CCM student oboist wins NFMC’s prestigious Carolyn Nelson Double Reed Award

CCM graduate student Leo De La Cruz turned heads in a variety of competitions during the 2019-20 season. Most recently, he won the National Federation of Music Clubs’ Carolyn Nelson Double Reed Award, which includes a $1,250 cash prize.

Leo De La Cruz rehearsing with CCM Chamber Winds. Photo/Provided.

De La Cruz also won the CCM Wind Studies concerto competition, which culminated in a performance of Weber’s Concertino for Oboe and Wind Band with the CCM Chamber Winds on February 9, and he achieved an honorable mention at the 2020 Yamaha Young Performing Artists Competition.

To apply for the Carolyn Nelson Double Reed Award, De La Cruz submitted a 15-minute performance video, including the Weber Concertino he performed in February. His other selections were Dutilleux’s Oboe Sonata and Robert Schumann’s Three Romances, which he performed in chamber music recitals at CCM.

“I think the part that I’m most proud of about those recordings isn’t necessarily my own playing, but rather the back and forth between my partners and me,” De La Cruz says. “Both of them were fantastic collaborators and musicians, and I’m positive that my own playing improved drastically just through the work we did together.”

Before coming to CCM, De La Cruz attended high school in Spring, Texas (a suburb of Houston) and earned bachelor’s degrees in oboe performance and music theory from Furman University.

“I gravitated toward the oboe because it was unique; I was the only one in my middle school band who played it,” he remembers. “I never really planned on making music for a living, so I didn’t really take it very seriously until the end of high school, when I took a music theory class and really fell in love with the orchestral repertoire.”

De La Cruz is also working on two degrees at CCM — master’s degrees in oboe performance and music theory. In his oboe studies, he receives guidance from both of CCM’s oboe faculty, Professor of Oboe Mark Ostoich and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Oboe Dwight Parry, principal oboe at the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.

“I’m not quite sure what I want to do in the future quite honestly, because both of my interests bring me so much satisfaction,” De La Cruz says. “I can’t get enough of making music with other people, so if I could find a way to incorporate both chamber music and music theory into a career, I’d be happy.”

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Story by CCM Graduate Student Alexandra Doyle

Featured Image at top: Leo De La Cruz. Photo/Provided.

CCM Students, Alumni Unite in Virtual Performance of ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’

Alumnus Harrison Sheckler organized 300 musicians from around the world for the special concert

CCM alumnus Harrison Sheckler (BM Piano, ’19) united 300 musicians from 15 countries for a virtual performance of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from Carousel. The performance is available to watch online.

Now a student at the Conservatory of Music of Brooklyn College, Sheckler spent over 200 hours promoting, organizing submissions and video editing the project. He collected tracks from countries all over the world, including the United Kingdom, Mexico, Canada, Germany, Spain, France, Vietnam, Israel, Australia, South Africa and more.

The video features 30 CCM students and alumni representing multiple areas of the college including musical theatre, composition, music education, violin, violoncello, double bass, oboe, flute, piano, tuba, horn and more. It was produced by CCM Commercial Music Production alumni Josh Meyer and Grant Bayer, who are audio engineers at Cincinnati’s Zated Records. CCM students and alumni involved in the performance include:

• Jenny Mollet (BFA Musical Theatre, ’19)
• Giselle Haas (BM Music Education, ’19)
• Kanako Shimasaki – current DMA Violin student
• Maciej Latawiec (Matthew) – current DMA Violin student
• Li-Han Eliza Tseng (DMA Violoncello, ’19)
• Maksym Mahlay – current BM Composition and Piano student
• Carolyn Regula – former DMA Violoncello student
• Isabel Dimoff (BM Violoncello, ’18)
• Jonathan Lin (BM Violoncello, ’18)
• Micah Donar (BM Violoncello, ’17; MM Violoncello, ‘19)
• Peter Ryan (MM Violoncello, ’19) – current DMA Violoncello current
• Kimber Elayne Sprawl (BFA Musical Theatre, ’14)
• Natalie Orth (BM Violin, ’20)
• Taiga Benito – current BM Double Bass student
• Dan Qiao (MM Violin, ’17) – current DMA Violin student
• Taylor Overholt (BM Clarinet, ’19)
• Collin Goff – current BM Music Education and Clarinet
• Katie Riley – current BM Flute student
• Ray Haim (BM Music Education, ’18)
• Sarah Minneman – current DMA Oboe student
• Bryan Lyons (BM Oboe, ’97) – current DMA Oboe student
• Patrick Grimone (BM Oboe, ’19)
• Eliza Edge (BM Horn, ’19)
• Griffin Botts (BM Horn, ’17) – current MM Horn student
• Ryan Penshorn – former BM Horn student
• Phillip Palmore (BM Horn, ’20)
• Evan Sacks-Wilner – current BM Tuba student
• Harrison Sheckler (BM Piano, ’19)
• Josh Meyer (BM Commercial Music Production, ’18)
• Grant Bayer (BM Commercial Music Production, ’18)

The performance has garnered media attention from Broadway World and Musical America Worldwide.

