Jackson Blended Learning Winners
In early November, the William G. Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning invited faculty to submit proposals to support blended learning course innovations. Proposals were accepted at three levels ($1,000, $5,000 and $10,000), and a total of $50,000 was originally planned to be awarded during this cycle.
In the Department of Visual and Performing Arts, Jared Anderson was awarded $10,000 for “Video Arts in Blended Learning (VIABLE).”
Read more at Tech Today.
Multi-talented Graduate of SAE Institute Wins Award for Outstanding Achievement in Live Sound
Josh Loar, a 2007 graduate of SAE Institute, was honored as the Live Sound Engineer of the Year at SAE’s 2013 alumni awards in New York City.
“It means a lot to me to be recognized for my work, particularly in a field like sound consulting and design, which isn’t typically the focus of many awards,” says Loar. “I always say that one of my goals in life is to make the world sound better, one room at a time, and I’m deeply appreciative of SAE’s recognition of my work towards that objective.”
“While I always found that I could make the projects or shows that I was working on sound great, I had no idea how I was doing it – I just operated on instinct, says Loar, who is currently a Professor of Practice in Sound Design, Visual and Performing Arts at Michigan Technological University in Houghton, Michigan
Read more at PRWeb.
Instructor Elizabeth Meyer, Associate Professor Christopher Plummer and Senior Lecturer Susanne Kilpela (VPA), “The Intersection of the Arts and the Natural World,” Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.
Read more at Tech Today.
Ensembles United: Free Rozsa Lobby Superior Wind Symphony Chamber Performance
Members of the Superior Wind Symphony present “Ensembles United,” with ensembles from different wind families coming together in brother and sisterhood to create a more wonderful array of free music. In honor of the 68th anniversary of the United States’ decision on December 4, 1945 to join the United Nations, the Superior Wind Symphony will perform next Wednesday, Dec. 4, at 7:30 p.m., in the Rozsa Lobby. This performance is free.
Several self-started small ensembles of the saxophone, woodwind and brass varieties have materialized with music prepared, needing an excuse to perform! In addition, some of these ensembles have worked with Michigan Tech student composers from Libby Meyers’ class, creating a Dec. 4 concert that will feature music by great composers of many eras, plus recently created music by Michigan Tech students!
From Tech Today.
Swan Lake Ballet Auditions
We call on all student and community ballet dancers to audition for a role in Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake ballet. Auditions will take place at the following days/times in Rozsa 120 (choir room) on Michigan Tech’s campus:
Friday, December 6, at 6:00 pm
Saturday, December 7, at 2:00 pm
Friday, December 13, at 6:00 pm
Saturday, December 14, at 2:00 pm
The Visual and Performing Arts department presents Tchaikovsky’s enchanting Swan Lake ballet, with professional, community, and student dancers and live orchestral music provided by the Keweenaw Symphony Orchestra. The ballet runs Friday, April 11 and Saturday, April 12 (2014) in the Rozsa Center. Rehearsals will begin in early January.
Auditions will include a short barre, centre work and sample combinations from classical and character repertoire used in the ballet. Men and women are requested to wear appropriate dance clothing and ballet or jazz shoes; women, please bring pointe shoes if applicable.
Please email Dr. Joel Neves (jbneves@mtu.edu) to sign-up for an audition slot.
(For ballet-related questions, please contact Donna Armistead dlarmist@mtu.edu or Mary Muncil memuncil@mtu.edu.)
Auditions for the opera “Amahl and the Night Visitors” take place Sunday, December 8, from 6-9 pm in Rozsa 120 (choir room).
For the first time since 1998, the Visual and Performing Arts department presents Menotti’s beloved chamber opera, Amahl and the Night Visitors. Set near Bethlehem in the 1st century, Amahl is the heartwarming tale of a poor crippled shepherd boy and his mother, who unexpectedly play host to three kings on their way to Bethlehem. As the shepherds struggle to understand why the kings should carry rich gifts to an unknown child when their own needs are so great, a miracle occurs that blesses everyone, kings and shepherds alike.
Amahl and the Night Visitors runs Friday, April 11 and Saturday, April 12 in the Rozsa Center. Rehearsals will begin in early February.
