Fall Season at Midd. Promises Arts for All

Middlebury has always exposed students to a unique mixture of the arts, boasting world class performances and exhibitions alongside inspired faculty and student artists, but this fall, the arts at Middlebury promise to be particularly exciting. Featuring options from every genre of the arts, this semester’s line-up showcases strengths in contemporary art, international works, and an impressive array of chamber music.

Already open to viewers, the Middlebury College Museum of Art’s fall exhibition, Vito Acconci: Thinking Space, celebrates the 30th anniversary of the artists’ winter residency at Middlebury and his 1983 premiere permanent exhibition Way Station I (Study Chamber). Acconci’s career has included a wide array of media including performance, visual art and international design of public places. A reconstruction of his ’83 work, Study Chamber, is available for viewing adjacent to the Mahaney Center for the Arts Pond. Acconci himself will give a public talk on Nov 7. Also at the museum from Sept 13 until Dec 8 is Screened and Selected II: Contemporary Photography and Video Acquisitions, 2006–2011. The museum is free of admission for all students.

Kicking off the season with a dynamic start on Sept 20 and 21, the Living Word Project will perform Word Becomes Flesh, a thrilling event of urban hip-hop theater written by American playwright and national poetry slam champion Marc Bamuthi Joseph. The show is described by the author as a “choreo-poem,” depicting letters from a young single father to his unborn son through performance. The cast of five poet performers and a live DJ will be in residence from September 16-22, teaching master classes to students and community members and hosting a Verbal Onslaught night at 51 Main in preparation for their two shows. Mahaney Center for the Arts Director Liza Sacheli describes the show as fusing “tender stories, playful wit—and at times, purposeful rage—to give voice to the complexities and contradictions surrounding race, gender, and parenthood in America.” Sacheli also enthused about the performers impressive credentials, noting, “Students might recognize them from HBO’s Def Poetry Jam and Brave New Voices.” Both performances will feature opening acts by student spoken-word artists and a post-performance discussion.

Hyphen, a contemporary dance company led by dance faculty member Catherine Cabeen, will grace the Middlebury stage for the first time for two public performances on Oct 11 and 12. The performances will explore the relationship between music, language, and emotion as manifested in the dancing body, and Cabeen will be giving a lecture and demonstration about the work on Oct 9. Tickets are on sale now to the Middlebury community and on Sept 16 to the general public.

The Middlebury Department of Music presents a diverse selection of choices this fall, starting with two solo concerts by faculty Affiliate Artists Eric Despard on Sept 21 and Dayve Huckett on Oct 4, both on guitar. Anne Janson will present an evening of flute on Oct 5, and on Nov 2 many Affiliate Artists will come together for a collaborative concert. The Performing Arts Series presents accomplished British pianist Imogen Cooper on Oct 10 and the rising British pianist Benjamin Grosvenor on Oct 29. Grosvenor is especially impressive because he is only 20 years old, yet has already proven himself an international force on the music scene. He was selected as Gramophone magazine’s 2012 Young Artist of the Year and as one of BBC Radio 3‘s New Generation Artists in 2010. The Jupiter String Quartet will present a free concert on Nov 23, a powerful addition to the lineup of world class classical musicians.

Despite the abundance of excellent guest artists, the Middlebury arts calendar still offers plenty of room for student groups. The Middlebury College Orchestra will host a Halloween themed concert on Oct 31 (costumes welcome), and the College Choir will perform American works and feature Middlebury composers on Nov 17, all while preparing for their upcoming Germany tour this summer. The Middlebury College-Community Chorus will perform their annual Thanksgiving concert on Nov 24, and the African Music and Dance Ensemble will delight audiences with a kick of culture on Nov 19. A few days later on Nov 22, the Sound Investment Jazz Ensemble will show off their impressive sound with their fall concert. These student events are all free to the public and serve as an excellent way to support fellow students and the arts.
On Oct 14, south Indian classical dancer Sasikala Penumarthi will grace the concert stage for a performance with her students from the Atlanta, Georgia Academy of Kuchipudi Dance, giving the Middlebury community a free, unique look into an international dance form.

In addition to guest artists, the 2013-2014 Dance Company of Middlebury will be working hard this fall in preparation for the premiere of an original work, The Meaning of the Masks, in the spring, and the community will have an opportunity to witness the culmination of four years of work in dance when two students, Adeline Cleveland ’13.5 and Amy Donahue ’13.5, perform contemporary dance incorporating gender dynamics, contemplative practices, and multimedia expression on Dec 5 and 6.

This semester, the Theater Department is presenting two exciting plays directed by faculty and featuring student actors, starting Oct 31 and running until Nov 2 with controversial British playwright Caryl Churchill’s Vinegar Tom, an unsettling play about hanging witches directed by Cheryl Farone. The next month, Richard Romagnoli will offer his interpretation of Pentacost, a historical and political epic by David Edgar, whose title is a New Testament reference to the multiplicity of languages.

Students should not forget about the Hirschfield International Film Series, which presents free foreign and independent films on Saturdays at 3 and 8 p.m. Included this fall are a bold 2011 British adaptation of the Emily Bronte novel Wuthering Heights on September 13, the Oscar-winning French film Amour, discussing love in old age on November 9th, and the story of 1970’s American musician Sixto Rodriguez in Searching for Sugar Man on November 16.

There are simply too many events to describe this fall, and Mahaney Center Director Liza Sacheli wants students to know about a unique opportunity to see Performing Arts Series events.

“We offer every first-year student a free ticket to a Performing Arts Series event,” Sacheli said. “We hope that this ‘welcome gift’ will be a first introduction to the amazing performances they’ll experience during their four years at Middlebury. Upperclassmen aren’t totally left out, though—Performing Arts Series events are only $6 for Middlebury College students. If you went to hear the same artist in New York or Boston, you could pay hundreds of dollars for the same concert. Last spring a student said our concerts were ‘a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, for less than a Noonie’s sandwich.’” Students should also keep in mind that each Commons purchases a limited number of free tickets available to students for certain events.

There’s no excuse not to check out something new this fall. The arts at Middlebury are a wonderful way to take a break from academic stresses and be exposed to different cultures and ways of thinking, all while supporting fellow students and seeing the greatest artists in the world.
A full arts calendar with detailed event and ticket information can be picked up at the Mahaney Center for the Arts or online at go/arts. See you there!