Hamilton College Performing Arts announces an exciting season of music, theater and dance for the 2016-17 season in Wellin Hall, Schambach Center for Music and the Performing Arts. All performances are at 7:30 p.m., unless otherwise noted.
The season opens with Jubilant Sykes, baritone, on Saturday, Sept. 10. The Grammy-nominated baritone brings a new dimension to the traditional vocal recital by drawing on gospel and jazz influences. Sykes is joined by guitarist Christopher Parkening and pianist Mark Rice for a unique performance that ranges from Schubert to spirituals.
The Ahn Trio returns to Hamilton on Saturday, Sept.17. First seen at Wellin Hall in 2012 with the Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, the Ahns return on their own for a full evening concert. Hailed as “exacting and exciting musicians” by the LA Times, the three sisters of the Ahn Trio (Lucia on piano, Angella on violin, and Maria on cello) have earned a distinguished reputation for embracing 21st-century classical music with their unique style and innovative collaborations. The program includes music by Kenji Bunch and Astor Piazzolla as well as arrangements of classics by The Doors, David Bowie and Prince.
Wellin Hall in the Schambach Center for Music and the Performing Arts annually hosts two professional performing arts series: Classical Connections and Contemporary Voices and Visions.
Led by violinist and NPR music commentator Miles Hoffman, the American Chamber Players perform on Saturday, Oct. 22. One of today’s most exciting and innovative chamber music ensembles, American Chamber Players perform Ravel’s Sonata in C Major for violin and cello, Bach’s Sonata in G Minor for flute and piano, and Beethoven’s Quartet in E-flat Major for piano and strings.
The widely respected early music vocal group Rose Ensemble presents Land of Three Faiths: Voices of Ancient Mediterranean Jews, Christians, and Muslims on Friday, Oct. 28. This program, at once sacred, secular, folk and classical, embarks on a fascinating exploration of language, spirituality and cultural exchange. Featuring instruments and musical ideas that blur the lines between Arabic and European, this entertaining and enlightening program is steeped in the rich history of the Abrahamic faiths, achieving a perfect balance of edgy improvisation, exotic vocal styles, and ancient traditions.
Continuing in November, Hamilton College and the Mohawk Valley Dance Partnership H.T. Chen and Dancers perform in South of Gold Mountain on Saturday, Nov. 5. During the California “Gold Rush” of 1850, 300,000 Chinese immigrated to the U.S. Many settled in southern states where they found employment as construction workers, farm hands and grocers. Created and choreographed by H.T. Chen and Dian Dong, with a score of traditional Chinese music and Deep South blues, South of Gold Mountain is both an immigration and a civil rights story that draws on rich oral histories, treasured images and documentation of the first Chinese settlers. Community and Hamilton College dancers will join the professional company on stage for this engaging performance.
The spring semester opens with the genre-busting jazz trio The Bad Plus on Friday, Feb. 17. Rolling Stone describes them as “…bad to the bone, hot players with hard-rock hearts.” Bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson, and drummer Dave King explore a myriad of musical forms born of jazz that is uniquely The Bad Plus. They are an intensely collaborative trio that constantly searches for rules to break and boundaries to cross.
Symphoria returns to Hamilton College on Sunday, Feb. 19, at 3 p.m. with conductor Lawrence Loh and violinist Elina Vähälä for a performance of Corigliano’s The Red Violin Concerto, Mackey’s Redline Tango, Barber’s Symphony No. 1, and Gershwin’s An American in Paris.
New York City’s The Acting Company concludes a three-year project with two plays focusing on the themes of political ambition and assassination in April. First up is X – a new play by Marcus Gardley, directed by Ian Belknap on Saturday, April 1, followed by William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar directed by Devin Brain on Sunday, April 2, at 2 p.m.
The assassination of Malcolm X – both the story we think we know and illuminating details that have seldom been shared – is brought to vivid, lyrical life in award-winning writer Marcus Gardley’s new play, X. Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar provides a framework for Gardley to deepen our understanding of one of America’s most complex, compelling historical figures and explore the tumultuous landscape of ideology and activism in the 1960s.
Tackling essential questions about the balance of ambition, personal loyalty, and love of country, Shakespeare’s timeless political masterpiece, Julius Caesar, has never been more relevant. Through the story of Julius Caesar, a rising political star torn down by his most trusted allies, audiences witness the art of persuasion, the ugliness of backroom politics, and the historical patterns we can’t stop repeating.
The series concludes with new music by Yarn/Wire on Friday, April 7. Yarn/Wire is a quartet of two percussionists and two pianists admired for the energy and precision they bring to performances of today’s most adventurous music, including a new composition by Hamilton’s Ryan Carter.
All concerts will take place in Wellin Hall, Schambach Center for Music and the Performing Arts at 7:30 p.m. Seating in general admission. Individual ticket prices are $20 for adults, $15 for senior citizens and Hamilton employees, and $5 for students. Discounted series rates are available. For more information, call the box office at 859-4331 or visit hamilton.edu/performingarts.
