Theatre Arts Assistant Professor of Dance, Heather Roffe. The production team is made up of Nazareth College students: Mary Katherine Lodick (Stage Manager), Jessica Pappalardo (Assistant Stage Manager), Sarah Fredendall (Assistant Stage Manager), Joshua Lau (Props Master), and Hilary Faulkner (Dance Captain).

RELATED STORY: In celebration of Weill, WXXI Classical 91.5 will present the Kurt Weill, American, series hosted by Michael Lasser on March 9, 16, and 23, and the Eastman Opera Theatre will present Weill and Hughes’ Street Scene April 4-7.

TICKETS

Tickets to The Threepenny Opera are $15-17. For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm, and for one hour prior to curtain time for Theatre Arts Department performances.

Nazareth College Arts Center presents evocative, jazz-based choreography by critically acclaimed River North Dance Chicago

"Sexy, daring, and fluid, they lit up the stage…" The Dallas Morning News

“…a lush panorama of choreography…” Chicago Tribune

Saturday, March 23, 8 p.m.

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present River North Dance Chicago on Saturday, March 23, 2013, at 8 p.m. in the Callahan Theater. The critically acclaimed company led by Artistic Director Frank Chaves is known for skilled, emotive dancers; stimulating, jazz-based music; and bold, theatrical dance.

RELATED STORY: Three River North Dance Chicago company members have ties to Western New York: Hayley Meier is originally from Rochester and is a former company member of Rochester City Ballet; Melanie Manale-Hortin is originally from Oswego and is a University at Buffalo alumna; Jessica Wolfrum is originally from Buffalo and is a University at Buffalo alumna.

THE COMPANY

River North Dance Chicago was founded in 1989 and has since established itself as one of the nation's leading companies, having received both national and international critical acclaim. The Chicago Sun Times said “this is one sleek, confident, athletic, daring, versatile company,” and Germany’s Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung described them as, “young, dynamic and eager to experiment…a performance of pure zest for life. Jazz dance has not been this sexy for a long time.”

According to its press materials, River North Dance Chicago “is dedicated to the creative advancement, presentation, and preservation of jazz-based contemporary dance,” and “embodies a true flavor of ‘Americana’ in its versatile repertoire.” The company’s choreography combines athletic prowess and artistic perspective, resulting in an emotive, sensual, theatrical stage presence. Celebrated for presenting gutsy, dynamic, entertaining works that appeal to seasoned dance patrons and newcomers alike, the company delights audiences with a variety of enriching and accessible experiences that range from dramatic to lyrical and from traditional to abstract.

River North Dance Chicago is under the artistic direction of award-winning, international choreographer and teacher, Frank Chaves, who “aims for audiences to feel the complete spectrum of human emotions in a single evening, and leaves them feeling joyful and exhilarated at the end of each program,” according to the company’s press materials. Although the company’s core works are Chaves’, they are augmented with pieces by other nationally and internationally renowned choreographers.

In keeping with its vision of advancing contemporary dance, River North Dance Chicago performs throughout the United States and abroad, having participated in the IV International Ballet Festival in Cali, Columbia in 2010, and the Busan International Dance Festival in Korea in 2011; and toured Germany, Switzerland, and Russia on a 28-city tour in 2012. The company has also been the subject of three Emmy Award-winning documentaries produced in partnership with HMS Media: Reality of a Dreamer (1993), River North Rising (1999), and Every Dancer Has a Story (2009). The latter delves into the lives of the dancers, exposing the thoughtful ensemble of storytellers who focus on bonding together to share their collective experiences with audiences and each other.

TICKETS

Tickets to River North Dance Chicago are $30-$60. For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts.

Nazareth College Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures to present family performances of Diabolo March 1-2

Original play by Dr. Candide Carrasco will be performed in English with some French, Spanish, and Italian!

The Nazareth College Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures will present Diabolo, an original, multilingual play by the department’s chairperson, Dr. Candide Carrasco. The show runs March 1-2, 2013 at 8 p.m., in Callahan Theater at Nazareth College Arts Center. Diabolo will be performed in English, with some French, Spanish, and Italian. The 80-minute performance is suggested for children ages 11+ and their families.

Diabolo tells the story of a little prince who no one understands because he is different, and a community of tiny people living on his chandelier who welcome him into their realm: Lady Maravilla, the good hearted spider; the King of Hearts; Luciernaga, a tiny firefly learning to dance; two butterflies who carry messages between the two worlds; and the mischievous Diabolo, a valiant little man who will not give up the fight to save the lost prince and his dog, Pepito, from the shadows of their palace.

Overall, Diabolo is a story about the pain felt by people who are different, and the celebration of how to overcome the darkest obstacles through friendship, love, and the search for beauty.

Diabolo was written and directed by Dr. Candide Carrasco, Nazareth College French professor and chairperson of the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, whose playwriting/directing credits extend back to 1968. Recent plays include Peau D’Ane (2007); Azur (2008); Abracadabra (2010); Barcarolle (2011); and Casablanca (2012). Other projects include Broken Wrists, a film script for actor Jean Reno. He is currently working on De Casablanca a Hollywood, a one-man show for Reno, and Jean Reno a Biography for XO Editions Paris.

The Diabolo cast consists entirely of Nazareth College students: Max Gordon Wheeler (Rochester, New York), Hailey Grove (East Rochester, New York), Kelsey Andrychuk (Greece, New York), Maria Rosaria Vitti-Alexander (Penfield, New York), Sarah Sarkin (Ogdensburg, New York), Mary Lawrence (Ogdensburg, New York), Darrion Sands (San Diego, California), Quentin Bahuon (Rennes, France), Mathilde Lesage (Rennes, France), Emily Sebian (Clarence, New York), Sierra Morabito (Pittsford, New York), Stan Martinelli (Sodus, New York), Elizabeth Butler (Richfield Springs, New York), Dan McDonald (Nashua, New Hampshire), and Ruben Gomez (East Rochester New York).

TICKETS

Tickets to Diabolo are $12. For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

Nazareth College Department of Music presents Celebrating Poulenc, in honor of the quintessential French composer

Two-part program to feature works for solo piano, voice, instrumental sonatas, and chamber music!

Sunday, March 3, 2013; 3 p.m. and Sunday, April 7, 2013; 3 p.m.

The Nazareth College Department of Music is pleased to present Celebrating Poulenc, a two-part series featuring the music of the quintessential French composer and songwriter, Francis Poulenc, at 3 p.m., Sundays, March 3 and April 7, 2013; in Wilmot Recital Hall. Both recitals are free and open to the public. The series, in honor of the 50th anniversary of Poulenc's death, will feature works for solo piano and voice, as well as instrumental sonatas and chamber music from throughout Poulenc’s career.

Celebrating Poulenc was organized by Gary Fisher, Nazareth College Department of Music Community Music Program coordinator and piano instructor, and will feature more than 10 Music Department faculty members, possible because of the variety of Poulenc’s compositions. Considered perhaps the greatest songwriter of the 20th century, he is also known for his devoutly religious choral works, such as the beloved “Gloria;” his opera, Dialogues of the Carmelites; numerous sonatas for solo instruments and piano, including violin, and clarinet; music for the ballet and theater; solo piano works; orchestral pieces; chamber music; even film scores.

“Poulenc was a clever, accessible composer – engaging for a wide variety of audiences – and we’ll capture that in these programs,” Fisher offers. “We will present an eclectic, interesting mix so that the audience may experience music that appeals to their sense of melodic beauty, their sense of humor, and their appreciation of music as both entertainment and emotional touchstone.”

Prior to the March performance, Fisher will also present a pre-recital talk, “Pourquoi Poulenc?”

Nazareth College Arts Center presents Scottish pipes, drums, and dance by the Black Watch 3rd Battalion and the Scots Guards

The most celebrated Scottish pipe and drum corps in the world to present British Isles of Wonder, new for 2013!

Friday, March 15, 8 p.m.

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present the Pipes and Drums of the Black Watch 3rd Battalion (the Royal Regiments of Scotland) and the Band of the Scots Guards, on Friday, March 15, 2013, at 8 p.m. in the Callahan Theater. These famed pipers, drummers, and dancers from two of Scotland’s elite military regiments will present a new program entitled British Isles of Wonder, celebrating the music of Scotland, England, Ireland, and Wales. The program will also include an armed forces tribute.

RELATED STORY: In honor of the performers’ centuries-old military traditions, Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to offer 15% off select tickets for active-duty military personnel and veterans. Complete details appear with ticket information below.

THE PERFORMANCE

Members of the Scots Guards, representing Scotland in Britain’s famed Guards Division for more than three centuries, serve as the monarch’s personal troops, are among the nation’s fighting troops, and fill a famed ceremonial role. Its musical contingent, the Band of the Scots Guards, was created to instill patriotism and pride in the fighting troops, and to inspire young men to enlist. Today, the Band of the Scots Guards boasts 43 bagpipers and drummers whose duty is largely ceremonial, although they were deployed as medics in the early 1990s. The Band greeted President Obama when he visited Buckingham Palace in 2011.

Similarly, members of the Black Watch 3rd Battalion (the Royal Regiments of Scotland) have fought in major British military campaigns for centuries, including against the French at Fort Ticonderoga in upstate New York in 1758. The regiment is famous for its dark tartans, the red hackles in its feather bonnets, and the sound of its bagpipes as it marched into battle – played by the Pipes and Drums of the Black Watch 3rd Battalion. In time, the battalion’s music became entertainment for the Scottish clans, and Highland dancers joined the ranks of the Black Watch, now the most celebrated bagpipe band in the world.

TICKETS

Tickets to the Pipes and Drums of the Black Watch 3rd Battalion (the Royal Regiments of Scotland) and the Band of the Scots Guards are $40-$70.

MILITARY DISCOUNT: In honor of the performers’ centuries-old military tradition, Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to offer 15% off Premium and Orchestra seats for active-duty military personnel and veterans who present valid military identification. The military discount is available only for tickets purchased in person at the Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office and does not include Value seats. Prior sales are excluded. The military discount cannot be combined with other offers.

For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm and 11am until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts.

Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts Dance Program presents MAD (Movement and Dance) Festival

Friday, February 15, 2013-Sunday, February 17, 2013

The Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts Dance Program will present the MAD (Movement and Dance) Festival, featuring more than 30 master classes in a variety of dance styles and movement practices, Friday, February 15, 2013-Sunday, February 17, 2013. The festival is open to area residents, age 15 and over, of all skill levels. Classes are $5 each or six for $25. Registration will occur onsite in the Upper Lobby of the Nazareth College Arts Center.

MAD Festival participants may choose classes in modern, jazz, ballet, musical theatre, hip hop, salsa, tap, Afro-Caribbean, samba, improvisation, choreography, and more. Classes will be taught by local, regional, and national artists (many with Masters of Fine Arts degrees), as well as degree candidates, including members of Hip Hop company Illstyle and Peace Productions; Stephanie Fittro, Broadway dancer/performer and teaching artist; Dr. Suzanne Oliver, Alexander Technique Practitioner and Ph.D. in kinesiology; and Dr. Staffan Elgelid, Feldenkrais Practitioner and Ph.D. in physical therapy. The festival will close with a lecture-demonstration performance by the Rochester-based, modern fusion company, FuturPointe Dance, on Sunday, February 17 at 4 p.m., which is also $5 admittance and open to all ages.

For more information, including complete class schedules and registration times, visit naz.edu/theatre-arts/MAD-Festival.

Nazareth College Arts Center presents award-winning children’s puppeteers, Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia

Audiences treated to adaptation of two beloved children’s stories in one performance: Guess How Much I Love You and I Love My Little Storybook!

Saturday, March 9, 2013; 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.; suggested for ages 3-7; 60 minutes with no intermission

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia’s adaptations of Guess How Much I Love You and I Love My Little Storybook on Saturday, March 9, 2013, at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. in the Callahan Theater. The 60-minute performance will feature both titles, will run without an intermission, and is recommended for children ages 3-7 and their families. Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia is ranked among North America’s most respected theaters for young audiences, and their adaptations of children’s literature have delighted more than five million children on four continents.

THE PERFORMANCE

Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia will present unique adaptations of two favorite children’s books – Guess How Much I Love You and I Love My Little Storybook – performed through the art of puppetry on imaginative sets with original music.

Guess How Much I Love You is an award-winning bedtime classic by author Sam McBratney and illustrator Anita Jeram. It is the story of Little Nutbrown Hare, who loves Big Nutbrown Hare as far as he can reach and as high as he can hop, but Big Nutbrown Hare loves him back as far as his longer arms reach and stronger legs hop. So the story goes, with a surprise at the end that has been delighting children since the book was first released in 1994. Guess How Much I Love You has sold more than 20 million copies worldwide and been published in 37 languages.