Donor Spotlight: Dr. Alvin and Jean Crawford

The Crawfords have a deep, lifelong love of music and the arts that led them to connect with CCM

Dr. Alvin Crawford, retired Chief of Orthopedics and founding director of the Spine Center at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, has had a distinguished, internationally renowned career as an orthopedic surgeon. In his honor, the Spine Center was renamed the Crawford Spine Center.

But his first love was music.

He started playing trumpet in seventh grade, eventually switching to clarinet. He started college as a music major and wanted a career as a studio musician. In his sophomore year of college, he made a decision that changed the lives of thousands of children across the world: he decided to become a physician.

Dr. Alvin and Jean Crawford stand in the corridor of CCM’s Mary Emery Hall. Photo/Joseph Rubino

Dr. Crawford attended Meharry Medical College in 1960, a time when most if not all southern schools were segregated. He applied for admission to the University of Tennessee and became the first African-American to enroll in this southern medical school. He could not transfer because the University of Tennessee did not consider Meharry Medical College an accredited medical school.

“I became an academic orthopedist, but continued to play,” he says. “I was hired by UC to head the Pediatric Orthopaedic service. Once my wife and I found out what CCM was all about, we decided to get involved. After I retired at Cincinnati Children’s, I was able to attend the jazz improvisation course for freshmen and we started coming to performances. Last year I took jazz history.”

Continuing to live out his love of music, Dr. Crawford helped form a group called “The Wannabes,” which plays for nonprofits and has played an opera gala. From there he joined the Queen City Concert band, a community band in Cincinnati.

Jean Crawford’s interest in music stretches back to the piano lessons she took as a child. She was a teacher and high school counselor and sang in choruses through college.

“I always encouraged my students to get involved and take any type of arts as electives,” she says. “When I served on the Cincinnati Opera board, I saw that most of our singers in the chorus were from CCM. When we attended CCM’s Moveable Feast, we realized the caliber of musicianship here and were hooked on CCM.”

Mrs. Crawford talks about the opportunity she did not have, but that she wants all children to have. “I lived in the segregated south and the opportunities to attend and participate in the arts were limited,” she says. “So my goal is to make sure that the performing arts are available to all communities. In this area, school districts have limited support for funding the arts. Through the prep schools, CCM provides arts exposure to them. Also, students from CCM go to public schools to give the children more exposure. I think that’s important. And to do that you need money.“

“I think they’re doing something [at CCM] that’s really important,” Dr. Crawford adds. “I became involved in the CCM Dean’s Advisory Council and I can see that the people here care. They care, and they want to put out a good product. And once I became involved with CCMpower, I was able to meet the kids and see what they’re doing.”

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Who will you empower NEXT?

In order to recruit and retain top talent, CCM must be able to offer competitive scholarship and grant opportunities to our students. CCMpower raises funds through membership and special events in order to provide the resources that attract the best and brightest students. Learn more about how you can empower the next generation of CCM stars.

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Story by Joseph Rubino

Featured image at top Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley, Dena Cranley, Barbara Gould, Jean Crawford and Dr. Alvin Crawford at CCM’s 2020 Moveable Feast. Photo/Andrew Higley

CCM Acting Class of 2020 Presents Virtual Senior Showcase

Watch a collection of five scenes showcasing the talents of CCM Acting’s Class of 2020

The Acting Department at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM Acting) proudly presents its first Virtual Senior Showcase. Although the COVID-19 novel coronavirus prevented CCM Acting from holding its customary Senior Showcases for agents and casting directors in New York and Los Angeles this spring, the program’s new Virtual Senior Showcase allows industry insiders and the general public to see this year’s seniors in action.

The video showcase includes five scenes showcasing the talents of CCM Acting’s Class of 2020. Directed by Professor D’Arcy Smith, the A.B., Dolly, Ralph and Julia Cohen Chair in Acting at CCM, the showcase features students performing excerpts from TV programs, films and plays including “227,” “Pretty Little Liars,” “Pysch” and “Embers” along with an excerpt of “My So-Called Gay Life” written by CCM Acting student Abby Palen. A collaboration with CCM’s Electronic Media program, the CCM Acting Virtual Senior Showcase features the work of E-Media majors Caleb Smiley and Carlos Herriott II. Viewer discretion is advised; this video features strong language and mature content.

“Although we’ve transitioned to remote operations, we remain committed to our ongoing academic and artistic missions,” says Smith. “Our senior Acting students have put in countless hours preparing for their industry debuts in this year’s Senior Showcase and they deserve to have their time in the spotlight. They should be very proud of everything that they have accomplished, and we are happy to present this video snapshot of their talent for the entire world to enjoy.”

Get to know the graduating seniors by reading their professional summaries!

CCM Named ‘Best of Cincinnati’ by CityBeat Readers and Staff

Three productions with CCM connections were voted “Best of Cincinnati” by CityBeat readers and staff. CityBeat’s Best of Cincinnati 2020 issue is available online now!

