Athens, Ga. – The University of Georgia will spotlight the arts during a nine-day festival in November when members of the UGA Arts Council will host events and activities that include concerts, theater and dance performances, art exhibitions, poetry readings, author panels and book signings, lectures and discussions on the arts and creativity, and more.
UGA has played a foundational role in building the reputation of Athens as one of America’s top destinations for the arts, providing the physical and intellectual infrastructure for study and performance that brings together students, faculty and the community.
“The arts are an integral part of the fabric of UGA, a powerful thread that helps us define ourselves and our community,” said Jere Morehead, UGA senior vice president for academic affairs and provost. “As the place where so many artists, writers, actors and musicians first find their voice, UGA offers a richness of opportunity for members of the university community and audiences from throughout the area to participate in the arts.”
Highlights of the Nov. 3-11 schedule include the opening of a Jack Davis exhibition at the Georgia Museum of Art, concerts by the Atlanta Symphony and the UGA Symphony at the Performing Arts Center, a University Theatre production of Rita Dove’s play “The Darker Face of the Earth” at the Fine Arts Theatre, a dance program featuring pieces choreographed by UGA dance majors at the New Dance Theatre and an exhibition by students earning a bachelor of fine arts degree in the Lamar Dodd School of Art.
The Performing Arts Center also will present two special performances: Blue Man Group on Nov. 6-7 and Bela Fleck and the Marcus Roberts Trio on Nov. 9. The Blue Man Group show will be jointly presented with The Classic Center and will be held at The Classic Center Theatre in downtown Athens.
“One of the goals of the UGA Arts Council is to raise awareness of and participation in the rich variety of programming offered by university units in the performing, visual and literary arts,” said Libby Morris, UGA vice provost for academic affairs, who has been working with council members since last fall. “We are very excited to present ‘Spotlight on the Arts at UGA,’ with events taking place at arts venues across campus, as well as in the local community.”
While many activities are still in the planning stages, details have been confirmed on the following events:
Saturday, Nov. 3 – Exhibition of Jack Davis work at the Georgia Museum of Art (through Jan. 5)
Sunday, Nov. 4 – Atlanta Symphony Orchestra with guest conductor Asher Fisch and pianist Stewart Goodyear, 3 p.m., Hodgson Hall, Performing Arts Center
Monday, Nov. 5 – Student juried exhibition, Gallery 307 and Orbit Galleries, Lamar Dodd School of Art; Georgia Review/Georgia Poetry Circuit Reading: Jacqueline Osherow, 7 p.m., Ciné in downtown Athens
Tuesday, Nov. 6 – Panel with UGA Press authors and faculty, followed by book-signing and reception, 4 p.m., Odum School of Ecology; UGA Symphony Orchestra, 8 p.m., Hodgson Hall, Performing Arts Center; Blue Man Group, 8 p.m., Classic Center Theatre (also on Nov. 7)
Wednesday, Nov. 7 – Willson Center roundtable on “Creativity in the Research University,” 12:30 p.m., 150 Miller Learning Center; University Theatre production of “The Darker Face of the Earth,” 8 p.m., Fine Arts Theatre (through Nov. 10, with a 2:30 matinee on Nov. 11)
Thursday, Nov. 8 – Young Choreographers Series Senior Concert, 8 p.m., New Dance Theatre, Dance Building (through Nov. 10); 2nd Thursday Concert: Georgia Woodwind Quintet and Friends, 8 p.m., Hodgson Hall, Performing Arts Center
Friday, Nov. 9 – Bela Fleck and the Marcus Roberts Trio, 8 p.m., Hodgson Hall, Performing Arts Center, with the Georgia Museum of Art open for pre-concert tours; reception for BFA Exhibition, 7-9 p.m., Lamar Dodd School of Art
Tickets for Performing Arts Center events and the University Theatre production may be purchased at the Performing Arts Center’s new website, http://pac.uga.edu/, or by calling the box office at 706/542-4400 or toll free at 888/289-8497. Tickets for the dance concert will be on sale at the Tate Student Center box office in the fall.
The UGA Arts Council was convened in October 2011 and includes representatives from the following campus units: The Performing Arts Center, the Hugh Hodgson School of Music, the Lamar Dodd School of Art, the Department of Dance, the Department of Theatre and Film Studies, the Georgia Museum of Art, The Georgia Review, the UGA Press, the Willson Center for the Humanities and Arts, the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, the Special Collections Libraries and the Office of the Provost.
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Note to editors: An image of the festival logo is available for download at http://news.uga.edu/documents/UGA_SpotlightFestival_logos.zip