In I Love My Little Storybook, written and illustrated by Anita Jeram, an eager young bunny lies on the grass and opens what is presumably his first storybook. Within minutes, the story comes alive in fascinating detail, and he is ushered into a world of enchanted forests, gentle lions, stomping giants, sleeping princesses, and more through the magic of reading.

Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia was founded in 1972. The company’s adaptations of children's literature have delighted more than five million young people in more than 12 countries, including South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, England, Wales, Ireland, Hong Kong, Macau, and the United States. Mermaid Theatre ranks among North America's most respected theatres for young audiences; among the awards it has received are Canadian Export Excellence Awards in recognition of contributions to culture and economy, and Best Performing Group from the Canadian Arts Presenting Association. In addition to its touring productions, Mermaid Theatre performs at the Imperial Performing Arts Centre in Windsor, Nova Scotia; runs its Mermaid Institute of Puppetry Arts summer intensive; and provides instruction through the Mermaid Youtheatre program.

TICKETS

Tickets to Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia: Guess How Much I Love You and I Love My Little Storybook are $15-$18.

For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm and 11am until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts.

Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts to present Plaza Suite by Neil Simon beginning February 15

The Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts and Theatre League will present Plaza Suite by Neil Simon as the third production of its 2012-2013 season. The show runs February 15, 16, 22, and 23, 2013 at 8 p.m., and February 17 and 24, 2013 at 2 p.m., in Studio A48 at Nazareth College Arts Center.

Neil Simon has written more than 30 plays and several screenplays throughout his career, and is regarded as one of the best comedic playwrights of all time. His most famous works include Brighton Beach Memoirs, Lost in Yonkers, Barefoot in the Park, and his Tony Award-winning play The Odd Couple. In addition to plays, Simon is also credited as the book writer for several Broadway musicals such as Sweet Charity, The Goodbye Girl, and T_hey’re Playing Our Song_. In 1991, Simon was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his acclaimed work as a playwright.

When considering Plaza Suite, Director Patti Lewis Browne says, “this early, prime Neil Simon play contains everything that has kept him one of America’s most popular playwrights for over half a century: fully rounded characters who find themselves in prickly situations and respond in unexpected ways.”

Plaza Suite tells the story of three separate couples occupying the same hotel suite at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. Throughout the course of the show we see “one couple revisiting the same room where they honeymooned over 20 years ago, a Hollywood producer who makes the trip back to New York to find an old girlfriend, and another couple whose daughter is reluctant to come out of the bathroom on her wedding day,” explains Browne.

“The play switches back and forth between quick-paced comedy and heartbreaking simplicity,” adds cast member Zak West. Another member of the company, Matt Allen, adds that “sincere appreciation of family” is what he believes to be at the root of all the hilarity captured in this play. Simon’s innate ability to execute elements of farce while upholding the raw emotions of the characters is what makes this play so special.

Cast member Allie Tabor calls attention to Simon’s skill as a playwright stating, “It’s so well written that it makes our job easier – you can concentrate on getting to all the layers.” The witty language used by Simon and the physicality required by the piece are the only tools needed to create beautiful comedy onstage. All that the actors need concern themselves with is telling the story with honesty and conviction.

At its core, Plaza Suite captures big comedy with even bigger heart. Browne explains, “Each character is here at the Plaza hoping to find love of one kind or another and, as in all good comedies, complications ensue.” These complications, when tied together in one piece, make for an excellent evening of theatre that is sure to tickle the funny bone and touch the soul.

The Plaza Suite cast consists of Nazareth College students: Drew Alexander (Ilion, New York); Matt Allen (West Winfield, New York); Katie Ganem (Reisterstown, Maryland); Bella McGrath (Corning, New York); Katie Sweeney (Flora Park, New York); Allie Tabor (Oneonta, New York) and Zak West (Franklin, New York).

The production and design team also includes Nazareth College students: Emily Camaione (Brighton, New York) as Stage Manager; Crystal Dingman (Fairport, New York) as Assistant Stage Manager; Marissa Davis (Frankfort, New York) as Assistant Director, and David Russell (Cortland, New York) as Dramaturg.

TICKETS

Tickets to Plaza Suite are $10-$12. For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

Nazareth College Department of Music presents Percussive Formations – Striking Chamber Music, led by Kristen Shiner McGuire

Program features contemporary chamber works for percussion!

Sunday, February 24, 2013; 3 p.m.

The Nazareth College Department of Music is pleased to present Percussive Formations – Striking Chamber Music, on Sunday, February 24, 2013 at 3 p.m. in the Wilmot Recital Hall.

Percussive Formations – Striking Chamber Music features Nazareth College Department of Music faculty members Kristen Shiner McGuire, assistant professor in performance practice, and Anthony Calabrese, Community Music Program lecturer, on percussion. The two will be joined by Jillian Pritchard Fiandach, percussion instructor at Roberts Weslyan College and FLCC, and Matthew Witten, a Rochester-based contemporary musician on percussion; and David McGuire, composer and music professor at FLCC, on piano.

Led by Kristen Shiner McGuire, the ensemble will perform a program of contemporary percussion chamber works featuring keyboard and battery instruments, all classical in nature. Included will be “Vespertine Formations” by Christopher Deane; “Bicksa” by Thom Hasenpflug; “Bardo,” a world premiere for piano, drums, vibes, guitar, violin, and bass by David McGuire; and “Caboo," a composition Kristen Shiner McGuire wrote for the Maelstrom Percussion Ensemble.

The recital is free and open to the public.

Nazareth College Arts Center announces a one-year hiatus, redesign of Dance Festival; Festival to resume in May 2014

Nazareth College Arts Center has announced a one-year hiatus of its annual Dance Festival so that College and Arts Center officials can re-imagine the festival’s programming and timing. Originally conceived as a summer event, the newly designed festival will be held during the 2013-2014 academic calendar. The festival will resume in May 2014.

Since the launch of the first Dance Festival, the Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts has expanded its course offerings in Dance and added a fulltime Assistant Professor of Dance. Moving the annual celebration of dance to May – during the academic calendar – enables the College and the Arts Center to better serve the Nazareth students, faculty, and staff, and to better support the Department of Theatre Arts’ growing Dance program.

The 2014 Dance Festival will retain some of the most successful elements of the original version, including main-stage performances, discussions with choreographers and dancers, and master classes. The new timing will also allow continued participation by local and regional companies as part of the popular, free “Dancing on the Grass” programs.

Festival organizers will continue to present programming that encourages audiences and artists to examine the question “What is dance?”

Nazareth College Arts Center Presents Just Imagine, a critically acclaimed John Lennon tribute

Multi-media show creates an imagined Lennon performance featuring Tim Piper and a live band!

Saturday, February 23, 8 p.m.; (pre-performance lecture, 7 p.m.)

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present Just Imagine, on Saturday, February 23, 2013, at 8 p.m. in the Callahan Theater. Just Imagine, starring Tim Piper as John Lennon, weaves spoken narrative, live music, and archival footage to create a multi-media tribute to Lennon’s life and music. Entertainment Today, Variety, LA Weekly, Las Vegas Review, and others have praised the performance, with one reviewer from KABC in Los Angeles saying, “Tim Piper is John Lennon!”

Prior to the performance, Piper will lead a pre-performance lecture at 7 p.m. in the Peace Theater (room A14), located in the lower level of the Arts Center.

THE PERFORMANCE

In Just Imagine, Tim Piper and the band behind him, Working Class Hero, have created an imagined final John Lennon performance by weaving together Lennon’s music, spoken narrative, and archival footage from before and after Beatlemania. According to Piper’s website, Just Imagine is America’s longest-running Beatles show.

Naturally, the score features many of Lennon’s best-loved Beatles and solo hits. What is surprising is the uncanny resemblance between Piper and the star, both in appearance and vocals. Throughout the evening, Piper’s music and dialogue create a theatrical event that appeals not only to die-hard Beatles fans, but also to music lovers and theater audiences in general. During performances, Piper often strolls through the audience with an acoustic guitar taking requests, and post-show he mingles with them, still in character.

Just Imagine serves as a theatrical biography of the man and his music, from his tumultuous childhood, to his explosion into worldwide superstardom. Piper’s exhaustive research gives the audience insights into one of the world’s most popular and enduring bands, the pressures of stardom, and Lennon’s personal relationships, as well as stories and inspiration behind his music and song writing. Few topics are off limits as Piper delves into early losses of Lennon’s mother and best friend, the breakup of his first marriage and resulting neglect of eldest son Julian, his heroin use, and his relationship with the love of his life, Yoko Ono.

THE PERFORMERS

A multi-faceted musician, actor and songwriter, Tim Piper has traveled the world performing music made famous by The Beatles. From his early teen years in Southern California, Piper played in numerous original and Top-40 cover bands, while honing his skills as a guitarist, bass player, singer, and songwriter. In addition to being a member of various Beatles tribute bands, including Revolution, Piper has distinguished himself as the pre-eminent John Lennon with roles in the CBS’ The Linda McCartney Story; E!'s John Lennon Story and Beatle Wives; and, more recently, as the singing voice of John Lennon for the NBC TV “Movie of the Week,” In His Life: The John Lennon Story. With his band, Piper has performed at numerous celebrity special events, including a pre-screening performance for the re-release debut of Yellow Submarine and the John Lennon 20th anniversary memorial gathering in Central Park.

Supporting Piper is a live band, Working Class Hero ("Working Class Hero" is a song from John Lennon's first post-Beatles solo album, 1970's John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band). The band consists of Greg Piper (musical director/producer/bass guitar), Don Butler (lead guitar), Morley Bartnoff (keyboards), and Don Poncher (drums/percussion).

Other Just Imagine crew include Casey Piper (sound), Paul Gentry (lighting design), and Steve Altman (director/writer/producer).

TICKETS

Tickets to Just Imagine are $30-$60. For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm and 11am until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts. Just Imagine is sponsored by Kathleen and Jim Leo, Mrs. Dawn and Dr. Jacques Lipson.

Nazareth College Department of Music presents Project Ludwig: The Piano and Cello Sonatas of Beethoven

Two-part program features five sonatas representing Beethoven’s three major creative periods!

Part I: Sunday, January 27, 2013; 3 p.m.; Part II: Friday, March 22, 2013; 7:30 p.m.

The Nazareth College Department of Music is pleased to present Project Ludwig: The Piano and Cello Sonatas of Beethoven, on Sunday, January 27, 2013 at 3 p.m. (Part I) and Friday, March 22, 2013 at 7:30 p.m. (Part II), in the Wilmot Recital Hall.

Project Ludwig: The Piano and Cello Sonatas of Beethoven is a collaboration between cellist Mimi Hwang, lecturer, Nazareth College Department of Music, and pianist Elinor Freer. The musicians will perform all five of Beethoven's sonatas for piano and cello over two concerts beginning in January and continuing in March.

“While one often hears a single work of a composer on a program, Project Ludwig provides a unique opportunity for audiences to follow the span of Beethoven's musical life,” Hwang explains. “One will hear how the works are similar and related to each other, but also very different.”

Freer and Hwang have performed as a duo and in a number of chamber music groups throughout Rochester.

The recitals are free and open to the public.

Two exhibitions at Nazareth College Arts Center galleries highlight the artistry of commercial illustration and graphic design!

“Good Work!” Illustration Invitational at the Arts Center Gallery at Nazareth College runs January 18-March 1, 2013; Artist Reception Friday, January 18, 5-8 p.m.; Arts Center Gallery is open Sunday and Tuesday-Thursday, noon-5pm; Friday-Saturday, noon-8pm; automated info line: 585-389-5073

“Design in the Working World: The Alumni Graphic Design Exhibit,” at Nazareth College Arts Center’s Colacino Gallery runs January 18-March 1, 2013; Artist Reception Friday, January 18, 5-8 p.m.; Colacino Gallery is open Wednesday-Sunday, noon-5pm; automated info line: 585-389-5073

Their work is everywhere! With advertising and packaging a part of everyday life, the work of graphic designers and illustrators is hard to avoid. It needn’t be just a utilitarian combination of words and images designed to sell, however, and the Nazareth College Department of Art is celebrating the artistry of typography, graphic design, and illustration with two new Gallery exhibits at the Nazareth College Arts Center.

The Arts Center Gallery will host an illustration invitational entitled “Good Work!” that highlights the favorite work of some of the country’s top commercial illustrators. Simultaneously, the Colacino Gallery at Nazareth College Arts Center will host “Design in the Working World: The Alumni Graphic Design Exhibit,” a showing of their best work by Nazareth College Department of Art Graphics and Illustration alumni.

