Soon they will benefit from new state-of-the-art digital media lab space, classrooms and galleries, thanks to a recently funded renovation to EMU’s University Commons.

Associate professor Steven D. Johnson interacts with students in a digital media lab during class at EMU. EMU’s visual and communication arts major is one of the most popular programs offered. Students will soon benefit from updated state-of- the-art labs, part of a recently funded renovation of University Commons at EMU. Photo by Matt Gillis

EMU’s board of trustees, alumni and friends have "stepped up" to provide $2.41 million in cash and pledges for Phase II of the University Commons, reports Kirk Shisler, vice president for advancement.

"It’s an amazing show of support in these uncertain economic times," he says.

Renovation highlights

The overall project includes renovation of the former gymnasium, built in 1957, into two upgraded theater performance spaces and classrooms. This includes a new Mainstage Theater as well as the Lee Eshleman Studio Theater, named in honor of the late artist and actor who was a 1986 graduate.

The popular student coffee house, Common Grounds, will also be expanded in the renovation.

More than 40 students were involved in the spring 2010 mainstage theater production of IOLANTHE by Gilbert & Sullivan and directed by Heidi Winters Vogel, associate professor of theater. EMU’s theater department attracts students from across the university to participate in its high quality productions. Coupling updated facilities and technology to the energy of students and faculty will enhance learning and artistic possibilities at EMU. Photo by Jon Styer

New studio art gallery

A new student art gallery will be named in honor of Margaret Martin Gehman, retired art faculty member.

Gehman taught and at EMU from 1944 until her retirement in 1987. She serves regularly as a volunteer on campus and with other local organizations and has been a long-time strong financial supporter of the university.

She was the first recipient of the eponymous "EMU Philanthropist of the Year" award from the university in 2005.

Digital media labs key to program

"EMU offers an excellent digital media program taught by faculty who are experts in the field and is one of the few Christian colleges to offer a full photography major," notes , associate professor of visual and communication arts.

"With increased student demand for our programs, these upgraded labs will advance our goal of teaching students to communicate effectively, passionately and ethically in an increasingly diverse society."

The advanced media lab will be named in memory of former EMU trustee and long-time supporter, Kenneth A. Longacre.

Theater core to campus life

EMU’s theater department attracts students from across the university to participate in its high quality productions. Students are regularly recognized at the Kennedy Center/American College Theater Festival for their achievements.

Coupling updated facilities and technology to the energy of students and faculty will enhance learning and artistic possibilities at EMU.

"EMU theater faculty, staff and students have been making amazing art happen in primitive conditions," states Heidi Winters Vogel, theater department chair.

"I am so excited to see what we can do with performance and production spaces that are designed for theater. Watch for it!"

Upcoming theater events in renovated spaces

The first theatrical production in the renovated Main Stage Theater is scheduled for March 2011.

The Lee Eshleman Studio Theater, named in honor of the late artist and actor who was a 1986 graduate, will house key theater events that occur throughout the year like:

• Gonzo Theate, a student-run improv troupe that performs throughout the academic year
• student-directed plays like Anon(ymous)

More info

Renovations began in early May, with completion anticipated in November.

• More about the project
• Phone contact: (540) 432-4200

]]> /now/news/2010/april-28-interlude-concert-to-honor-matthew-garber/ Wed, 21 Apr 2010 04:00:00 +0000 http://www.emu.edu/blog/news/?p=2224

“Interlude,” a 14-voice choir comprised of current EMU students and recent graduates.

Concerts by choral groups occur regularly on the EMU campus, but this one will be a bit different.

“Interlude,” a 14-voice choir comprised of current EMU students and recent graduates, will present a concert of choral favorites on Wednesday, Apr. 28. But this will be the group’s only performance, and the program is dedicated to the memory of a fallen EMU alumnus.

Admission to the concert, at 7 p.m. in Martin Chapel of the seminary building, is by donation, with all proceeds going to the Matthew Garber Endowed Scholarship Fund at EMU.

Garber: student leader, musician

Garber, 22, a well-loved student leader, musician, and 2008 nursing graduate from Elizabethtown, Pa., was known for his strong faith, musicianship and good sense of humor.

He drowned on July 1, 2008 while on a missions trip in Costa Rica. Garber was planning to begin work as an emergency room nurse at Lancaster (PA) General Hospital the end of that summer.

About the concert

The group will be perform a wide variety of choral music from Rachmaninoff, Lauridsen and several African pieces to selections from a group from Finland called Rajaton. A member described the program as “kind of a ‘greatest hits’ of collective favorites from past choral experiences.”

“We just had a group of people who loved singing and wanted to do it together on a regular basis,” said choir member Katie Derstine.

“But in choosing music and during early rehearsals, Matt (Garber) kept coming to mind. Several of us talked about how pieces reminded us of him and how much he would have enjoyed participating in this project. Turning the concert into a benefit seemed a good way to focus our energy and give a more tangible purpose to what we were doing,” she added.

