Arts and Entertainment

Center for the Performing Arts discounted series on sale

University Park, Pa. -- Five Tony Award-winning Broadway musicals, including the State College debuts of the Billy Joel-inspired "Movin' Out" and the comedy "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," are among the major attractions in the Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State 2007-2008 series of professional touring music, theater and dance. Seven traditional subscription series and a new Choice series, which allows patrons to select their own group of events and get discounted prices, are on sale now.

Each of the traditional series -- Body Language, Bright Lights, Cool Heat, Forever Young, Intimate Excursions, Master Works and Wide-eyed Wonders -- includes presentations available as a group for a 10-percent discount. Four nonseries presentations also are part of the season, which runs September through April at Eisenhower and Schwab auditoriums on the University Park campus.

Patrons may create their own Choice series and receive a 10-percent discount by purchasing together the same quantity of tickets to each of four or more presentations from the 27 offered.

Traditional and Choice series buyers are eligible for no-fee ticket exchanges, in which they can return series-event tickets and apply the face value toward tickets to another Center for the Performing Arts 2007-2008 presentation.

Patrons who purchase a traditional or Choice series have the privilege of ordering additional tickets to any of the 27 individual events before they go on sale to the general public Aug. 1.

The Body Language dance series features Brooklyn-based Ronald K. Brown/Evidence, Mexico City's Tania Perez-Salas Compania de Danza and Spain's Compania Nacional de Danza. Brown's company draws on Latin American, African, African-American and Caribbean cultures plus modern, hip-hop and ballet influences. Dancer and choreographer Perez-Salas leads a contemporary troupe that has become a hot commodity with its sexually charged dances. Compania Nacional, a modern ballet ensemble, performs the works of Nacho Duato, one of the world's great choreographers.

Bright Lights, the musical theater series, includes "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," "Gypsy," "Movin' Out" and "Evita."

The Cool Heat jazz series welcomes pianist Chick Corea and banjo master Bela Fleck together in concert. The series also features the Count Basie Orchestra with singer Nnenna Freelon and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band from New Orleans.

Forever Young, a series for families, includes Ballet Folklorico de Mexico, China's Shaolin Warriors and the musical "Annie."

The Intimate Excursions chamber music series begins with the American String Quartet joined by Timothy Deighton, violist and Penn State faculty member. Apollo's Fire, the Cleveland Baroque Orchestra, performs vocal selections from Monteverdi's opera "L'Orfeo" plus chamber music by Monteverdi and other 17th-century composers. Guarneri String Quartet and Johannes String Quartet come together to perform Mendelssohn's famous octet and a new work by Pulitzer Prize winner William Bolcom. Brentano String Quartet and cellist Michael Kannen perform a selection of madrigals by Carlo Gesualdo and Schubert's Quintet in C Major.

Master Works, a series for classical music lovers, presents violin superstar Itzhak Perlman in his first appearance at Penn State in 14 years, with piano accompanist Rohan De Silva. The series also includes the Russian National Orchestra with cellist Nina Kotova, led by the much-heralded Greek conductor Teodor Currentzis, performing works by Dvorak and Tchaikovsky. Also, the St. Petersburg Ballet Theatre performs Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet."

Wide-eyed Wonders, a series especially for children, features Hudson Vagabond Puppets performing "Ferdinand the Bull" and two TheatreworksUSA musicals: "Anne of Green Gables," which debuted off-Broadway this spring, and "Junie B. Jones."

The four nonseries presentations are Planet Drumz with Grateful Dead percussionist Mickey Hart, Actors from the London Stage in "Macbeth," Ballet Argentino with American Ballet Theatre star Julio Bocca in "Boccatango" and Russia's Moiseyev Dance Company.

To purchase a traditional or Choice series, or to request a brochure with order form, call (814) 863-0255. Outside the local calling area, dial toll-free (800) ARTS-TIX. Visit the box offices at Eisenhower Auditorium and Penn State Tickets Downtown. For details about all of the presentations or to download a printable brochure and order form (for mail and fax purchases), visit http://www.cpa.psu.edu/ online.

Last Updated March 19, 2009