Both exhibits begin Friday, January 18, 2013, with an Artist Reception from 5-8 p.m., and continue through March 1.

ABOUT "GOOD WORK!"

Visitors to “Good Work!” will be treated to the favorite works of art of 50 of the country’s top commercial illustrators. Curated by Nazareth College Department of Art Graphics and Illustration faculty Kathleen Calderwood, associate professor, and David Cowles, lecturer, the exhibit invited each participant to choose the illustration they think is their best work to date. Collectively, the pieces promote the field of illustration and create an important exhibition of top illustration artists.

Illustrators on display in “Good Work!” are Daniel Adel, Terry Allen, Tom Bachtell, Melinda Beck, Guy Billout, Juliette Borda, Steve Brodner, Lou Brooks, Calef Brown, Philip Burke, Kathy Calderwood, Dave Calver, André Carrilho, Michael Cho, David Cowles, Brian Cronin, Jose Cruz, Paul Davis, Roger DeMuth, Debbie Drechsler, Henrik Drescher, Randall Enos, Vivienne Flesher, Douglas Fraser, Drew Friedman, Milton Glaser, Eddy Guy, Danny Hellman, John Hershy, John Kascht, Stephen Kroninger, Anita Kunz, Peter Kuper, Chris Lyons, Wilson McLean, Bill Mayer, Ross MacDonald, Mark Matcho, Hanoch Piven, C.F. Payne, Chris Pyle, Robert Risko, Edel Rodriguez, Laurie Rosenwald, Richard Sala, Zina Saunders, David Sheldon, Owen Smith, Bob Staake, Nancy Stahl, Ward Sutton, Gary Taxali, Murray Tinkleman, Mark Ulrikson, Kirsten Ulve, and James Yang. The group includes award-winning artists whose work has appeared in collections and galleries throughout the world; in publications including Business Week, Esquire, Fortune, Glamour, Mad, Mother Jones, Newsweek, Playboy, People, Readers Digest, Rolling Stone, Time, The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, Vanity Fair, and Vogue; and representing such brands as AT&T, Coca-Cola, Converse, Disney, Exxon, Frito Lay, Georgia Pacific, HBO, Hasbro, Levi Strauss, MTV, Martha Stewart Omnimedia, Microsoft, Nickelodeon, Nikon, Penguin Books, Pepsi, Verizon, Virgin Records, and Warner Brothers.

ABOUT "DESIGN IN THE WORKING WORLD: THE ALUMNI GRAPHC DESIGN EXHIBIT"

“Design in the Working World: The Alumni Graphic Design Exhibit” offers viewers a reflective look at the professional work of 14 Nazareth College Department of Art Graphics and Illustration alumni who are now successful artists and designers. The exhibit was curated by Nazareth College Department of Art Graphics and Illustration faculty Catherine Haven Kirby, professor/program director, and Sherri Baker Hamilton, assistant professor.

The 14 Nazareth College graduates participating in “Design in the Working World” are Sherri Baker Hamilton, Maureen Ballatori, Matt Chatham, Luke Dangler, Maria Friske, Elena Dubas, Tom Galambos, Carl Huber, Amelia Hugill-Fontanel, Elliott Kirby, Tom Moyer, Kristen Palladino, Heidi Trost, and Nick Woyciesjes. As a group, they have worked at advertising agencies, apparel companies, banks, colleges, high schools, law firms, museums, newspapers, non-profit organizations, publishers, and as self-employed artists and designers.

Nazareth College Arts Center Presents state-of-the art illusions to a rock soundtrack with “America’s Hottest Illusionist” Jason Bishop

Award-winning illusionist features something for the whole family, from double levitations to close-up magic projected onto LCD screens!

Saturday, January 19, 8 p.m.; (pre-performance lecture, 7 p.m.)

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present The Jason Bishop Show, on January 19, 2013, at 8 p.m. in the Callahan Theater. Bishop – “America’s Hottest Illusionist!” – is an internationally renowned, award-winning illusionist who performs cutting-edge magic to an energetic rock and pop soundtrack.

Prior to the performance, Bishop will lead a pre-performance lecture at 7 p.m. in the Peace Theater (room A14), located in the lower level of the Arts Center.

THE PERFORMANCE

Jason Bishop became interested in magic during his teens, studied theater in college, and merged the two when he began performing at resorts and amusement parks after graduation. As his audience grew, so did the size of his show. The Jason Bishop Show currently features sleight of hand; close-up magic projected onto LCD screens; and exclusive large illusions such as the Double Levitation, in which an assistant floats 12 feet in the air with Bishop soaring up to meet her; Plasma Illusion, which has Bishop plucking a moving object such as a ball or goldfish out of a television or phone screen; and Op-Art, which combines the optical-illusion art form with on-stage illusions.

Bishop’s assistant, Kim Hess, is as much a part of the show as the magician himself. Born in Reading, Pennsylvania, Hess took up baton twirling at age four, performed for 19 years, and won more than 100 awards, including first place trophies from the National/World Baton Conference at Notre Dame University. During those years, Hess also studied dance and gymnastics.

Bishop is the youngest person to win the Magician’s Alliance of Eastern States Stage Award, and one of the youngest people to compete in the Society of American Magicians World-Class Competition. In 2006, he was named the Best Performing artist of the Year by the Association for the Promotion of Campus Activities, and in 2007, his peers recognized Bishop with the prestigious Jack Gwynne Award for Excellence in Presentation.

The Jason Bishop Show has appeared in venues around the world, including the Tropicana Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City; Caroline’s on Broadway; the Hollywood Magic Castle; Norwegian, Disney, and Celebrity Cruise Lines; and at theaters and performing arts centers throughout the United States.

TICKETS

Tickets to The Jason Bishop Show are $28-$50. Subscriptions to the Nazareth College Arts Center 2012-2013 Season are still available; subscribers receive a 20% discount when purchasing tickets to five or more different shows.

For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm and 11am until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts. The Jason Bishop Show is sponsored by the Nazareth College Campus Activities Board.

Nazareth College Arts Center continues long-standing New Year’s Eve tradition with The Capitol Steps

Troupe’s musical satire offers a fresh, bipartisan take on current headlines!

Monday, December 31, 6:30 and 10 p.m.

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present The Capitol Steps, on Monday, December 31, 2012, at 6:30 and 10 p.m. in the Callahan Theater. This is their 18th annual performance at the Arts Center.

Musical entertainment by local jazz ensemble The Steve Greene Trio featuring vocalist Maggie Mullen will be provided prior to the performances and during intermission in the Arts Center Fireside Lounge, located outside Callahan Theater.

Patrons attending the 10 p.m. performance will ring in the New Year in the theater. Champagne will be available for purchase.

RELATED STORY: The Contemporary African American Printmakers exhibit, sponsored by Deborah Ronnen Fine Art in the Nazareth College Arts Center Gallery, will open Monday, December 31, 2012, from 5:30-11 p.m. The exhibit was originally scheduled to close December 21.

THE TROUPE

The Capitol Steps was founded in 1981, when a group of Senate staffers set out to satirize the people and places that employed them. As their publicity materials state, “Ronald Reagan was President when the Steps began, so co-founders Elaina Newport, Bill Strauss, and Jim Aidala figured that if entertainers could become politicians, then politicians could become entertainers! Their first idea was to stage a nativity play, but in the whole Congress they couldn't find three wise men or a virgin! So, they decided to dig into the headlines of the day, and created song parodies and skits which conveyed a special brand of satirical humor that was as popular in Peoria as it was on Pennsylvania Avenue.”

The Capitol Steps have since recorded more than 32 albums, including their 2012 release Take the Money and Run for President! and their holiday release Barackin’ Around the Christmas Tree; have been featured numerous times on prime-time TV; and can be heard nationwide four times each year on their National Public Radio specials, “Politics Takes a Holiday” – all to rave reviews.

Just as 30 years ago, most current troupe members have worked on Capitol Hill and, although The Capitol Steps remain based in Washington, D.C., most shows are out-of-town or for out-of-town audiences visiting the Capitol. They have also performed for the last five Presidents.

The troupe’s formula is simple: take current events and the foibles of politicians – both national and international – and set them to recognizable pop, rock, folk, and show tunes to generate a laugh. This year, attendees can expect references to the presidential election, General Petraeus, the fiscal cliff, Secret Service indiscretions, the European Union’s money woes, and more.

TICKETS

The Capitol Steps often sell-out; advance ticket purchase is strongly suggested. Tickets to The Capitol Steps are $45-$75. Subscriptions to the Nazareth College Arts Center 2012-2013 Season are still available; subscribers receive a 20% discount when purchasing tickets to five or more different shows.

For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm and 11am until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts. The performances by The Capitol Steps are sponsored by Mr. George Scharr and Dr. Linda Rice, Margaret R. Colacino, and an Anonymous Donor.ed* and strongly emphasized text if that makes you happy.

Nazareth College music students place in 2012 Central New York-Finger Lakes National Association of Teachers of Singing Student Auditions

Nazareth College is pleased to announce that two students from its Department of Music have placed in the 2012 Central New York-Finger Lakes National Association of Teachers of Singing (CNYFL-NATS) Student Auditions.

Sarah Miller (Cuba, New York), soprano, a vocal performance major from the studio of Dr. Soo Yeon Kim, associate professor, won First Prize in the Junior Women category.

Quinton Harvey (Utica, New York), baritone, vocal performance and music theory double major, from the studio of Dr. Mario Martinez, associate professor and coordinator of vocal studies, won Third Prize in the Sophomore Men category.

“The competition in these events is very intense. To have two of our students receive awards is significant for the Department of Music and Nazareth College,” said Dr. James Douthit, Nazareth College Department of Music chair. “Sarah, Quinton, and the voice faculty worked extensively to prepare for this competition!”

Added Kim, “I am very proud of Sarah. She worked extremely hard to prepare for this competition. She is a talented and dedicated vocalist and I am thrilled for her.”

Martinez had similar praise for Harvey. “I couldn’t be prouder of Quinton. His talent, willingness to learn, and hard work will continue to help him succeed!”

The CNYFL-NATS Student Auditions is a regional vocal event in which voice students compete for monetary prizes and gain valuable performance experience and exposure. This year students from Ithaca College, SUNY Fredonia, SUNY Potsdam, Syracuse University, SUNY Oswego, and Houghton College, among other programs in the region, participated. The event took place at Ithaca College.

Miller, who placed third in the 2010 competition and competed in 2011, was one of 11 finalists in 2012. She spent last summer preparing for the October event. “Dr. Kim assigned me a difficult repertoire over the summer that she knew would challenge me for the upcoming competition,” she said. “When it was announced that I won, it didn’t sink in at first. But once it did I was excited and proud!” Miller had to celebrate her accomplishment in the car, however, as she had an already scheduled evening performance for a vocal coach from The Metropolitan Opera. She also recently received an Honorable Mention (second-place equivalent) in the New York State Music Teachers Association Empire State Competition.

Harvey also participated in 2011 and entered this year hoping to place at least third. “I look at every performance as a learning experience so I gave this my all despite being nervous at first,” he said. “I worked really hard to get here so I was happy to place, and I’m already looking forward to next year!”

Since the competition, Miller and Harvey have been selected to perform solo arias in the Nazareth College Department of Music’s upcoming performance of Bach cantata with the Nazareth College Chamber Singers under the direction of Dr. Mark Zeigler, on Sunday, December 2 at 3 p.m. in Linehan Chapel. Admission to the event is free and the public is cordially invited to attend.

Nazareth College Arts Center Presents renowned vocal ensemble, Anonymous 4, in a magical holiday program

Award-winning ensemble has performed on major concert series and at festivals worldwide!

Saturday, December 15, 8 p.m.; Pre-performance lecture, 7 p.m.

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present Anonymous 4, on Saturday, December 15, 2012, at 8 p.m. in the Callahan Theater. The group has twice been voted one of Billboard's top classical artists, and their release, American Angels: Songs of Hope, Redemption & Glory, was one of Amazon’s Top 100 Overall Customer Favorites across all categories.

Marjorie Roth, professor in the Nazareth College Department of Music and a scholar of music history, will lead a pre-performance lecture at 7 p.m. in the Peace Theater (room A14), located in the lower level of the Arts Center.

The evening’s holiday program will feature medieval and early American music. The performance’s medieval compositions will include selections from the British Isles, France, and the Iberian peninsula through the early 15th century. The evening’s American music was composed primarily in the 18th century.

