Theatre Arts opens 2009-2010 season with “Godspell”

The Cities of Grand Forks and East Grand Forks have become a tight community over the years through flood fighting efforts and even in their support of the local sports team. Well they have the chance to come together once again and support UND’s Departments of Theatre Arts as they produce “Godspell,” a show all about the creation of a community and how people can come together and support each other through the good times and the bad. “Godspell” is the musical version of Jesus Christ’s teachings and his crucifixion, but underneath the surface it is the story of how a community is created and how that community joins together to support one another. “Godspell” is the Theatre Department’s first show of the season and they are coming in with a bang. Godspell was written by Stephen Schwartz and was first performed in 1971; it contains several well known songs including “Day by Day,” and “We Beseech Thee.”

Director Gaye Burgess is bringing a new perspective to the timeless classic by setting the musical in 1990s urban blight. The characters start off as individuals each thinking only of themselves, Burgess describes everyone as being an “island on their own.” However, as the the show advances, the characters begin to bond with one another while acting out some of the parables based on the Gospel according to St. Matthew. As the characters make discoveries about Jesus and themselves they become a community of believers. This metamorphosis is made clear through changes in costumes and lighting.

Burgess along with choreographer Lon Hurst have also made another addition to the show, a chorus. Originally Godspell was made up of only a 10-character cast, but Burgess and Hurst have added a five-person chorus to help boost the sense of community the show encompasses. They want audience to see the community created in “Godspell” as representative of humanity as a whole.

Although the musical is centered on Christianity the plays themes go beyond religion and comment more on humanity and how by working together we can move beyond what we can do on our own. So no matter what your belief, “Godspell” is a must see.

Performances at the Burtness Theatre on the UND campus are Oct 27, 28, 29, 30, and 31 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for students with a valid student I.D. Groups of 10 or more people receive a $2 discount. Reserved parking will be available. For ticket information and reservations call the Box Office at 777-2587.

– Alyssa Thompson, UND Department of Theatre Arts Publicity Assistant, Department of Theatre Arts , alyssa.thompson@und.edu, 320-221-0588

Arts & Sciences Announces New Faculty Hires

Welcome New A&S Faculty!

• Dianna Georgina, Anthropology
• Lori Esposito, Art
• Suzanne Gonsalez, Art
• Igor Octchinnikov, Biology
• Qianli Chu, Chemistry
• Sean Hightower, Chemistry
• Richard Aregood, Communication
• Slavka Antonova Communication
• Kimberly Cowden, Communication
• Timothy Pasch, Communication
• Alycia Cummings, Communication Sciences & Disorders
• Sheila Peauchaud, Communication Sciences & Disorders
• Caroline Campbell, History
• Robert Basaldu, Indian Studies
• Paul Worley, Languages
• Timothy Prescott, Mathematics
• Nuri Oncel, Physics
• Alison Finstad, Psychology
• Dimitri Poltavski, Psychology
• Heather Terrell, Psychology
• Caitlin Schultz, Psychology
• Jeffrey Langstraat, Sociology
• Emily Cherry, Theatre Art
• Lon Hurst, Theatre Art

Fishy plays to benefit John Little Memorial Endowment

The ND Playwrights Co-op has been busy fishing, but not with a rod. They’ve been fishing for John Little stories, and they’ve got eight on the stringer. John Little, founder of the UND Writers Conference, also wrote fishing columns for the Grand Forks Herald in the 1980s and early ’90s. In an effort to establish the John Little Memorial Endowment at UND, four playwrights have adapted Little’s stories into plays and plan to premiere them later this month. They will produce the plays with the assistance of actors Steve Finney, Jared Kinney, Jenny Morris, and Patrick Pearson, set by Jeff Kinney.

Bob Greenwade of Corvalis, Ore., saw the call for plays in a Herald story last spring, and while never having met John Little he has written two plays based on Little stories: “The Wildest Caster” and “Opening Day at the Boat Ramp.” Adonica Schultz Aune (Grand Forks) adapted a story about the lengths one angler goes to in order to keep secret a sweet fishing spot. Charlotte Helgeson (East Grand Forks) adapted Little’s ode to Catfish in “Cat What?” Kathy Coudle-King went to town with four pieces, “Muskie Mania,” “Hungarian Bill the Legendary Angler,” “The Big One,” and “The McClusky Canal.” Coudle-King stated that “adapting John’s columns was the easiest thing I’ve ever done. I can’t take credit for the plays because I had to do very little in order to turn them into a script. How do you top John Little’s humor? You don’t. The laughs are all his.”