CCMONSTAGE Play Series presented “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” in October 2019. Photo/Richard Hess

CCM’s production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time won “Best Play (Student/Community)” in the magazine’s readers poll. Directed by CCM Acting Professor Richard E. Hess, the play was presented in October as part of the CCMONSTAGE Play Series.

Blind Injustice, CCM’s co-production with Cincinnati Opera and UC College of Law’s Ohio Innocence Project, received a special Best of Cincinnati staff pick award as “Best World Premiere Opera to Open Your Eyes.” Directed by CCM Opera Professor Robin Guarino, the opera featured stories of six wrongly incarcerated people who were aided by the OIP.

Blind Injustice, CCM’s co-production with Cincinnati Opera and the Ohio Innocence Project, was presented in July 2019 at Music Hall’s Wilks Studio. Photo/Philip Groshong

CityBeat staff wrote: “Robin Guarino’s terrific staging of the sold-out series of shows in the Wilks Studio in Music Hall in July 2019 drew excellent performances from a gifted cast that included members of Cincinnati’s Young Professionals Choral Collaborative. The five performances sold out months in advance, as did a free presentation at Allen Temple A.M.E. Church in Bond Hill. Blind Injustice is proof positive that opera can bear powerful witness to the social issues of our time, as well as to the strength of the human spirit in the face of mindless injustice. May it be seen again and again and again, here and throughout the country.”

CCM students self-produced “The Flick” at Clifton’s Esquire movie theater in July 2019. Photo/Ella Eggold

CityBeat staff also recognized CCM students who produced and acted in a unique presentation of The Flick, a Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Annie Baker, at Clifton’s Esquire movie theater. The production was dubbed “Best Play Held in an Unconventional Setting.” CCM Acting alumni and current students Ella Eggold, Gabriella DiVincenzo, Graham Rogers, Leonard Peterson and Kristina Steinmetz acted and produced the play, which was stage managed by CCM Theatre Design and Production student Jennelle John-Lewis. CityBeat staff praised the production team’s efforts as “spectacular” and “outstanding.”

Congratulations to all of our friends and partners also featured in this special issue of CityBeat! Read more on CityBeat’s website or view a digital version of the issue.

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Featured image at top: Best of Cincinnati graphic by Taylor Speed/CityBeat

Watch: CCM Alumnus Edward Nelson Wins Glyndebourne Opera Cup

CCM alumnus Edward Nelson (BM Voice, 2011; MM Voice, 2013) took home the first prize award at the 2020 Glyndebourne Opera Cup, an international competition designed to discover and spotlight the best young opera singers from around the world. Dame Janet Baker, the competition’s honorary president, gave Nelson his trophy, which was inspired by the golden lyre that Baker used in Glyndebourne’s 1982 production of Orfeo ed Euridice.

This prize includes £15,000 (about $18,400 in U.S. currency) and the guarantee of a professional role at a top international opera house. The members of the deciding jury included opera legends Sumi Jo, Sir Thomas Allen and Dame Felicity Lott, as well as other industry professionals.

Following preliminary rounds in Cape Town, Berlin, London, Milan, Paris, Vienna and New York, six singers advanced to compete in the Glyndebourne Opera Cup final, accompanied by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Nelson performed two dramatic arias from Ambroise Thomas’ Hamlet before sealing his win with a spectacular performance of “Largo al factotum” from The Barber of Seville. His winning performance is available to watch online at YouTube.

Nelson recently made his European debut with the Norwegian premiere of Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande at the Norwegian National Opera. His performances were well-reviewed, despite his having learned the role in just four weeks. Bachtrack.com said that “Nelson impressed with a ringing baritone, excellent French diction and a surprisingly easy top [register].”

This season, Nelson appears with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis as Dr. Falke in Die Fledermaus, Vancouver Opera as Figaro in The Barber of Seville, with San Francisco Opera as Bosun in Billy Budd and with the Saint Louis Symphony in Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem. Read more about Nelson’s professional accomplishments.

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Story by CCM Graduate Student Alexandra Doyle

TRANSMIGRATION Festival of Student Works Returns to CCM March 11-13

Admission to CCM’s TRANSMIGRATION Festival is free. Reservations are required. Tickets are available in person or over the phone through the CCM Box Office.

CCM presents six original, student-created works in the Acting Department’s TRANSMIGRATION Festival: (im)mature, Rotten Kids of Witchwood Pine, Phantasmagoria, Dirty Laundry, Entermission and HINT! A Play About Clue. Celebrating its 12th anniversary, the festival runs Wednesday, March 11, through Friday, March 13, 2020, throughout CCM Village.

TRANSMIGRATION gives CCM Acting students the freedom to produce an entirely new show from start to finish. The teams are tasked with writing, designing and producing a 30-minute piece of theatre all on their own. The shows are performed simultaneously and in non-traditional spaces throughout CCM’s Corbett Center for the Performing Arts. Attendees may customize their personal theater-going experience by viewing up to four shows of their choice throughout the evening. Show details are below.