THE ENSEMBLE

Anonymous 4 was founded in 1986, when four young women who had gathered for a music reading session became curious about how medieval chant and polyphony would sound when sung exclusively by women. Moved by the sound, the group took a name inspired by a medieval treatise on compositional style and music practice that was penned anonymously, and developed their first program, “Legends of St. Nicolas.” Using a combination of historic scholarship and their own performance intuition, they were able to recreate music that had been scored and preserved without reference to tempo, dynamics, or expression.

In the years since, the ensemble’s self-described “unearthly vocal blend and virtuosic ensemble singing” has been enjoyed throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. The ensemble is currently celebrating 25 years together with a North American tour featuring new works and previously recorded favorites.

Initially, Anonymous 4 explored only music from the Middle Ages, including compositions from the year 1000; the music and poetry of 12th-century abbess and mystic, Hildegard of Bingen; and 13th-century chant and polyphony from England, France, and Spain. Much this sacred music was sourced from scholarly editions or transcribed from original manuscripts, and the programs – consisting of chant, polyphonic music, and spoken and sung narrative – center around a single theme such as a saint, feast day, or liturgical service.

The ensemble’s repertoire has expanded to include Renaissance music; traditional music from the British isles; and American shape note tunes, gospel music, and folk songs. Included among the source materials for these programs are 18th – 20th-century tunebooks and hymnals, as well as folk song collections.

Anonymous 4 also commissions and performs contemporary music. Among the composers the quartet has worked with are David Lang (“love fail”), Richard Einhorn (“Voices of Light” and “A Carnival of Miracles”), Steve Reich (“Know What is Above You”), John Tavener (“The Bridegroom”), and Peter Maxwell Davies (“A Calendar of Kings”).

Anonymous 4 has recorded and toured with the Chilingirian String Quartet, Andrew Lawrence King (harp), Darol Anger (violin), Mike Marshall (mandolin, guitar), and the Mountain Goats (indie rock), featuring songs by John Darnielle with vocal arrangements for the quartet by Owen Pallett. Among their many honors and awards are France’s prestigious Diapason d'Or, Classic CD’s Disc of the Year, Classic FM’s Early Music Recording of the Year, several Gramophone Editor’s Choice awards, Italy’s Antonio Vivaldi Award, and Le Monde de la Musique’s Choc award.

THE VOCALISTS

RUTH CUNNINGHAM received a B. Mus. in Performance of Early Music from the New England Conservatory of Music, and is certified as a cross-cultural music and healing practitioner. When not singing with Anonymous 4, for whom she also does social media and tour photography, Cunningham specializes in improvisational music in liturgical and concert settings, and teaches on using the voice and music as tools for healing. Her solo album, Light and Shadow, encompasses traditional chants and her own compositions and improvisations. Her other releases include Harpmodes: Journey for Voice and Harp, Blessed by Light, and HARC: Inside Chants. She has performed and recorded with frame drummer Layne Redmond, Early Music NY, and Pomerium.

MARSHA GENENSKY is longtime singer and student of Anglo-American song with an advanced degree in Folklore and Folklife from the University of Pennsylvania. She handles Anonymous 4’s American music research, acted as music director for American Angels and Gloryland, and contributed the American tunes for The Cherry Tree. Genensky also does the historical language pronunciation research for the ensemble’s medieval music projects. With musical friends Shira Kammen, Peter Maund, and Allison Zelles Lloyd, she recently formed Ensemble S.P.A.M., and is a regular at San Francisco Bay-area sacred harp sings. She teaches performance courses and workshops on medieval music and on Anglo-American sacred and secular song.

SUSAN HELLAUER is a native of Bronx, New York. While earning a B.A. in music as a trumpet player from Queens College (City University of New York), an increasing fascination with medieval and Renaissance vocal music led her to convert to singing, and to pursue advanced degrees in musicology from Queens College and Columbia University. Hellauer handles Anonymous 4's medieval music research, and is also an adjunct Assistant Professor of Music at Queens College, where she directs the Collegium Musicum. She has appeared as a vocal soloist with the Harp Consort, Parthenia, and the 2006 U.S. Fes Festival of World Sacred Music. She leads Chant Camp workshops throughout the United States.

JACQUELINE HORNER-KWIATEK is a mezzo-soprano soloist when not performing with Anonymous 4 or spearheading the group's new music projects. Her work has included Bach cantatas with the Washington Bach Consort, appearances at the Washington Early Music Festival with the Baltimore Consort and Armonia Nova, performances of her recital program “Leading Ladies,” and regular appearances with the viol consort Parthenia. Horner-Kwiatek has also been a soloist in several world premieres including Richard Einhorn's The Origin; The Loathly Lady and Requiem for the Titanic at St Anne's Cathedral Belfast. She is also a voice teacher and member of the faculty at the annual choral workshop Musica Deo Sacra at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC.

TICKETS

Tickets to Anonymous 4 are $30-$60. Subscriptions to the Nazareth College Arts Center 2012-2013 Season are still available; subscribers receive a 20% discount when purchasing tickets to five or more different shows.

For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm and 11am until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts. The performance by the Anonymous 4 is sponsored by Barbara and John Lovenheim and Larry and Nancy Peckham.

Colacino Gallery at Nazareth College Arts Center presents “Textures and Edges: Graduate Art Show of Jennifer Green”

Opening Reception: Tuesday, November 13, 6 – 9 p.m.; Exhibition: Wednesday, November 14 – Sunday, November 18, 5 – 9 p.m.; Automated info line: 585-389-5073

The Colacino Gallery at Nazareth College Arts Center presents “Textures and Edges: Graduate Art Show of Jennifer Green.” Featured works include photographs, prints, woodcuts, and cardigraphs.

A graduate student in the Nazareth College Department of Art, Green describes her work as creating “a thought-provoking balance between detailed textures and looser arrangements of space. My work is generally playful and reflective of nature.”

She doesn’t title her work, preferring to challenge the viewer to interpret meaning without restrictions, although she willing to engage in conversations to explain her intentions.

“I depict imagery that challenges viewers to consider varied perspectives through a contrast between lines that create boundaries and elements of abstraction. The defined portions of my art align with societal structures that can compartmentalize or constrain a clear and open vision of each other and our environment. The expressive elements of my work represent the variations in personal interpretations of reality. I create artwork to encourage viewers to pursue personal reflection about their position and purpose in society. Ultimately, I hope my artwork inspires viewers to learn more about themselves by analyzing how they interpret my work. In this way, my artwork becomes an extension of my career as an educator.”

“The imagery I create represents the interactions between individuals and societal forces. The man-made objects I choose are symbolic of social organization that affects our perspectives. When I choose to work with representational imagery, I include textures and patterns to depict the larger theme of interconnectedness present in all of my work. Some of my work does not include any recognizable imagery. For example, one of my larger prints includes a twisting conglomeration of channels situated behind translucent stripes. The lines represent cognitive patterns that drive us through our daily rituals. The stripes indicate the forces that filter our thinking. My photography is generally focused on nature. I capture images that include lines and patterns that inspire me to rethink relationships. I am fascinated with how nature effortlessly mirrors humans with a quiet omniscience.”

“My most successful moments in art-making are when I can free myself from excessive planning and respond instinctively. But, usually it requires an excessive amount of planning to reach this point! In this way, my process is apparent in my products. I include elements of thought-out precision along with quick mark making. It is not uncommon for me to spend days working on details and then make a few quick decisions in the final moments of creation that completely alter but complete the piece.”

Nazareth College musical theatre students cast in A Christmas Carol at Geva Theatre Center

Nazareth College is pleased to announce that four musical theatre majors from its Department of Theatre Arts have been cast in Geva Theatre Center’s 2012-2013 production of A Christmas Carol.

Nazareth College senior Jennifer Menter and juniors Morgan Naum, Kayla Perconti, and Ashley Squairs were cast in the production’s ensemble.

The students have been cast in four of the six adult female ensemble roles in the production of A Christmas Carol, giving them an opportunity to learn from Geva’s professional cast and crew. In addition, Nazareth College Department of Theatre arts alumna Meg Richardson was cast in the role of Belle, Scrooge’s former fiancée.

In addition to maintaining their course loads, the four students will rehearse at Geva beginning November 6, and will appear in up to 10 performances each week during the production’s one-month run.

Don Kot, assistant professor in professional practice/ director of musical theatre in the Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts, who also serves as Geva’s resident music director and music director for A Christmas Carol, was instrumental in the students’ casting. “Geva was looking for interns for the ensemble and I suggested our musical theatre students, who then auditioned for both the director, Mark Cuddy, and myself,” he explains. “Their casting speaks to the strong relationship the Nazareth Theatre Department and Geva have built over the years. On a more personal note, I am thrilled that these students have been given this opportunity to work alongside a team of professionals, and I’m excited to work with them in this capacity and help them prepare!”

Mark Cuddy, artistic director of Geva Theatre Center and director of A Christmas Carol, speaks highly of Nazareth College’s Theatre Arts program. “I am always impressed by the talent and craft exhibited by student actors from Nazareth College, and I am delighted that four of them will be able to join our professional cast of A Christmas Carol,” he offers. “It is clear that they receive excellent training from Don Kot of the musical theatre program, as well as from others. Geva Theatre Center is proud to already have a close relationship with Nazareth, and we look forward to an even deeper one as we continue to collaborate on training young actors.”

Adds Lindsay Reading Korth, Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts chair. "We are so proud of our students having this opportunity to intern at Geva, which is exposing them to the rigors and excellence represented by the finest theater in town. Deepening our relationship with Geva is exciting as we launch our new professional training programs with Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in acting, musical theatre, and technical production.”

Although she appeared in one student performance of a 2009-2010 production of Almost, Maine on the Geva stage, this is Perconti’s first full-length professional theater run. “I didn’t expect to have an opportunity like this until after I graduated,” she says. “I’m excited and nervous at the same time, and glad to share this experience with friends and such a supportive cast!”

Naum, whose previous roles have been in school productions and community theater, adds, “This is a big step for us. We’ll be juggling a lot between school and the show, but everyone at Nazareth and Geva are helping us make it work.”

Squairs was also impressed with the commitment Geva staff members have to the student actors. “We had a costume fitting and everyone in Geva’s costume shop was so excited for us This is an amazing opportunity for all four of us, and I am so grateful to be a part of it!”

Unlike the others, Menter has professional experience, having spent last summer touring with a New York City-based dance company. Still, she realizes the unique opportunity the students have been given. “We have a chance to do what we love! And this is great to put on a resumé as we launch our careers. We are going to listen to what the director and actors tell us and learn so much.”

A Christmas Carol runs on Geva Theatre Center’s Elaine P. Wilson Mainstage from Friday, November 23 through Sunday, December 23, 2012.

Nazareth College Department of Music to present The Saxophone Summit on Saturday, November 3

Collaboration is first between Nazareth College and Pennsylvania's Mansfield University!

The Nazareth College Department of Music, in collaboration with the Department of Music at Mansfield University in Mansfield, Pennsylvania, will present The Saxophone Summit on Saturday, November 3, 2012, at 4 p.m. in Wilmot Recital Hall. The event is free and open to the public. An open rehearsal from 1-4 p.m. precedes the recital.

The Saxophone Summit will feature collaborative duets, quartets, and ensemble pieces prepared and performed by both school's saxophone studios. This is the first year of what organizers plan to make an annual event.

The Saxophone Summit was founded by Dr. Chisato Eda Marling, Nazareth College Department of Music lecturer, and Dr. Joseph Murphy, who serves on the faculty at Mansfield University.

Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts to present Ordinary Days by Adam Gwon beginning November 9

Production features student cast and crew!

The Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts and Theatre League will present Ordinary Days (music and lyrics by Adam Gwon) as the second production of its 2012-2013 season. The show runs November 9, 10, 16 and 17, 2012 at 8 p.m. and November 11 and 18, 2012 at 2 p.m. in Studio A48 at the Nazareth College Arts Center.

Gwon is an up-and-coming composer and lyricist; a graduate of Tisch School of the Arts at New York University; and the recipient of several awards, including the Kleban, Ebb and Loewe Awards for Excellence in Musical Theatre Writing, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers Harold Adamson Award, and the Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs John Wallowitch Award.

Ordinary Days tells the story of Claire, Deb, Jason, and Warren, four young New York City residents whose lives intersect as they each struggle to understand their purpose in life – their big picture. Told entirely through song, this story aims to capture and share the belief that the most mundane occurrences can be life-changing when one is open to them. “The ordinary can really become extraordinary,” explains Don Kot, Director/Music Director of Ordinary Days and Director of the Nazareth College Music Theatre program.

