As the cold (but not too snowy) winter moves into February, arts continue to flourish up at Fort Lewis College. The semester is in full swing, and the arts at the college offer a variety of opportunities to enjoy.
The Fort Lewis College Art Gallery will welcome a new presentation starting Feb. 19. The exhibit – “Journey of an Artist: the Art of MaryEllen Long” – will be on display for one month. There will be a reception to celebrate the exhibit at 4:30 p.m. Feb. 21.
The Theater Department is embarking on an exciting project this month. “I’m Like You, I’m Not Like You” is a newly devised theater work created with the students, under the direction of guest artist Tim Miller. The piece will run three nights this weekend in the Roshong Recital Hall. For tickets, go through the Community Concert Hall tickets online (durangoconcerts.com). Additionally, this show, along with another devised version of “I’m Like You, I’m Not Like You,” directed by Kathryn Moller, will be presented at the regional conference of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival on Feb. 15 in Los Angeles. These two shows will join a third show, the FLC original production of “Sun and Room,” written by Danny Mitarotondo and directed by Ginny Davis, which has been selected by the KCACTF Region 8 directors to perform Feb. 14 in L.A.
The Community Concert Hall has three wonderful events coming this month. Stand-up comedian Colin Quinn will present his show “Unconstitutional” on Thursday. Then on Saturday morning in the Vallecito Room on campus, The MET: Live in HD will return with a live broadcast of Dvorak’s “Rusalka.” This is not to be missed as it will feature the great soprano, Renée Fleming, fresh from her Super Bowl rendition of the national anthem, in one of her signature roles. Finally, Feb. 23 will bring the return of the Taiko group, Tao. Personally, as a percussionist, I believe this show is a real treat.
The Music Department has three exciting events toward the end of the month. On Feb. 23, the Music Department will be on display with the Student Honors Recital in Roshong Recital Hall. Top students were chosen from the December juries, and they will perform in this special recital. The FLC Choirs will take the audience on a trip around the world on Feb. 28 in the Community Concert Hall. The concert is titled “From the Four Corners to the Far Corners,” and music will be featured from such countries as Bulgaria, South Korea and South Africa. Finally, on March 1, the Percussion Studio and the Concert Hall will collaborate to host the Southwest Colorado Day of Percussion. Free clinics by internationally recognized artists will begin at 12:30 p.m., and that evening will feature a concert by the clinicians and percussion ensembles from Fort Lewis College, Adams State University and the University of New Mexico.
It is a great time of year when we can see Taiko drumming and original student theater works as well as take a choral journey around the globe. As the Four Corners looks to get to the end of a cold winter, the semester at Fort Lewis College is just heating up.
Latta_J@fortlewis.edu. Jonathan Latta is an assistant professor of music and Director of Percussion Studies at Fort Lewis College.
