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First Friday Fun with Oregon Fringe Festival and More

This upcoming First Friday, May 5, ride the Allaboard Trolley to visit downtown galleries and the art happenings at Southern Oregon University. Exhibitions can be viewed in the Schneider Museum of Art, the Center for the Visual Arts (CVA) Galleries, and the Fine Art students’ Private Open Studios until 8:00 PM.

University parking behind the Museum will be made available to the public starting at 4:00 PM. The Allaboard Trolley will shuttle patrons to and from the Museum to the downtown Ashland area between 5:00 PM and 10:00 PM – a generous amount of time to visit the Museum, the student studios and Center for the Visual Arts (CVA) Galleries, and then visit your favorite Ashland galleries, studios, restaurants and more. There will be three stops on the Trolley route, the Schneider Museum of Art, A Street between 5th and 6th Streets, and the Plaza by the Fountains. Museum hours will be extended until 8:00 PM.

On view at the Schneider Museum of Art is Convergence: Digital Media and Technology. The show is co-curated by Richard Herskowitz and Museum Director Scott Malbaurn in collaboration with the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art (JSMA) and the Ashland Independent Film Festival (AIFF). It includes work by video, film, and installation artists with world-renowned reputations:

  • Allison Cekala
  • Derek G. Larson
  • Nina Katchadourian
  • Ken Matsubara
  • Julia Oldham
  • Vanessa Renwick
  • Peter Sarkisian
  • Lou Watson

Adjacent to the Museum, join the CVA Galleries to celebrate a collection of exhibitions for the 2017 Oregon Fringe Festival! The Festival welcomes bold work from courageous young creators. A mixture of innovative produced happenings and installations and curated works from artists at Southern Oregon University, the Oregon Fringe Festival breaks boundaries and takes art out of its traditional venues. The following shows will be on view:

  • Dancing with Alchemy, Mara Reinhardt, Solo Exhibition
  •   Imagined: 30 Years of Performance Mask, James Jesse Peck, Solo Exhibition
  •  Works by Ka’ila Farrell-Smith, Ka’ila Farrell-Smith, Solo Exhibition
  •  [i s h], Samuel Lindley, Solo Exhibition
  •  Revelation, Charlie Howarth, Solo Exhibition

The Schneider Museum of Art thanks the following sponsors for supporting the trolley service for First Friday: Brickroom, Gallerie Karon, Hanson Howard Gallery, and Standing Stone.

For more information, please contact the Museum at 541-552-6245 or visit the website at sma.sou.edu. For information about the Center for the Visual Arts galleries, please contact cvagalleries@sou.edu or visit Facebook.com/CvaGalleries.

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OCA Theatre Program Presents Summer People

The Oregon Center for the Arts at Southern Oregon University Theatre program proudly presents Maxim Gorky’s depiction of turn of the century Russia, Summer People. This homage to Anton Chekov, runs May 11-14, 2017 at Southern Oregon University’s Stevenson Union Arena.

Something of a de facto sequel to Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard, Summer People depicts the ordeals and aspirations of Russia’s new middle class, represented by several families vacationing in their summer homes. They play chess, meet for picnics, and entangle themselves in perilous romances, all while facing the unmistakable specter of change—a change some fear, some welcome, and none can avoid.

Summer People is written by Maxim Gorky, and the translation of the play is by Nicholas Sanders and Frank Dwyer. According to dramaturg Tamar Peterson, “Maxim Gorky (1868-1936), a Russian and Soviet writer, born under the name Alexei Maximovich Peshkov, got his start writing as a journalist, favoring the alias, “Gorky,” which means “the bitter one.” Gorky’s career breakthrough came when he published his first book, Essays and Stories, in 1898. He believed that literature should be a form of political commentary and protest. His best-known work, The Lower Depths, which debuted at the Moscow Art Theatre in 1902, depicts the plight of down-and-out Russians living in a shelter near the Volga River.”

Summer People is directed by James Edmondson, a long-time resident director and actor with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. “We are particularly excited about the production of Summer People because it showcases the outstanding depth and skills of our student performers. It has been a rewarding experience to work with actors who demonstrate such dedication and discipline,” states Edmonson.

Performances take place Thursday-Saturday, May 11 through 13 at 8 PM; Saturday-Sunday, May 13 through 14 at 2 PM at the Stevenson Union Arena on the Southern University Campus at University Way. Tickets are: $21 regular, $18 senior, $6 student, general admission.

Tickets are being sold through the Oregon Center for the Arts Box Office. The box office is located in the SOU Music Building, off South Mountain Avenue, adjacent from the Theatre building which is currently under construction. Remaining tickets will be on sale one hour prior to performances at the entrance to the Stevenson Union Arena. OCA Box office hours are noon to 6 PM Monday through Friday. Tickets can be purchased with a credit card over the phone by calling 541-552-6348 or online at oca.sou.edu/box-office.

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ShakespeareAMERICA presents “The Woman’s Part in Shakespeare”

Shakespeare America will present a special event entitled, “The Woman’s Part in Shakespeare” at Southern Oregon University on Saturday, April 22 from 1:00 to 4:00 PM in the Meese Room in Hannon Library. The event will include a performance by Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) actress Robin Goodrin Nordli of her acclaimed one-woman show, “Virgins to Villains: My Journey with Shakespeare’s Women,” as well as a panel discussion featuring Lisa Wolpe, director of the Los Angeles Women’s Shakespeare Company. There is no admission charge.

According to David McCandless, Director of Shakespeare’s Studies at SOU and organizer of the event, “The Woman’s Part in Shakespeare” will address the challenges of being a female performer of Shakespeare’s plays. “Robin’s show addresses that topic in a uniquely personal way,” he explains, “and the panelists will also consider how being a woman in 2017 shapes their approach to characters created over 400 years ago—especially those women considered shrewish or villainous.” Additionally, the panel will discuss “the rewards and risks of women taking on male roles.” Wolpe is a specialist in cross-gender performance who, according to American Theatre magazine, has played more Shakespearean male roles than any woman in history.

Joining Wolpe on the panel are OSF actress Christiana Clark, who has played both male and female Shakespearean characters, including Proteus in The Two Gentlemen of Verona and Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing, and Dawn Monique Williams, OSF Artistic Associate whose upcoming production of The Merry Wives of Windsor will feature many women in male roles, including that of Falstaff. Professor Pamela Brown, a Shakespeare scholar from the University of Connecticut, will kick off the event with a brief lecture on Shakespearean actresses from a historical perspective, entitled “For what’s a play without a woman in it?”

The public is welcome to attend “The Woman’s Part in Shakespeare” on Saturday, April 22 from 1:00 to 4:00 PM in the Meese Room in Hannon Library at Southern Oregon University. This event is free of charge with no RSVP required. For more information, please contact Helen Eckard at 541-552-6346 or at eckardh@sou.edu.