The premiere of the collection, aptly named “Gone Fishing,” is already sold out. A catfish dinner will precede the performance at the Blue Moose on Oct. 21. However, Oct. 28, at 7:30 p.m. the ND Museum of Art will host the plays as well as “Fresh Fish,” readings by emerging local writers. Topic? Fishing, of course. “Fish Tix” will go for $20 and are available at the Museum the night of the event. All proceeds go to establishing the JL Memorial Endowment. Interest from the Endowment will enable Writers Conference organizers to bring a fiction writer to campus each year to fill the “Little” chair, as a way of honoring Little’s contribution to the literary life of our region. For 41 years, lovers of literature have had free access to such literary stars as Truman Capote, Eudora Welty, Sherman Alexie, Louise Erdrich, and this year Pulitzer Prize winner Art Spiegelman will participate. Coudle-King, one of the coordinators of the Writers Conference urges that “The time to create a tangible tribute to the man who gave us the Writers Conference is long over due.” So, what are you waiting for? Grab your rod, and go fishing on Oct. 28.

The events are co-sponsored by the Blue Moose, Home of Economy and the Dept. of English at UND.
– Kathleen Coudle-King, Lecturer , English , kathleen.king@und.nodak.edu, 777-2787

Radio Show Focuses on Healthcare

“The Morality (and Legality) of Universal Health Care” with Sharona Hoffman will be the topic on the next episode of Why? Philosophical Discussions About Everyday Life radio program.  It will be broadcast at 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 11 on live on 89.3 FM in Grand Forks, other Prairie Public radio stations across the state, in Winnipeg on Shaw Cable, 107.9, and online  for anyone who wants it around the world at www.whyradioshow.org ( http://www.whyradioshow.org/ ) .  It is hosted by Jack Russell Weinstein of UND’s Department of Philosophy and Religion.

 Very few issues are more on the American mind than health care right now. But what are the philosophical issues behind the politics? Does the state have a moral obligation to provide health care to others? Do citizens have the duty to pay for it? And given that the constitution is silent on the question of health care, what is the relationship between legality and morality? Sharona Hoffman will join us to ask these and other timely questions for what is bound to be a controversial but exciting show.

Sharona Hoffman is a Professor of Law with a secondary appointment in the Department of Bioethics. She is also the Law School’s Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Co-Director of the Law-Medicine Center. She received her J.D. from Harvard Law School and an LL.M. in health law from the University of Houston.

In 2007, Sharona spent four months as a guest researcher at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) working on liability and immunity issues related to public health emergencies. She has also been appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services to serve as a member of the Board of Scientific Counselors for CDC’s Coordinating Office for Terrorism Preparedness and Emergency Response during 2008-2012. She has published over forty articles, most of which focus on health law and civil rights law. Her research interests include disability discrimination, biomedical research, health care coverage, race and medicine, health information technology, and emergency preparedness.

Why?’s host Jack Russell Weinstein says, “This is an issue that goes to the heart of what we need not only for America but for the modern world, and there is no one better to discuss it with than someone who has legs in both the legal and medical worlds. I’m tremendously excited to have someone as interesting as Sharona to talk with.”

Have a question you want to ask Sharona in advance? Send it to askwhy@und.edu .  Subscribe to the podcast or listen to previous episodes online at www.whyradioshow.org .  Stay tuned for more! Upcoming guests include:  Martha Nussbaum, Michael Apple, and Amelie Rorty. — Jack Russell Weinstein, Philosophy and Religion. 

Kathleen Dixon named director of Women Studies

Kathleen Dixon, professor of English and long-standing member of the Women Studies Program, has taken the reins from previous director, Wendelin Hume, associate professor and chair of the Department of Criminal Justice.

Professor Dixon has taught a number of courses in women and gender studies since her arrival at UND in 1991 and has published scholarly books and essays in these fields, including Making Relationships: Gender in the Forming of Academic Community (Peter Lang, 1997) and, with UND graduate student Daniela Koleva, “Baudrillard and History: the Hyperreal on Television, Or Some Women of the Global Village” (International Journal of Baudrillard Studies 4.2 (July 2007). Rowman, Littlefield has just published professor Dixon’s third book, “The Global Village Re-visited: Art, Politics, and Television Talk Shows,” which features case studies of three television talk shows from three countries. Gender differences are central to Dixon’s study of The Oprah Winfrey Show and of Jan Publiek, a Flemish public TV talk show.

The new Women Studies Director wishes to invite all faculty with expertise in women or gender studies to become women studies affiliates. Affiliates may contribute in many ways to the program, but chiefly supply it with courses that students may take for WS credit. Affiliates inform the program of courses they teach that offer topics in feminism or gender studies.

