What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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JUNE 3-9, 2018 WHAT'S UP! 9 'The Social Hub On Campus' Faulkner Center follows in footsteps of great entertainers BECCA MARTIN-BROWN NWA Democrat-Gazette W hile University Theatre is considered the mainstage for the University of Arkansas campus, the Jim & Joyce Faulkner Performing Arts Center intends to be home to the sometimes smaller, sometimes quirkier performances that can bring the UA and the community together. "We're trying to curate things we see as a need in the community, so we don't necessarily have to do what's mainstream but instead reach out to newer demographics moving into the area or those that can't afford the venues with higher ticket prices," says Nicole Cotton-Leachman, Faulkner's managing director. "We want to offer as good a quality [as a professional hall] but more affordable." The Faulkner Center officially opened in September 2015 and started off with a 2016-17 season that was a bit on the cautious side with only three productions, Cotton-Leachman remembers. In its second year, the number of shows doubled to six. And in 2018-19, the slate will almost double again, offering 11 performances that range from opera to theater and from television nostalgia to a bluegrass "opry," she says. "We've felt almost overwhelmed by the support we've gotten," she says. "And we're not just putting on shows, we're teaching the students, staying true to our mission that every performer who comes in is interacting with a department on campus — not necessarily performing arts — or interacting with a community group. Randy Noojin did the library. Another group will be doing an event or two at the library in the coming season; Victor and Penny of the Loose Change Orchestra plan to do an OLLI class. And we're looking at the possibility of doing a performance at Butterfield Trail Village's new performance hall. "Part of our mission is to break down that barrier between the university and the community. This is for everybody." Cotton-Leachman says the season is themed "Absolutely Timeless" to remind people that the space that is now the Faulkner Center has always been a gathering place on campus. Back when it was the field house, she says, some of the biggest names in music performed there — Dave Brubeck, James Brown, Peter, Paul & Mary. "It was totally the social hub," she says. "And now it's come full circle." Courtesy Photo Courtesy Photo Also on the Faulkner Center schedule is a Valentine's Day performance with Victor & Penny and the The Loose Change Orchestra playing Prohibition Era music in a "hoppin' speakeasy" dinner atmosphere. FYI Faulkner Center 2018-19 Season Sept. 7 — "Through the Years" with Sarah Mesko, a University of Arkansas alumna and rising opera star. Sept. 9 — "8 Decades of Smiles with Peter Funt," a stage comedy combines quips, clips and nota- ble moments from decades of the popu- lar television show "Candid Camera." Oct. 5 — "Tommy: A Bluegrass Opry" with the Hillbenders. Nov. 13 — Gina Chavez, a Latin pop perfor- mance produced by the MP3 Club, a university student- led organization. Nov. 15 — Peacherine Ragtime Society Orchestra playing the music of Scott Joplin. Jan. 29 — Folk and blues singer-song- writer Ruthie Foster, who will be accom- panied by the UA Inspirational Chorale, in a performance presented in associa- tion with the Walton Arts Center. Feb. 14 — Victor & Penny and the The Loose Change Orchestra playing Prohibition Era music in a "hoppin' speakeasy" dinner performance. March 7 — Sylvia Milo's award-win- ning, one-woman show "The Other Mozart" the story of Wolfang Amadeus Mozart's sister. March 29 — Blue- grass by Trout Steak Revival with Smokey & the Mirror and the Arkansas Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. April 26 — Award-win- ning Russian pianist Ilya Yakushev. TICKETS — Packages range from $40 to $200 INFO — 575-5387 or faulkner.uark.edu The 2018-19 season at the Faulkner Center includes Sylvia Milo's award- winning, one- woman show "The Other Mozart," the story of Wolfang Amadeus Mozart's sister. (faculty member) Michael Landman really making that a priority is hugely important, and we'll be working to do more community involvement — to become more relevant to the theater conversation in Northwest Arkansas. "What we've tried to do moving forward really falls under a couple of different goals," says Riha, whose expertise is in technical theater. "And one of them is to introduce our students and patrons to the new [black box] space with a pretty active season down on the square, so we're doing a six-show season in 2018-19 with four of them at the Global Campus." The season, as always, is designed to meet the needs of both undergraduate students and graduate students in acting, directing, playwriting, costume design, scene design and lighting design master's programs. It opens with "Clybourne Park" by Bruce Norris, inspired by "A Raisin in the Sun." On stage, it asks what makes a neighborhood a home. Back stage, it asks how to show through the set design the gentrification of that neighborhood over 50 years. It will be performed at University Theatre on campus. Next is "She Kills Monsters" by Qui Nguyen, whose recent "Vietgone" was staged at TheatreSquared. This show, says Riha, takes a young woman on an adventure when she finds her late sister's Dungeons & Dragons books. It is, he says, for the geek in everyone — and is perfectly suited to the intimate UA Black Box Theater on the square. "Top Girls" by Carol Churchill, also in the Black Box Theater, considers what it takes for a woman to succeed in a man's world. After Christmas, the theater department turns to a classic — which will be presented in a most untraditional way. Shakespeare's "Macbeth" will have a smaller cast and likely a modern-day setting to introduce students to the Bard in a relatable way. Staged at the Black Box Theater, it will be directed by Steven Marzolf. No. 5, "Topdog/Underdog" by Susan- Lori Parks, is described as a "darkly comic contemporary fable about two brothers haunted by their past. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. And finally, the company returns to its on-campus home for "A Little Night Music," Stephen Sondheim's charming musical masterpiece about one hilarious night and a tangled web of love. While all this is happening, Riha will be busy with his next goal — winning National Association of Schools of Theatre accreditation for the department. That, he says, will elevate the program one more notch on the national scale.