Live Stream Events

May 21, 2021  7 p.m.  Livestream Concert: “New Life” Elisa Bickers, organist

About the Artist:

Elisa Williams Bickers is the Associate Director of Music and Principal Organist at Village Presbyterian Church in Prairie Village, Kansas, where she leads the Alegría Young Adult Choir and the Village Ringers hand bell ensemble. She is also the harpsichordist for the Bach Aria Soloists, a chamber music group dedicated to performing the works of Bach and those inspired by him.

Bickers has performed world-wide as a solo and collaborative organist and harpsichordist. She has worked with such musical groups as the Te Deum Chamber Ensemble, the Spire Chamber Ensemble, and the Grammy award-winning Kansas City Chorale, as well as the Kansas City Symphony. Her degrees in church music and organ performance are from Texas Christian University and the University of Kansas. She holds the Fellowship certificate from the American Guild of Organists, the Guild’s highest certification.

Bickers is represented by Concert Artist Cooperative.

Program:

 This diverse program, entitled “New Life” will feature works by Böhm, Bach, Portman, and Cooman.

Elisa Bickers. organist

Toccata in F Major, BuxWV 156 – Dieterich Buxtehude (1637-1707)

Partita on “Ach Wie Nichtig, Ach Wie Flüchtig” – Georg Böhm (1661-1733)

Elegy – Brenda Portman (b. 1981)

Suite circulaire – Carson Cooman (b. 1982)

Concerto d-Moll, BWV 596 – Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

April 16, 2021  7 p.m.  Livestream Concert: Bass Clarinet, Voice & Piano Trio

About the Artists:

Julia Scozzafava, mezzo-soprano, has been a frequent performer on both the operatic and concert stage for the past 19 years. As a member of the Kansas City chorale, Julia has been featured on several recordings, most notably as the alto soloist on their Grammy award winning recording of Rachmaninoff’s “All Night Vigil,” for which Gramophone magazine called her alto sound “the genuine article.” In 2013 her solo version of the “Pie Jesu” from Durufle’s Requiem was named by KCMetropolis as an editor’s pick for best performance of the year. Around Kansas City, Julia has been heard with NewEar, Mid America Freedom Band, and the Spire Ensemble. As an opera singer Julia apprenticed with both the Santa Fe Opera and the Lyric Opera of Kansas City where she performed the third lady in Mozart’s “Magic Flute”, the Page in “Salome” and Loma Williams in Carlisle Floyd’s “Cold Sassy Tree.” After completing her graduate studies at UMKC under the tutelage of Inci Bashar, Julia sang the roles of Madame Butterfly and Tosca with the KC Puccini Festival; made her Chicago debut as Magda Sorel in Menotti’s “The Consul” with the Chamber Opera of Chicago and performed on the stage of The Metropolitan Opera as a semi-finalist in the Metropolitan Opera’s National Council auditions. Julia also holds a Master of Arts in theological studies from St. Paul School of Theology, is a wife, and mother to three amazing boys.

Thomas Aber, a founding member of the newEar contemporary chamber ensemble, is the bass clarinetist with the Omaha Symphony. His studies of the bass clarinet took him to the Juilliard School and to the Netherlands, where he studied with Harry Sparnaay. While living in The Netherlands Aber was a prize winner in the Gaudeamus Foundation’s International Competition for Interpreters of Contemporary Music. In 1989 he worked with Charles Dodge for the premiere of Elegy, the first fractal-generated composition. Aber earned his DMA in clarinet at the Conservatory of the University of Missouri at Kansas City.

Robert Pherigo is a composer, pianist, tenor and conductor. He was a member of newEar Contemporary Music Ensemble for 15 years, exploring the music of today’s composers. He participated in numerous world premieres and performed at Modern Music festivals in Thailand and China. Robert has composed works for, among others, newEar, Kansas City Chorale, Lyric Arts Trio, and the Lawrence Children’s Choir. His arrangement of the well-known Christmas Carol Sing We Now of Christmas,is published by Santa Barbara Musical Publishing under the title Sing We Now Noel! Robert sang with the Grammy award winning Kansas City Chorale for 10 years. He enjoys playing solo piano works, most recently performing Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. His piano artistry can be heard on recordings of the music of Ingrid Stölzel, Narong Prancharoen, and Mara Gibson.

