There can be no doubt that Homer’s epic story of Achilles and the Trojan War is one of the greatest works in world literature. “The Iliad” has had a profound influence on every generation since it was first performed by ancient Greek bards in the Mediterranean over 2500 years ago. Described by The New York Times as “A performance of staggering power,” the Aquila Theatre Company’s production of Homer’s Iliad creates a “stunning, stirring, and memorable” theatrical experience.
About the Play:
Nine years after the start of the Trojan War, the Greeks are still unable to defeat their enemy. Agamemnon, the commander clashes with the best warrior, Achilles over the division of war-prizes and is forced to give back the girl Chryseis to her father after Apollo sends a terrible plague. Agamemnon claims Achilles’ war-prize Briseis to save face and the furious Achilles withdraws from the fighting and asks the Gods to turn the war against the Greeks. Aquila’s innovative production tells the main parts of the story in an action packed ninety minute evening using Stanley Lombardo’s excellent translation and combining ritualistic movement, original music, and superb acting. This one of a kind theatrical experience is both deeply engaging and accessible. As Backstage raved, “If you see only one piece of theatre this year – see Aquila’s Iliad”.
http://aquilatheatrecompany.com/index.php
November
Cultural ACES: Vanguard Jazz Orchestra
November 03, 2008 at 07:30 PM
Schaller Memorial Chapel
For over four decades the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra has been committed to engaging audiences in jazz and related American music experiences. The orchestra serves as a creative outlet for some of the nation's foremost performers, composers, and arrangers. One of the driving forces behind the longevity and artistic excellence of this ensemble is a commitment to the original Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra precepts of sound and the nurturing and encouragement of creativity and experimentation in the creators, performers and listeners of jazz. Hundreds of musicians, including Wynton Marsalis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, and Sonny Rollins, have recorded at the legendary Village Vanguard in New York. But, it’s the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra that calls it home, playing every Monday for four decades, celebrating the soul, heart, and sizzle of big band jazzy rhythms.
http://www.vanguardjazzorchestra.com/
Cultural ACES: David Parker and the Bang Group "Nut/cracked"
November 25, 2008 at 07:30 PM
Schaller Memorial Chapel
It’s The Nutcracker, but definitely not as we know it. The Bang Group has taken every little girl’s favorite Christmas show and torn it limb from limb. Mixing Tchaikovsky’s original score with music by Duke Ellington, Glen Miller and others, the company turns the sugar-coated ballet into a percussive piece of dance theatre. Expect tap dancing, singing and some unusual pointe shoe activity. Nothing is sacred as Nut/cracked twists and melds various dance traditions into an ode to American eclecticism that honors the power of the human urge to dance while riding Tchaikovsky’s voluptuous waves of rhythm.
http://www.thebanggroup.com/
February
Cultural ACES: Brawner Brothers
February 05, 2009 at 07:30 PM
Schaller Memorial Chapel
The Brawner Brothers is a dynamic jazz -funk group that infuses Blues, R&B and Latin elements into its extensive repertoire. The group has been highly acclaimed over the years by audiences and critics, while performing at some of the most prestigious music venues around the country. Kenny Brawner, a keyboardist, vocalist and composer leads the group, which includes his brother Everett Brawner on bass. A guitarist, drummer and percussionist round out a very strong rhythm section that is complimented by a powerful but fluid and smooth horn section. The Brawner Brothers have appeared in recent years, backing up B.B. King in a Wendy's Hamburger commercial and have regularly worked in King's clubs around the country backing up Stanley Abernathy the lead trumpet player in Mr. King's band. They have also appeared regularly at the St. Nicholas Pub, one of Harlem's premiere jazz venues, and at Terra Blues and The Cutting Room, two of downtown Manhattan's renowned music clubs.
http://www.brawnerbrothers.com/
Cultural ACES: Montana Repertory Theatre - To Kill A Mockingbird
February 15, 2009 at 07:30 PM
Schaller Memorial Chapel
The story of To Kill a Mockingbird is simple, yet it speaks deeply and eloquently of human nature and of human values. The action is set in the 1930's in a sleepy Southern town, where Atticus Finch, an attorney and the widowed father of two young children, stands against his fellow townspeople by defending a young black man falsely accused of raping a white woman. Through every step and with every word, Atticus instills in his children the traditional moral values of respect for others, honesty, courage, integrity, and above all, responsibility for one's actions.
Prejudice, racism, and human values are not issues of a particular time; they are issues of all time. To Kill a Mockingbird places these issues in a context that transcends the story's individuals and their actions. Atticus teaches his children that "you never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view...until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." Through this live performance, audiences come as close as possible to taking that walk.
Montana Repertory Theatre was established as a professional touring company in 1967 to provide theatre of the highest caliber to its own and neighboring Western states at an affordable cost. Its mission is to tell the great stories of our world to enlighten, develop, and celebrate the human spirit in an ever-expanding community.
Montana Rep has a long history of touring American classics to cities large and small. It is their passion, artistry and strong production values that have them returning to communities year after year. Recent highly successful tours have included Lost in Yonkers, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, A Trip to Bountiful, and Steel Magnolias.
http://www.montanarep.org/
March
Cultural ACES: African Children's Choir
March 08, 2009 at 07:30 PM
Schaller Memorial Chapel
Comprised of African children, ages seven to eleven, who have lost one or both parents to poverty or disease, the African Children’s Choir was founded in 1984 by human rights activist Ray Barnett. The Choir’s programs are a wonderful mix of African song and dance with popular, gospel and contemporary music, much of which is accompanied by the children on traditional instruments. The African Children’s Choir performs throughout the world spreading hope and joy while shining the spotlight on the plight of children in Africa.
http://www.africanchildrenschoir.com/
Cultural ACES: Quartet San Francisco
March 18, 2009 at 07:30 PM
Schaller Memorial Chapel
Grammy nominees for their last two releases (2006 and 2007) and International Tango competition winners (New York, 2004), Quartet San Francisco expresses itself in its agility and standout virtuosic playing. Quartet San Francisco is Jeremy Cohen and Kayo Miki, violinists, Keith Lawrence, violist, and Joel Cohen, cellist. As crossover specialists they excel in multiple styles — from jazz to tango, pop to funk, blues to bluegrass, gypsy swing to big band and beyond.
http://www.quartetsanfrancisco.com/
April
Cultural ACES: Chris Thile and Punch Brothers
April 06, 2009 at 07:30 PM
Schaller Memorial Chapel
Brothers combine bluegrass instrumentation with modern classical composition. Formed by mandolin player Chris Thile, of Nickel Creek fame, the group includes Thile, Gabe Witcher on fiddle, Noam Pikelny on banjo, guitarist Christ Eldridge and bassist Greg Garrison.
The quintet now plays to sold-out audiences across the U.S. playing selections from Punch, their latest album. It contains the 40-minute four-movement suite "The Blind Leaving the Blind," that serves as an anchor for the record. The band performed the piece in its entirety at Carnegie Hall in 2007. The line-up of Punch Brothers—whose name is taken from the Mark Twain short story, Punch, Brothers, Punch!—is formidable. Chris Thile released the first of five solo albums when he was just thirteen and, by the time he was 20, he was attracting a following among pop, country, and alternative-rock audiences as a member of the Grammy Award–winning Nickel Creek. A Washington Post critic recently said Thile “may well be the most virtuosic American ever to play the mandolin.”
http://www.punchbrothers.com/index.php