For more information on becoming a women studies affiliate and for help with the process, please email inquires to kathleen.dixon@und.edu.

2nd Annual Tale-Gating Party – Saturday, Oct. 3rd

 No, that’s not a typo. The UND Dept. of English is hosting a “tale-gating” party this Saturday after the Homecoming parade. Starting at 12 o’clock, students, alumni and community members are invited to read and/or sing their words at the open microphone in the back of a pick-up truck. The UND Adelphi Society will be grilling and food will be available for a modest donation. Bring your blankets or chairs and join in the fun on the ND Museum of Art grounds as people read their original work or their favorite authors’.

Also, a preview of one of the plays from the upcoming “Gone Fishing” production will be presented. Steve Finney and Jared Kinney will perform in “Hungarian Bill, the Legendary Angler,” an adaptation of a fishing column by Writers Conference founder, John Little. Info: Kathy Coudle-King, 777-2787, Sr. Lecturer – Dept. of English

UND Arts & Sciences to Host Second Annual Homecoming Reception

Grand Forks, ND (September 23, 2009) – The College of Arts & Sciences is set to host their second annual Homecoming Reception at the Empire Arts Center in Downtown Grand Forks. The event is Friday night October 2, 2009 at 6 p.m. and is free and open to all.

The night’s event includes special entertainment by the UND Music and Theatre Arts departments, as well as a program featuring President Robert O. Kelley, Dean Martha A. Potvin and department Chairs. Featured alumni include the Alumni Association’s Outstanding Alumni recipient Dan Martinsen ’73; Outstanding Geography Alumni recipient Julie Winkler ’73; and featured Chemistry speaker Jeff Banning (PhD) ’88.

The entertainment schedule is as follows:

6:30 PM – UND Steel Pan Band under the direction of Michael Blake

7:00 PM – UND Theatre Arts – Will present a touch of Godspell this fall’s Theatre production

7:30 PM – UND 12 O’clock Jazz Ensemble, directed by Ronnie Ingle

8:30 PM – UND Varsity Bards under the direction of Joshua Bronfman

Come and join us for complimentary appetizers and soft drinks available. The first 200 folks joining us will receive a special Arts & Sciences Homecoming gift.

In addition to alumni relations, the College of Arts and Sciences offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs and certificates in a variety of traditional and emerging disciplines in the arts, sciences, social sciences, and humanities. Students are challenges to work alongside faculty and within the community to explore and expand the boundaries of knowledge and their own creativity. The research, scholarship, and creative activities of the nationally and internationally recognized faculty enhance teaching and learning, as well as contribute to the expansion of the work’s knowledge base.

Professor Michael Fronda Set to Give Inaugural Cyprus Research Fund Lecture Thursday, September 17.

 Grand Forks, ND (September 14, 2009) –   Professor Michael Fronda of McGill University will give an inaugural Cyprus Research Fund lecture this Thursday afternoon at 4 pm in the East Asia Room of the Chester Fritz Library on the UND campus. 

 Fronda’s paper will examine the growth of Roman power in the ancient world by focusing on how the city of Rome came to dominate the Italian Peninsula.  Through an innovative use of contemporary international relations theory, Professor Fronda argues that Rome capitalized on the tendency for ancient state relations to be anarchic, on the one hand, but in some way limited by enduring rivalries between particular states, on the other.  Rome’s ability to exploit these fundamental characteristics of ancient, and perhaps all, states led ultimately to the city’s domination of Italy and provided important lessons for the city’s conquest of the Mediterranean world.

 There will also be a brown-bag lecture on Friday at noon in O’Kelly Hall, room 228.  It is there where he will present some of his work on Latin inscriptions with an emphasis on how little texts can illuminate substantial historical problems.

 Fronda was invited to speak at UND by assistant professor of History, Bill Caraher.  Caraher maintains active research interests in survey archaeology, as the co-director of Pyla-Koutsopetria Archaeological Project in Cyprus and participates in the continued archaeological research associated with the Eastern Korinthia Archaeological Survey and the Ohio State Excavations at Isthmia.

 Thanks to the generosity of the departments of History and Political Science, there will be a small reception after Thursday’s lecture.  The small reception will feature several photographs by Ryan Stander, an MFA student who served as our artist-in-residence in Cyprus this past summer.  His works are a preview to a proper exhibition slated for this winter.

 In addition to history, the College of Arts and Sciences offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs and certificates in a variety of traditional and emerging disciplines in the arts, sciences, social sciences, and humanities.  Students are challenges to work alongside faculty and within the community to explore and expand the boundaries of knowledge and their own creativity.  The research, scholarship, and creative activities of the nationally and internationally recognized faculty enhance teaching and learning, as well as contribute to the expansion of the work’s knowledge base.