Program:

Through Time and Space

Thomas Aber. bass clarinet
Julia Scozzafava, mezzo soprano
Robert Pherigo, piano

Évocation (1897) – Alexandre-Sylvain Petit

Make haste, O god to deliver me (1836) – Chevalier Sigismund Neu

Red Bass (2019) – Lodi Luka

Prelude (1958) – Ruth Gipps

Ballade (1908) – Josef Holbrooke

Sher and Freylekhs (2020) – Zisl Slepovitch

March 26, 2021  7 p.m.  Special Livestream Event: The Dancing Word

About the Artists:

Lynn King (reader) regularly performs and directs at professional and academic theatres in the Kansas City area. Her recent acting credits include roles in Rachel and Ain’t No Such Thing as Midnight Black with KC Melting Pot Theatre. She directed For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf and perform the role of Lena Younger in the classic “A Raisin in the Sun” for KC Melting Pot’s 2020 season. She’s appeared extensively with Kansas City Repertory Theatre, InPlay Theatre Company, Unicorn Theatre, Theater for Young America, and KC Melting Pot Theatre. Lynn is the drama and speech instructor at The Pembroke Hill School in Kansas City.

Glenn Stewart (poet & reader) graduated from Georgetown College (Kentucky), with a Double Major in English & French, and a Minor in Journalism. Interest in the art of expression includes: writing poetry, short stories and producing short documentaries.

Suzanne Ryanstrati (dance choreographer) is an independent artist in Kansas City. She has choreographed in eleven states and three countries. Suzanne is passionate about human rights.

Nora Burkitt (dancer and choreographer of Rue by Glenn Stewart) graduated with her B.F.A. in Dance from the Conservatory of Music and Dance at UMKC. She has been a company member of Kansas City Contemporary Dance Company since 2017. As well as dancing, Nora teaches kids of all ages and abilities. This is her second Dancing Word concert with WCA.

Emmi Eldridge (dancer) is a professional dancer with a passion fro trauma informed care and social justice. She performed at Modern Night at the Folly and Open Stage at the J! Emmi danced with Störling Dance Theatre, and Störling Moves in Germany and France. In addition to dancing, she is also studying to become a social worker. (she/her/hers)

Azia Gambrell (dancer) earned her BFA in Dance Performance and Choreography from the Conservatory of Music and Dance at UMKC and is currently a freelance dancer signed to The Next Paige Agency. Gambrell is also a professional dance instructor with the National Dance Alliance for the past 7 years and enjoys teaching across the country. Azia Gambrell is also a real estate advisor with Engel and Volkers Kansas City.

Robert Vardiman (dancer and choreographer of Natural Human|Humility|Spiritual Human by Fred Culver) by graduated from Missouri Western State University in 2018 with a double-major in music and dance. He has been working on Kansas City theater stages ever since. Robert dedicates this performance to his father and grandmother who are with him in spirit every single day!

Ivana von Hofman (dancer) is currently training at Kansas City Ballet School. She has performed in the Nutcracker with the Kansas City Ballet and Underground with Störling Dance Theatre.

Program:

The Dancing Word: When Poetry and Dance Intersect
Introduction: Scott Myers, WCA Board President

Poems of Fred Culver, Recited by Lynn King
   “You Shall Be As Gods” Natural Human|Humility|Spiritual Human – danced by Emmi, Azia & Nora
   Earth, Our Home – danced by Robert

Poems of Glenn Stewart, Recited by Glenn
   Ephemera of Time – danced by Azia
   Rue – danced by Nora
   Of Left Side – danced by Emmi
   The Language of War (no dance)
   Scorpio Rising (no dance)

Poems of Gwendolyn Brooks, Recited by Lynn King
   Identity (no dance)
   A Song in the Front Yard – danced by Emmi & Nora
   The Boy Died in My Alley – danced by Ivanna

