2009–10 Season
The Hot Club of San Francisco
Tues., Sept. 22, 2009
The Hot Club of San Francisco, with lead guitarist Paul Mehling, breathes new life into the all-string instrumentation of violin, bass and guitars from the original Hot Club. Hearing the ensemble live carries the listener back to the 1930s, to the small, smoky jazz clubs of Paris or the refined lounges of the famous Hotel Ritz. For this performance, the Hot Club of San Francisco presents Silent Surrealism, an evening of silent surrealist films accompanied by live gypsy jazz. Short films by Charlie Bowers, such as Now You Tell One and It’s a Bird, as well as James Sibley Watson’s The Fall of the House of Usher and Harold Shaw’s The Land Beyond Sunset will come alive with distinctive music made famous by Stephane Grappelli, Django Reinhardt and the Hot Club de France.
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Degenstein Center Theater
Adult, $20; senior, $15; student, $5
The Waverly Consort: The Christmas Story
Tues., Dec. 1, 2009
The Waverly Consort is one of the leading ensembles specializing in the performance of Medieval and Renaissance music. Drawing on a repertoire of several centuries, the group has long been an audience favorite in its home city of New York, and annual tours include sold-out performances at major concert halls coast to coast. In the spirit and pageantry of medieval church dramas and mystery plays, eight singers and five instrumentalists playing reproductions of medieval instruments recount the events of Christmas—a program combining solemn and festive music, processions and simple gestures to dramatize the Biblical narrative as conveyed by music manuscripts and illuminated miniatures of the Middle Ages.
7:30 p.m.
Weber Chapel Auditorium
Adult, $20; senior, $15; student, $5
Ailey II
Wed., March 24, 2010
Celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater has earned a reputation as one of the most acclaimed international ambassadors of American culture, promoting the uniqueness of the African-American cultural experience and the preservation and enrichment of American modern dance. Ailey II, the touring repertory ensemble, is universally renowned for merging the spirit and energy of the country's best young dance talent with the passion and creative vision of today's most outstanding emerging choreographers. Ailey II’s Artistic Director Sylvia Waters, appointed by Alvin Ailey in 1974, has established this ensemble as one of the most popular dance companies in the country.