“I really think this show is about relationships,” adds cast member Chris Mauro. Although all four characters seldom connect at the same time, the moments when they do prove to be the most extraordinary. It is through these small moments that the characters learn to “slow down in this fast-paced world,” he says.

Cast member Marissa Davis adds, “When I was doing research for this show, I found a beautiful quote. It reads, ‘Notice this. Fate is winking. Pay attention.’ This show is about learning to keep our heads up.”

Despite the many transitions between the characters’ respective apartments, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the crowded streets of New York, the show’s message is not lost in the fast-paced story. Cast member Nicole Cupo offers, “[The play] is beautiful in its simplicity and that’s what the show is about. It embodies its own message.”

For Kot, the message of this show can be summed up in a single lyric sung by Warren, one of its characters, “‘For beautiful to happen, the beautiful has got to be seen.’ Something isn’t beautiful all on its own….We need to be open enough to see it.”

The Ordinary Days cast consists entirely of Nazareth College students: Nicole Cupo (Randolph, New Jersey) as Deb; Marissa Davis (Frankfort, New York) as Claire; Shane Heidecker (Oneonta, New York) as Warren; and Chris Mauro (Webster, New York) as Jason.

The production and design team is also made up of Nazareth College students: Joshua Lau (Honolulu, Hawaii) as Stage Manager; Bella McGrath (Corning, New York) as Assistant Stage Manager; and Tess DeFlyer (East Aurora, New York) as Props Master.

TICKETS

Tickets to Ordinary Days are $15-$17. For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

Nazareth College Arts Center to Showcase Contemporary African American Artwork

Deborah Ronnen Fine Art Presents “Contemporary African American Printmakers” at Nazareth College Arts Center Gallery

Show runs November 9-December 21, 2012; Opening Reception November 9, 5-10 p.m.; The Arts Center Gallery has special hours for this exhibit – Sunday, noon-5 p.m.; Wednesday-Thursday, noon-5 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, noon-8 p.m.; the Gallery will be closed November 22-23; Automated info line: 585-389-5073

Deborah Ronnen Fine Art is pleased to present “Contemporary African American Printmakers,” at the Nazareth College Arts Center Gallery. The exhibition will focus on 13 living and renowned African American artists who make printmaking a regular part of their practice.

“Contemporary African American Printmakers” includes such celebrated names as Kara Walker and Martin Puryear, as well as younger artists who have distinguished themselves as promising forces in the contemporary art world, such as Mickalene Thomas, whose solo exhibition opened at the Brooklyn Museum to great acclaim last month. Two of the participating artists are recipients of the acclaimed MacArthur Foundation (“genius”) award, a program providing unrestricted fellowships to individuals showing extraordinary creativity and dedication in their creative pursuits. Several artists are also highlighted by Art21, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating audiences on leading contemporary visual artists through books, Internet resources, public programs and its Peabody Award-winning PBS series, Art21 – Art in the Twenty-First Century.

The exhibition will include more than 30 works in a wide variety of print techniques including etching, lithography, wood block, screen print, gravure, and chine collé. The selection of work will stand as a visually stimulating panorama, and will provide an important and engaging educational tool. Along with the artwork, monitors will loop video and audio content, containing excerpts from Art21 that feature participating artists discussing their work, as well as educational descriptions of printmaking processes.

“Contemporary African American Printmakers” coincides with the Rochester premiere of Garth Fagan’s new work, Lighthouse/Lightning Rod, commissioned by the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Alison Saar, the set designer for the new Fagan work, will be represented by four prints.

“Visitors to ‘Contemporary African American Printmakers’ will take away a greater understanding of this art form, and the way artists mine their heritage and race for self-expression” Ronnen offers. “The works on view range from provocative to serene, and the concurrent showing of the theater and gallery shows promises to create a didactic conversation about the many mediums in which an artist might work. I am thrilled to share work by many artists who have never been exhibited in Rochester before.

A color publication including images and a full description of each print in the exhibition will be available.

Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts to present Mad Forest by Caryl Churchill beginning October 19

Production features student cast and crew!

Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts and Theatre League will present Mad Forest by Caryl Churchill as the opening production of its 2012-2013 Season.

Performance dates and times are October 19, 20, 26, and 27, 2012 at 8 p.m., and October 21 and 28, 2012 at 2 p.m., in the Callahan Theater.

Churchill, author of Cloud Nine and Top Girls, is amongst the greatest playwrights in the world and known for her experimental and feminist work.

Mad Forest tells the story of two families struggling to overcome great obstacles in the wake of the Romanian Revolution of 1989. The play’s events take place before, during, and after the overthrow of government leader Nicolae Ceausescu. Dr. Matt Ames, Nazareth College assistant professor of theatre arts/acting and history, and director of Mad Forest, explains the significance of this piece, “In an election year, some of the issues that Romanians faced under communism and in the ensuing months and years after the execution of the Ceausescu seem, to me, particularly relevant.”

For many Americans, the Romanian Revolution is not often discussed or understood. “People hear ‘It’s about the Revolution in Romania in 1989’ and have no idea what to say. I think this is because they don't understand how big a deal this was,” adds cast member Kayla Perconti. “To live in a world where everything is at stake all the time is terrifying...people grew up in these conditions, and once the Revolution was over they didn't know what to do with themselves. Imagine if your world suddenly changed overnight.”

Mad Forest is told in three acts, each one representing a specific time in the course of the Revolution. The play truly embodies the effects of the Revolution on the Romanian people, beginning with moments of silent fear and ending with utter chaos.

When asked why this story is still relevant today, cast member Katie Ganem says, “A lot of people my age do not even know this Revolution existed…we take so many things for granted in America, like our right to vote, our freedom of speech, even our grocery stores. Romanians at this time had to worry about what they said every single second of every day.”

Mad Forest reminds audiences of the difference between having choice and freedom versus fear and silence. Although the Revolution takes place in another country, the audience is likely to draw connections between the political issues in Romania in 1989, and those in today’s American society, Ames offers. “Religious freedom, free speech, redistribution of wealth…these are all issues addressed in the play, and certainly are still important to American audiences,” he states.

The Mad Forest cast consists entirely of Nazareth College students: Francis V. Grunfeld (Worcester, N.Y.), Bogdan; Matthew Allen (West Winfield, N.Y.), Gabriel; Dimitar Kominovski (Webster, N.Y.), Mihai; Drew Alexander (Ilion, N.Y.), Radu; David Russell (Cortland, N.Y.), Ianos; Tiffany Widrick (Spencerport, N.Y.), Irina; Kayla Perconti (Rochester, N.Y.), Lucia; Gloria Gambino (Hornell, N.Y.), Florina; Kimberly Pantoliano (Union Springs, N.Y.), Rodica; Jennifer Menter (Syracuse, N.Y.), Flavia; Samantha Jo Buckman (Fairport, N.Y.), Reporter One; Katie Ganem (Reisterstown, MD), Reporter Two/Fight Captain; Emily Sebian (Buffalo, N.Y.), Reporter Three; and Zak West (Franklin, N.Y.), Henry DuRocher (East Rochester, N.Y.), Hannah Karpenko (Rochester, N.Y.), and Ashley Squairs (Baldwinsville, N.Y.), Ensemble.

The Mad Forest production and design team is also made up of Nazareth students: Gustave Rogers (Canandaigua, N.Y.) and Peter Fekete (Syracuse, N.Y.), dramaturgs; Morgan Naum (Liverpool, N.Y.), stage manager; and Amanda Popielarz (Hamburg, N.Y.) and Sarah Marshall (Whitesboro, N.Y.), assistant stage managers.

TICKETS

Tickets to Mad Forest are $10-$12. For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm, and for one hour prior to curtain time for Theatre Arts Department performances.

Nazareth College Arts Center presents Letters Home

Griffin Theatre Company’s production offers powerful readings of letters written by soldiers serving in Afghanistan and Iraq

Friday, November 2, 7 p.m. (pre-performance lecture, 6 p.m.)

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present Griffin Theatre Company’s Letters Home on Friday, November 2, 2012, at 7 p.m. in the Callahan Theater.

William Massolia, Artistic Director/Founder, Griffin Theatre Company, will lead a pre-performance lecture at 6 p.m. in the Peace Theater (room A14), located in the lower level of the Arts Center.

A post-play discussion/Q&A session will immediately follow the performance.

THE PERFORMANCE

In 2003, The New York Times marked the 50th anniversary of the holiday President Dwight D. Eisenhower renamed Veterans’ Day (formerly known as Armistice Day) with an op-ed piece entitled “The Things They Wrote,” consisting of excerpts from letters written by five American servicemen and women who lost their lives in Iraq. Those powerful letters – as well as a subsequent collections published throughout 2003 and 2004 – led to the production of Last Letters Home, an hour-long HBO documentary by Bill Couturié about 10 U.S. soldiers killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom. At the same time, author Frank Schaeffer began compiling correspondence from American troops serving in the Middle East – one of them being his own son – in a number of books, including Keeping Faith: A Father-Son Story About Love (2003), F_aith Of Our Sons: A Father’s Wartime Diary_ (2004), and Voices From The Front: Letters Home From America’s Military Family (2005). Collectively, these resources inspired and provided source material for Griffin Theatre Company’s production, Letters Home, adapted by William Massolia, the company’s artistic director and founder.

According to the company’s press materials, “Letters Home puts the current wars in Afghanistan and Iraq front and center by bringing to life actual letters written by soldiers serving in the Middle East. … The play, without politicizing, gives audiences a powerful portrait of the soldier experience in the ongoing war.”

“These letters were written under the most difficult of circumstances; the disorientation of training, deployment, separation from family and loves ones, and combat and occupation duties in Afghanistan and Iraq,” the company’s press materials state. “One theme seems to unite their diverse voices: the belief that the person standing beside you is more important than you are. [The letters] also help define for the audience patriotism and what it means to serve our country today, through acts of bravery, compassion, social responsibility, sense of community, and brotherhood.”

As its name implies, Letters Home consists primarily of letters written by men and women serving overseas; however the production also includes several poignant letters from parents. Using minimal props and set pieces, the actors perform each letter as a dramatic monologue against a backdrop of photos and video taken directly from soldiers’ blogs, websites, and social media pages. The result is a gripping narrative about the experiences of a generation of soldiers who went to war for reasons that are still being debated.

Griffin Theatre Company’s original 2010 production of Letters Home received immediate critical acclaim and was nominated for a Joseph Jefferson Award for Outstanding New Play. The theater has since toured the production throughout the country, including in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin.

The performance of Letters Home at Nazareth College Arts Center was scheduled to coincide with Veterans’ Day (as closely as the company’s touring schedule would allow), which is especially important to the Nazareth College community, given its recent inclusion in the 2013 Guide to Military Friendly Schools. The guide ranks Nazareth in the top 15 percent of colleges, universities, and trade schools nationwide committed to helping veteran-students make the challenging transitions from military to academic life.

Nazareth maintains a strong commitment to its veteran students with multiple resources, such as special grants to be used toward tuition and fees, and help finding internships with vet-friendly businesses and organizations. The College’s newly opened office of veterans’ affairs, led by Coordinator of Veteran Student Enrollment and Support Services, Jeremy Bagley, provides veteran students with assistance in different areas such as figuring out complicated financial aid packages or talking about the difficulties of transitioning from the military to a classroom setting.

TICKETS

Tickets to Letters Home are $10-$40. Subscriptions to the Nazareth College Arts Center 2012-2013 Season are still available; subscribers receive a 20% discount when purchasing tickets to five or more different shows.

For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm and 11am until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts.

Popular Performers Present 40 Years of Favorite Love Songs

Nazareth College Arts Center presents Michael Lasser, Cindy Miller, and Alan Jones in “Wild Again, Beguiled Again: Love Songs for Grown-ups”

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present “Wild Again, Beguiled Again: Love Songs for Grown-ups” on Sunday, October 7, 2012, at 3 p.m. in the Wilmot Recital Hall.

This special concert is in honor of Michael and Elaine Lasser, in celebration of the bequest of their popular music collection to the Lorette Wilmot Library at Nazareth College.

“Michael and Elaine’s collection is quite impressive,” says Catherine Doyle, Director of the Lorette Wilmot Library. “We appreciate the Lasser’s generosity in sharing these materials with future generations of students, as well as music lovers of all ages.”

THE PERFORMANCE

Popular Rochester performers Alan Jones (piano, vocals) and Nazareth alumnus Cindy Miller (vocals) present some of the greatest love songs from the Great American Songbook, while narrator Michael Lasser shares anecdotes and commentary about the featured songwriters and their music.

