Events
MDSO Masterworks III:
MDSO Masterworks III:
February 2, 2019, 7:30pm
Edward Elgar’s clever Enigma Variations were dedicated “to my friends depicted within”: musical portrayals of his close companions in a series of unnamed orchestral sketches. Since its premiere in 1899, listeners have delighted in pairing friends with sketches and have been perplexed by Elgar’s enduring unresolved question: who, or what, is ‘The Enigma’? Millikin’s own friends, winners of the annual Concerto and Aria Competition, will make their solo debuts with the MDSO.
In the Cards
In the Cards
February 8, 2019, 7:30pm to February 9, 2019, 7:30pm
Millikin Opera Theatre welcomes you to its Spring 2019 production of In the Cards, an operatic double-bill of Samuel Barber's A Hand of Bridge and Gian Carlo Menotti's The Medium. These two operas will be presented with full-orchestra, in collaboration with the Millikin-Decatur Symphony Orchestra, in Albert Taylor Theatre on February 8 & 9, 2019 at 7:30pm.
12 Moods of Jazz: Ask Your Mama
12 Moods of Jazz: Ask Your Mama
February 9, 2019, 7:30pm
A multimedia concert performance of Langston Hughes’ kaleidoscopic Jazz poem suite, “Ask Your Mama: 12 Moods for Jazz.” (Hughes’ homage to the struggle for artistic and social freedom at home and abroad at the beginning of the 1960s).
By way of videography, this concert performance links the words and music of Hughes’ poetry to topical images of Ask Your Mama’s people, places, and events, and to the works of the visual artists Langston Hughes admired or collaborated with most closely over the course of his career. Together the words, sounds, and images recreate a magical moment in our cultural history, which bridges the Harlem Renaissance, the post World War II Beat writers’ coffeehouse jazz poetry world, and the looming Black Arts performance explosion of the 1960s.
Synergy
Synergy
February 24, 2019, 4:00pm
The annual Synergy concert will take place on Sunday, February 24, 2019 at 4:00 p.m. in the Kirkland Fine Arts Center.
Percussion Ensemble Synergy showcases the distinctiveness of Millikin's interdisciplinary alliances through a collaborative concert featuring performance by student and faculty across the College of Fine Arts. This year's Synergy program will highlight musical influences on percussion music by cultures from around the world.
Mahler's Resurrection Symphony Lecture Series with Dr. Marshall Tuttle
Mahler's Resurrection Symphony Lecture Series with Dr. Marshall Tuttle
February 26, 2019, 5:30pm to 7:00pm
MAHLER: Reception History and Performance Practices
Tues, Feb 26, 5:30-7:00 PM, University Commons, Banquet Room A
Mahler: Reception History and Performance Practices
The Wolves
The Wolves
February 28, 2019, 7:30pm to March 3, 2019, 2:00pm
From the safety of their suburban stretch circle, a girls indoor soccer team navigates big questions and wages tiny battles with all the vim and vigor of a pack of adolescent warriors. A portrait of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for nine American girls who just want to score some goals. Finalist for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
MDSO Masterworks IV:
MDSO Masterworks IV:
March 2, 2019, 7:30pm
Famed composer-conductor Gustav Mahler believed that “to write a symphony is, for me, to construct a world.” Hear the MDSO and the Millikin Union of Choirs recreate this musical process in their performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 2. Known as the “Resurrection Symphony,” this monumental piece brings together over 300 performers to celebrate the profound beauty of afterlife and redemption.
Mahler's Resurrection Symphony Lecture Series with Dr. Marshall Tuttle
Concertino for Percussion by David Gillingham
Concertino for Percussion by David Gillingham
March 3, 2019, 4:00pm
The Millikin Symphonic Wind Ensemble will perform Concertino for Percussion by David Gillingham on Sunday, March 3, 2019 at 4 p.m. in the Kirkland Fine Arts Center. They will be joined by current Millikin percussion faculty along with Millikin alumni Jeremy Brunk ’97, Aaron Villareal ’13, and recent graduate Justin DeBo ’18.
Each year we invite an outstanding high school band to share the stage with the Millikin Symphonic Wind Ensemble. This performance features the Morris (Illinois) Community Symphonic Winds, conducted by Millikin graduate Brock Feece ’15.
Chelsea Sunrise
Chelsea Sunrise
March 22, 2019, 7:30pm to March 24, 2019, 2:00pm
Dusty is a Toronto kid who loves the music of the 1960’s British Invasion – so much so that he models himself and his band after it. But his dreams of stardom are tested by the real world as he is forced to confront his ideas of love, loyalty, and authenticity in this exciting new musical.
