Ohio Wesleyan University Announces 2013-2014 Performing Arts Series
Ohio Wesleyan University’s 2013-2014 Performing Arts Series kicks off Sept. 6 with a ‘RHAW’ street-dance performance. (Image courtesy of RHAW)
DELAWARE, Ohio – Ohio Wesleyan University’s 2013-2014 Performing Arts Series will debut Sept. 6 with the RHAW – The Rennie Harris Hip-Hop Dance Company – popping, locking, and performing other “fast-paced, breathtaking, and amazing” street dances. This year’s series of visiting professional artists also will include the Pete Mills Jazz Combo, Central Ohio Symphony, and acclaimed physical comedian Robert Post.
RHAW (“Rennie Harris Awe-Inspiring Works”) will perform at 8 p.m. Sept. 6 in Ohio Wesleyan’s Chappelear Drama Center, 45 Rowland Ave., Delaware. According to one reviewer: The performance is “75 minutes of high energy, hip-hop dance that is exciting, fast-paced, breathtaking, and amazing, and makes you want to get off your seat and move your feet.”
The company of young dancers was created as a training ground for teen-agers and young adults interested in joining Harris’s internationally renowned dance company, Rennie Harris Puremovement. The Pennsylvania-based company aims to forge new paths for young hip-hop hopefuls, and promises to present street dance in its “RHAW-est” back-to-basics form. Learn more at http://rennieharrisrhaw.org.
Tickets for this and each Ohio Wesleyan Performing Arts Series event are $20 for general admission and $5 for senior citizens and non-OWU students (with a valid school ID). Tickets are free for Ohio Wesleyan students and employees with a valid university ID. Tickets may be purchased online at www.ticketweb.com, by phone message at (740) 368-3629, or by email at paseries@owu.edu.
Additional 2013-2014 Performing Arts Series events include:
8 p.m. Sept. 20 – The Pete Mills Jazz Quintet presents the premiere live performance of saxophonist Mills’ latest recording, “Sweet Shadow,” with drummer Matt Wilson, guitarist Pete McCann, bassist Martin Wind, and keyboardist Erik Augis, in Jemison Auditorium inside Sanborn Hall, 23 Elizabeth St., Delaware. According to The (Columbus) Dispatch, Mills’ compositions are “impressive with solos that are ear opening … [and] with a tone that is big and rich.” Learn more at www.petemills.com. 8 p.m. Oct. 5 – Musicians Yumi Kurosawa and Deep Singh perform on the koto (Japanese stringed instrument) and tabla (Indian drums), including traditional and modern works, in Jemison Auditorium inside Sanborn Hall, 23 Elizabeth St., Delaware. The New York Times has described Kurosawa’s playing of the 20-string instrument as “mesmerizing.” Learn more at www.yumikuro.com. 8 p.m. Jan. 18, 2014 – Robert Post Comedy Theater: The One-Man Variety Show, featuring a performance that will “combine a quart of dry humor with three tablespoons of expert mime, versatile acting, and skilled juggling; add a keen sense of satire and the absurd; [and] blend in splendid timing and experience,” in Chappelear Drama Center, 45 Rowland Ave., Delaware. The New York Times has said the physical comedian “merits a place on anybody’s all-star team of the goofily gifted.” Learn more at www.robertpost.org. 3 p.m. March 23, 2014 – The Central Ohio Symphony, under the direction of Jaime Morales-Matos, collaborates with the Performing Arts Series to present a community celebration of peace that includes Ludwig van Beethoven’s “Ninth Symphony” featuring the Ohio Wesleyan University Choral Art Society and Capriccio Chorus, and Leonard Bernstein’s “Chichester Psalms” featuring the Choral Art Society. The concert will be held in Gray Chapel inside University Hall, 61 S. Sandusky St., Delaware. Learn more at www.centralohiosymphony.org. 8 p.m. April 23, 2014 – Conundrum, a chamber musical ensemble featuring Mary Elizabeth Southworth, soprano; Danielle Hundley, flute; Marianne Breneman, clarinet; and Philip Amalong, piano, performs “audience-oriented new music played with passion, humor, and conviction,” in Jemison Auditorium inside Sanborn Hall, 23 Elizabeth St., Delaware. “Each piece is an exquisite diamond with each musician one of its facets, finding the perfect fit, with a luster that is clear and polished,” says concert director Jim McCutcheon. The Ohio Wesleyan performance will feature several original works created by OWU students from assistant music professor Jennifer Jolley’s composition studio. Learn more at www.conundrummusic.com.
Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation’s premier small, private universities, with more than 90 undergraduate majors, sequences, and courses of study, and 23 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Located in Delaware, Ohio, just minutes north of Ohio’s capital and largest city, Columbus, the university combines a globally focused curriculum with off-campus learning and leadership opportunities that translate classroom theory into real-world practice. OWU’s close-knit community of 1,850 students represents 41 states and 45 countries. Ohio Wesleyan was named to the 2013 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with distinction, is featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives,” and is included on the “best colleges” lists of U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review. Learn more at www.owu.edu.