August 2009

On stage

When you make plans to attend FallFest, save room in your schedule for a Broadway-caliber performance. Then plan on coming back to campus for more.

Patti LuPone will kick off this year's University Concert & Lecture Series Sept. 26 with “The Gypsy in My Soul,” a concert featuring hit Broadway tunes and some of the singer's favorite pop songs.

A two-time Tony Award winner, LuPone has performed in numerous Broadway productions, including “Gypsy,” “Oliver!” and “Anything Goes.” She swept the theatre awards in 2008, winning the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Best Actress in a Musical and the Drama League Award for Distinguished Performance for her portrayal of Rose in “Gypsy.”

Other scheduled performances for the 2009-10 season include:

• Oct. 24, The Martha Graham Dance Company: Founded in 1926 by the famed dancer and choreographer, the Martha Graham Dance Company is the oldest and most celebrated contemporary dance company in America. The company has toured in more than 50 countries and performed in some of dance's most storied venues, including the Metropolitan Opera, Carnegie Hall, the Paris Opera House, Covent Garden and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
• Jan. 18, The Soweto Gospel Choir: The Soweto Gospel Choir was formed to celebrate the unique and inspirational power of African gospel music. Under the direction of David Mulovhedzi and Beverly Bryer, the Grammy Award-winning choir draws on the best talent from the many churches in and around Soweto. The choir, which performs in six of South Africa's 11 official languages, is dedicated to sharing the joy of faith through music with audiences around the world.
• March 21, “Porgy and Bess”: Recognized as an American masterpiece, “Porgy and Bess” intertwines a human story of pride, prejudice and passion with a jazz and blues-infused score. The opera introduced the classic Gershwin songs “Summertime,” “I Got Plenty O' Nuttin'” and “It Ain't Necessarily So” to the songbook of American standards. This production of the jazz opera is by Living Arts, Inc, which has performed the work all over the world for more than 15 years.
• April 14, Moscow Festival Ballet: For the second consecutive year the famed Moscow Festival Ballet will visit UNCG, this time performing “Coppelia,” a story of a life-size doll who captures the imagination of a village. The Moscow Festival Ballet was founded two decades ago, the vision of legendary dancer Sergei Radchenko for a company that would highlight the best elements of classical Russian ballet.

Shows will start at 8 p.m., with the exception of “Porgy and Bess” which will begin at 3 p.m. All performances will be held in historic Aycock Auditorium.

Season ticket packages are available at boxoffice.uncg.edu or by calling (336) 334-4849. Prices range from $107 to $158. Individual tickets will go on sale Monday, Aug. 24, and prices will vary by event. Tickets may also be purchased an hour before the performance at the Aycock Auditorium box office.

For more information visit ucls.uncg.edu.