 Russell Banks |
In celebration of the arts at Wabash, admission to all events on this year’s Visiting Artists Series are FREE. However, you must obtain your FREE tickets at the Fine Arts Box Office before attending Visiting Artists Series productions.
Tickets are available from the Fine Arts Box Office Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. until curtain time. The Box Office will open one hour before curtain time for weekend performances. For phone reservations, call 765-361-6411. To order by mail, write: Fine Arts Center, Box Office, Wabash College, P.O. Box 352, Crawfordsville, IN 47933-0352.
September 16—September 29, 2002 Ueda Rikuo Opening reception, Monday, September 16, 3 to 5 p.m. Permanent Collection Gallery, Fine Arts Center
Japanese artist and sculptor Ueda Rikuo will be in residence for two weeks, during which time he will create wind-drawing machines. His sculptures are themselves works of art, but when they catch a breeze, they create colorful and provocative patterns and designs. A native of Osaka, Ueda will create his artistic machines, give a number of lectures and slide shows on contemporary Japanese art, and the work of his wind-drawing machines will be on display in the College’s Permanent Collection Gallery as it is produced.
November 7, 2002 A Reading by Russell Banks, 8 p.m. Salter Hall, Fine Arts Center
Wabash welcomes critically acclaimed and award-winning writer Russell Banks for a reading of his work. Banks is the author of a dozen works of fiction, including Cloudsplitter, Affliction, and The Sweet Hereafter, the latter two of which were made into feature films. All of his work charts the causes and effects of the terrible things normal people can and will do. Says The New York Times, “Mr. Banks offers answers that are tough, honest, and inevitable without being simple. He returns again and again to the caldron of domestic life, in which hard drinking, deep-seated strife and often the prospect of a bleak New Hampshire winter make the walls close in.” Mr. Banks also will attend classes while at Wabash.
November 11, 2002 Pilobolus Dance Theater, 8 p.m. Ball Theater, Fine Arts Center
When modern dance meets gymnastics and performance art, you get a sense of what to expect when the Pilobolus Dance Theater storms the stage. Founded at Dartmouth College in 1971, Pilobolus has become a major international dance ensemble that richly weaves science, art, and athleticism into a unique and unmistakable performance style.
January 29, 2003 Classical Guitarist Don Ross in Concert, 8 p.m. Salter Hall, Fine Arts Center
Canadian guitarist Don Ross is a two-time winner of the National Fingerpicking Championship whose distinctive style has led critics to applaud his work. He blends a percussive attack with subtle harmonics that allow the music to take center stage. Pulse! calls Ross a “gifted virtuoso whose playing is immediately identifiable,” while Guitar Player says that “he is among the best acoustic fretmeisters recording these days.” Recently acclaimed recordings include Passion Session (1999) and Huron Street (2001).
February 14, 2003 Traveler’s Dream in Concert, 8 p.m. Salter Hall, Fine Arts Center
There are too many words to accurately describe the sounds of musicians Denise Wilson and Michael Lewis, who combine to form the folk group Traveler’s Dream. The music they perform retains its original Old World heritage—from Ireland, Scotland, England, and France—and gives voice to the people who made their mark on the history and culture of the American heartland. As singers, songwriters, travelers, historians, and storytellers, Wilson and Lewis captivate audiences with authentic music made from guitars, mandolins, flutes, pipes, dulcimers, and other ethic instruments. Exceptional musicianship, the ability to tell stories through music, and a witty sense of humor makes Traveler’s Dream a must-see event.
March 3, 2003 An Evening with Madame F: Claudia Stevens in Concert, 8 p.m. Salter Hall, Fine Arts Center
“An Evening with Madame F” is a work of musical drama created by Claudia Stevens for her one-person performance as pianist, singer, and actor. Adopting the persona of an elderly concentration camp survivor who performed as a musician at Auschwitz, Stevens uses music and personal accounts to depict the struggle and moral dilemma of camp inmates who survived by prostituting their art. The daughter of Holocaust survivors, Stevens mediates on the issue of treating the Holocaust as the subject for artistic expression. The Baltimore Sun calls “An Evening with Madame F” “an astonishingly courageous, unforgettable evening.”
March 25, 2003 Jazz and Classical Violinist Sara Caswell in Concert, 8 p.m. Salter Hall, Fine Arts Center
At just 24 years of age, Bloomington, Indiana-based musician Sara Caswell has performed in jazz clubs and theaters from Chicago to Carnegie Hall. While studying jazz and violin at the Indiana University School of Music, Caswell earned a host of honors and won acclaim at jazz competitions across the country. Known as one of the finest young violinists today, Caswell has studied with Josef Gingold, Franco Gulli, Henryk Kowalski, Mimi Zweig, Stanley Ritchie, and David Baker, and has won over 100 music awards. While on campus, Ms. Caswell will present a clinic for the Wabash community.