eInside Events

Kent/Blossom Music Festival Closes the 2014 Faculty Recital Series

Performance features chamber music concert by members of the Cleveland Orchestra and oboist Danna Sundet

Danna Sundet, associate professor
of oboe at Kent State University, will
perform to close the Kent/Blossom Music
Festival's 2014 Faculty Concert Series on
July 23.

Kent/Blossom Music Festival will close its 2014 Faculty Concert Series with a performance by members of the Cleveland Orchestra and Danna Sundet, associate professor of oboe at Kent State University, on Wednesday, July 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.

The Cleveland Orchestra’s Katherine Bormann and Jeffrey Zehngut, violin; Stanley Konopka, viola; Richard Weiss, cello; Barrick Stees, bassoon; and Joela Jones, piano, will join forces with oboist Sundet in an evening of chamber music. Highlights of the performance will include de Falla’s “Canciones Populares Españolas for Cello and Piano,” Lalliet’s “Terzetto for Oboe, Bassoon and Piano, Op. 22” and Elgar’s “Quintet for Piano and Strings in A minor, Op. 84.”

This concert closes a series of six performances by faculty and guest artists of Kent/Blossom Music Festival.

Bormann joined the first violin section of the Cleveland Orchestra in March 2011. Prior to her appointment, she was a member of the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Florida, where she performed as soloist and concertmaster. A native of Bismarck, North Dakota, Bormann holds a bachelor of music degree from Rice University and a master of music degree from The Juilliard School. Her principal teachers were Kathleen Winkler, Joel Smirnoff and Ronald Copes. Bormann has participated in the Aspen Music Festival, Beijing International Music Festival and Academy, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival and the Tanglewood Music Festival, where she was awarded the Jules C. Reiner Violin Prize.

Zehngut joined the second violin section of the Cleveland Orchestra in August 2011. Zehngut previously served as associate principal second violin of the San Diego Symphony 2005-2011, and as principal second of the Canton Symphony Orchestra 2002-2005. He holds degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he studied with William Preucil and Paul Kantor.

Konopka joined the Cleveland Orchestra in 1991 and has been assistant principal viola since 1993. He previously served as principal violist and soloist with the National Repertory Orchestra and was a member of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Konopka won several notable awards at the Interlochen Arts Academy before attending the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) as a student of Cleveland Orchestra Principal Viola Robert Vernon.

Weiss is first assistant principal cello of the Cleveland Orchestra. For the 2009-2010 season, he served as acting principal. A native of Los Angeles, California, he won first prize in the Music Teachers National Association competition. At the Tanglewood Festival, he was the Young Artist contest winner and concerto soloist. While attending the Eastman School on full-merit scholarship, he won a position in the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. During his senior year, he was appointed to the Cleveland Orchestra. Weiss has appeared as a soloist many times with the Cleveland Orchestra, and his repertoire includes concertos by Beethoven (Triple), Brahms (Double), Dvořák, Lalo, Rósza, Saint-Saëns (both A and D minor), Schumann and Tchaikovsky.

Joela Jones plays piano, organ,
harpsichord, celesta, synthesizer and
accordion with the Cleveland Orchestra.

Jones, an artist of exceptional versatility, plays piano, organ, harpsichord, celesta, synthesizer and accordion with the Cleveland Orchestra. As soloist with the orchestra, she has performed more than 50 different concertos in more than 200 performances at Severance Hall and Blossom Music Center, as well as on tour in Europe and Asia. A native of Miami, Florida, Jones studied as a child with Ernst von Dohnányi. Recognized as a prodigy, she made her New York debut with Arthur Fiedler and the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra.

Stees has been assistant principal bassoon of the Cleveland Orchestra since 2001. Stees received a bachelor’s degree and performer’s certificate from the Eastman School of Music, where he studied with K. David Van Hoesen. Stees has concertized extensively in Europe, South America and Asia, including a solo tour of Hong Kong and China. He has given recitals throughout the United States. His solo appearances include performances with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, the South Bend Symphony Orchestra and the Brevard Music Center Orchestra.

Sundet serves as full-time assistant professor of oboe at Kent State University. She is artistic coordinator of the Kent/Blossom Music Festival. Her artistry, broad range and versatility has its roots in her exotic upbringing. She grew up in Brazil, the Canary Islands and Texas, speaking three languages fluently from early childhood. Sundet moved to Cleveland in 1982 to study with John Mack and stayed. She received her B.M. from the Cleveland Institute of Music and her M.M. from Kent State. Since 1987, Sundet has been the principal oboist and regular featured soloist with The Erie Philharmonic.