Auditions are open for the following roles:
Amahl (boy soprano or female soprano)
King Kaspar (tenor)
King Melchior (baritone)
King Balthazar (bass)
Page (bass-baritone)
Shepherds (SATB double chorus)
Individuals should come prepared with two contrasting pieces that showcase their voice, musicianship, and dramatic abilities. An accompanist will be provided.
The December 8 auditions will take place in half-hour blocks according to the following schedule:
6:00-6:30
6:30-7:00
7:00-7:30
7:30-8:00
8:00-8:30
8:30-9:00
Those interested in signing up for an audition block should email Dr. Joel Neves at jbneves@mtu.edu.
Dinosaurs invade rock garden
Students create wooden dinosaurs for theater class project
Some think dinosaurs are frightening, but there is no need to fright over the wooden additions to the Rock Garden outside of Fisher Hall. The dinosaurs were constructed as a project for Kalen Larson’s Advanced Backstage Technology class.
Read more at the Michigan Tech Lode, by Sasha Burnett.
Josh Loar, BA
Josh Loar joins the Department of Visual and Performing Arts as a professor of practice. Loar earned his BA in Theater from the University of California, Los Angeles. He also studied audio technology at the SAE Institute of Technology.
Loar has experience in sound design, acoustics and venue design, consultation, composition, arrangement/orchestration, projections design and engineering.
He has served as president, CEO, designer, composer and producer for Electric Lights Music. He was a lecturer and sound supervisor at the Yale School of Drama/Yale Repertory Theater and an audio video engineer for Technical Multimedia Design, Inc. He is currently an audio systems design consultant for Walters-Storyk Design Group.
Read more at Tech Today.
Safehouse
Haunted houses are intimidating enough, but throw one into a college dorm and there is a recipe for something straight out of your nightmares. That is exactly what the Inter-Residential Housing Council (IRHC) has been doing every year since 1988 in their annual Safehouse event.
Sound and Lighting Services will also be showing off some of their newest technology in the Douglass Houghton Hall ballroom during the event. This is a new feature that has been added for this year.
Read more at the Michigan Tech Lode, by Evan Mayer.
Safehouse a success
Adding to the usual attractions at DHH was a special feature set up by the Sound and Lighting Services student group on campus, which used various effects to turn the ballroom into a creepy mine. Jon Faror, Programming Chair for IRHC, said, “Their goal was to make a professional-style haunted house that is very high-tech. Hopefully we’ll be able to turn this into a tradition that they do every year.”
This year’s winning scary hall was TreeHouse’s “haunted forest” theme. They outdid their competitors by only 2/3 of a point. Agency and Nightclub (of Visual and Performing Arts) took second but only by .2 points, with their “cult” theme.
Read more at the Michigan Tech Lode, by Rand Silvers.
Tech set to host Safehouse
Halloween is on the horizon and Michigan Technological University students living in residence halls are preparing to host Safehouse, an annual tradition that invites kids from the local community into the halls to enjoy themed decorations and tons of candy.
Read more at the Mining Gazette, by Stephen Anderson.
ROSE AND THE RIME AUDITIONS
Calling all dancers, actors, and gymnasts! Auditions for Rose and the Rime will be Monday, October 28, and Wednesday, October 30, 7 pm in Rozsa 120 (Choir Room).
Rose and the Rime is a spectacular modern fairy tale of courage and hope in the face of adversity and fear. The fable features Rose, a very special girl who embarks on an adventure to save her town, Radio Falls, Michigan, from perpetual winter. The play includes dance, and original music composed by students.
Rose and the Rime will be performed next semester, however there will be a large dance/aerial component to the show that will require rehearsals and preparation this semester. One dance form we hope to feature is aerial work. Roles are available for non-dancers as well. You may sign out a script from the VPA office, Walker 209.
Come for as long as you can, especially if you have never worked with silks before.
The dance portion of the audition will include a quick warm up and a few simple combinations. We ask that performers come prepared with a short (30 second) sample of their abilities. This is to be used as an opportunity to showcase your strengths and ability as a dancer/gymnast. The aerial silks portion of the audition will include basic exercises that will test performers’ grip and arm strength and provide opportunities for everyone to demonstrate skills learned in the Open Clinics. Performers should wear form fitting clothing that is easy to move in.
For more information about Rose and the Rime contact Patricia Helsel helsel@mtu.edu
For dance-specific questions, contact Mary Muncil memuncil@mtu.edu