“This is my third year in TRANSMIGRATION, and it has always been a highlight of my year. It’s always so fun and really works the muscle we need to create our own work,” said CCM Acting student Sydney Miles. “My personal favorite year and favorite role was my freshman year when I played a suitcase and travelled along with my pal, Cooper the Compass. With TRANSMIGRATION, anything can happen!”

Co-produced by CCM Acting Professors Richard Hess and Brant Russell, this unique festival has presented more than 60 original productions over the past 12 years. This year, junior Anastasia Jacques is the Associate Producer, and senior Chandler Bates is the Communication Manager.

(IM)MATURE
Remember grade school? The science fair. Getting picked last for kickball. Missing the bus. Cliques. Falling outs. Falling in love. Do you remember how you dealt with them? Did you shut down or grow up? What advice would you give your childhood self? The bus is almost here, hop on as we take a trip down memory lane and remember what it was like to discover new truths, redefine our obstacles and find out what maturity even means. As kids, all we want is to grow up. But as adults, all we want is to remember.
Cast: Zoe Cotzias, Rachel Jones, Lucas Prizant, Cameron Nalley, Ethan Murphy, Charles Gidney, Jason Pavlovich, Jake Weinheimer, Maddie Gaughn, Neuma Cohen-Denson, Mason Doyle
Location: Corbett Center Room 4755
Performance Times: 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.

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ROTTEN KIDS OF WITCHWOOD PINE
As a group of students retreat to the woods, they stumble into a cursed forest called Witchwood Pine, a forest that manipulates your mind and traps you inside it. As they realize where they are and what the pine can do, they must discover what it takes to escape. Can you trust what you see?
Cast: Jabari Carter, Chandler Bates, Duncan Weinland, Reid Robison, Jack McElroy, AJ Civello, Shakoria Davis, Kay Waltermire, Ava Panagopoulos, Lydia Robison
Location: Corbett Center Room 4755
Performance Times: 7:45 p.m. and 9:15 p.m.

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PHANTASMAGORIA
What is a phantasmagoria? A sequence of real or imaginary images, like those seen in a dream. This folk tale fever dream takes you on a ride through the subconscious of two sisters as they hang between life and death. Welcome to limbo. Welcome to Phantasmagoria.
Cast: Sierra Coachman, Cameron Mills, Lydia Noll, Michelle Jardine, Eli Lucas, Matt Fox, Olivia Buss, Emma Fitzgerald, Zoe Peterson, Abby Palen, Rachel Baker, Grace Eddy, Beza Kidane
Location: Corbett Center Room 4735
Performance Times: 7 p.m. and 7:45 p.m.

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DIRTY LAUNDRY
There are some places that normal humans do not go. One of those is a laundromat at 4 a.m. on a Tuesday. Come visit our 24-hour laundromat, where career criminals go to wash away their dirty secrets. Tuesday after Tuesday, week after week, they’ve become an eclectic sort of clan. Aside from being loyal patrons, they all work as mercenaries for the owner. One day, when given assignments, some of the names on their lists look a little too familiar. What happens when the thing that goes “bump” in the night gets scared? Will this family of shady characters choose blood over money, or will they succumb to their fears? Step inside our laundromat, where you call some of the shots, but you may leave less clean than you came in.
Cast: Paige Jordan, Rin Wallace, Sydney Miles, Kayla Temshiv, Lily Olsen, Dustin Parsons, Noah Buyak, Malik Smith, Rachel Larson, Hunter Trammell, Morgan Piper, Jack Fogle
Location: Corbett Center Room 4735
Performance Times: 8:30 p.m. and 9:15 p.m.

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ENTERMISSION
We are sad to announce that the Entermission we know and love is coming to a close. After years of dedication and imagination, it’s time to say goodbye to America’s most revolutionary attraction. But before it’s gone for good, you have one more chance to enjoy this timeless experience! Join Bells and Whistles one last time as they guide you through the love story of Humanity and Technology. Enjoy a laugh as you jump backwards in time, shed a tear as you step toward the future and witness the marvels that bridge the gaps in our lonely and fragmented world. With the help of your favorite advanced animatronics, enjoy the once in a lifetime opportunity of seeing tomorrow today. Take a seat, strap yourselves in and enter the mission!
Cast: Briley Oakley, Carlee Coulehan, Frankie Chuter, Leonard Peterson III, Gabe Nasato, Julianna Weis-Palacios, Kristina Steinmetz, Mateo Sollano, Kevin Naddeo
Location: Corbett Center Room 3705
Performance Times: 7 p.m. and 9:15 p.m.

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HINT! A PLAY ABOUT CLUE
There has been a murder at the mansion. The guests are appalled: why would anybody want to murder the gracious host? Nobody quite knows what happened… except for the murderer, of course. Join us in retracing the truth. Will you be able to navigate the web of lies, betrayal and unrequited love in order to solve the crime?
Cast: Madison Pullman, Jack Steiner, Anastasia Jacques, Amanda Nelson, Liza Lagerstrom, Isabella Wagner, Austin Cleri, Gracie Schmidt, Ava Duvall, Ariel Shaw
Location: Corbett Center Room 3705
Performance Times: 7:45 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.