Interview Project – danced by Emmi, Robert, Nora & Azia

Closing Remarks by Scott

March 19, 2021  7 p.m.  Livestream Concert: Bach’s Keyboard Voices with Jan Kraybill, organ & Marian Thomas, harpsichord

About the Artists:

Marian Thomas founded the Westport Center for the Arts’ Brown Bag Concert Series, and directed it for 21 years.  She built and decorated her two-keyboard French harpsichord, which is patterned after a 1750’s Paul Taskin instrument, from a Frank Hubbard kit. Using the knowledge she gained from working at the Hubbard Harpsichord Workshop in Massachusetts, she maintains and tunes harpsichords in the Kansas City area. Mrs. Thomas has a piano and harpsichord studio at her home. She earned the Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Oberlin College, and the Master of Music in Applied Organ degree from Boston University’s School for the Arts. She was Organist/Choir Director at Saint Paul School of Theology for fifteen years, where she also taught courses on Hymnody and The Arts in Ministry. Mrs. Thomas taught music for the Purple Dragon Preschool for thirty-two years, and after serving fifteen years as Music Director/Organist at Westport Presbyterian Church, retired in 2009. She was a member of the music committee which recommended the acquisition of the Martin Pasi Opus 24 organ to replace the Wicks organ ruined by the fire of December, 2011. Marian was a founding board member of the Westport Center for the Arts and believes that “when the community creates art, the arts create community.”

Dr. Jan Kraybill is a concert artist, musical leader, speaker, and enthusiastic advocate for the power of music to change lives for the better.  She has performed as a soloist, collaborative musician, and hymn festival designer/leader in Australia, Europe, North America, Russia, South Korea, and Tahiti. In Kansas City, she is Organ Conservator at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, Organist-in-Residence at Community of Christ headquarters, and organist at Village on Antioch Presbyterian Church. Her most recent solo recording, The Orchestral Organ (Reference Recordings), received three GRAMMY® nominations in 2019, including the prestigious category of Best Classical Instrumental Solo. Visit www.jankraybill.com for more information.

Program:

Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, BWV 739
Herzlich tut mich verlangen, BWV 727

Selected movements from Partita 3 in a minor, BWV 827

Jesu, meine Freude, BWV 610

Selected movements from Partita 6 in e minor, BWV 830

Toccata in e minor, BWV 914

*View/Download Program Notes (PDF)*

February 19, 2021  7 p.m.  Livestream Concert: The Shortleaf Band

About the Artists:

The Shortleaf Band is a duet based in the Southern Missouri Ozarks. Tenley Hansen and Michael Fraser have immersed themselves into the culture, and traditional music of the “Scots Irish” who became the first to settle the region. They will be performing on a variety of stringed instruments including fiddle, guitar, mandolin, and other’s as they weave a musical tapestry showcasing traditional and contemporary music
from the Ozarks.

Program:

Standing on the Rock

Bear Creek Hop

Pesky Sarpent

Wolves a Howlin/Sally Goodin

Hop High

Saddle Ole Kate

Oh My Little Darlin

I Dreamed of A Home

Cluck Old Hen

Shady Grove

Ozark Moutain Lullaby

January 15, 2021  7 p.m.  Livestream Concert to Honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: Doug Talley Quartet, with guest vocalist Millie Edwards

About the Artists:

The Quartet
Formed in 1995, the Doug Talley Quartet has performed at numerous festivals, concerts, clubs and schools throughout the Midwest, and during that time has recorded five CD’s.

Doug Talley – saxophones
“Talley has absorbed the post bop traditions of Coltrane and Rollins, added the warmth of Dexter Gordon and the flourishes of Stan Getz, and developed his own harmonic and wonderfully melodic approach.” -Mark E. Gallo, JazzReview.com

Doug Talley has performed with such jazz luminaries as Jay McShann, Clark Terry, Bob Mintzer, Claude “Fiddler” Williams, Bobby Watson, Karrin Allyson, Byron Stripling, Ignacio Berroa, Randy Brecker, Scott Robinson and Gary Foster. He is a familiar face throughout the Midwest as a jazz performer and educator. Talley has also appeared at the 18th & Vine Festival, the Kansas Jazz and Blues Festival, the Kansas City Spirit Festival, the Coleman Hawkins Jazz Festival, Mayport Jazz Festival, and in Las Vegas with The Four Freshman, The Platters and The Diamonds.