For more information on the program, contact Katie Derstine at 540-432-4110; email: katherine.derstine@emu.edu.

Theater at EMU is presenting six performances of its spring mainstage production, “Dancing at Lughnasa,” by Brian Friel.

Showtimes are 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, Apr. 8-10 and Apr. 15-17 in the mainstage theater of the University Commons. Thomas P. Joyner, assistant professor of theater at EMU, directs the eight-member cast in this intense study of the lives of five impoverished women set in 1936 in Ireland’s County Donegal in the fictional town of Ballybeg.

About the play

The play is loosely based on the lives of dramatist Friel’s mother and aunts who lived in the Glenties on the west coast of Donegal. The play depicts the late summer days when love briefly seems possible for three of the Mundy sisters (Chris, Rose and Kate) and the family welcomes home the frail elder brother from life as a missionary in Africa.

However, as the summer ends, the family foresees the sadness and economic privations under which they will suffer as hopes begin to fade.

The play premiered Oct. 15, 1990 at the Lyttelton Theater at the Royal National Theater in London on 15 October 1990. The production, produced by Bill Kenwright and Noel Pearson, then transferred to the Phoenix Theater, London, on Mar. 25, 1991. In 2009, a run opened at the Old Vic from Feb. 26 to May 9.

The play opened on Broadway at the Plymouth Theater on Oct. 24,1991, where the production won the Tony Award for “Best Play” in 1992. “Dancing at Lughnasa” was adapted for film in 1998 starring Meryl Streep as Kate Mundy.

Ticket info

Tickets are available from the EMU Box Office, 540-432-4582 or ordered online at www.emu.edu/boxoffice.

The Thursday, Apr. 8 performance will be offered at no charge, donations accepted; come as you are, pay what you will. For the remaining nights, reserved tickets are $10 for adults, $12 at the door, and $8 for seniors and non-EMU students ($10 at the door).Group rates available.

Information regarding age appropriateness for EMU events is available through the Box Office.

Robert is 200 years old – more specifically, Robert Schumann (1810-1856).

Pianist Lise Keiter will celebrate the 200th birth year anniversary of the German composer with a recital 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Mar. 17, in Martin Chapel of the seminary building at EMU.

Dr. Keiter, an associate professor of music and chair of the music department at Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, will perform Schumann’s “Fantasie,” a major work which is well-loved by pianists and audiences. The rest of the program will be built around the “Fantasie.”

Keiter will open the program with Beethoven’s “Sonata-Fantasie in E-flat Major, op. 27, no. 1.” Schumann greatly admired Beethoven and even paid homage to him within his “Fantasie” with some direct quotes from Beethoven works.

She will also play Clara Schumann’s “Variations on a Theme of Robert Schumann.” Schumann’s wife, Clara, greatly influenced his life and music; he composed the passionate first movement of his “Fantasie” with her in mind.

The program will end with three of the op. 116 “Fantasies of (Johannes) Brahms.” Brahms and both Schumanns were close friends and respected each others’ works.

Keiter joined the Mary Baldwin faculty in 1998. She has performed nationwide and is active as a solo recitalist, collaborative artist and soloist with orchestra. In 2005, she developed an all-women composers program of solo piano works in honor of the bicentenary year of pianist and composer Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel (1805-1847). This popular recital has become her most-requested program.

The Charlestown, Ill., native has a bachelor of music degree from the Oberlin Conservatory and completed a masters degree and the doctorate of music at Indiana University, where she also received the award for outstanding teaching.

Admission to the program is free; donations are welcomed for the EMU music student scholarship fund.

Learn more about music at EMU

Well-known Christian musician/recording artist Ken Medema will give a benefit concert 7 p.m. Friday, Mar. 5, at Park View Mennonite Church, N. College Ave., Harrisonburg.

The concert is a benefit fundraiser for , a local interdenominational ministry to homeless women and children and at-risk single mothers. Admission is by donation. An offering will be taken.

Medema will also perform in university chapel 10 a.m. Friday, Mar. 5, in Lehman Auditorium, where an offering will also be collected for the Bridge of Hope ministry.

Though blind from birth, Medema has has demonstrated his extraordinary musical vision in every imaginable venue, custom-designing his program for each occasion. Using his gift of improvisation, Medema hears with his heart stories from people or themes from events or speeches, then sings the stories back to his audience.

In 1985, Medema launched Brier Patch Music, a small independent recording, publishing and performance-booking company named after Brer Rabbit’s home in the legendary Uncle Remus stories.

“Brer Rabbit lived in a place not comfortable for anyone else,” Medema says, “and we have decided to follow him there.”

His albums include “Fork in the Road,” “Kingdom in the Streets,” “SonShiny Day,” “Through the Eyes of Love,” Sunday Afternoon” and a recent Christmas release, “Watching the Sky.”