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TRANSMIGRATION Performance Times

• 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 11
• 7 p.m. Thursday, March 12
• 7 p.m. Friday, March 13

Location

CCM Village
University of Cincinnati

Admission

Admission is free. Reservations are required. Tickets are available in person or over the phone through the CCM Box Office. Please visit the CCM Box Office or call 513-556-4183 to reserve. Limit two tickets per order.

Parking and Directions

Parking is available in the CCM Garage (located at the base of Corry Boulevard off Jefferson Avenue) and additional garages throughout the UC campus. Please visit uc.edu/parking for information on parking rates.

For detailed maps and directions, please visit uc.edu/visitors. Additional parking is available off-campus at the U Square complex on Calhoun Street and other neighboring lots.

For directions to CCM Village, visit ccm.uc.edu/about/directions.

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Story by CCM Graduate Student Alexandra Doyle

First Look: CCMONSTAGE ‘The Secret Garden’

CCMONSTAGE Musical Series presents this award-winning story tonight, March 5-Sunday, March 8, 2020. Tickets available online.

Tony Award-winning musical The Secret Garden, opens at 7:30 p.m. tonight, March 5, and continues through Sunday, March 8, 2020 at CCM’s Corbett Auditorium. Presented by CCM’s Musical Theatre student stars of tomorrow, this “turn-of-the-century fairy tale” (Los Angeles Times) offers an enchanting evening of entertainment for the whole family.

The musical is brought to life on stage by director and choreographer Connor Gallagher (BFA Musical Theatre, ’06), who most recently created choreography for Broadway’s Beetlejuice. Get a sneak peek at the production in the slideshow below. Photos by Mark Lyons.

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The compelling tale of forgiveness and renewal centers on 11-year-old orphan Mary Lennox, who moves from India to Yorkshire to live with her reclusive uncle Archibald and his ailing son Colin. The estate’s many wonders include a magic garden which beckons the children with haunting melodies and the “Dreamers,” spirits from Mary’s past who guide her through her new life.

The 2019-20 CCMONSTAGE Musical Series presents The Secret Garden on March 5-8, 2020, at Corbett Auditorium. Tickets are on sale now through the CCM Box Office; student and group discounts are available.

CCM’s production of The Secret Garden will last two hours, plus a 15-minute intermission.

The Secret Garden Billing Credits

• Book and Lyrics by Marsha Norman
• Music by Lucy Simon
• Based on the Novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett

“The Secret Garden” is presented by special arrangement with SAMUEL FRENCH, INC.

Creative Team

• Connor Gallagher, director and choreographer
• Jeremy Robin Lyons*, musical director
• Joshua E. Gallagher, scenic designer
• Evan Carlson*, lighting designer
• Zach Buscher* and Seth Howard*, prop masters
• Andrew Volzer*, production stage manager
• Dean Mogle, costume designer
• Marnee Porter*, wig and make-up designer
• Zachory Ivans*, sound designer

* CCM Student

Cast List

• Zoe Mezoff as Mary Lennox
• Delaney Guyer as Lily
• Madison Hagler as Archibald Craven
• Sam Pickart as Dr. Neville Craven
• Anna Chase Lanier as Martha
• Kurtis Bradley Brown as Dickon
• Jenna Bienvenue as Colin
• Britta Cowan as Mrs. Medlock
• Jamie Goodson as Mrs. Winthrop/Jane
• Nick Berninger as Ben
• Christian Feliciano as Fakir
• Sofie Flores as Ayah
• Mikayla Renfrow as Rose Lennox
• Matt Copley as Captain Albert Lennox
• Michael Canu as Lt. Peter Wright
• Elijah King as Lt. Ian Shaw
• Hank Von Kolnitz as Major Holmes
• Veronica Stern as Claire Holmes
• Jack Brewer as Major Shelley
• Zoë Grolnick as Mrs. Shelley
• Bailee Endebrock as Alice
• Chip Hawver as William
• Cassie Maurer as Betsy
• David Littlefield as Timothy
• Swings: Sasha Spitz and Cole Harksen
• Dance Captains: Michael Canu and Bailee Endebrock

Performance Times

• 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 5
• 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 6
• 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 7
• 2 p.m. Sunday, March 8

Location

Corbett Auditorium, CCM Village
University of Cincinnati

Purchasing Tickets

Single tickets prices start at $35.50. Student discounts and group rates are also available.

Learn about additional ticket options for current CCM students.

Tickets can be purchased in person at the CCM Box Office, over the telephone at 513-556-4183 or online now through our e-box office.

Directions and Parking

CCM is located on the campus of the University of Cincinnati. Please visit ccm.uc.edu/about/directions for detailed driving directions to CCM Village.

Parking is available in UC’s CCM Garage (located at the base of Corry Boulevard off Jefferson Avenue) and additional garages throughout the UC campus. Please visit uc.edu/parking for more information on parking rates.

