eInside Events

Kent State’s Verve Chamber Players Perform With Guest Clarinetist Ami Vardi

The Verve Chamber Players is the newly formed
ensemble-in-residence at Kent State University composed
of professors from the university's School of Music.

Kent State University’s Hugh A. Glauser School of Music is proud to present the Verve Chamber Players with clarinetist Ami Vardi in a concert on Monday, Feb. 23, at 7:30 p.m. in Ludwig Recital Hall. Ludwig Recital Hall is located in the Center for the Performing Arts at 1325 Theatre Drive on the Kent Campus.

Audience members will be treated to a vibrant performance of Mozart’s “Quartet for Piano and Strings in G minor, K 478"; Weber’s “Quintet for Clarinet and Strings in B-flat major, Op. 34"; and Dvořák’s “Quintet for Piano and Strings in A major, Op. 87.”

The Verve Chamber Players is the newly formed ensemble-in-residence at Kent State. The ensemble is composed of Cleveland Orchestra associate concertmaster, artist-in-residence and assistant professor of violin at Kent State Jung-Min Amy Lee; members of the Miami String Quartet and artists-in-residence at Kent State, violinist Cathy Meng Robinson and cellist Keith Robinson; artist-in-residence and assistant professor of viola at Kent State Yu Jin; and associate professor of piano at Kent State Donna Lee.

Joining the Verve Chamber Players will be clarinetist Ami Vardi, assistant professor at Kent State. Vardi earned a Master of Music at the Cleveland Institute of Music as a student of Franklin Cohen and continued his post-graduate studies with Yehuda Gilad in Los Angeles. Vardi has performed with many orchestras, including the American Ballet Theatre, the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra and the Cleveland Orchestra, with which he performed dozens of concerts and has toured to New York, Philadelphia, Boston and Miami.

Tickets for the performance are $15 for adults; $13 for seniors and Kent State faculty and staff; $10 for groups of 10 or more patrons; $8 for non-Kent State students; $5 for children and free for full-time Kent Campus undergraduate students.

Tickets are available weekdays noon to 5 p.m. at the Performing Arts Box Office, located in the lobby of the Roe Green Center in the Center for the Performing Arts at 1325 Theatre Drive on the Kent Campus. The Performing Arts Box Office accepts Visa, MasterCard and Discover, in addition to cash and checks.

The Ludwig Recital Hall Box Office will open one hour prior to the performance for walk-up sales and will accept Visa, MasterCard and Discover. Tickets and more information are available by calling 330-672-ARTS (2787) or visiting www.kent.edu/music.

Kent State University at Stark Theatre Presents Spring Awakening

Kent State University at Stark Theatre will present the
musical Spring Awakening, beginning Feb. 20. Tickets
are on sale now.

Kent State University at Stark Theatre will present the musical Spring Awakening, book and lyrics by Steven Sater and music by Duncan Sheik, on Feb. 20, 21, 27 and 28 at 8 p.m. and on Feb. 22 and March 1 at 2:30 p.m. in the Kent State Stark Theatre at 6000 Frank Avenue NW in Jackson Township. American Sign Language interpretation will be provided for the performance on March 1 at 2:30 p.m. Opening night is Scholarship Night with proceeds benefiting students in Kent State Stark theatre and music programs.

This Tony Award-winning rock musical tells the story of desire and confusion as teenagers’ hormones collide during the journey from youth to adulthood. Through rebellious trials and tribulations, the sensuality of the characters is often denied and suppressed, leading to tragic consequences. The poignant and revealing messages in Spring Awakening are powerful, passionate and unforgettable. For mature audiences only, due to violent content, strong (profane) language and the theme of abuse.

Ticket prices are $14 for adults and $10 for non-Kent State students, children under 17 and senior citizens. All Kent State students are admitted free with a current student ID. Tickets may be obtained beginning Monday, Feb. 9. Reserve tickets online at www.stark.kent.edu/theatre or call the Kent State Stark Theatre Box Office at 330-244-3348, Monday through Friday, from 1 to 5 p.m.

