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Nrityagram Indian Dance Ensemble
Nrityagram: Dancing The Divine In the dark of the night Such an isolated, beautiful place is where the founder of Nrityagram Indian Dance Ensemble, Protima Gauri, decided to create a village where “nothing exists except dance.” In this place the cosmology and philosophy of Odissi and other styles of dance are used to show students how to embody the divine in their movements. 60 years ago the Odissi dance style was evolved by the addition of contemporary influences, transforming the exotic nature of the classical piece into an explosive re-telling of the ancient philosophies embodied by the movement of Nrityagram. This transformation is exemplified by the piece that premiered in the US in 2008, Pramati: Reflection, a collection of six dances which bring to life concepts of creation, passionate love, and balance. This latest offering by Nrityagram is set for its Wisconsin premiere on the Union Theater stage on Saturday, March 6th at 8pm. Jessica Lanay Moore, Graphic Design Intern
Eroica Trio Click here to buy tickets for Saturday!
This month we again offer a selection from Jacob Stockinger’s interview with Eroica Trio. The full interview will be presented in his blog, The Well-Tempered Ear, on March 8 and 9.
Could you comment briefly on each piece on your program, but especially on the Tower as an important American composer who is also a woman? What would be the take-aways from each one for the audience or general public? Joan Tower's trio "For Daniel" is a very emotional piece that she wrote after her nephew died after a long battle with an illness. It was her way to memorialize him and to make peace with his loss. We have found that audiences have responded very strongly to this piece and also find it very draining for us personally to perform. That is why we programmed it just before intermission, so that we could recover before the Dvorak Trio on the second half. And the Beethoven Trio? The Beethoven trio, while it is sort of early, really sounds like his middle period. It is very intense, as most pieces in the "dark" key of C minor are, and extremely developed. It actually is one of my favorite trios by Beethoven and his as well. It was so successful as a trio when he published it that he went back and arranged it for viola quintet as well. I actually toured with it in that version with "Music From Marlboro" years ago. He is such a fantastic composer that it works brilliantly in both versions.
And the Dvorak? The Dvorak “Dumky” is one of his most popular works and definitely a standard of the trio repertoire. It is a very interesting compositional form in that instead of the standard 3 or 4 movement piece, it is 5 or 6 depending on how you count them. It is very "Czech" and alternates between very light-hearted, dance-like sections and slower, deeply emotional "dumka" style sections. As a performer, I find it is very exciting to be able to use all of your emotions and life experiences so quickly one after another in the same work.
Baaba Maal |
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Baaba Maal, a Riveting Musician
Baaba Maal is not your average pop superstar. He performs his irresistible Afropop with the mission to, in his words, “give advice, to warn people, and make them aware of what they might not have thought of themselves.” He has acted as an ambassador for many causes, and his songs deal with topics ranging from women's rights to the ubiquity of media. Being from Senegal, his music is informed by both West African musical traditions and pop music from America and elsewhere. He sings in many languages, but his powerful voice transcends all language barriers, and his music is immediate and intimate.
Don't miss your chance to see Baaba Maal at the Union Theater! His performances are moving, riveting, and just might change your life.
Ben Willis
World Stage Series Coordinator
Keyboard Conversations with Jeffrey Siegel®
Chopin and the Future
Monday, April 20, 2010, 7:30 pm
Mills Hall
General Ticket Prices: $35, UW Madison-Students: Free
Siegel on Chopin’s legacy
In Siegel’s final installment of this year’s Keyboard Conversations® series, he gives new life to Chopin’s work and displays the timelessness of his music. Siegel examines the composer’s legacy, performing several of his notable works as well as of those who were inspired by him.
This Keyboard Conversation will discuss Chopin’s popularity and influence. The program includes works that both delight the ear and point to the future - etudes and nocturnes - as well as compositions of Tchaikovsky, Debussy, Scriabin, and Szymanowski.
If you have not had a chance to see Siegel’s work, don’t miss your last chance of the season!
Andrea Breneman
Marketing Intern
Neale Silva Young Artists Competition Winners Recital
Wisconsin Union Theater
Saturday, April 11, 2010, 12:30 pm
Free
See Them When They’re Young! Wisconsin’s Best New Classical Musicians Perform in a Free Concert
What will the next generation of classical musicians look like? Find out on April 11th when the winners of the Neale-Silva Young Artists’ Competition present a special recital in the Wisconsin Union Theater. The concert will also be broadcast live on Wisconsin Public Radio. Thanks to a grant from the estate of the late University of Wisconsin-Madison professor Eduardo Neale-Silva, a select few classical musicians earn the chance to be heard in the theater and across the state. You won’t want to miss the wealth of fresh talent and dynamic energy offered in this free concert!
Rose Gear
Theater Committee Director
Marc Bamuthi Joseph
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Wisconsin Union Theater
Ticket Prices: General: $28
UW-Madison Students: $10
Youth: $12 (up to two tickets with the purchase of an adult ticket)
Click here to buy tickets!
Marc Bamuthi Joseph Brings His Mixtape Back to Madison
A story is only as masterful as its storyteller. On February 24th, 2007, we first met such a master.
Marc Bamuthi Joseph, internationally-renowned spoken-word artist, kicked off his UW-Madison Arts Institute fellowship with an engaging, thought-provoking performance in the Wisconsin Union Theater. During his residency, Joseph penned the break/s: a mixtape for the stage. And on April 24th, 2010 you have a chance to answer Opportunity’s rare second knock--Joseph is bringing the break/s back to its birthplace.
Words are just one set of tools in Joseph’s storytelling toolbox. In the break/s he combines his skilled delivery of poetry with an eclectic mix of lights, video, live hip-hop (from turntables to a human beatbox) and dance (from ballet to breakdancing). Come experience Joseph’s return. Witness him deliver what the San Francisco Bay Guardian dubs “sharp, elegant and always urgent verse,” blended with what the New York Times raves is a work “gloriously eloquent in its physicality”.
Everyone loves a masterful story. Don’t miss your chance to see and hear one spun like only Marc Bamuthi Joseph can.
Ted Harks
Box Office Manager
Rick Ray: The Soul of Morocco
Monday & Tuesday, May 3-4, 2010, 7:30 pm
Wisconsin Union Theater: 7:30pm
Ticket Prices: General $11
UW-Madison Students $6
Buffet Dinner: 5:30pm. $15. Check TITU for location
Buy Tickets for Monday!
Buy Tickets for Tuesday!
Exotic and familiar: Rick Ray’s Morocco
Rick Ray describes Morocco as a combination of the “purely exotic and the comfortingly familiar.” From the rolling isolation of golden hot sand dunes, to the blue seas with their frothing white foam and into the towering city filled with the hustle and bustle of daily and market life, the travel film “Morocco” immerses the viewer in a complete image of this intriguing country. Within the city walls, bleached white from the sunlight or colored orange from the stain of the flowing sand, one sees street performers – snake charmers, dancers and acrobats, markets artfully stacked high with fresh fruits and nuts, until finally reaching the rolling greenness of the countryside where women carry their daily loads home elegantly above their heads. A feast for the eyes and an ignition for the soul, Rick Ray’s “The Soul of Morocco” is pure delight.
Jessica Moore, Graphic Design Intern
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