For detailed maps and directions, please visit uc.edu/visitors.

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CCMONSTAGE Production Sponsors: Macy’s, Dr. & Mrs. Carl G. Fischer and Graeter’s Ice Cream

Established Broadway Veteran Named Patricia A. Corbett Distinguished Chair of Musical Theatre at CCM

UC College-Conservatory of Music Dean Stanley E. Romanstein has announced the appointment of Eric Santagata to the position of Associate Professor and Patricia A. Corbett Distinguished Chair of Musical Theatre at CCM. A 2004 graduate of CCM’s nationally recognized BFA Musical Theatre program, Santagata’s appointment begins on Aug. 15, 2020.

“The appointment of Eric Santagata ushers in an exciting new era for CCM Musical Theatre, which is recognized nationally for its tradition of excellence in preparing our graduates to take their places on the world’s stages,” Romanstein says.

Eric Santagata. Photo by Walter McBride.

The Musical Theatre program at CCM was the first of its kind in the country. A four-year bachelor of fine arts (BFA) program, it was used by the National Association of Schools of Theatre in creating the guidelines for accreditation of Musical Theatre programs nationwide. The program is widely recognized for its “triple-threat” approach to training and many of its graduates are following careers as performers and creative artists in every facet of the entertainment industry. The program is regularly ranked near the top of Playbill Magazine’s annual list of “10 Most Represented Colleges on Broadway.”

“A gifted director, teacher and nurturing mentor, Eric is precisely the kind of educator who will lead our top-rated musical theatre training program to even greater heights,” says Denton Yockey, CCM Professor of Arts Administration and Head of the Division of Theatre Arts, Production and Arts Administration (TAPAA).

Santagata’s appointment concludes an extensive national search that began when long-time CCM Musical Theatre Chair Aubrey Berg retired at the end of the 2018-19 academic year after holding the position for 32 years. Yockey chaired the search committee, which consisted of CCM faculty members Diane Lala, Roger Grodsky, Vincent DeGeorge, Richard Hess, Robin Guarino, Mark Halpin, Katie Johannigman, Shauna Steele and UC College of Arts and Sciences faculty member Sharrell Luckett.

“As a musical theatre alumnus, CCM has been crucial in my development as both an educator and an artist,” Santagata says. “The tools and training I honed here have been the backbone of my career. I look forward to having the opportunity to take the knowledge I’ve accrued in the professional entertainment industry and focus it into a curriculum that speaks to the tradition that CCM is founded on, while ushering it into a new era of success.”

An accomplished director, choreographer, performer and educator, Santagata has worked on Broadway, Off-Broadway, on national tours and in regional theaters across the country. He was most recently seen on Broadway in the Hal Prince retrospective Prince Of Broadway at the Manhattan Theater Club. His other performing credits include Bullets Over Broadway at St. James Theatre, Chaplin at Barrymore Theatre, The Apple Tree at Roundabout Theatre Company, Happiness at Lincoln Center Theater, Stairway to Paradise and Face the Music at City Center Encores!.

Santagata has served as associate director to Tony Award-winning director/writer James Lapine in the national tour and Broadway productions of Falsettos — nominated for five Tony Awards — as well as assistant director and choreographer to Lapine in A New Brain at Encores! Off-Center in New York. He has also served as associate director and choreographer to Tony Award-winning director/choreographer Susan Stroman in Off-Broadway productions of The Beast in the Jungle and Dot at Vineyard Theatre as well as Broadway productions of The Scottsboro Boys, which received 12 Tony Award nominations, seven Olivier Award Nominations and the Ned Sherrin Award for Best Musical. In London, Santagata was the associate choreographer on Stroman’s The Scottsboro Boys at the Young Vic and West End theaters.

In addition to his work on stage and behind-the-scenes, Santagata has presented master classes and taught theatre arts at universities and programs across the country including at Penn State STAGES Conference, Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival, Orpheum Theater Group, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Oklahoma City University and the Open Jar Institute as well as London’s Mousetrap Theatre Organization. His master classes and talkbacks focus on Santagata’s professional experiences in acting, singing, dancing, directing, choreographing and audition techniques.

He is also an active board member of Westport Country Playhouse’s Resident Conservatory – the Broadway Method Academy, a non-profit program that offers focused training for young adults while connecting them with established industry professionals. He previously served as an adjudicator at the 2017-18 Stephen Sondheim Awards, Connecticut’s Regional Award program in association with the Jimmy Awards and the National High School Musical Theatre Awards; and as a directing mentor during the week-long Staples High School Directing Intensive in Westport, Connecticut.

Santagata is a member of the Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, Actors Equity Association and Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

About CCM Musical Theatre

The Musical Theatre program at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) is the oldest in the country and was the first of its kind. A four-year bachelor of fine arts (BFA) program, it was used by the National Association of Schools of Theatre in formulating the guidelines for the accreditation of Musical Theatre programs nationwide.

