Blogs

March 8, 2014 - 7:07PM -
Megan Pagado

Update (Sunday, March 9, 2014): Our ticketing system is back up. Tickets can be purchased as normal online, by phone and in person. Thank you for your patience!

Original post:

Our ticketing system is currently down. If you would like to order tickets for any of our upcoming performances, either email tickets.claricesmith@umd.edu or call 301.405.2787 and provide the following information:

March 7, 2014 - 11:11AM -

This blog post is by Emily Schweich, a sophomore Broadcast Journalism major.

Photo courtesy of Erica Bondarev
 

On January 31, I was selected to participate in a unique arts engagement initiative here at the Clarice Smith Center – live-tweeting the world premiere of David Roussève/REALITY’s Stardust.

Art and Twitter form a curious blend of the nostalgic and millennial, the very blend that Roussève cultivates in Stardust.

March 5, 2014 - 10:10AM -
Megan Pagado

This blog post is by Emily Schweich, a sophomore Broadcast Journalism major.

Bobby McFerrin and Chick Corea

Left: Bobby McFerrin photo by Carol Friedman; Right: Chick Corea photo courtesy of Chick Corea Productions

The lights dimmed, and I settled into my seat – front and center in the Dekelboum Concert Hall. Executive director Marty Wollesen took the stage to welcome guests to the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center. A curly-haired man in jeans and a hooded jacket walked down the aisle next to me. He’s late, I thought. Who would be late to a big-name concert like this? A second glance — He looks like Chick Corea. The man crossed in front of the stage and casually took a seat at the piano next to Bobby McFerrin. Wait. He IS Chick Corea.

Musicians this virtuosic don’t need to put on a show to engage an audience. When done right, the music speaks for itself.

February 20, 2014 - 7:07PM -
Megan Pagado

This blog post is by Emily Schweich, a sophomore Broadcast Journalism major.

The Waiting Room

The Waiting Room photo by Dylan Singleton
 

Forgiveness from Heaven, an 18th-century Chinese woman, suffers after years of foot binding. Victoria, from 19th-century England, has hysteria. Contemporary Jersey girl Wanda has trouble with her silicone breasts. They all come together in a modern doctor’s waiting room.

Lisa Loomer’s 1994 play The Waiting Room takes place in “the past, and the present, and often both at once. New York City, England and China.” This transcendence of time and space creates a formidable challenge for set designers – how can they create a believable, authentic and versatile design?

Cohen said he hoped the set would highlight the play’s juxtaposition of the clinical and the beautiful.

February 12, 2014 - 4:04PM -
Megan Pagado

Due to anticipated inclement weather, the University of Maryland campus will be closed beginning Wednesday, February 12 at 7PM and will remain closed on Thursday, February 13.

January 31, 2014 - 7:07PM -
Megan Pagado

Tonight's world premiere of David Roussève/REALITY's Stardust is being livetweeted! Follow #StardustUMD to view tweets and photos from the performance.

January 28, 2014 - 10:10AM -
Megan Pagado

Charisse Skye Aguirre

January 23, 2014 - 4:04PM -
Megan Pagado

This blog post is by Emily Schweich, a sophomore Broadcast Journalism major.

Stephanie Miracle

Stephanie Miracle photo by Steven Schreiber
 

Seven choreographers – showcasing many styles of dance -- will present their work this Saturday at the 31st Annual Choreographers’ Showcase in collaboration with the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission. The showcase features solos, duets and small ensembles.

This year, five of the seven choreographers selected are current students or alums from the University of Maryland School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies (TDPS). I spoke with one choreographer, third-year MFA Dance student Stephanie Miracle, about the inspiration for her work and how the showcase is important to her.

January 22, 2014 - 2:02PM -
Megan Pagado

David Rousseve/REALITY

Stardust photo by Valerie Oliveiro
 

David Rousseve/REALITY wlil be presenting the world premiere performances of Stardust here on January 31 and February 1. Choreographed, written and directed by David Rousseve, Stardust follows a gay African American teen as he navigates a difficult adolescence. Never seen onstage, he is present only by the unanswered, emotion-laden text messages he sends to a random number.

Stardust's sound score juxtaposes the intimate romanticism of Nat King Cole standards with the rough-edged, hip-hop inflected original music of d. Sabela Grimes. Because they have such great taste in music, we've asked David, REALITY and their collaborators to put together a playlist of their current musical obsessions. (You're welcome!)

December 18, 2013 - 12:12PM -
Missy McTamney

This fall the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center was filled with music, dance, theatre and important ideas in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington.

Read selected highlights of the semester's press coverage from newspapers like The Washington Post, public radio stations such as WAMU-FM and student news outlets like The Diamondback. See what the critics said about the fall’s performances from the UMD School of Music, the School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies and the Clarice Smith Center Visiting Artist Program – and let us know if you agree with them!

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