2010 Heartland Auditions Announced

PLATTEVILLE- The Heartland Festival at the University of Wisconsin Platteville has announced auditions for 2010. This year marks the 10th season for the annual Festival.

The season opens with Murder at the Prom! a murder mystery, dinner theatre production. The show opens with the Prom Queen competition heating up! The favorite for the title has some competition for the crown and her man. The faculty chaperones try to keep the peace but these girls will kill to win. The evening could bring us many surprises, but, rest assured, it will be A Prom To Die For! The show opens on June 11.

Next up is the musical comedy The Taffetas. It's 1950-something and Kaye, Peggy, Cheryl and Donna, four singing sisters from Muncie, Indiana are making their national television singing debut. "Spotlight on Music," a fictitious weekly 1950's television show on the real-life Dumont Television Network, sets the framework for an evening of some of the greatest hits of the 1950's. Opening June 18

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is a hilarious musical tale of overachievers' angst chronicling the experience of six adolescent outsiders vying for the spelling championship of a lifetime. Opening June 25.

On July 9th the Heartland Festival will be take you into the enchanted world of a modern Broadway classic! Based on the Academy-Award winning animated feature, the stage version of Disney's Beauty and the Beast includes all of the wonderful songs written by Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman along with new songs by Mr. Menken and Tim Rice.

Auditions for these four productions will be held on February 14th in the Center for the Arts on the UWP campus. Kids auditions will be from 2:30pm – 5pm for kids entering second grade through eighth grade in the fall. Boys from 2:30-4 and girls from 4-5pm. No prepared song or reading is required for the kids audition. Kids will be taught a selection from Beauty & The Beast.

Adult auditions will begin on February 14th at 5pm. Participants are asked to prepare a short musical theatre selection, and a short comic reading of no more than 60 seconds each.

“While we ask for a musical theatre selection, any song you feel comfortable singing is ok with us,” according to John Hassig, Executive Director for the Festival. Those auditioning should bring the sheet music in the correct key for their song. An accompanist will be provided.

Those interested in auditioning are asked to sign up in advance for an audition time by calling 608-342-1398 or sending an email to cfa@uwplatt.edu. Though many who have performed in the Heartland Festival have past theatrical experience and many return year after year, Hassig noted they love to see new people audition.

“We have many, many parts to fill this season, and we love to discover what new talent shows up to audition. I encourage anyone who has thought about getting on stage to come on out and give it a try” said Hassig.

For the most up to date information visit Heartland on the web at www.uwplatt.edu/arts/heartland.

Nationally Recognized Wisconsin Brass Quintet Featured at Platteville

The Center for the Arts Performing Arts Series at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville presents the Wisconsin Brass Quintet, February 10th at 7:30pm.

Founded in 1972, the Wisconsin Brass Quintet is ensemble-in-residence at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music. The brass chamber music experience of the Wisconsin Brass Quintet is nationally recognized. Their musical expertise has been acknowledged by Verne Reynolds, Jan Bach, Karel Husa, John Harbison, Daron Hagen, and many other composers.
The Wisconsin Brass Quintet has performed throughout the Midwest as well as nationally, including performances at New York's Carnegie Recital Hall and Merkin Hall. The quintet's educational programs and master classes have been presented in such prestigious settings as the Juilliard School and the Yale School of Music. They regularly perform radio broadcast concerts for Wisconsin Public Radio.
Barry Kilpatrick, who writes for the American Record Guide, had this to say about the Wisconsin Brass Quintet: “I’ve reviewed over 250 brass recordings in the past five years, and this is one of the very best. The Wisconsin Brass Quintet is a remarkable ensemble that plays with more reckless abandon, warmth, stylistic variety, and interpretive interest than almost any quintet in memory.”
Tickets for this event are $12 for General Admission $10 for Faculty and Senior Citizens $6 for Kids Under 18 and $4 for UWP Students (with current ID).

Tickets are available through the University Box Office located in the lower level of Ullsvik Hall at Hickory and Main streets in Platteville. The University Box Office is open Monday 8am-5pm, Tuesday 8am-8pm, Wednesday through Friday 8am-5pm and Saturday 10am-2pm. Phone orders can be made by calling (608)-342-1298. Tickets are also available online 24/7 at http://tickets.uwplatt.edu.

The next event in the series is the Punch Brothers on March 6th at 7:30pm. The Punch Brothers are like a classical string quintet with bluegrass instrumentation, original songs, and varied covers. Led by Chris Thile, formerly of Nickel Creek, The Punch Brothers are very interesting, talented, and unique. More information on the Performing Arts Series and other performance events can be found at http://uwplatt.edu/arts/cfa.

UWP celebrates jazz with annual festival

Matt Wilson Quartet at CFA

Matt Wilson Quartet opens UWP Jazz Festival

PLATTEVILLE-The Center for the Arts Performing Arts Series at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville presents The Matt Wilson Quartet, February 5th at 7:30pm.

The Matt Wilson Quartet was started in 1996 and it was Matt Wilson’s dream to have a working jazz band has been realized. Since that time the quartet have delighted audiences throughout the world with their acclaimed recordings and exciting live performances. The guys in the band are not only extraordinary musicians but wonderful human beings who love to have a good time!

In their travels around the US, Europe and Australia, the ensemble has had the opportunity to expose thousands of students to improvisational music with their innovative educational workshops. The Matt Wilson Quartet is dedicated to bringing the music to the people.