The program provides professional conservatory training designed to help singers, dancers and actors become accomplished musical theatre performers. Students participate in a number of productions while in residence and create a freshman and a senior showcase, the latter functioning as their New York debut for agents and casting directors. In addition, students undertake courses in English, history, psychology, dramatic literature, social and ethical issues and the humanities.

CCM Musical Theatre is widely recognized for its “triple-threat” approach to training and many of its graduates are following careers as performers and creative artists in every facet of the entertainment industry. CCM Musical Theatre graduates are working on Broadway and throughout the nation in such productions as Anastasia, Hamilton, Waitress, Moulin Rouge, The Phantom of the Opera, The Book of Mormon, Pippin, Wicked, Jersey Boys, Les Misérables, Kinky Boots, Big Fish, Newsies and The Lion King. Students represent CCM in national and international touring productions, in dinner theatres and theme parks, on cruise ships, on television, in talent agencies, as producers and in many of the related entertainment fields.

The Musical Theatre program is part of a larger academic division known as TAPAA: Theatre Arts, Production and Arts Administration. At the time of its establishment in 1991, the Patricia A. Corbett Distinguished Chair of Musical Theatre at CCM was the only academic chair of its kind in the United States, the American equivalent of the Chair in Musical Theatre endowed by Cameron Macintosh in honor of Stephen Sondheim at Oxford one year later.

About CCM

Nationally ranked and internationally renowned, the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) is a preeminent institution for the performing and media arts.

The synergy created by housing CCM within a comprehensive public university gives the college its unique character and defines its objective: to educate and inspire the whole artist and scholar for positions on the world’s stage. For more information about CCM, please visit us online at ccm.uc.edu.

Alumnus Anton Nel Joins the Ariel Quartet in Concert on March 10

The accomplished pianist performs Brahms’ Piano Quartet No. 1 in G Minor and other works with CCM’s string quartet-in-residence. Tickets available online. 

The Ariel Quartet welcomes pianist Anton Nel (MM Piano, ’84) for two works featuring strings and piano, as well as Haydn’s String Quartet in C Major, the “Emperor” quartet in the ensemble’s final performance of its 2019-20 concert series at UC’s College-Conservatory of Music. The concert, titled “Hungary,” takes place at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 10 in CCM’s Robert J. Werner Recital Hall.

The program’s highlight is Brahms’ Piano Quartet No. 1 in G Minor. This piece for piano, violin, viola and cello premiered in 1861, with Clara Schumann performing the piano part. Also featured on the program is Ernö Dohnányi’s Piano Quintet No. 2 in E-flat Minor. Brahms was a proponent of Dohnányi’s works, especially his first piano quintet, which Brahms helped to promote in Vienna. Later in his life, Dohnányi transcribed the fourth movement of Brahms’ Piano Quartet No. 1 as a showpiece for solo piano.

Described by the New York Times as “an uncommonly elegant pianist,” Nel is an accomplished solo performer who has given concerts with the Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, and many others. He is the Priscilla Pond Flawn Regents Professor of Piano and Chamber Music, as well as the head of the Division of Keyboard Studies, at the University of Texas at Austin. He has an extensive discography and was the winner of the first prize in the 1987 Naumburg International Piano Competition at Carnegie Hall. Cincinnati audiences might remember Nel’s powerful performance with the CCM Philharmonia during the college’s Sesquicentennial Alumni Showcase in 2018.

Described by the American Record Guide as “a consummate ensemble gifted with utter musicality and remarkable interpretive power,” the Ariel Quartet has earned a glowing international reputation. The ensemble is comprised of Alexandra “Sasha” Kazovsky, violin; Amit Even-Tov, cello; Gershon Gerchikov, violin; and Jan Grüning, viola. The group was formed in Israel in 1998 and has served as CCM’s string quartet-in-residence since 2012.

About Anton Nel

Anton Nel.

Anton Nel, winner of the first prize in the 1987 Naumburg International Piano Competition at Carnegie Hall, continues to enjoy a remarkable and multifaceted career that has taken him to North and South America, Europe, Asia and South Africa. Following an auspicious debut at the age of 12 with Beethoven’s C Major Concerto after only two years of study, the Johannesburg native captured first prizes in all the major South African competitions while still in his teens, toured his native country extensively and became a well-known radio and television personality. A student of Adolph Hallis, he made his European debut in France in 1982, and in the same year graduated with highest distinction from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. He came to the United States in 1983, attending the University of Cincinnati, where he pursued his Masters and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees under Bela Siki and Frank Weinstock. In addi-tion to garnering many awards from his alma mater during this three-year period, he was a prize winner at the 1984 Leeds International Piano Competition in England and won several first prizes at the Joanna Hodges International Piano Competition in Palm Desert in 1986.