According to the trio’s press materials, “Most love songs are about young love, even first love. It’s true now, and it was true during the first half of the 20th century – the years when the Great American Songbook took form. But it’s not the whole truth. There’s also an adult sensibility at loose in our popular songs. They sing about the need for romance and passion given urgency by the sense of time passing, they approach sex with humor, and they have learned that most hearts break and then heal and then break again.”

Among the songwriters featured in “Wild Again, Beguiled Again” are Hoagy Carmichael, George and Ira Gershwin, E.Y. Harburg, Gordon Jenkins, Frank Loesser, Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, Kurt Weill, and Vincent Youmans.

Lasser, Miller, and Jones have appeared nationally at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, The Museum of Fine Arts Houston, the National Archives, and the Albright-Knox Art Gallery. Locally, the trio has performed with the Rochester Philharmonic; at the Memorial Art Gallery, Nazareth College Arts Center, and the Jewish Community Center; and appeared on WXXI’s innovative lecture series, “WXXI Voices.”

THE PERFORMERS

Michael Lasser is a lecturer, writer, broadcaster, and critic. He and Philip Furia are co-authors of America’s Songs: The Stories Behind the Songs of Broadway, Hollywood and Tin Pan Alley, and he has a new book scheduled for publication at Christmas, 2013, America’s Songs II: From the 1890s to the Post-War Years. Since 1980, Lasser has been the host of the nationally syndicated public radio show, Fascinatin’ Rhythm. He is the winner of a 1994 Peabody Award for letting “our treasury of popular tunes speak (and sing) for itself with sparkling commentary, tracing the contributions of the composers and performers to American society.” Lasser is the former theater critic for the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, and for 30 years has spoken at museums and universities all over the country. In 2010, he was named a Thomas P. Johnson Distinguished Visiting Scholar at Rollins College. He was also a major contributor to the standard reference work, American Song Lyricists, 1920-1960. A graduate of Dartmouth College, Lasser taught English in independent schools for 40 years. For additional information, visit american-song.com.

Cindy Miller warms up on arias and then sings jazz – or whatever else her audience wants. She sings every kind of song, and does it with wit, warmth, and conviction. Her engagements have ranged from intimate clubs to stadiums, she performs regularly with the Gap Mangione Big Band, and she has appeared with the Benny Goodman Tribute Band, the Utica Symphony Orchestra, the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Central New York Jazz Ensemble. Miller is a graduate of Nazareth College and received her Master’s degree from the Eastman School of Music. She performed for actress Meryl Streep when the actress received the George Eastman Award for Distinguished Contribution to the Art of Film, appeared at the New York State Fair Celebration 2000, and was a guest soloist at the 2004 International Marine Tattoo. Miller’s New York City appearances include The Blue Note (with Gap and Chuck Mangione) and Danny's Skylight Room. She regularly receives rave revues for her cabaret acts and has released several CDs including Love You Madly and I’ve Got the Music in Me. For additional information, visit cindymiller.biz.

Alan Jones is a singer and piano player extraordinaire and is best known as a cabaret performer. He and his long-time partner, Phyl Contestable, have been guest artists with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and the Brockport Symphony. Together they have opened for Bill Cosby, Rich Little, and Jackie Mason. They have entertained at many resorts and hotels, including Trump’s Castle in Atlantic City, The Concord Hotel, and The Royal York in Toronto. Jones and Contestable also performed a series of concerts for the 1995 Ryder Cup in Rochester, N.Y. They have released two recordings and continue to be among Western New York’s most popular entertainers. Jones is a graduate of The Capital University Conservatory of Music and earned a Master’s degree from The Eastman School of Music. His work as an educator, songwriter, arranger, and performer has gained him inclusion in Who’s Who of American Teachers.

TICKETS

Advance general admission tickets to “Wild Again, Beguiled Again: Love Songs for Grown-ups” are $25. For advance tickets, call or visit the Box Office, 585-389-2170, or order online at artscenter.naz.edu. Regular Box Office hours are Monday-Friday, 11a.m.-5p.m.

General admission tickets to “Wild Again, Beguiled Again: Love Songs for Grown-ups” will also be available at the Wilmot Recital Hall door for $25 on the performance date; day-of tickets may only be purchased via check or credit card.

Street-art style paintings on display at Nazareth College Arts Center

Nazareth College Arts Center’s Colacino Gallery Hosting “Selfish Portraits,” an Exhibition by Quel Beast

Show runs September 28 - October 24; Artist reception October 4, 6-9pm; Colacino Gallery is open Wednesday-Sunday, noon-5pm; automated info line: 585-389-5073

The Colacino Gallery at Nazareth College Arts Center will hold an exhibition of paintings by Quel Beast beginning September 28.

Rochester native Quel Beast has made a name for himself as a New York City street artist. “I taught myself to paint by pasting my successes and failures in the streets,” he says. Indeed, his images have popped up on walls and fences throughout lower Manhattan and north Brooklyn, and are gaining a following among New York City art lovers and gallery owners.

Regardless of whether they are pasted illegally on the street or hung on a gallery wall, Quel Beast’s hand-painted portraits are best described as confrontational. “My images are borne out of the frustration and introspection that followed my recent confrontation with my own additive and self-destructive behaviors,” the artist explains. “They combine idealism with hopelessness, and juxtapose ego with self debasement.”

His current series, “Selfish Portraits,” are often painted on triangle canvases of varying sizes, but are equally likely to appear as cut-out figures, in zines, or on stickers. The raw emotions and intense expressions in these portraits come from the bold lines and bright colors the artist favors. “My style can most aptly be described as manic finger painting,” Quel Beast says. “In an age where one’s identity is carefully self-curated, I choose colorful complications over homogenization.”

Nazareth College students and faculty to perform at inaugural First Niagara Rochester Fringe Festival

Nazareth College is proud to be an Associate Higher Educational Partner of the 2012 First Niagara Rochester Fringe Festival (September 19-23, 2012).

"As part of Nazareth College's commitment to our students and to our community, we are honored to be part of this inaugural First Niagara Rochester Fringe Festival," says Kelly E. Gagan, Vice President, Institutional Advancement, Nazareth College. "Events such as this festival make Rochester a wonderful place to live and work. They also provide students from Nazareth and all the Fringe Festival's educational partners an opportunity to use skills they are learning on campus in the real world, and to showcase their talents!"

Nazareth College departments in the performing arts will have a big presence at the first-ever First Niagara Rochester Fringe Festival, when students and faculty perform on stages throughout festival.

"I am delighted to see so many Nazareth artists and student-artists involved in the first Rochester Fringe Festival," says Lindsay Reading Korth, Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts chair. "Rochester is so rich in talent and I am proud that my students have this opportunity to share their excellent emerging work as performing artists with our community!"

Adds James Douthit, Nazareth College Department of Music chair, "To have so many performing arts students in the Rochester Fringe Festival is an honor to Nazareth College. I know the festival attendees will be amazed by the wealth of talent we have on our campus."

Nazareth College students, alumni and faculty will be participating in 10 Fringe Festival performances.

44 Plays for 44 Presidents (theatre): Three Nazareth College theatre and music theatre students are part of this Geva Theatre Conservatory production, which is being presented in association with “Rock the Vote.” Written by the Neo-Futurists of Chicago, this is a smart, hilarious and irreverent look at whom our country chooses as its President…and why. Each President gets a two-minute play in a surprisingly informative yet moving view of American History, with a 2012 Presidential vote by the audience at the end of each performance.

Nazareth College senior Gustave Rogers served as the dramaturg for the production. “It was an enlightening experience,” he says of his role. “I learned a lot while trying to teach others and give the actors the information they needed to convey these stories to the audience.” Rogers was so successful in his research that Geva has posted his 100-plus-page dramaturgy packet to its website for other theatres to use.

Nazareth College senior Bre Melino has been able to showcase her musical theatre talents by choreographing two numbers for plays about President Nixon and President George H. W. Bush. “In college, you don’t often get the opportunity to work with people outside your class so this has been a wonderful experience,” she offers. “It’s surreal – here I am working at a regional theatre and at the Fringe Festival.”

Courtney Scheer, also a senior, is the third Nazareth student involved with the production. In addition to acting, Scheer has written a song to highlight President Truman. “I’m really pleased and excited to be a part of it,” she says. “Being in this production has really given all of us a chance to showcase ourselves!”

Casey Jones Costello Sings the Great American Songbook (music): Nazareth College music student, Casey Jones Costello, takes the audience on a time trip through the early and mid-20th century songbook. Along with veteran Broadway musician and conductor, Craig T. Raisner, Costello croons classics and forgotten gems.

Hedwig and the Angry Inch (musical theatre): 2010 Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts alumnus, Wayne Alan Dunbar, directs this rock musical, written by John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask, which follows a post-botched-op, transsexual, East German singer on her journey to find her other half. The production Features local actors and a live band.

I Remember You: A Coffee Cabaret (music/cabaret): This cabaret details the journey of five people discovering who they are through past experiences, relationships, and cherished friendships via classic and contemporary musical theatre. The show began as a showcase for Nazareth College musical theatre students, and features alumni Scott Charles, Erin Hassett, Katie LeSuer, and Brian Ziemann, as well as current student Jennifer Menter, with Don Kot, assistant professor in professional practice/director of musical theatre, at the piano. They have already performed their cabaret, which was directed by Kot, in front of casting directors, agents, and other professionals in New York City.

“When Don informed us of our involvement in Fringe, we were ecstatic…because we knew we would be able to share the joy of theatre and what it can do for people to a whole new crowd,” LeSuer says. “It is truly a blessing to be able to share the very real moments on stage with others and I can't wait to perform in Fringe and to see everything else Fringe has to offer to the Rochester community!”

Ziemann adds, “It's been great to be featured at Fringe, and I hope this is the start of an annual tradition!”

“It’s been wonderful working with these students and bringing this cabaret to the community,” Kot says. “It’s always exciting to be involved in something new and this new festival is another asset for Rochester!”

On Tap: Original Music with Dance (music/dance): Live contemporary jazz and classical music – composed by Eastman School of Music and Nazareth College students and alumni – meets local professional dancers. Featured composers Jennifer Bellor, Matt Evans, Josh Forgét, Colin Gordon, and Aaron Staebell collaborate with dancers and choreographers, including Hannah Beach Chisholm, Alex Dugdale, Rebecca McArthur, Missy Pfohl Smith, and Courtney World.

Forgét is a composition student in the Nazareth College Department of Music. His piece, Euphoria, was composed for the alto saxophone and drum set and features fellow students Jake Wark (saxophone) and Matt Bevan-Perkins (drums). “The composition is about the hypnotic power of the moon, and the euphoric effect it has on a human subject,” Forgét offers. “Being involved in the Rochester Fringe Festival is a wonderful opportunity to showcase your work…and I expect that the performances will be very rewarding."

“I'm very excited for this festival,” adds Bellor, a Department of Music lecturer at Nazareth. “It is an honor to be part of something that is so big for Rochester.”

Smith (theatre): Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts senior Gloria Gambino’s original play tells the true story of Zach Smith, an infectiously positive young man who followed his dreams of becoming a US Marine. Four days into his first mission and six months into his marriage, he was killed in Afghanistan – changing his hometown of Hornell, NY forever. The play features an all-Nazareth cast.

Nazareth College senior Elizabeth Dorsey plays Kim Smith, Zach’s mother. “We all feel honored to be part of this performance,” she says. “There is an overwhelming significance to this work and it’s been great to find out who Zach was and what he did for his country.” To present the work at the inaugural Rochester Fringe Festival makes the performance that much more special, Dorsey adds. “Being part of the first festival validates what we’re doing. It’s exciting to be part of the kick-off and all this great work going on in Rochester!”

Solitude of Self: The Journey of Elizabeth Cady Stanton (theatre): Written and performed by well known local actress, Patricia Lewis, who is also a lecturer in the Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts. This production is described as a recipe for a women’s revolution: take one brilliant housewife stranded in Seneca Falls, NY, c.1848; fold in 7 children and a healthy pinch of outrage; mix with humor and passion. Let simmer. Solitude of Self is the story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, friend and partner of Susan B. Anthony and the force behind the Women’s Rights Convention of 1848.

“As soon as I heard about Rochester’s Fringe Festival, I knew I had to be a part of it,” Lewis explains. “It’s going to be so exciting to see things by people I know and discover new things. The variety of this festival is astonishing…Rochester will be able to see some amazing stuff!”

Lewis will also be performing in Unleashed! Improv Presents: You Never Know, featuring Puppetrov, the Musical (comedy/musical) as a member of Unleashed! Unleased! has performed at the Toronto Improv Festival, the Baltimore Improv Festival and the prestigious North Carolina Comedy Arts Festival, but this is their newest challenge: a complete musical, improvised, with puppets.