When not on the road, Medema enjoys spending time at home in San Francisco with his wife Jane, reading books, watching movies (yes, Ken is an avid movie goer) and delighting in their grandchildren, Charlotte and Henry.

The event is cosponsored by Park View Mennonite Church and EMU campus ministries. For more information, call 540 432-4115 or 540 434-1604.

James Lyon, violinist, and Timothy Shafer, pianist, will play contrasting selections by Mozart, his “B-flat Sonata,” featuring embellished dialogue between piano and violin, and Beethoven’s “Kreutzer Sonata,” characterized by fiery virtuosity and musical one-upmanship between the two instruments.

The duo will also perform two smaller musical gems from the Far East – “Birds in Warped Time” by Somei Satoh, a piece of tranquil reflection, and Shuhu Xu’s “Song of the Fisherman,” a classic Chinese fish story of the big one that got away.

Lyon and Shafer first met at Penn State University in 1991, where they teach studio violin and studio piano, respectively. Lyon has appeared as soloist with the Spoleto Festival Orchestra, the Dallas Ballet and the Amarillo, Genesee, Hershey, Nittany Valley and Altoona symphonies.

Lyon is a graduate of West Texas State University, North Carolina School of the Arts and Eastman School of Music. He also has served on the faculties of the Eastern Music Festival, West Texas State University, and Indiana University Southeast, as well as summer appointments at The Quartet Program at Bucknell University and the University of Siena.

Shafer earned his undergraduate degree in piano performance from the Oberlin Conservatory and received masters and doctoral degrees in piano performance from Indiana University. He is an active performer, clinician, and adjudicator throughout the country for professional music organizations and colleges and is a frequent soloist with many regional orchestras.

Their performances have taken the musicians to South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong as well as Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall in New York City. Their compact disc recording, “Outstanding in Our Field,” features works by Stravinsky, Debussy and Strauss. Their performances and recordings have been hailed by The New York Concert Review and Strings Magazine.

Admission to the program is free; donations are welcomed for the EMU music student scholarship fund.

Learn more about music at EMU

Love and politics cross paths in a most unlikely way in W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan’s popular comic operetta, “Iolante,” the major spring theater production at EMU.

EMU Theater will present the two-act, two-hour musical 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Saturday, Mar. 26 & 28, and Apr. 2-4, with a matinee performance at 2 p.m. Sunday, Apr. 5, in the Mainstage Theater in the University Commons.

Twenty years ago, the fairy Iolanthe was exiled for marrying a mortal. Unknown to the rest of her kind, Iolanthe bore a son, Strephon, before her banishment. Now a young shepherd, Strephon falls madly in love with Phyllis, a ward of the Court of Chancery. But the entire House of Lords also want Phyllis, and a chaotic struggle ensues between the fairies and Britain’s men of power.

Costume designer Becca Snyder (l.) makes adjustments to Todd Hooley’s tie as fairy queen Charlotte Wenger looks on.

Heidi Winters Vogel, associate professor of theater, is directing the 24-member cast. Stage managers are Sarah Harder, Mountain Lake, Minn.; Emily Hertzler, New Holland, Pa.; and Jamie Hiner, Culpeper, Va.

Other major players are Phil Grayson, set designer; David Vogel, technical director; Sara Prince, choreographer; James Richardson, vocal instructor; Kenneth Nafziger, orchestra director; Heidi Winters Vogel, costume design coordinator; and Grant Sprunger, Kidron, Ohio, and Mark Fenton, lighting designers.

Advance tickets are $12/$14 at the door for adults, non-EMU students and seniors, $10/$12 at the door. Tickets are available at the EMU box office, 540-432-4582 or on line at www.emu/edu/boxoffice.

Information regarding age appropriateness for EMU events is available through the box office.

Kristen M. Swartley, a music and liberal arts major, will give a senior recital 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 21 in Martin Chapel of the seminary building at EMU.

Ms. Swartley, a flutist, will perform “Nocturne” by Lili Boulanger; “Partita in A Minor for Solo Flute, BWV 1013” by Johann Sebastian Bach; “Orange Dawn” by Ian Clarke; “Rondo” from “Flute Quartet in D, K.285” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; “Four Renaissance Motets” by Tomas Luis de Victoria, arranged by Phyllis Avidan Louke; and “Sonata for Flute and Piano in D Major, Op. 94” by Sergei Prokofiev.

Assisting her on the selections are: Jim Clemens, piano; Bebhinn Egger, violin; Ben Bergey, viola; Emily Sims, cello; Kelsie Adams, flute; Jenny Hochstetler, flute; and Amanda Styer, alto-flute.

Swartley is a member of the EMU Chamber Singers, EMU Wind Ensemble, Flute Quartet and Peace Fellowship. An honors student, she is active in drama, intramurals and The Table, a local house church.

She is the daughter of Emily and Kenton Swartley of Cedar Falls, Iowa, and a member of Cedar Falls Mennonite Church.

The program is open to everyone, and admission is free.