‘Theatre Reviews Limited’ Profiles CCM Chair of Musical Theatre Aubrey Berg

Theatre Reviews Limited has published a profile of CCM’s Distinguished Chair of Musical Theatre Aubrey Berg.

Berg discusses his career at length with Rafael de Acha and provides a preview of what audiences can expect from CCM Musical Theatre during the 2013-14 performance season!

Read the feature-length profile here.

CCM MFA Student Alan Hanson Wins iSquint and Stage Directions’ 2013 Lighting Design Competition

"Chess" runs Oct. 25 - 28 in UC's Corbett Auditorium. Photography by Mark Lyons.

“Chess” runs Oct. 25 – 28 in UC’s Corbett Auditorium. Photography by Mark Lyons.
Tickets on sale now! Visit ccm.uc.edu for more information. Photography by Mark Lyons.

We are thrilled to announce that CCM class of 2013 MFA Lighting Design student Alan Hanson has won the 2013 Student Lighting Design Competition organized by online entertainment lighting industry publication iSquint and theatre art and technology journal Stage Directions!

Hanson’s lighting design for CCM’s Fall 2012 Mainstage Series production of Chess took the title in this third annual competition, which offers a valuable prize package of lighting software and literature.

View a slideshow of Hanson’s award winning work on Chess here.

The Student Lighting Design Competition is sponsored by lighting technology companies City Theatrical, Nemetschek Vectorworks and Field Template Soft Symbols, and is judged by leading experts in the lighting design field and developers of the software entrants must use to create their design entries. Visit iSquint.net to learn more about this competition.

Congratulations to Alan on this exciting award!

CCM Drama, Dance, Choral, Piano, Musical Theatre And More On Display This Weekend!

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CCM’s stars of tomorrow will be shining bright in a wide variety of concerts and productions running this weekend!

CCM’s 2012-13 Studio Series concludes with a production of Emily Mann’s powerful docu-drama Execution of Justice, running through April 20 in UC’s Cohen Family Studio Theater. Admission is free, but reservations are required. This production contains mature subject matter. Learn more about this production here.

CCM’s Ballet Ensemble also presents its annual Spring Dance Concert this weekend, with performances running through April 20 in Patricia Corbett Theater. This year’s program features unique collaborations with CCM’s Chamber Choir and Chamber Players. Learn more about this production here.

At 8 p.m. this Saturday, April 20, the CCM’s Chorale and Concert Orchestra join forces with a variety of special guests to present Benjamin Britten’s Spring Symphony and other works in Corbett Auditorium! Learn more about this performance here.

CCM’s annual celebration of the art of the piano returns at 7 p.m. this Sunday, April 21, as Pianopalooza VIII showcases our most spectacular student pianists! Learn more about this performance here.

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CCM Ensembles Join with Xavier University Concert Choir and Cincinnati Children’s Choir to Perform Britten’s ‘Spring Symphony’

'Spring Symphony' composer Benjamin Britten, circa 1949. Photography by Roland Haupt; courtesy of www.britten100.org.

‘Spring Symphony’ composer Benjamin Britten, circa 1949. Photography by Roland Haupt; courtesy of http://www.britten100.org.

CCM’s Chorale and Concert Orchestra join forces with the Xavier University Concert Choir and Bel Canto Choir of the Cincinnati Children’s Choir for a performance of Benjamin Britten’s Spring Symphony and other works at 8 p.m. on Saturday, April 20, in UC’s Corbett Auditorium. The program will also include Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis for string orchestra and Edward Elgar’s concert overture In the SouthTickets are on sale now.

Britten’s Spring Symphony, Op. 44, was commissioned and dedicated to Serge Koussevitsky and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, which shared the 1949 premiere with the Concertgebouw Orchestra in July (in Amsterdam) and August (with the BSO at Tanglewood). This choral symphony was written just four years after Britten’s widely acclaimed Peter Grimes opera when the composer was 35.

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UC Choruses and Special Guest Choirs Present Rescheduled Spring Concert on April 17

The UC Men's Chorus performing at the 2012 Feast of Carols. Photography by Dottie Stover.

The UC Men’s Chorus performing at the 2012 Feast of Carols. Photography by Dottie Stover.

CCM presents the UC Men’s and Women’s Choruses and Cabaret Singers in concert at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 17, in UC’s Corbett Auditorium. Olga Artemova, Michael Fuchs, Steven Berlanga and Sarah Baker conduct. This concert was originally scheduled for Wednesday, March 6, but was rescheduled due to inclement weather.