Doug Talley is the recipient of the 2010 Kansas Governor’s Arts Award and the 2009 Johnson County Library Pinnacle Award for arts in education. Talley is a Selmer saxophone artist and clinician and has served as a clinician with numerous college and high school musicians, including the University of Minnesota, Coe College, Kalamazoo College, Kansas State University, University of Nebraska, University of South Dakota, Central Missouri State, Emporia State and Kansas University, among many others. Talley was a faculty member of the Great Plains Jazz Camp for twelve years, and was featured at the 1996 MENC convention in Kansas City directing the Shawnee Mission (Kansas) Honors Jazz Band. He was a clinician at the 1997 International Association of Jazz Educators conference and a faculty member of the 2003 IAJE Teacher Training Institute.

Honored by Kansas City magazine as one of the “40 Under 40 Who Move and Shake Kansas City in Business, Politics and the Arts,” Talley was also recognized in Downbeat magazine “Auditions” in 1986. His discography includes four recordings on the Sea Breeze label for the Trilogy and Boulevard Big Bands, several recordings for the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra, as well as the Doug Talley Quartet’s five CDs, Town Topic — “…reminiscent of the Modern Jazz Quartet.” (Jam magazine), Night and Day – which received national airplay, Kansas City Suite – a musical depiction of the quartet’s hometown, By Request, an offering of the quartet’s most requested music, and Chess Players – the music of Wayne Shorter.

Charles Williams – piano
Charles D. Williams has been performing in Kansas City for over 40 years, having backed up such Kansas City icons as Sonny Kenner, Claude “Fiddler” Williams, Queen Bey, Angela Hagenbach, Sharon Thompson, The McFadden Brothers and Bobby Watson. He has also performed with such jazz greats as Dizzy Gillespie, Max Roach, Ernie Wilkins and Cannonball Adderly. Charles performs regularly with the Louis Neal Orchestra and Ida McBeth, in addition to leading his own groups.

James Albright – bass
James Albright holds a BA in music degree from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. While at the University he also performed with the Lincoln Symphony and the Omaha Symphony. Since moving to Kansas City in 1992, James has performed regularly with Coleen Cassidy, Tim Whitmer, Tom Jacobs and the Kansas City Bass Quartet and is principal bassist with the Northland Symphony Orchestra. The Might Mo Boxband is a subject of great focus and reward for James.

Keith Kavanaugh – drums/cymbals
Keith is a graduate of the Berklee College of Music in Boston and has performed with Diane Schuur, Phil Wilson, Joshua Breakstone, Scott Robinson and many musicians on the Kansas City jazz scene. He is also a graduate of Park University where he studied Art and Graphic Design. He has paintings in many corporate and private collections, and has designed more than 150 CD packages for musicians from coast-to-coast. See his work at keithkavanaugh.com and bauwau.com.

Millie Edwards – Jazz vocalist
Ms. Edwards is known in Kansas City for her big voice and wide vocal range. She has been a regular on the Kansas City jazz and blues circuit, performing at the best clubs and in radio and television spots. Music critics have praised her as revealing “a confident, full-range voice that has no doubt been heard in church on many a Sunday.” Her singing has been characterized as being both honest and dynamic, and her phrasing is credited for finding new reflections from old, familiar words.

Program:

Basie and the Prez
Westport
Before the Fiddlers Have Fled
The Sleeping Child

1600 East 18th St.
All of the Fame
Blues for Jay
Lift Every Voice and Sing – Lyrics by James Weldon Johnson, music by John Rosamond Johnson

*All songs composed by Doug Talley except for “Lift Every Voice and Sing” which is used with permission of OneLicense.net #A-709093.