Tickets for the performance are $15 for adults, $13 for seniors, $5 for college students with a valid ID and free for students 18 and under.

Tickets are available weekdays 11 a.m. 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/blossom.

Steve Sheinkin and Julie Cummins Headline Summer Symposium

This year’s Summer Symposium, sponsored by Kent State
University's School of Library and Information Science and
the Northeast Ohio Regional Library System, will take place
on Tuesday, Aug. 5, at the Kent Student Center.

Authors Steve Sheinkin and Julie Cummins are keynote speakers at this year’s Summer Symposium on Tuesday, Aug. 5, in the Kent Student Center. The symposium is sponsored by the Kent State University School of Library and Information Science and the Northeast Ohio Regional Library System (NEO-RLS).

Educational Sessions include Common Core Apps, Weeding Non-Fiction and eBooks, Research as Detective Work (presented by Steve Sheinkin) and Emerging Technologies. Updates on the latest children’s and young adult titles also will be featured.

Sheinkin and Cummins will sign copies of their latest books during the lunch break. The Kent State University Bookstore will have books for sale. In addition to the keynote authors, symposium participants will have a chance to meet award-winning author Angela Johnson. She will sign copies of her latest book, All Different Now: Juneteenth, the First Day of Freedom, and immediately following the symposium, guests are invited to a reception to celebrate the book’s release.

The symposium takes place from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 5, with concurrent sessions held in the Kent Student Center Governance Chambers. Cost to attend is $75. Registration opens at 8:30 a.m.

Register at http://bit.ly/SummerSymposium2014 today!

Opening Keynote

Sheinkin's 2012 title Bomb: The Race To Build and Steal The World's Most Dangerous Weapon, received a Newbery Honor Award, the Sibert Medal, the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults, and was a finalist for the National Book Award. His book The Notorious Benedict Arnold won both the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction and the Boston Globe/Horn Book Award for nonfiction. His most recent titles are Lincoln's Grave Robbers, a true-crime thriller, and El Iluminado, a graphic novel written with Ilan Stavans.

Morning Breakout Sessions

Children's Literature Update
Presented by Carolyn S. Brodie, Ph.D., Kent State’s School of Library and Information Science
An update on the latest and greatest K-6 literature that is available to school librarians.

Common Core Apps
Presented by Meghan Harper, Ph.D., and Marianne Martens, Ph.D., Kent State’s School of Library and Information Science
A brief talk about the Common Core and some helpful apps to support it. This session will include hands-on iPad activities (iPads will be provided).

Almost Everything Librarians Need to Know about INFOhio and Education in Ohio
Presented by Paula Deal, INFOhio
What do all types of librarians need to know about Ohio’s New Learning Standards and upcoming student assessments, early literacy and career and college readiness? INFOhio has the information and the resources.

Research as Detective Work
Presented by Steve Sheinkin
"Often during school visits, while I'm describing the labor-intensive process of finding and researching stories for my books, a student will say, 'So, you do homework for a living?' I’ve learned to counter the charge by telling students that what I do is really more like detective work. In this workshop, I'll go through the step-by-step process I use to research stories, and try to make the case that the process of researching a true story is very similar to that of following clues to solve a mystery."

Afternoon Breakout Sessions

Young Adult Literature Update
Presented by Christina Getrost, Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library, and Mary Anne Nichols, Kent State’s School of Library and Information Science
An update on the latest and greatest young adult (grades 7-12) literature that is available to school librarians.

Weeding Non-Fiction and eBooks: Yes, You Can, and Yes, You SHOULD!
Presented by Belinda Boon, Ph.D., Kent State’s School of Library and Information Science
We all know weeding is necessary to maintain up-to-date and useful collections, but how much is “too much," especially when budgets are tight (or non-existent)? And how does one even begin to weed e-materials? This session offers practical tips for weeding specific Dewey categories and highlights the issues involved with weeding ebooks.

Common Core Apps
Presented by Meghan Harper, Ph.D., and Marianne Martens, Ph.D., Kent State’s School of Library and Information Science
A brief talk about the Common Core and some helpful apps to support it. This session will include hands-on iPad activities (iPads will be provided).

