eInside Events

Kent State’s Piano Institute Presents Its 10th Annual Gala Concert and Series of Performances

Jerry Wong, D.M.A., associate professor of piano at
Kent State University, instructs a participant during last
year’s Piano Institute.

The 2015 Piano Institute, in association with the Piano Division of the Hugh A. Glauser School of Music at Kent State University, presents a series of master classes and recitals. The Piano Institute, which began July 15, continues through July 20 and ends on July 21 with a gala concert at Severance Hall’s Reinberger Chamber Hall in Cleveland, Ohio. The 10-year-old program is a highly intensive festival for talented piano students in grades 7-12. The July 21 gala concert will feature 14 highly gifted pre-collegiate pianists from the United States, China, Honduras and Canada. The master classes, recitals and gala concert are free and open to the public.

The 10th anniversary celebration also includes a special alumni recital at Steinway Piano Gallery, located at 334 E. Hines Road in Boston Heights, Ohio, on Monday, July 20. Several past participants of the Piano Institute will perform. This event is also free and open to the public.

Instructors of the Piano Institute include Donna Lee, D.M.A., professor and coordinator of the Piano Division at Kent State, and Jerry Wong, D.M.A., associate professor of piano at Kent State. Guest artists for this year’s Piano Institute are Stanislav Khristenko, winner of the 2013 Cleveland International Piano Competition, and Joela Jones, principal keyboardist with the Cleveland Orchestra.

Piano Institute participants receive four hours of one-on-one lessons daily; attend master classes; and study sight-reading, technique, practicing and audition/competition preparation. They also will have the unique opportunity to share in the Kent/Blossom Music program, a premiere summer institution for summer collegiate level study of solo, chamber and orchestral literature.

For more information, please call 330-672-1061 or visit www.kent.edu/pianoinstitute.

Upcoming Piano Institute Activities

Monday, July 20, 3:45 p.m.
Master class with Joela Jones, principal keyboardist with the Cleveland Orchestra
University Auditorium in Cartwright Hall, Kent State University

Monday, July 20, 7:30 p.m.
Alumni recital featuring distinguished past participants
Steinway Piano Gallery, 334 E. Hines Hill Road, Boston Heights, Ohio
RSVP required by emailing Pam Hutson at phutson1@kent.edu or calling 330-672-8384

Tuesday, July 21, 7 p.m.
Gala concert featuring all Piano Institute participants
Reinberger Chamber Hall at Severance Hall, Cleveland

Ludwig Recital Hall is located in the Center for the Performing Arts at 1325 Theatre Drive in Kent. University Auditorium in Cartwright Hall is located on Terrace Drive, off Main Street, in Kent. Reinberger Chamber Hall at Severance Hall is located at 11001 Euclid Ave. in Cleveland.

Kent State Alumni Events – Dog Days of Summer and Kent State Day at Cedar Point

The Kent State University Alumni Association is hosting several exciting events this summer: Dog Days of Summer on Aug. 8 at Kent State’s Student Green and Kent State Day at Cedar Point on Aug. 15.

Dog Days of Summer on Aug. 8 at 10 a.m.

You and your spirited canine are invited to join the Kent State Alumni Association for a dog walk on the Kent Campus. The dog walk will begin at the Student Green located outside the Kent Student Center.

The cost is $5 for each furry friend. The fee includes treats and water for you and your pup and more! There also will be a special gift for your dog. The walk will take place rain or shine.

The RSVP deadline is July 31. For more information and to RSVP, visit the alumni association website.

Aug. 15 is Kent State Day at Cedar Point.

Kent State Day at Cedar Point on Aug. 15 at 10 a.m.

Gather with your fellow Golden Flashes for a day of fun, entertainment and family time at Cedar Point.

The $55 registration includes park admission and an all-you-can-eat buffet from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Want to make the visit even better? Purchase the optional unlimited drink wristband for $8. Wear the wristband and receive unlimited drinks for the day.

The event is open to all Kent State students, faculty, staff and alumni.

Visit the alumni association website for more information and to register. Deadline to register is Aug. 3.