Personnel:

Doug Talley – saxophone
Millie Edwards – guest vocalist
Charles Williams – piano
James Albright – bass
Keith Kavanaugh – drums

December 18, 2020  7 p.m.  Livestream Concert: Jon Kratzer, trumpet & Jayoung Hong, piano

About the Artists:

Jon Kratzer – Trumpet
Jon Kratzer is a Houston area based professional trumpeter and currently serves as the Trumpet Professor and Director of Jazz Studies at Blinn College in Brenham, TX. He holds a Master’s degree from the University of Missouri – Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance and has completed significant doctoral course work.

He has performed with Frankie Valli, Amy Grant, Al Jarreau, The Temptations, Felix Cavaliere, Sam Rivers, Father John Misty, Bill Pinkney’s Original Drifters, The Coasters, Seth James, Yakov Smirnoff, The Platters, Four Tops, and many more. He has worked as a cruise ship musician, pit musician, recording studio musician, and has appeared on live television and radio broadcasts. He has also performed with the Orlando Philharmonic, Kansas City Baroque Consortium,Oklahoma City Philharmonic, as well the North Carolina Symphony as a young artist.

Jayoung Hong – Piano
Since making her debut at age 13 performing Schumann’s Piano Concerto, pianist Jayoung Hong has performed widely to critical acclaim in concerto, recital, and chamber music performances throughout Asia, North America, and Europe.

Dr. Hong has performed at Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall, and Lincoln Center in New York, Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., New School at Princeton in New Jersey, Mayfest in Canada, Kulturhaus Konzertsaal in Berlin, Germany, Royal Festival Hall and St James’s Piccadilly in London, U.K., Pretoria City Hall in South Africa, Taipei National Hall in Taiwan, and Seoul Arts Center in S. Korea.

An avid chamber musician, Dr. Hong has collaborated internationally with such prominent musicians as Jeff Nelsen, Allen Vizzuti, Eph Ehly, Andre Thomas, Rollo Dilworth, René Clausen, Greg Gilpin, Mack Wilberg, and Youngmin Park, and has been heard in radio broadcasts for NPR and Korean Broadcasting System.

Dr. Hong is currently on the music faculty at Blinn College in Texas and has previously served on the piano faculty of the Korea National University of Arts in S. Korea, Brandon University in Canada, and the University of Nebraska in the U.S. A popular clinician and adjudicator, she has presented masterclasses throughout the U.S., Canada, S. Korea, and China.

She spends her summer teaching piano at the University of Minnesota International Piano Camp as a Pre-College Program Coordinator.

As a Carnegie Hall Festival Pianist, Dr. Hong has performed on the Perelman Stage/Stern Auditorium at Carnegie Hall annually since 2007.

Program:

Someone to Watch Over Me – Gershwin/arr. Joseph Turrin

Embraceable You – Gershwin/arr. Earl Wind

Intrada for Trumpet – Otto Ketting

Rustiques – Eugene Bozza

Sonata for Trumpet and Piano – Halsey Stevens

Libertango – Piazzolla/ arr. Hong and Kratzer

November 20, 2020  7 p.m.  Livestream Concert: Prairie Earth Ensemble

About the Artists:

The Prairie Earth Ensemble

Jeff Clayton – Guitar and Vocals
Jeff is the Pastor of Southminster Presbyterian Church in Prairie Village, KS.  A singer-songwriter, Jeff released his first album of original music, Roots and Branches, in 2016 followed by Time Moves On in 2018.

Heidi Peterson – Vocals
Heidi is the Pastor of Central Presbyterian Church in Kansas City, MO.  She is an accomplished choral singer and presently sings in the Kansas City Women’s Chorus.  She has enjoyed contributing vocals to the eclectic music of the Prairie Earth Ensemble.

Jay EuDaly – Guitar
Jay has been a prominent artist in the Kansas City area for many decades.  A singer-songwriter in his own right, he performs frequently as a solo artist.  He has played with many artists in the Kansas City music scene and nationally.  He is also an accomplished music educator.