Spection: Intro/Retro (dance): Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts Assistant Professor Heather Roffe’s presentation of choreography is set to a range of music from Aretha Franklin to Tango to Meredith Monk. Celebrating irony, vulnerability, and topics of gender, technology, love and loss, the dance works span the past five years. A new piece, Hier, will be premiered – an abstract reflection on the societal constructs that divide and distance us from others and ourselves. Roffe will be joined onstage with a cast of seven dancers from throughout New York state and Ohio.

“It's an honor to be part of what I hope will be a wonderful ongoing annual festival for the arts in Rochester,” says Roffe. “My hope is that this performance will take the audience on a journey, not just of the visual and aural stimulation before them, but into their own minds and hearts, as well.”

Roffe will also be performing in Spirits Within (multidisciplinary) as a company member of FuturPointe Dance. The production features Eastman School of Music’s Stephen Kennedy improvising on the restored 1790 Christ Church organ, while dancers from FuturPointe improvise in movement and RIT Professor Marla Schweppe and 3D Digital Design students improvise graphics projected on the organ and dancers. Every performance will be different.

For tickets, visit www.rochesterfringe.com.

Award-winning sculptor to show work at Nazareth College Arts Center

Exhibition of Elizabeth Lyons Sculpture coming to the Arts Center Gallery at Nazareth College

Show runs September 28-October 28, 2012; Artist reception October 4, 6-9pm; Arts Center Gallery is open Sunday noon-5pm; and Tuesday-Thursday, noon-5pm; Friday-Saturday, noon-8pm; automated info line: (585)389-5073

The Arts Center Gallery within the Nazareth College Arts Center will host an exhibition of sculpture by artist Elizabeth Lyons beginning September 28.

Lyons is an award-winning artist and sculptor who works in glass and a range of other materials. She is the owner of Elizabeth Lyons Glass, through which she produces a design collection that includes decorative objects and chandeliers, and More Fire Glass Studio, a 4,000-square-foot glassmaking facility dedicated to the production of both design and sculptural work. Her sculptural work, which has been displayed at top New York galleries, incorporates blown and cast glass, cement, wood, metal, and found objects. She creates pieces that are beautiful and raw, polished and rough, and strong yet vulnerable.

“I am interested in the primal relationships of fire-molten glass, metal, sand-earth, wood; constructing a parallel between process and material object,” Lyons says of her work. “Each piece takes on its own qualities of light, texture and form, defining space and a sense of age and time. Contrasting blown and cast glass forms with steel, paint, and found objects broadens the vocabulary. The use of glass in my work goes beyond the beauty of the material, to emphasize the rawness of it in its most basic states: hot, cool, and cold. This elemental quality is inherent to the material and fundamental to how I use it.”

The works Lyons will exhibit at the Nazareth College Arts Center Gallery are excerpts from sculptural investigations that she began in 1992 and continues today.

Ritual Vessels: “The powerful traditions that integrate myth and magic were sources of inspiration for this earlier work,” Lyons says. These pieces are “vessel forms that refer to family, place, health, growth, memory, and rites of passage. In this series, glass organs, representing the pulse of life, are completed with cast bronze lids, which are symbolic of the vessels’ ritual purpose. When assembled, the components of each vessel have levels of significance that tell stories of life experiences.”

Built on their Bones: This series “recalls those who have gone before us,” Lyons explains. It is, in many ways, a reminder of and homage to “individuals and civilizations that have gone before us as we build our lives upon their remains.”

Hand Tools and Arms: This installation consists of a tool shed (or arsenal), and a collection of hand tools (or arms), and deals with the “fine line between construction and destruction,” offers Lyons. “The human power that assembles and wields these tools or weapons is an integral part of this work, which questions the ambiguous relationship between building and destroying, reconstruction and war.”

Conference: Lyons describes this work as, “a response to the anger I felt when the US bombed Iraq. [It was] a war sold to us using fear tactics, neatly packaged for our consumption with phrases like ‘Shock and Awe,’ and ‘Operation Iraqi Freedom’ … sexy and shiny and so far removed from reality.”

Natural Form Chandelier: This is among Lyons’ most recent work and is “inspired by the forms I have referred to for many years,” she comments. The piece is an homage to German photographer/sculptor/teacher/artist Karl Blossfeldt, known for close-up photographs of plants and living things. Of his images, Lyons says, “they have been teaching me about form for the past 3o years.”

Lyons, the daughter of artists Nathan and Joan Lyons, is a Rochester native who returned to the area after living in New York City for 10 years. She holds a BFA in sculpture and glass from Alfred University and a Masters in Art Education from Rochester Institute of Technology. Her work has been exhibited in galleries throughout the United States; featured in the pages of The New York Times and Architectural Digest, among others; and is owned by top private collectors in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Lyons’ sculptural work has been represented by Ricco/Maresca Gallery in New York City. Included among the numerous awards she has received is the prestigious Anonymous Was a Woman Foundation award in 2004, an unrestricted grant given to women artists over age 45 who are deemed to be at a critical juncture in their lives or careers. She is one of only 150 women to have received this honor.

Nazareth College Appoints Dr. Jared Chase Assistant Professor of Music, Director of Bands and Coordinator of Instrumental Music

The Department of Music at Nazareth College is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Jared Chase as Assistant Professor of Music, Director of Bands and Coordinator of Instrumental Music. Dr. Chase will be welcomed to the Faculty for the Fall 2012 semester by Music Department faculty, staff, and students alike.

Prior to Nazareth, Dr. Chase was the Director of Bands and Chair of the Department of Music at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas, where he directed the Symphonic Band, Jazz Ensemble, Brass Ensemble, and Pep Band, and taught trumpet as well as courses in instrumental music and conducting. He was awarded a Burmeister grant to present research on the wind music of Gustav Mahler at the College Band Directors National Association Southwest Conference, and won the Garrett award at Bethany College for a presentation of his new edition of Reynaldo Hahn’s Le Bal de Béatrice d’Este at the College Band Directors National Conference, which is currently being performed by colleges, universities, and professional orchestras around the country.

Dr. Chase has guest conducted the United States Military Academy’s West Point Band, the United States Coast Guard Band, and the Salina Symphony; enjoys conducting musical theatre and recently led performances of the musicals Annie, Company, Willy Wonka, White Christmas, and Cabaret; and remains in demand as a conductor. He is also an accomplished trumpet player.

“I am absolutely thrilled to be joining the faculty in the Nazareth College Department of Music this fall,” says Dr. Chase. “This department has been experiencing a tremendous amount of success lately, nearly doubling its enrollment over the past decade. I am very happy to be joining this team and I hope that I can make a positive contribution to this excellent department. My wife and I are both musicians; we met at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and are excited to be living in such a culturally rich city with so many opportunities for the arts. I am looking forward to not only being involved in the program at Nazareth, but also other organizations in the Rochester community.”

“We are delighted to have Dr. Chase join our esteemed faculty,” adds Dr. James Douthit, Department of Music Chairperson. “This is a very exciting time for music at Nazareth and we are energized by the opportunities his appointment presents.”

Nazareth College Arts Center Presents Complexions Contemporary Ballet

Company is recipient of The New York Times Critics Choice Award

Saturday, October 6, 8 p.m.; Pre-performance lecture, 7 p.m.)

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present Complexions Contemporary Ballet on Saturday, October 6, 2012, at 8 p.m. in the Callahan Theater.

Jae Man Joo, Associate Artistic Director/Ballet Master, and Michael Moore, General Manager of the company, will lead a pre-performance lecture at 7 p.m. in the Peace Theater (room A14), located in the lower level of the Arts Center.

THE COMPANY

Founded in 1994 by Artistic Directors Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson, Complexions Contemporary Ballet champions the artistic appeal of diversity and combines the best of athleticism, lyricism, technical training, and experience in its performances. “The company is really … a celebration of universality,” says Dwight Rhoden. As their press materials explain, “The company’s foremost innovation is that dance should be about removing boundaries, not reinforcing them. Whether it be the limiting traditions of a single style, period, venue, or culture, Complexions transcends them all, creating an open, continually evolving form of dance that reflects the movement of our world—and all its constituent cultures—as an interrelated whole.”

Rhoden and Richardson’s lifelong appreciation for the artistic and aesthetic appeal of all things multicultural forms the cornerstone of Complexions’ approach to reinventing dance. Former members of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, the pair’s multifaceted resumes highlight their desire to forge unique career paths across genres and the entertainment world alike. They have performed with Cirque du Soleil and the Joffrey Ballet; appeared on E!, PBS, and VH1; worked with celebrities including Prince and Patrick Swayze, and served as choreographers for Fox Broadcasting Company’s hit series, “So You Think You Can Dance.”

Based in New York City, Complexions’ reach is wide. The company includes dancers from around the world and has appeared at major international dance festivals, including Italy’s Festival of Dance (for four consecutive years), the Isle De Dance Festival in Paris, the Maison De La Dance Festival in Lyon, the Holland Dance Festival, Steps International Dance Festival in Switzerland, Lodz Biennale, Warsaw Ballet Festival, Kraków Spring Ballet Festival, the Dance Festival of Canary Islands/Spain, Le Festival des Arts de St-Sauveur/Canada, and in Korea, Spain, and Australia. Closer to home, the company has presented its extensive repertory at New York’s Joyce Theater, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, and Brooklyn Academy of Music; the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts in New Orleans; the Paramount Theatre in Seattle; the Music Center in Los Angeles; and the Winspear Opera House in Dallas. As committed to education as it is to diversity, the company offers summer intensive programs in New York, Detroit, and Dallas.

Now 18-years-old, Complexions boasts up to 20 classical and contemporary dancers and guest artists. Their repertory consists of more than 100 pieces, and the company has received numerous awards including The New York Times Critics Choice Award. Their high-energy performances are known for their flawless lifts, turns, and extensions; subtle sexuality; dynamic choreography; and eye-catching costumes.

THE ARTISTIC DIRECTORS

DWIGHT RHODEN (Founding Artistic Director/Resident Choreographer) has established a remarkably wide-ranging career, earning distinction from The New York Times as “one of the most sought out choreographers of the day.” A native of Dayton, Ohio who began dancing at age 17, Rhoden has performed with Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Les Ballet Jazz De Montreal, and as a principal dancer with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. He has appeared in numerous television specials, documentaries, and commercials throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe, and has been a featured performer on many PBS “Great Performances” specials.

Since 1994 Rhoden’s choreography has been the lynchpin in the development of the Complexions repertory. He has been praised for his prolific body of work, visionary style, and boundary-breaking sensibility. Rhoden has created over 80 ballets for Complexions, as well as numerous other companies, including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ballet Arizona, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Ballet Gamonet, Dance Theater of Harlem, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, the Joffrey Ballet, Miami City Ballet, New York City Ballet/Diamond Project, North Carolina Dance Theater, Pennsylvania Ballet, Philadanco, Minneapolis Dance Theater, Phoenix Dance Company, Sacramento Ballet, Oakland Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theater, Washington Ballet, and Zenon Dance Company. He has worked with, coached, and created for some of the most diverse artists spanning the world of ballet and contemporary dance. “Rhoden’s work is post-Balanchinean choreography, a new aesthetic in movement, stage, picture, and performance concepts reflecting a post-modern, techno-savvy worldview” (Dance Magazine).

Widely known as “a dancer’s choreographer,” Rhoden has worked with, coached and created for some of the most diverse artists spanning the worlds of ballet and contemporary dance. He has directed and choreographed for TV, film, theater, and live performances including “So You Think You Can Dance,” E! Entertainment’s “Tribute to Style,” and Cirque du Soleil. He has also worked with such high-profile artists as Prince, Lenny Kravitz, Kelly Clarkson, and Patrick Swayze.

Rhoden is the Resident Choreographer of North Carolina Dance Theatre and has lectured, taught, created works for, and served as Artist in Residence at universities around the United States including New York University, Juilliard, and The University of Mississippi, where his 2004 Racial Reconciliation Project was credited as a catalyst for dialogue in a community that has been historically divided. Rhoden is a 1998 New York Foundation for the Arts Award recipient and beneficiary of the 2001 Choo San Goh Award for Choreography. In May 2006 he received The Ailey School’s Apex Award in recognition of his extensive contributions to the field of dance.

DESMOND RICHARDSON (Founding Artistic Director/Artist-in-Residence). Hailed by The New York Times as “one of the great modern dancers of his time,” Desmond Richardson is a multi-talented artist who has mastered a wide range of classical, modern, and contemporary dance genres. Praised for his powerful dancing and singular performance quality, Richardson has been the hallmark performer who has shaped the essence of the Complexions style for over a decade.