At Kent State Museum Exhibit, Art Adorns the Walls and Your Mobile Device

Pictured is the art "Red Bridge by Peter C. Johnson, one
of the works on display at the Kent State University
Museum.

The Kent State University Museum will present @Infinitum, a cross-cultural and technologically enhanced art exhibition, from July 24, 2015, to Jan. 10, 2016. @Infinitum includes work by Kent State faculty members in art, fashion design and visual communication design, representing both Kent and Regional campuses. The museum will host an opening reception for the exhibition on Thursday, Sept. 24, from 5-7 p.m.

Curated by Kent State School of Art faculty members Koon-Hwee Kan, Ph.D., (art education) and Janice Lessman-Moss (textile arts), @Infinitum displays work by 18 faculty members from across the university. Juxtaposed alongside these are mounted QR (quick response) codes linked to a virtual exhibition of work by 36 Chinese artists on the @Infinitum website (http://atinfinitum.org/). Visitors to the exhibit can scan the codes on their mobile devices to access artist bios, statements and portfolios. In this way, the exhibit uses ubiquitous technology to transpose artworks from halfway around the world, presenting them in dialogue with the Kent State works.

The collaboration between Kent State artists and artists from Sichuan University and Hebei Normal University in China began in 2014, a year marking the 35th anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and the United States. An earlier iteration of @Infinitum at Hebei Normal University Museum housed the Chinese artworks while the American ones were accessible via QR code. A third show will open at Sichuan University in March 2016.

The Kent State University Museum is located at 515 Hilltop Drive, at the corner of E. Main Street and S. Lincoln Street in Kent. The museum is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday. Hours are 10 a.m.-4:45 p.m., Wednesday, Friday and Saturday; 10 a.m.-8:45 p.m., Thursday; and noon-4:45 p.m., Sunday. Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors and $3 for children under 18. The museum is free with a Kent State ID and free to the public on Sunday. Parking is free. For more information, call 330-672-3450 or visit www.kent.edu/museum.

Porthouse Theatre’s 2015 Season Continues With Critically Acclaimed Violet

Journey of self-discovery and acceptance teaches true meaning of love and courage

On a journey of healing through the 1960s
Deep South, Violet (Amy Fritsche) meets
soldiers Flick (Jared Dixon, on left) and
Monty (Ian Benjamin) and learns beauty is
more than skin deep.

Porthouse Theatre, Kent State University’s outdoor, summer theatre located on the grounds of Blossom Music Center, continues its 47th season with the critically acclaimed musical Violet.

Directed by Steven C. Anderson, Violet opened July 10 and runs through July 25. A preview performance took place on July 9. A musical of transformation, Violet chronicles a young, disfigured woman’s journey through the 1960s Deep South as she seeks the healing touch of an evangelical preacher. Along the way, Violet meets two soldiers who help her realize beauty is more than skin deep. Music is by Jeanine Tesori and lyrics and book are by Brian Crawley. Performances are July 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25 at 8 p.m.

Kent State Assistant Professor Amy Fritsche* performs as Violet. Music direction is by Assistant Professor Jennifer Korecki. Scenic design is by Terry Martin, costume design by Susan J. Williams (M.F.A. ’15), lighting design by Cynthia R. Stillings, acting associate dean and professor in the College of the Arts, and Yu (Leo) Lei, technical direction by Ryan T. Patterson (M.F.A. ’15), and sound design by Nathan Rosmarin (B.F.A. ’15). The production stage manager is Joshua Brown (B.F.A. ’14).

Tickets can be purchased by phone at 330-672-3884, in person at the Porthouse Box Office or online at www.porthousetheatre.com. Group tickets can be purchased at the Porthouse Box Office or by phone at 330-672-3884. The Porthouse Box Office is located in the Roe Green Center lobby of Kent State’s Center for the Performing Arts at 1325 Theatre Dr. in Kent, and is open Monday-Friday, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Single tickets range in price from $32-$40 for adults, $30-$35 for seniors, $26-$33 for college students and $24-$30 for children 18 and under. Special rates for groups of 20 or more also are available.

The Ohio Arts Council helped fund this program/organization with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans.

For more information about Porthouse Theatre, visit www.porthousetheatre.com.

*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States