Matt Wilson was born in the prairie town of Knoxville, Illinois September 27th 1964 and began playing for his high school band director’s weekend dance band when he was in eighth grade. Soon he was playing in local groups of all kinds. A big band, very creative rock band called Common Denominator, country bands, Dixieland bands, anything he could play. He recalls that he was also extremely fortunate to study with a great local drummer who taught me music, not just how to play fast.

Matt went to college at Wichita State University and was there exposed to one of the most influential mentors of his career, Dr. JC Combs. To Matt, Dr. Combs was not only a fantastic percussionist but possessed one of the most creatively fertile imaginations on the planet. They played percussion works featuring a wide array of strange components including: pinball machines, cloggers, bowlers, and professional wrestlers.

The Matt Wilson Quartet performs music that is not afraid to challenge AND entertain. They have fun and so will you!

Tickets for this event are $12 for General Admission $10 for Faculty and Senior Citizens $6 for Kids Under 18 and $4 for UWP Students (with current ID).

Tickets are available through the University Box Office located in the lower level of Ullsvik Hall at Hickory and Main streets in Platteville. The University Box Office is open Monday 8am-5pm, Tuesday 8am-8pm, Wednesday through Friday 8am-5pm and Saturday 10am-2pm. Phone orders can be made by calling (608)-342-1298. Tickets are also available online 24/7 at http://tickets.uwplatt.edu.

The next event in the series is the Wisconsin Brass Quintet on February 10th at 7:30pm. Founded in 1972, the Wisconsin Brass Quintet is the ensemble-in-residence at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music and is a nationally recognized group. More information on the Performing Arts Series and other performance events can be found at http://uwplatt.edu/arts/cfa.

Mussorgsky's famed Pictures at an Exhibition at UWP

PLATTEVILLE-The Center for the Arts Performing Arts Series at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville presents I Musici de Montréal, February 2nd at 7:30pm.

I Musici de Montréal has developed a well-deserved reputation as one of the world's finest chamber orchestras. Known for its gutsy, passionate music-making, I Musici de Montréal presents imaginative programs featuring works by such composers as Tchaikovsky, Bach, Prokofiev, and Dvorak.

Mussorgsky's famed Pictures at an Exhibition is a new production from I Musici de Montréal and is performed with choreographed paintings by the award-winning Natasha Turovsky. The acclaimed new interpretations are accompanied by breathtaking imagery projected on a large screen on-stage. Filmmaker Gael Hollard gave them life in video animation, which was projected center stage and flanked by the musicians. Without resorting to showy technical gimmickry, this was a truly artistic meeting of art forms that reached from the humor of dancing eggs with protruding legs and beaks to ominous images in catacombs.

Conductor and cellist Yuli Turovsky has created innovative programs of works from the Baroque to the 21st century for this exciting orchestra. Since it was founded in 1983, the orchestra's more than forty recordings have been distributed in 48 countries around the world (on the British label Chandos Records). They have been awarded many honors, including "Best Chamber Ensemble of the Year" from Canadian Council of Music in 1987, and a "Diapason d'or" for a recording of the Symphony No. 14 by Shostakovich in 1988. "The Penguin Guide to Compact Discs and Cassettes, 1992," singled out I Musici de Montréal's CD of Handel's Concerti Grossi, Op. 6/1-12 for the coveted award of a "Rosette", denoting a recording of "special illumination, magic ... that places it in a very special class." In 1996, I Musici was awarded a "Félix" and a "Juno" for the Best Classical Album of 1996 in the Large Ensemble category for its recording of Ginastera - Villa Lobos - Evangelista. In 2002, the Quebec Music Council awarded their coveted CD of the Year Award to I Musici de Montréal and ‘cellist Yuli Turovsky for their latest release titled The Modern Cello’, which won in the category of Best Recording of the Year - Classical, Modern and Romantic Music.

Following a European tour that included the closing performance at the prestigious Les Soirées de Luxembourg Festival, and major tours in Israel and South America, the orchestra's current season includes three concert series in Montréal, a tour of Spain, and a return to China. The season's North American tour engagements include performances in Athens and Atlanta (Georgia), Avon (Colorado), Columbia (both Missouri and Tennessee), Jonesboro (Arkansas), Temple (Texas), Tulsa (Oklahoma), Kutztown (Pennsylvania), Worcester (Massachusetts), and the Wisconsin cities of La Crosse, Platteville and Milwaukee.

Tickets for this event are $26 for General Admission $24 for Faculty and Senior Citizens $20 for Kids Under 18 and $10 for UWP Students (with current ID).

Tickets are available through the University Box Office located in the lower level of Ullsvik Hall at Hickory and Main streets in Platteville. The University Box Office is open Monday 8am-5pm, Tuesday 8am-8pm, Wednesday through Friday 8am-5pm and Saturday 10am-2pm. Phone orders can be made by calling (608)-342-1298. Tickets are also available online 24/7 at http://tickets.uwplatt.edu.

The next event in the series is the Matt Wilson Quartet on February 5th at 7:30pm. Innovative and exciting, the Matt Wilson Quartet strives for an accessible but innovative sound—they have fun and so will you! More information on the Performing Arts Series and other performance events can be found at http://uwplatt.edu/arts/cfa.

Circus draws a crowd (Exponent)

Concert Preview Violinist Natalie MacMaster (TH)