Masterpiece Season
The College of Visual and Performing Arts presents an array of talent including concerts, theater productions and art exhibits
By Kelly Fisher and Jill Yaworski, a&e editors
Posted on August 28, 2006
 
Not only does JMU’s Masterpiece Season include performances by students and faculty this year, but it also provides impressive international and national talents in its Encore and Family Series. Masterpiece Season brings culture to Harrisonburg by uniting students, faculty and community members through dance, theater, music and art.

The season starts with the New Dance Festival. Combining professional choreography and JMU’s professors of dance, the festival displays notable contemporary dances.  the New Dance Festival will be held in Latimer-Shaeffer Theatre Sept. 8 and 9 at 8 p.m.

The JMU Wind Symphony will perform its first concert of the year in Wilson Hall Auditorium Oct. 1 at 3 p.m.

Opening the theater series is  “Sweetest Swing in Baseball” by Rebecca Gilman. Renowned painter Dana Fielding finds herself depressed as her latest art exhibit proves to be a disappointment and her boyfriend breaks up with her. She finds herself in a psychiatric ward and will only speak through baseball legend Darryl Strawberry. “Sweetest Swing in Baseball” is showing in the Latimer-Shaeffer Theatre Oct. 3 to 7 at 8 p.m.

The JMU Jazz Band and Jazz Ensemble will perform in Wilson Hall Auditorium Oct. 4 at 8 p.m. The concert will feature swing music of the 1930s and ’40s.

“Celebrate ABBA” reproduces the fun music and sound of ABBA that audiences have grown to love, including the song “Mamma Mia” and other hits. The show will take place in Wilson Hall Auditorium on Oct. 6 at 8 p.m.

The Masterpiece Season welcomes award-winning Canadian guitarist Jesse Cook as part of the Encore Series. His New Age sound and rumba flamenco beats inspire fans to sing and dance throughout the performance and promises to be an entertaining show.  Cook will perform in Wilson Hall Auditorium on Oct. 13 at 7:30 p.m.

JMU Opera Theatre presents “The Magic Flute” in Wilson Hall Auditorium Oct. 27 to 29. Mozart’s fantastical tale is transformed into an opera production that will stun the audience.

As part of the Family Series, the Masterpiece Season welcomes the Golden Dragon Acrobats to JMU. The breathtaking show highlights a mix of Chinese acrobatics and dance. The show swings into Wilson Hall Auditorium Nov. 2 at 7:30 p.m.

The Theatre Series presents Moisés Kaufman’s “The Laramie Project.” The play revolves around residents of Laramie, Wyoming, who witness an event that becomes a national symbol of intolerance. It will be shown in Latimer-Shaeffer Theatre Nov. 7 to 11 at 8 p.m.

Direct from the The Wiggles Show comes “Dorothy the Dinosaur’s Dance Party” as part of the Family Series. This fun show filled with singing and dancing will come to Wilson Hall Auditorium Nov. 17 and will have two shows at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.

“HolidayFest,” a special musical event, brings together JMU choral and symphony orchestra and brass band in a traditional holiday performance featuring classic holiday music that everyone can enjoy. The event will take place in Wilson Hall Auditorium Dec. 3 at 4 p.m.

Virginia Repertory Dance Company’s artistic director Kate Trammell and JMU dancers will perform new choreography from JMU faculty members and guest artists. The concert will show in Latimer-Shaeffer Theatre Dec. 7 to 9 at 8 p.m.

For more information or to make ticket reservations, call the Masterpiece Season Box Office at  x87000.