James Albright – Bass
James is one of the premier bass players in the Kansas City music scene.  Accomplished in many genres, James uses his classical skills with the Northland Symphony and the Liberty Symphony.  James plays regularly with many artists throughout the Kansas City area.  He is a music educator, teaching his own students and at William Jewell College and Missouri Western State College.

Program:

Down by the Water – Colin
African Skies – Paul Simon
Broken Things – Julie Gold
Something is Happening to Me – Jeff Clayton
Little Sad One – Jeff Clayton
Rosemary’s Sister – Huw Williams
Nothing but a Breeze – Jesse Winchester
Go and Say Goodbye – Stephen Stills

October 16, 2020  7 p.m.  Livestream Concert: Daniel Velasco, flute & Ellen Sommer, piano

About the Artists:

Daniel Velasco is an award-winning flutist whose “standout” and “vibrant” performances (Miami Herald) have taken him around the world. He is the first prize winner of the National Flute Association’s Young Artist Competition, WAMSO Minnesota Orchestra Competition, MTNA Young Artist Competition, Claude Monteux Flute Competition, second prize winner of the William C. Byrd Competition and finalist at the Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh International Competition.

He has been a soloist with the Minnesota Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra of Ecuador, Northern Iowa Symphony Orchestra, Luciano Carrera Chamber Orchestra, University of Akron Symphony Orchestra and Wind Ensemble, and has been featured as a guest performer at the Schubert Club Series in Saint Paul, the Indy Flute Festival in Indianapolis, the Middle Tennessee Flute Festival in Nashville, the University or North Florida, the Florida Flute Association Convention, the Swedish Flute Association Convention, the Guadalajara-Mexico “Vientos de Otoño Festival,” the “Festival Internacional de Flautistas en la Mitad del Mundo” in Ecuador, and the National Flute Association Conventions in Kansas City, New Orleans, Chicago and Orlando.

Orchestral festivals include the Latin American Orchestra, Chautauqua Music Festival, Orchestra de la Francophonie, Utah Festival Opera, as well as tours through Chile and Central America with the Orchestra of the Americas. He has performed under Carlos Prieto, Gustavo Dudamel, Claudio Abbado, Ben Zander, Jean-Philippe Tremblay, Jacomo Bairos, Ramón Tebar, Cristian Macelaru, Carl St. Clair, and others.

An active freelancer, he has been a member of the Lansing Symphony Orchestra, Florida Grand Opera, Palm Beach Symphony, and has performed with Boca Sinfonia, Michigan Philharmonic, Akron Symphony, Pittsburgh Opera and Kansas City Symphony. He was a member of the Solaris woodwind quintet for two seasons, and is a founding member of the Miami-based NuDeco Ensemble.

Velasco earned a doctoral degree from the University of Miami-Frost School of Music, and holds degrees from the University of Michigan, the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Northern Iowa. His main teachers include Angeleita Floyd, Marianne Gedigian, Amy Porter and Trudy Kane.

He served on the faculty at the University of Akron from 2016-2018 and is currently the flute professor at the University of Kansas. He is Yamaha performing artist.

Pianist Ellen R. Sommer has quickly established a reputation as a much sought-after collaborative pianist, chamber musician, and coach. She performs extensively throughout the United States, Canada, Central and South Americas, Europe and Asia. Most recent engagements have included concerts and master classes at Universidad de Costa Rica Conservatory in San Jose, Costa Rica. Additionally, Ellen traveled to Tokyo with the Allegresse trio, premiering two new pieces at the International Double Reed Society conference.

Sommer often serves as a pianist for regional, national and international competitions and festivals, as well as recital series and radio broadcasts. Sommer is a frequent performer in the live broadcast studio at Kansas Public Radio. Additionally Sommer coaches and performs for several summer camps and institutes, including the Omaha Conservatory of Music Institute, BLYAP and Sound Encounters Suzuki Strings camp in Ottawa, Kansas, Midwestern Music Camp in Lawrence, Kansas, and Interlochen Academy in Michigan.

Recently Sommer was awarded a prestigious honor as a 2016 Distinguished Alumni from Missouri Western State University in Saint Joseph, MO.