Special guests for the concert include the Cincinnati Children’s Choir (CCC) Girl Choir and the Little Miami Select Women’s Chorale and Select Mixed Choir. In celebration of the 100th anniversary of composer Benjamin Britten’s birth, the CCC Girl Choir and the UC Women’s Choir will perform his Missa Brevis in D, Op. 63.

Repertoire for the Men’s Chorus will include a commissioned work titled Victory! by Joshua Chai, Director of Choral Studies at Concordia University in Austin, scored for men’s chorus, brass quintet and percussion. This performance will also feature CCM’s Brass Without Borders ensemble.

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Preview CCM’s 2013-14 Mainstage Season in Today’s ‘Cincinnati Enquirer’

CCM presents 'The Threepenny Opera.' Photography by Mark Lyons.

Photography by Mark Lyons.

Pick up today’s edition of the Cincinnati Enquirer for an exclusive first-look at our monumental 2013-14 Mainstage Series!

Read the story online here!

Visit ccm.uc.edu tomorrow to learn even more about next year’s must-see lineup of opera, musical theatre, drama and dance productions.

Discussing ‘The Magic Flute’ Costume Designs with CCM Professor Dean Mogle

From left to right, Tara Deieso (who sings the role of First Lady in CCM's production of 'The Magic Flute'), Assistant Costume Designer Kaitlyn Munro, Professor Dean Mogle and Draper/Dressmaker Christie Peitzmeier.

From left to right, Tara Deieso (who sings the role of First Lady in CCM’s production of ‘The Magic Flute’), Assistant Costume Designer Kaitlyn Munro, Professor Dean Mogle and Draper/Dressmaker Christie Peitzmeier.

CCM Professor of Costume Design Dean Mogle recently gave CCM Public Information Assistant and Arts Administration student Sara Kissinger a behind-the-scenes tour of the costume shop, which is in full swing in these last crucial weeks before the opening of The Magic Flute. All photography by CCM Arts Administration student Shawn Kelly.

Sara Kissinger: Dean, thank you so much for inviting me to visit the shop today. The Magic Flute is an iconic work in opera repertoire – have you designed for this show before?

Dean Mogle: I have not designed a production of Flute before. The last time CCM did Flute was the 1986-87 season, before I joined the faculty.

SK: Did you have a specific concept for your design?

DM: There were two major influences on the design. The first is the 18th century influence, which is a nod back to when Mozart wrote the opera. This is the Queen of the Night’s world. It’s midnight: there are a lot of blues and everything is deep and dark and rich. The second influence is a sort of modified Egyptian style, which is Sarastro’s world. The costumes are warm colors – gold and bronze.

Dean Mogle shares the original costume rendering for the Queen of the Night.

Dean Mogle shares the original costume rendering for the Queen of the Night.

SK: What was the process of making the costumes like?

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CCM Video: Mainstage Season-Opener Features Collaboration with Artist Amy Shackleton

CCM’s Mainstage Series opens next month with William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The innovative new production will feature a collaboration with Toronto-based artist Amy Shackleton (in fact, this is Shackleton’s first-ever theatrical collaboration)!

You can view her unique process in the time-lapse video above. Shackleton is working with CCM’s Department of Theatre Design & Production to develop an all new time-lapse video for the show!

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CCM Announces Fall 2012 Calendar of Major Events

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CCM is delighted to announce its fall schedule of performances. The largest single source of performing arts events in the state of Ohio, CCM presents more than 100 public performances this fall, ranging from faculty and guest artist concerts to fully supported opera, drama and musical theatre productions.

This fall’s schedule includes a Beethoven Festival (Sept. 14 – Oct. 12), a Kurt Weill Festival (Oct. 19 – March 10) and a Cage Centennial Celebration (Nov. 5 – Nov. 29). CCM also collaborates with Cincinnati Opera on public workshop performances of two new American operas (Oct. 27 – 28 and Dec. 4 – 5) and presents a pair of concerts in conjunction with the Constella Festival of Music and Fine Arts (Oct. 10 and Oct. 28).

Download a digital copy of CCM’s Fall 2012 Calendar of Major Events today. Physical copies are also available at the CCM Box Office in the Corbett Center for the Performing Arts.

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CCM Slideshows: Arcadia

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This week, CCM presents Tom Stoppard’s comedic masterpiece Arcadia. Set in an English country house both in 1809 and the modern day, Arcadia follows two interconnected stories more than 200 years apart, revealing common thoughts of love and life that transcend the centuries.

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