CCM Resident Musical Director Roger Grodsky.
Panelists for the League of Cincinnati Theatres (LCT) have recognized CCM’s Revue Review with two LCT nominations for Direction of a Musical (Roger Grodsky with assistance from students Connor Deane, Julian Decker and Greg Kamp) and Ensemble in a Musical, as well as distinguishing it as a recommended production.
CCM’s Jazz Ensemble performed with Musical Theatre dancers at CCM’s 2011 Moveable Feast benefit event. Photography by Dottie Stover.
CCM presents a special seasonal treat at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 2, as the departments of Jazz Studies and Musical Theatre unite to present Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite for one night only in UC’s Corbett Auditorium.
One of the most influential jazz musicians of the 20th century, Duke Ellington recorded The Nutcracker Suite for the Columbia record label in 1960. The album featured jazz interpretations of well-known melodies by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, arranged by Ellington and Billy Strayhorn.
Under the musical direction of Scott Belck and Dominic Marino, dancers from CCM’s Musical Theatre program will join the Jazz Ensemble and Jazz Lab Band to transform The Nutcracker Suite’s romantic orchestrations into jumping jazz melodies, including “Toot Toot Tootie Toot (Dance of the Reed-Pipes),” “Peanut Brittle Brigade” and “Sugar Rum Cherry (Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairy).” Featuring choreography by Diane Lala, a classical ballet becomes cool-cat jazz, infused with Vegas glitz, Hollywood glamour and a little New York razzmatazz.
CCM’s Department of Musical Theatre will present “The Revue Review: A Musical Redux Presentation” Nov. 30 and Dec. 1 in the master classroom (Mary Emery Hall room 3250). The revue, a popular form of entertainment in the early 20th century, combined singing, dancing and acting, making it a perfect match for CCM’s “triple-threat” musical theatre students. Admission to “The Revue Review” is free, but reservations are required.
Subscription and flex ticket packages are now on sale for the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music’s 2012-13 performance season. This year’s season includes 50 major events, ranging from fully staged operas and musicals to intimate chamber music concerts and holiday-themed choral extravaganzas.
Download a digital copy of this year’s season brochure today. Physical copies are also available at the CCM Box Office.
In today’s video, CCM’s Musical Theatre Class of 2012 performs “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” in UC’s Patricia Corbett Theater.