MDSO: Sleeping Beauty with Alabama Ballet
MDSO: Sleeping Beauty with Alabama Ballet
March 30, 2019, 7:30pm to March 31, 2019, 2:00pm
Audiences young and young at heart will be enchanted by the artistry of the Alabama Ballet’s performance of Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty, accompanied by members of the MDSO. In this classic fairytale featured in film and bedtime stories for generations, Princess Aurora falls victim to an evil spell forcing her to sleep for a hundred years and to be awoken only by the kiss of a prince. In addition to its international prominence as a premiere classical and contemporary ballet company, the Alabama Ballet emphasizes dance education and community outreach as vital to its mission.
Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular
Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular
April 6, 2019, 7:30pm
The Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular has become a cult classic, presenting the music of Pink Floyd like you've never seen it before. Driven by cutting-edge effects, full-color lasers, Hi-Def multi-screen video projection, concert quality sound and lighting effects, your senses are confronted with an array of visual displays, choreographed to the soundtrack of this incredible experience. The Laser Spectacular brings together multiple generations of Pink Floyd fans.
Silvan Negrutiu Piano Recital
Silvan Negrutiu Piano Recital
April 7, 2019, 4:00pm
Millikin School of Music faculty member Silvan Negrutiu will perform a solo piano recital in the Kirkland Fine Arts Center on Sunday, April 7, 2019 at 4p.m. The program will include the world première performance of Robert Chumbley's Five Bagatelles for Piano (2018), commissioned by Millikin Piano Club and dedicated to Negrutiu.
HAIR
HAIR
April 11, 2019, 7:30pm to April 14, 2019, 2:00pm
In the shadow of the Vietnam War, a group of young hippies challenge the government’s role in drafting their friend into service while exploring their right to live in a world of peace, joy, and free love. Will burning a draft card ease the rage of a generation questioning their government’s ethical role in shaping the world? This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius.
MDSO Masterworks V:
MDSO Masterworks V:
April 13, 2019, 7:30pm
The MDSO brings its 2018-19 season of rhapsodic stories and American dreams to a brilliant close with Dvorak’s Symphony no. 9, “From the New World.” Inspired by the “wide open spaces” of the prairies and the rich sounds of folk music, Dvorak composed this symphony on commission from the New York Philharmonic to represent uniquely American music. MDSO principal cellist and faculty member Amy Catron will perform Argentine composer Osvaldo Golijov’s bold Azul, for cello, obbligato group and orchestra.
Almost 76 Trombones
Almost 76 Trombones
April 26, 2019, 7:30pm
Almost 76 Trombones
Friday, April 26, 2019 at 7:30 p.m.
Featuring Guest Trombone Choir and the Millikin Symphonic Wind Ensemble
In his final Concert at Kirkland Fine Arts Center, Dr. Gary Shaw is joined by former trombone students, friends, colleagues, and the Millikin Wind Ensemble to celebrate 37 years of performing and teaching at Millikin University.
Percussion Ensemble Masterworks Concert
Percussion Ensemble Masterworks Concert
May 3, 2019, 7:30pm
The Percussion Ensemble Masterworks Concert will be held on Friday, May 3, 2019 in the Kirkland Fine Arts Center at 7:30 p.m.
Percussion Ensemble Masterworks showcases the depth and breadth of contemporary percussion chamber music through a program including the genre's leading composers. Senior music majors in percussion will be featured, as well as the world premiere of a new composition as supported by the Percussion Music Commissions Fund.
A World Premier Play
A World Premier Play
May 9, 2019, 7:30pm to May 11, 2019, 7:30pm
A World Premiere Play
(Title Yet to Be Determined)
The School of Theatre and Dance turns the tables on the traditional process of producing plays by casting a show before it is written. In collaboration with playwright Paul Shoulberg, this world premiere work will be written to feature the unique qualities of the cast and currently relevant themes.
Triplets of Belleville
Triplets of Belleville
May 11, 2019, 7:30pm
This much beloved animated film is screened as composer Benoit Charest leads Le Terrible Orchestre de Belleville in the live performance of his original score for the film, including his academy award nominated best song. In the spirit of the film, Le Terrible Orchestre de Belleville transports audiences to the exciting streets of 1920’s Paris and Le Jazz Hot.
Experience the Academy Award nominated French film the Triplets of Belleville as the story is told almost exclusively through visual arts! Rolling Stone called it a “bracing blend of silliness and sophistication,” while Roger Ebert proclaimed, “‘The Triplets of Belleville’ will have you walking out of the theater with a goofy grin on your face, wondering what just happened to you.”