Beginning November 3rd and continuing on long weekends until November 12th, University of Illinois Theatre will perform “Urinetown, The Musical”. This outrageous social satire by Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis takes a shot at just about every institution a futuristic society could possibly get wrong. It won critical acclaim, and many awards, including three Tony Awards, during its Broadway run of 990 performances.
J. W. Morrisette and Lisa Gaye Dixon will direct for the Colwell Playhouse, and if you can get by the title, it is a wonderful show to see when you’re in town. November 12th brings the Sinfonia da Camera back to the Foellinger Great Hall. Featured on the program that night is George Walker’s piano concerto with soloist and faculty member, Rochelle Sennet. If you have not heard this gifted faculty pianist, don’t miss this concert as American composer George Walker is one of her specialties; also on the bill are works by Rimsky-Korsakov and Dvorak.
Photo from Rochelle Sennet’s website.
The Jupiter Quartet returns to the Foellinger Great Hall on November 29th. Our string quartet-in-residence will augment their ensemble with cellist Kenneth Olson. Schubert’s String Quintet and Brahms’ Quintet Op. 51, No. 1 are the bill of fare for that evening.
December events at Krannert celebrate the holiday season and the festivities begin with the School of Music’s Annual Carol Concert. Pooling the considerable talent of this world class school of music’s vocal ensembles always has produced a wonderful way to sing in the holidays. This event at 3pm on Sunday, December 4th could be a sellout especially with a top ticket price of $10.
Just in case you have not seen a production of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, the Champaign Urbana Ballet will provide you with six performances between December 1-4. Or if you missed this annual event in recent years for any reason, our splendid local ballet company is back and ready to bring you the musical magic of one of the greatest ballets ever written.
Photo provided by the Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra.
If you have not experienced a Stephen Altop holiday concert with the Champaign-Urbana Symphony, your life has a major hole in it. Pairing with the Central Illinois Youth Chorus and the University of Illinois Chamber Singers, these annual concerts are pure magic infused with Maestro Altop’s special brand of zeal and personal engagement. Only a real scrooge would pass this one up on December 7th in the Foellinger Great Hall.
For tickets go to Krannert Center’s website. All events are at 7:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted, although The Nutcracker has both afternoon and evening performances, so check the website for that.