Directing Spring Awakening is Kent State Stark Assistant Professor of Theatre and Theatre Director Brian Newberg. Laurel Seeds is the musical director, Angelo Lemo is the choreographer, Louis Williams is the scenic and lighting designer, Susan Blurton is the costume designer and Ron Jarvis is the sound designer.

Kent State Orchestra Concert Will Feature Dvořák’s New World Symphony Alongside Concerto Competition Winners

Graduate flute performance major
Matthew Watkins will perform
on Feb. 15 at the University
Auditorium at Cartwright Hall.

The Kent State University Hugh A. Glauser School of Music Orchestra continues its 2014-2015 season with a performance on Sunday, Feb. 15, at 3 p.m. in the University Auditorium at Cartwright Hall. Cartwright Hall is located at 650 Hilltop Drive, with free parking located off Terrace Drive.

The concert will start with a premiere of Kevin Krumenauer’s “Aeonian Pulse.” Graduate flute performance major Matthew Watkins will debut with Carl Nielsen’s “Concerto for Flute,” and undergraduate piano performance major Liyue Yin will perform Maurice Ravel’s “Piano Concerto in G major.” The evening will end with a performance of Dvořák’s spirited “New World Symphony.”

Such a diverse program will transport the audience through various composition styles, including those of local composer Krumenauer, who has made Cleveland his home since 2000 when he studied composition with Margaret Brouwer at the Cleveland Institute of Music; Scandinavian composer Nielsen in his late neoclassical flute concerto; Ravel’s jazz-inspired piano concerto; and Dvořák’s heavily American-influenced “Symphony No. 9, From the New World.”

Piano performance major Liyue
Yin will perform on Feb. 15 at
the University Auditorium at
Cartwright Hall.

Winners of the concerto competition are Watkins and Yin. A native of the Pittsburgh area, Watkins is currently studying with Diane McCloskey. Yin, a native of China, is a senior piano performance major studying with Jerry Wong at Kent State’s School of Music.

Tickets for the performance are $15 for adults, $13 for seniors and Kent State faculty and staff, $10 for groups of 10 or more patrons, $8 for non-Kent State students, $5 for children and free for full-time Kent Campus undergraduate students.

Tickets are available weekdays noon to 5 p.m. at the Performing Arts Box Office, located in the lobby of the Roe Green Center in the Center for the Performing Arts at 1325 Theatre Drive on the Kent Campus. The Performing Arts Box Office accepts Visa, MasterCard and Discover, in addition to cash and checks.

The Cartwright Hall Box Office will open one hour prior to the performance for walk-up sales and will accept Visa, MasterCard and Discover. Tickets and more information are available by calling 330-672-ARTS (2787) or visiting www.kent.edu/music.

Calling Local Artists for Kent Masterpieces on Main Art and Wine Festival

The ninth annual Kent Masterpieces on Main Art and Wine Festival will take place Saturday, June 6, from noon to 10 p.m. in downtown Kent. Proceeds will benefit Main Street Kent, the nonprofit organization dedicated to the revitalization of downtown Kent. The Art and Wine Festival features local artists, live entertainment and wine from wineries from all over Ohio.

Main Street Kent is in the process of selecting artists for the event in the following categories (original art only): watercolor, oil/acrylic, clay, photography, sculpture, graphics/drawing, mixed media and others. The artist application can be downloaded from www.mainstreetkent.org/art-and-wine-festival/4556774237.

Applications must be submitted along with photo examples of art and the $75 application fee by the March 2 deadline. The student application fee is $35 and copy of student ID is required for consideration. Applicants who make this initial deadline will be given priority consideration in booth placement. The second-round application deadline is April 6. All artists are encouraged to apply, and application fees will be refunded to those not selected. Applications received after April 6 will be considered based on category needs.

Main Street Kent is a nonprofit organization focused on the revitalization of downtown Kent. It is an affiliate of the national Main Street program and the Heritage Ohio program.

Visit www.mainstreetkent.org or call 330-677-8000 with any questions.