When he danced the lead role in the American Ballet Theatre’s world premiere of Othello, The New York Times described him as “one of the most majestic dancers ever to tread the Metropolitan Opera House stage.” In 1998, Richardson joined the original cast of the Broadway musical Fosse, for which he received a 1999 Tony Award nomination.

Working in television, film, and video in the United States and abroad, Richardson has performed with such musical artists as Michael Jackson, Prince, Aretha Franklin, and Madonna. He made his on-screen singing debut in Charles Randolph Wright’s 2005 film Preaching to the Choir, and is featured in Patrick Swayze and Lisa Niemi’s film One Last Dance as well as the Oscar-winning movie adaptation of Chicago. Richardson appeared in Julie Taymor’s film Across the Universe and also performed the lead role of Beowulf in her Grendel at the LA Opera and The New York State Theater.

Among his many honors are The Ailey School’s 2006 Apex Award and the prestigious 2007 Dance Magazine Award. He is also a recipient of a 1986 Presidential Scholar Award for the Arts and the NFAA Alumni award in 2009. Recently, he and Dwight Rhoden partnered with Diana Vishneva for her one-woman show, Beauty in Motion, at New York City Center, the Orange County Performing Arts Center, and in Moscow, Russia. In May 2008, he was one of two dancers invited by the President of the United States to perform at the 60th Presidential Conference in Israel.

This June, Richardson appeared on the Fox television hit, “So You Think You Can Dance,” for which he choreographed a duet with Dwight Rhoden.

TICKETS

Tickets to Complexions Contemporary Ballet are $30-$60. Subscriptions to the Nazareth College Arts Center 2012-2013 Season are still available; subscribers receive a 20% discount when purchasing tickets to five or more different shows.

For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm and 11am until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts.

Two exhibitions at Nazareth College Arts Center galleries feature local artist Jim Quinn and faculty art

Selected Works, Models & Verses,” a Jim Quinn exhibition at Nazareth College Arts Center’s Colacino Gallery runs August 20-September 22, 2012; Artist reception September 7, 5-7pm; Colacino Gallery is open Wednesday-Sunday, noon-5pm; automated info line: (585)389-5073

Annual Faculty Show returns to the Arts Center Gallery at Nazareth College runs August 24-September 19, 2012; Artist reception September 7, 5-7pm; Arts Center Gallery is open Sunday and Tuesday-Thursday, noon-5pm; Friday-Saturday, noon-8pm; automated info line: (585)389-5073

The Colacino Gallery at Nazareth College Arts Center will hold an exhibition of works by local artist Jim Quinn beginning August 20, while the Arts Center Gallery will host the annual Faculty Show beginning August 24.

ABOUT "SELECTED WORKS, MODELS & VERSES"

Ask Jim Quinn to describe his style and he will say, “I think my image making is, for the most part, straightforward and approachable enough to stand on its own. Most of my work is realism and some of it is realism with a twist.”

“The work is very personal in that some of it consists of models and subjects from my immediate community and region,” he continues. His paintings depict “family members, friends, and some of the work expresses a parallel involvement between personal/physical experiences and my theological/spiritual studies.”

Quinn has been making and exhibiting art for more than 40 years. “Selected Works, Models & Verses” highlights work from the past 20 years. The show features pieces using live models and still life subjects, and also includes “some more surreal sort of diversions into scriptural/metaphysical imagery,” Quinn says. “I did these works very slowly and deliberately and the audience will see excellent craftsmanship, very strong technical prowess, some thought-provoking contemporary religious imagery, and hopefully, a good example of a man who, when very, very young, made the decision not to give up his crayons.”

Quinn long ago gave up trying to determine why he paints. “I just do it because that’s what I do,” he explains. “The simple passion for painting itself, the striving for perfection, an incessant love of observing the play of light on objects, and pure, unadulterated craziness is what drives my work.”

This passion also drives him to connect with a younger generation. Quinn has taught art since 2001, starting at Dake Junior High School in West Irondequoit and later serving as Assistant Professor of Fine Art at Franklin Pierce University (New Hampshire) from 2006-2009. He is currently a Visiting Assistant Professor teaching Life Drawing and Color and Composition at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, and an Adjunct Professor/Lecturer at Nazareth College, where he teaches 2D design, painting, and drawing.

Quinn was classically trained at the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art, one of the 36 colleges inside the University of Oxford, where he received his BFA/MA or MFA Equivalent in 1974. He attended the Sheridan College of Applied Arts and Technology in Oakville, Ontario, Canada in 1980-1981, where he studied the art and process of classical film animation. Later, he earned his New York State Teacher Certification in Art K-12 in 2000 from Roberts Wesleyan College, and an MS. Ed (Art Education) in 2003 from Nazareth College.

A resident of Williamson, NY, Quinn is married to an artist and high school art teacher, and has two daughters. He enjoys making and teaching art, making music, weight training, and small-scale farming.

ABOUT THE FACULTY SHOW

This year’s Nazareth College Department of Art Faculty show features a wide variety of artwork for display and sale by 13 faculty: Nancy Beikirch, Lecturer; Doot Bokelman, Associate Professor/Program Director, Art History; Kathy Calderwood, Associate Professor; Graham Carson, Adjunct; Lynn Duggan, Professor; Shannon Elliott, Associate Professor & Director of Art Education; Tom Golambos, Adjunct; Pat Groves, Lecturer; Sherri Baker Hamilton, Assistant Professor; Mitch Messina, Professor; Ron Netsky, Professor and Chairperson, Department of Art; Paul Porell, Assistant Professor; and Jim Quinn, Visiting Assistant Professor.

The Faculty Show is an annual event that helps support the Arts Center Gallery’s educational mission.

Nazareth College Department of Music presents Art of the Coloratura II

Sunday, September 30, 2012 at 3 p.m.

The Nazareth College Department of Music is pleased to present Art of the Coloratura II, on Sunday, September 30, 2012 at 3 p.m. in the Wilmot Recital Hall.

Art of the Coloratura II is a tribute recital to Dame Joan Sutherland and her signature 1960 recording, The Art of Prima Donna. Soo Yeon Kim, Nazareth College Department of Music associate professor, will discuss and present pieces from the album. The evening’s guest performer is Barbara Hull, visiting assistant professor, on trumpet for Handel's Let the Bright Seraphim. Other featured repertoires will include the Queen of the Night's aria from Mozart's The Magic Flute and “Glitter and be Gay” from Leonard Bernstein's Candide.

The recital is free and open to the public.

Nazareth College Arts Center Presents the Ultimate Drum Experience

Royal Drummers and Dancers of BurundiSaturday, September 29, 8 p.m.

Nazareth College Arts Center is pleased to present the Royal Drummers and Dancers of Burundi on Saturday, September 29, 2012, at 8 p.m. in the Callahan Theater.

ABOUT THE DRUMMERS

Considered one of the greatest percussion ensembles in the world, the Royal Drummers and Dancers of Burundi have performed for centuries, passing their traditions and techniques down from father to son. Historically part of ceremonies and rites of passage in their central African homeland -- including births, funerals and the enthronement of kings -- the origins of their music remain shrouded in mystery.

The Royal Drummers’ signature polyrhythmic sound, known as the Burundi Beat, consists of a constant beat held by several drummers while the remaining percussionists vary their rhythms. Throughout the show the drummers – dressed in colorful robes – perform graceful yet athletic solos and choreographed dances around their instruments. The New York Times described them as “a celebration of ability.”

Having toured worldwide since the 1960s, the Royal Drummers played a key role in the genesis of world music; it was one of their performances that inspired artistic director Thomas Brooman to set up the first WOMAD festival in 1982, an event that helped spark the popularity of world music. They were featured on Joni Mitchell’s 1975 release The Hissing of Summer Lawns, influenced British rock bands of the early 1980s including Adam and the Ants and Bow Wow Wow, and have several recordings to their credit: Batimbo (Musiques Et Chants), 1991; Live at Real World, 1993; The Master Drummers of Burundi, 1994; and The Drummers of Burundi, 1999. Their last tour in 2006 resulted in sold-out performances throughout the United States and Canada. Their performance at the Nazareth College Arts Center is part of their much-anticipated 2012 North American Tour.

Despite their international acclaim, the Royal Drummers & Dancers of Burundi remain a tight-knit, closed ensemble connected to their nation’s rural culture. At home, their sacred music is still played as part of ceremonies that are linked to the land.

ABOUT THE DRUMS

In Burundi, drums are sacred and represent the powers of regeneration and fertility. The Royal Drummers typically feature four types of homemade drums in their performances.

Throughout the evening the percussionists rotate around the stage, playing different instruments to create continuous music – not unlike the ceremonies in their homeland, which often last an entire night and feature dozens of drummers.

The brightly painted primary drum is known as the Inkiranya and is located center stage with the drummers taking turns improvising on and around it. The large, tapered Ingoma is made from the hollowed trunk of a tree that grows only in central Burundi and is covered with a stretched animal hide; both the Ingoma and the Amashako drums establish and carry the continuous beat of the performance. Finally, the Ibishikiso drum follows the rhythm of the primary drum.

TICKETS

Tickets to the Royal Drummers and Dancers of Burundi are $40-$70. Additionally, subscriptions to the Nazareth College Arts Center 2012-2013 Season are still available; subscribers receive a 20% discount when purchasing tickets to five or more different shows.

For tickets, call – or visit – the Box Office: 585-389-2170 or order online: artscenter.naz.edu.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11am – 5pm and 11am until curtain time on performance days.

SPONSOR INFORMATION

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts. The performance by the Royal Drummers and Dancers of Burundi is sponsored by Josephine M. Perini.

2012-2013 Nazareth College Arts Center Season features fabulous family fun!

• Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia: Guess How Much I Love You and I Love My Little Storybook
• Rochester Children’s Theatre: You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown; Seussical, The Musical_ and Honk!
• Cashore Marionettes: Simple Gifts

The Nazareth College Arts Center will showcase wonderful family programs, including performances of Guess How Much I Love You and I Love My Little Storybook, presented by the Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia (one of the country’s most acclaimed children’s theatre companies); poignant performances of Simple Gifts, presented by the Cashore Marionettes; and three musicals presented by the Rochester Children’s Theatre: You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, Seussical, The Musical, and Honk!

In addition to the family programs, the Arts Center will present Internationally renowned contemporary dance from some of the most sought-after companies; a range of musical programs, from a one-man John Lennon tribute to authentic African drumming, and from sacred medieval music to the pipes and drums of an elite military group; and special events, including a remarkable illusionist and his breathtaking, state-of-the-art magic, New Year’s Eve shows with the irreverent, politically based satire of The Capitol Steps; and a powerful presentation of letters written by soldiers serving in Afghanistan and Iraq.

For a complete listing of the 2012-2013 Season, click here.

Tickets to the Arts Center's 2012-2013 Season are on sale now

Discounted, Subscription Series – as well as full-price, non-subscription tickets – are on sale now via the Box Office at 585-389-2170 or online.

The Nazareth College Arts Center Box Office is located on campus, at 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York, 14618. Regular box office hours are Monday- Friday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.

Please Note: Ticket orders will be filled in the order in which they are received. All events presented as part of the 2012-2013 Arts Center Season are reserved seating.

SUBSCRIBER BENEFITS

Subscribe with Five! Subscribe to five or more different shows as part of the 2012-2013 Arts Center’s Season, and receive exclusive benefits:

• Discounted prices for all Arts Center shows presented as part of the 2012-2013 season.
• Option to purchase additional seats throughout the season at reduced subscriber prices.
• Half-price tickets to Nazareth College Department of Theatre Arts performances.
• First opportunity to renew for the following season.
• Invitations to Subscriber’s Choice* events.

*Subscribers Choice events: This season we will offer a drum lesson, a Salsa dance lesson, two puppet-making classes, and a class on how to draw your own comic strip. There is no additional fee for Subscribers to attend these events, however, registration through the Box Office is required: 585-389-2170.

2012-2013 Subscription Series Announced

The Nazareth College Arts Center’s 2012-2013 Subscription Series is sponsored by M&T Bank, Wendy’s Restaurants of Rochester, and the New York State Council on the Arts.

2012 Dance Festival Announcement

A look at the news conference on March 27, 2012 announcing the 2012 Dance Festival, with a blockbuster lineup, including: an Overture to the Festival with Jeff Tyzik and the RPO; two-time Bessie award-winner Beth Gill; internationally acclaimed Martha Graham Dance Company, and much more!