Sommer is a founding member of Allegresse, a fresh and inspiring trio for flute, oboe and piano. Recently the trio was invited to present a recital and master classes at the Festival of New American Music in Sacramento, California. Allegresse is currently completing a third CD recording and preparing for a March 2017 premiere of two new works for the trio, including soprano.

Sommer has collaborated on numerous professional recordings, including four under the auspices of Potenza Records. Most recently, Sommer recorded works of composer, Ingrid Stolzel for the Parma label.

Sommer currently serves as a lecturer in piano at the University of Kansas School of Music. She performs regularly with faculty, visiting artists, and students. From 1994-2003 Sommer taught at Missouri Western State University, both as piano and voice faculty

Program:

Andante and Scherzo – Louis Ganne (1862-1923)

Suite – Jacinto Freire (b. 1950)

Romance – Philippe Gaubert (1879-1941)

En El Centro del Mundo y del Tiempo – Leonardo Cárdenas (b. 1968)

October 2, 2020  7 p.m.  The Dancing Word: Live Stream Event Merging Poetry & Dance

About the Artists:

Glenn Stewart, poet, graduated from Georgetown College (Kentucky), with a Double Major in English & French, and a Minor in Journalism. Interest in the art of expression includes: writing poetry, short stories and producing short documentaries.

Suzanne Ryanstrati, dance choreographer, is an independent artist in Kansas City. She has choreographed in eleven states and three countries. Suzanne is passionate about human rights.

Sonja Schulz, is a dancer, aerialist, teacher, and choreographer, originally from Elk Grove Village, IL. She studied at the University of Iowa and graduated with her BFA in Dance, BA in Economics, and 200-hour Hatha Yoga Teaching Certification in May of 2019. She is currently performing with KC Contemporary Dance and Quixotic, along with teaching dance and yoga at local studios around the Kansas City area. Sonja is so excited to be part of this performance and be able to share dance with the KC Community!

Nora Burkitt, dancer, a Kansas City native, earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts at the Conservatory of Music and Dance at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She loves teaching all ages and abilities. She is a company member of Kansas City Contemporary Dance.

Program:

The Dancing Word: When Poetry and Dance Intersect
Glenn Stewart, poet
Suzanne Ryanstrati, dance choreographer
Sonja Schulz dancer
Nora Burkitt, dancer
Deanna Capps, live stream camera operator

Poems with Dance
   Parallel
   The Wall
   Plastic

Poems Recited
   Gravity
   Ephemera of Time
   If
   Scorpio Rising

Talkback with all the artists at the end of the performance

September 18, 2020  7 p.m.  Livestream Concert: The Wires

Program:

Prairie Fire
Steps
Interlude
Julie
Uncaged
New Mountain
Night Bird
Sligo
After the Battle
Appalachian Waltz by Mark O’Conner
Bakhtia
Ruska Roma

(all titles are written by The Wires unless otherwise noted)

August 21, 2020  7 p.m.  Livestream Concert: Lucas Pherigo

Program:

Pinball Wizard – The Who / Elton John
Sweater Weather – The Neighbourhood
Just Fine – Lucas Pherigo
Gravity – Sara Bareilles
Just You – Lucas Pherigo
Sydney – Lucas Pherigo
The Storm – Lucas Pherigo
Evaporated – Ben Folds
One Angry Dwarf and 100 Solemn Faces – Ben Folds
Joe’s Girlfriend – Lucas Pherigo

June 26th, 2020  7:00 p.m.  View Livestream Concert: Sarah Tannehill & Robert Pherigo

Program:

Please Join Soprano Sarah Tannehill Anderson and pianist Robert Pherigo in a program celebrating Love, Spirit, and Nature. Included will be a world premiere performance of Mr. Pherigo’s setting of Wendell Berry’s poem The Peace of Wild Things, written as a response to these unsettling times. Two other compositions of Pherigo’s will also be on the program along with a set of spirituals and a selection of Broadway and jazz favorites.

Gustav Mahler’s Rückert Lieder in English Paraphrase