Another fall semester means new schedules, textbooks and experiences for the residents of the university. It also means a series of new performances and exhibits for the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center. This season promises to be full of celebration, nostalgia and humor, with a few features that will undoubtedly be worth a trip to the theater.
Limon Dance Company
Hand over your heartstrings and stay on the edge of your seat as one of the world’s greatest dance companies performs the works of influential choreographer Jose Limon.
The night includes a major revival of Missa Brevis and The Moor’s Pavane along with contemporary piece Concerto Six Twenty-Two from Lar Lubovitch.
Missa Brevis depicts the optimism, spirit and undying hope Limon found in the people of Poland after the devastation of WWII. Audience members can enjoy the acclaimed talent of the Limon Dance Company while hearing live music from the early music ensemble American Virtuosi and the UM Chamber Singers.
In celebration of the company’s 60th anniversary, the show is full of Limon’s vitality, pioneering spirit and dedication to his art attitudes, which are clearly visible in his work.
Missa Brevis plays at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center’s Kay Theatre on Sept. 14 and 15 at 8 p.m.
Jim Henson: Creativity and Other Inspirational Stuff
Fraggle Rock is back with this day-long celebration of Jim Henson’s legacy.
The puppet-plastered show isn’t the only thing on display Sept. 22, a day full of events organized by The Jim Henson Legacy, Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library (MSPAL) and the University of Maryland Department of Theatre.
Explore the mind of Henson through behind-the-scenes photography, timelines, essays and videos in the gallery exhibition Jim Henson: Performing Artist being displayed at MSPAL. Then join in on a talk with Jane Henson about her late husband’s local roots and early work, and even view a rare Henson creation, “The Story of Sam and Friends.”
A discussion will be held at 3 p.m. in the Gildenhorn Recital Hall. Relive your favorite childhood memories with newly digitized episodes of Sesame Street and The Muppet Show or view one of Henson’s films, such as The Dark Crystal.
End the day with the world premiere of Blair Thomas and Company’s The Ox-herder’s Tale at 8 p.m. at the Kay Theatre. Actors don elaborate masks and maneuver life-sized puppets, banners, shadows and projections.
500 Clown Macbeth
500 Clown Macbeth brings the comedy of clown auditions to a whole new level, and as long as you’re in the aisle, you might as well participate in the show – which is precisely the premise.
The rousing 70-minute performance incorporates audience members while three clowns claw it out to play the role of Macbeth. The three-ring element twists Macbeth’s tragic mental degradation into something decidedly different. It’s all part of the university’s College of Arts and Humanities’ semester-long focus on comedy and humor. 500 Clown Macbeth is playing Nov. 30 and Dec. 1-3 at the Kogod Theatre.
Contact reporter Brittany Borghi at diversions@dbk.umd.edu.