Closing Session

Emerging Technologies
Presented by Holly Klingler, emerging technologies librarian, NEO-RLS
Looking for info on the latest techno-trends for teachers, schools, students, and patrons, but don't want to be overwhelmed by too many techie details? Join Klingler for a discussion and a friendly show-and-tell program where you can learn about what's in and what's out in the world of technology.

Closing Keynote

Julie Cummins is a published author of children's books, including The Inside-outside Book of Libraries, Country Kid, City Kid, Tomboy of the Air: Daredevil Pilot Blanche Stuart Scott, and more recently, Women Explorers and Flying Solo.

Reception

Celebrate the launch of Angela Johnson's new book, All Different Now: Juneteenth, the First Day of Freedom, with cake and punch in the Marantz Picturebook Collection room in the School of Library and Information Science.

Visit http://bit.ly/SummerSymposium2014 for more information about the symposium and to register.

Porthouse Theatre Concludes 2014 Season With Oliver!

Musical classic will engage you with its drama and outstanding musical numbers

The menacing Bill Sykes (Brian Keith Johnson) dangles
Oliver (Cameron Nelson) as the Artful Dodger (Patrick
Kennedy) looks on.

Porthouse Theatre, Kent State University’s outdoor, summer theatre located on the grounds of Blossom Music Center, concludes its 46th season with Oliver! opening on July 25. Performances run through Aug. 10. A preview performance will take place on July 24, and a bonus matinee performance will take place on Aug. 9.

Directed by Porthouse Theatre artistic director Terri Kent, Oliver! is a musical masterpiece with music, lyrics and book by Lionel Bart that contains outstanding musical numbers such as “Consider Yourself,” “Who Will Buy,” and “I’d Do Anything.” Oliver! makes Charles Dickens’ classic novel come to life and will capture audiences with its pathos and drama. Performances are July 24, 25, 26, 29, 30, 31 and Aug. 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 at 8 p.m.; and July 27 and Aug. 3, 9, and 10 at 2 p.m.

The production features Actors Equity Association members Brian Keith Johnson as Bill Sykes, Patrick Kennedy as Artful Dodger, Rohn Thomas, Lucy Anders, Mackenzie Duan and Kent State School of Theatre and Dance director Eric van Baars as Fagin.

Cameron Nelson stars as Oliver Twist.

Oliver! also features Kent State School of Music Assistant Professor Timothy Culver, Lissy Gulick, Kent State School of Music Assistant Professor Marla Berg, Christopher D. Tuck, Ethan Montoya, Miriam Henkel-Moellmann, Courtney Nelson and Elliott Litherland.

The Artful Dodger (Patrick Kennedy) and Oliver (Cameron
Nelson) consider their new friendship.

The Boys’ Ensemble is comprised of Mary Grace Bentivegna, Anna Clawson, Samuel Culver, Spencer Desberg, Wesley Howell, Jack Kendrick, Margaret Mahaney, Ethan Montoya, Cameron Moss, Carly Nelson and Stanley Niekamp.

Porthouse Theatre’s 2014 Young Professional Company is comprised of Lucy Anders, Jessica Nicole Benson, Mackenzie Duan, BFA ’14, Grace Falasco, BFA ’14, Miriam Henkel-Moellmann, BFA ’11, Daniel Lindenberger, BFA ’10, Elliott Litherland, Darian Lunsford, Dylan Ratell, BFA ’14, Christopher D. Tuck and Shelby Shepard.

Oliver! is choreographed by MaryAnn Black, Porthouse Theatre’s assistant artistic director, and music directed by Jonathan Swoboda, assistant professor in Kent State’s School of Theatre and Dance. Lighting design is by Kent State School of Theatre and Dance alumnus T.C. Kouyeas, and scenic design is by Kent State School of Theatre and Dance alumnus Nolan O’Dell. Costume design is by Sarah Russell, MFA ‘09, sound design is by Brian Chismar, MFA ’13, and technical direction is by Ryan T. Patterson. Actors’ Equity production stage manager is Derric Nolte.

For tickets, call 330-672-3884, purchase online at www.porthousetheatre.com or in person at the Porthouse Box Office located in the Roe Green Center lobby of the Center for the Performing Arts at 1325 Theatre Drive, Kent. The box office is open Monday – Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The box office accepts Visa, MasterCard, Discover, checks and cash.