Highlights of Nel’s four decades of concertizing include performances with the Cleveland Orchestra, the symphonies of Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco, Seattle, Detroit and London, among many others. He has an active repertoire of more than 100 works for piano and orchestra. An acclaimed Beethoven interpreter, Nel has performed the concerto cycle several times, most notably on two consecutive evenings with the Cape Philharmonic in 2005. Additionally, he has performed all-Beethoven solo recitals, complete cycles of the violin and cello works, and most recently a highly successful run of the Diabelli Variations as part of Moises Kaufman’s play 33 Variations. He was also chosen to give the North American premiere of the newly discovered Piano Concerto No. 3 in E Minor by Felix Mendelssohn in 1992. Two noteworthy world premieres of works by living composers include Virtuoso Alice by David Del Tredici (dedicated to and performed by Nel at his Lincoln Center debut in 1988) as well as Stephen Paulus’s Piano Concerto also written for Nel; the acclaimed world premiere took place in New York in 2003.

As recitalist he has appeared at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Metropolitan Museum and the Frick Collection in New York, the Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena, Davies Hall in San Francisco, and the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Internationally he has performed recitals in major concert halls in Canada, England (Queen Elizabeth and Wigmore Halls in London), France, Holland (Concertgebouw in Amsterdam), Japan (Suntory Hall in Tokyo), Korea, China and South Africa.

A favorite at summer festivals, he has performed at Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival, as well as at the music festivals of Aspen and Ravinia (where he is on the artist-faculties), Vancouver, Cartagena and Stellenbosch, among many others. Possessing an encyclopedic chamber music and vocal repertoire he has, over the years, regularly collaborated with many of the world’s foremost string quartets, instrumen-tal soloists and singers. With acclaimed violinist Sarah Chang he completed a highly successful tour of Japan as well as appeared at a special benefit concert for Live Music Now in London, hosted by HRH the Prince of Wales.

Eager to pursue dual careers in teaching and performing, he was appointed to the faculty of the University of Texas at Austin in his early 20s, followed by professorships at the Eastman School of Music and the University of Michigan, where he was chairman of the piano department. In September 2000, Nel was appointed as the Priscilla Pond Flawn Regents Professor of Piano and Chamber music at the University of Texas at Austin, where he teaches an international class of students and heads the Division of Keyboard Studies. Since his return he has also been the recipient of two Austin-American Statesman Critics Circle Awards, as well as the University Cooperative Society/College of Fine Arts award for extra-curricular achievement. In 2001 he was appointed Visiting “Extraordinary” Professor at the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa, and continues to teach master classes worldwide. In January 2010 he became the first holder of the new Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long Endowed Chair in Piano at the University of Texas at Austin. Since 2015 he has been presenting an annual series of masterclasses in piano and chamber music at the Manhattan School of Music in New York as Visiting Professor and also teaches regularly at the Glenn Gould School in Toronto.

Nel is also an acclaimed harpsichordist and fortepianist. In recent seasons he has per-formed annual recitals on both instruments, concertos by the Bach family, Haydn and Mozart with La Follia Austin Baroque as well as the Poulenc Harpsichord Concerto (Concert Champêtre) with the Austin Symphony.

His recordings include four solo CDs, several chamber music recordings (including the complete Beethoven Piano and Cello Sonatas and Variations, and the Brahms Sonatas with Bion Tsang), and works for piano and orchestra by Franck, Faure and Saint-Saens. His latest release features premiere recordings of all the works for piano and orchestra of Edward Burlingame Hill with the Austin Symphony conducted by Peter Bay.

Nel became a citizen of the United States on September 11, 2003 and is a Steinway artist.

Repertoire

• HAYDN: String Quartet No. 62 in C Major, Op. 76, No. 3, “Emperor”
• DOHNÁNYI: Piano Quintet No. 2 in E-flat Minor, Op. 26
• BRAHMS: Piano Quartet No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 25

Location

Robert J. Werner Recital Hall, CCM Village
University of Cincinnati

Performance Time

7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 10

Purchasing Tickets

Single ticket prices start at $29.50 each; student and group discounts available. Pricing is inclusive of all fees. All performances are reserved seating.

Tickets can be purchased online though our e-box office, over the phone at 513-556-4183 or in person at the CCM Box Office in the Atrium of UC’s Corbett Center for the Performing Arts.

Learn about additional ticket options for current CCM students.

Directions and Parking

CCM is located on the campus of the University of Cincinnati. Please visit ccm.uc.edu/about/directions for detailed driving directions to CCM Village. Parking is available in UC’s CCM Garage (located at the base of Corry Boulevard off Jefferson Avenue) and additional garages throughout the UC campus. Please visit uc.edu/parking for more information on parking rates. For detailed maps and directions, please visit uc.edu/visitors.

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Story by CCM Graduate Student Alexandra Doyle

The Ariel Quartet’s 2019-20 CCM concert series is made possible by the generous contributions of an anonymous donor, The Estate of Mr. William A. Friedlander, Mrs. William A. Friedlander, Dr. Randolph L. Wadsworth, Judith Schonbach Landgren and Peter Landgren, Mr. and Mrs. Harry H. Santen, Elizabeth C. B. and Paul G. Sittenfeld, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas E. Stegman, Dr. and Mrs. Theodore W. Striker and Mrs. Harry M. Hoffheimer.