Inside Iowa State: Iowa State University

August 16, 2002

Music, ISU Theatre prepare for new seasons

by Debra Gibson
If the thrice-weekly Big Brother TV episodes have you yearning for real entertainment, hang on. ISU music and theatre fall productions are on the horizon.

The fall semester season for ISU Theatre includes both the current and the classic. On tap to kick off the student-acted season is The Laramie Project, a Moses Kaufman script based on the 1998 Wyoming murder of 21-year-old college student Matthew Shepard. The play will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 4, 5, 11 and 12, and at 2 p.m. Oct. 6 and 13.

A collaboration among ISU Theatre, ISU Dance and Grinnell College Music will be highlighted in Stained Glass, an original concept-based work exploring the boundaries among dance, theatre, visual art and music. Focused on a character's lifelong quest to cleanse himself of self-absorption, the production, sans dialogue, is set to Rachmaninoff's "Vespers." Performance dates are at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 1 and 2, and 2 p.m. Nov. 3.

Rounding out ISU Theatre's fall schedule will be A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens' classic story of the miser Ebenezer Scrooge. Shows are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Dec. 6, 7, 13 and 14, and 2 p.m. Dec. 8 and 15.

All ISU Theatre performances will be held in Fisher Theater. Tickets are $11 for adults, $10 for seniors and $5 for students and children, and can be purchased at the Iowa State Center Ticket office, or by calling 4-3347.

The department of music will offer a full repertoire of events during fall semester as well. Highlights, all of which will be held in Stephens Auditorium, include:

Collage of Choirs: More than 300 students from four of Iowa State's choral ensembles will perform at 3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 22.
Celebrate America: Opera star and Iowa State distinguished faculty member Simon Estes will join the ISU Symphony Orchestra, Wind Ensemble and Jazz Ensemble for an evening of spirituals, jazz and marches on Saturday, Oct. 5, at 7:30 p.m.
ISU Band Extravaganza: More than 500 of Iowa State's musicians will perform in this annual event, including the only indoor performance of the ISU Marching Band, at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 10.
An Afternoon at the Opera: The ISU Symphony Orchestra and the ISU Opera Studio will perform scenes from Carmen and Porgy and Bess on Sunday, Nov. 17, at 3 p.m.
Holiday Choral Festival: The Iowa State Singers, the Iowa Statesmen Men's Choir and Cantamus and Lyrica Women's Choirs will perform both traditional and new holiday music on Sunday, Dec. 8, at 3 p.m.

The events listed here all require tickets, which may be purchased at the Iowa State Center ticket office, TicketMaster locations or by calling 233-1888. Prices generally are $9 for adults and $5 for students; the exception is the Collage of Choirs ($5 for adults and $3 for students).