Note: Gold Center tickets refer to the best seats, senior pricing applies to individuals age 60+ and student pricing applies to those 18 and under or with valid college ID.

Single tickets, ranging from $28 - $37 for adults and seniors, and $16 - $24 for students, are on sale now.

Special rates for groups of 20 or more are available, as are student rates.

Main Street Kent Announces Progressive Comedy Event, Aug. 8

Main Street Kent is excited to announce the Progressive Comedy Dinner Party, to take place on Friday, Aug. 8. An entire evening of cocktails, delicious food, live comedy and a private dessert party will be included in the event. This is the second event of its kind, following the Beatles’ 50th Anniversary Progressive Event held this past February.

The Progressive Comedy Dinner Party is generously sponsored by Hometown Bank and McKay Bricker Framing and Black Squirrel Gifts, both very dedicated supporters of downtown Kent.

Tickets to the progressive event are limited to 100. The cost to attend is $65 for one or $125 for a pair, and can be purchased online at www.mainstreetkent.org or at McKay Bricker Framing and Black Squirrel Gifts. Online ticket orders will be mailed.

The event begins at 6 p.m. at the popular downtown nightclub 157 Lounge, where ticketholders will enjoy two cocktails of their choice (martinis excluded). From there, the event will move up the street to Bricco for a delicious dinner, including salad and soft drinks, from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. Guests will choose from four entrees upon arrival at the restaurant: pork tenderloin, lobster ravioli, mahi-mahi or a vegetarian quinoa dish. Then at 8:30 p.m., a live comedy show begins at the Kent Stage, with Mike Polk Jr. as the headliner. One drink/snack ticket is included. To top off the night, guests will go to Tree City Coffee and Pastry.

For more information, call 330-677-8000 or visit www.mainstreetkent.org.

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.

The Great War: Women and Fashion in a World at War, 1912-1922 Opens at Kent State University Museum

Pictured is a rust-colored silk suit. Label:
'The Linder Co., Cleveland', American,
1914, which will be featured in the Kent
State University Museum's exhibit, The
Great War: Women and Fashion in a
World at War, 1912-1922.

(Photo by Vanessa Port)

Coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I, the Kent State University Museum will launch an exhibit examining the war’s dramatic and lasting impact on women’s dress and societal roles. The Great War: Women and Fashion in a World at War, 1912-1922 opens in the museum’s Stager and Blum Galleries on Thursday, July 24, with an opening reception taking place the same day from 5 to 7 p.m.

The outbreak of war 100 years ago ushered in a period of immense social change, rapid technological evolution and the loss of millions of lives. At the same time, women’s workforce participation and social influence expanded considerably.

“Women directly served the war effort not just as nurses, but also in roles that had previously been reserved for men, including service in the Navy and Marines,” says Sara Hume, museum and exhibit curator. “Immediately following the war, women in the United States, Canada and several European countries received the right to vote.”

Against this backdrop, women’s clothing and fashion adjusted to suit lives increasingly lived outside the domestic sphere, precipitating a shift in women’s dress that would long outlast the war.

“Women adopted shorter skirts and a looser, less confining silhouette,” says Hume. “While many of women’s inroads into the workforce were quickly reversed once the war ended, the fundamental changes in how women dressed endured.”

The exhibit — which looks at women’s lives at work, at play and at home — includes nearly 30 ensembles ranging from evening wear to military uniforms to bathing suits. Also featured are a selection of contemporary propaganda posters, fashion plates, undergarments and accessories. The Great War will run through July 5, 2015.

The Kent State University Museum is located at 515 Hilltop Drive, at the corner of E. Main St. and S. Lincoln St. in Kent. The museum is open to the public on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. - 4:45 p.m.; Thursday from 10 a.m. - 8:45 p.m.; and Sunday from noon - 4:45 p.m. 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.

Kent State Day at Cedar Point on Aug. 9

Kent State Day at Cedar Point comes up Aug. 9, and is
open to all Kent State students, faculty, staff and alumni.

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

The $50 registration includes park admission and an-all-you-can-eat lunch buffet from 1:30-3 p.m. Want to make the visit even sweeter? Purchase the optional unlimited drink wristband for $8. Wear the wristband, get unlimited drinks for the day!

The event is open to all Kent State University students, faculty, staff and alumni. Represent Kent State by wearing blue and gold around the park for a chance to win fun prizes.

Visit the Alumni Association website for more information and to register. Deadline to register is July 28.