UND Theatre Arts Welcomes Two New Faculty and Unveils 2009-2010 Show Schedule

 

Professor Emily Cherry joins the Theatre Arts Department to teach directing, co-teach voice and movement for the actor, acting for music theatre, and text analysis. She will lead the department in the development of the new Undergraduate Musical Theatre Program. Professor Cherry earned her Master of Fine Arts in Directing at Western Illinois University. Her thesis project was the direction and choreography for /Urinetown/ by Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis.

Theatre Arts also offers a new Dance minor, which will be in the capable hands of Professor Lon Hurst. After a professional career that spanned more than twenty years, Professor Hurst earned his Master of Fine Arts in Dance at the University of Illinois. He most recently directed and choreographed /Urinetown. /Professor Hurst will teach dance classes, co-teach voice and movement for the actor, and design choreography for department productions.

The dance faculty also includes Dr. Caroline Caine, who joined UND as a lecturer in 2007. Dr Caine earned her Ph. D in Dance and the Related Arts from Texas Woman’s University and most recently choreographed the Department of Theatre Arts’ production of /South Pacific/ in fall 2008.

The 2009-2010 Theatre Arts season at the Burtness Theatre opens October 27-31, 2009 with the popular rock musical /Godspell/ by Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak. Based primarily on the Gospel According to St. Matthew, /Godspell/ opens our hearts and minds to an idea of how we all might learn to live and work together in a global community. Popular songs include “Day By Day,” “Prepare Ye The Way Of The Lord,” “Save The People,” and “Learn Your Lessons Well.” Gaye Burgess will direct with Lon Hurst as choreographer and Grace St. Pierre as vocal director. Matt Strand will lead the orchestra.

The second show, /Two Rooms /by Lee Blessing, will be November 17-21, 2009. The production is a senior capstone project for Theatre Arts major Alyssa Thompson. The play looks at global terrorism from the point of view of one couple’s story. While a university teacher is held as a political prisoner half a world away, his wife faces both a private personal struggle and a pubic moral dilemma with the government and media at home.

On March 2-6, 2010 the Department of Theatre Arts brings you a second musical of the year, /tick, tick . . . Boom! /by Jonathan Larson. The musical is an autobiographical look at the courage it takes to follow your dreams. Based on the writer’s experience as a struggling artist, the musical takes us on his journey to the Broadway success of /Rent/. Emily Cherry will direct.

The final production of the year, /Eurydice/ by Sarah Ruhl will be presented April 20-24, 2010. The play reinvents the classic myth of Orpheus through the eyes of its heroine. Dying too young on her wedding day, Eurydice begins her journey to the underworld and forgetfulness. Arriving, via a raining elevator, she is welcomed by her father, three odd characters, and a distinctly nasty guy. Above, Orpheus writes her letters while below she struggles to remember him. Will this classic tale end differently in Ruhl’s hands? Come and see. Eurydice will be directed by Kathleen Mclennan, Chair of Theatre Arts.

The Theatre production season includes “End of Semester Showcase Projects.” At the end of each semester students showcase work in acting, directing, dance, playwrighting, and design. These performances are open to the public and free of charge. See our web site for dates and times later in the semester at .

Professor Emily Cherry joins the Theatre Arts Department to teach directing, co-teach voice and movement for the actor, acting for music theatre, and text analysis. She will lead the department in the development of the new Undergraduate Musical Theatre Program. Professor Cherry earned her Master of Fine Arts in Directing at Western Illinois University. Her thesis project was the direction and choreography for /Urinetown/ by Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis.

Theatre Arts also offers a new Dance minor, that will be in the capable hands of Professor Lon Hurst. After a professional career that spanned more than twenty years, Professor Hurst earned his Master of Fine Arts in Dance at the University of Illinois. He most recently directed and choreographed /Urinetown. /Professor Hurst will teach dance classes, co-teach voice and movement for the actor, and design choreography for department productions.

The dance faculty also includes Dr. Caroline Caine, who joined UND as a lecturer in 2007. Dr Caine earned her Ph. D in Dance and the Related Arts from Texas Woman’s University and most recently choreographed the Department of Theatre Arts’ production of /South Pacific/ in fall 2008.

The 2009-2010 Theatre Arts season at the Burtness Theatre opens October 27-31, 2009 with the popular rock musical /Godspell/ by Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak. Based primarily on the Gospel According to St. Matthew, /Godspell/ opens our hearts and minds to an idea of how we all might learn to live and work together in a global community. Popular songs include “Day By Day,” “Prepare Ye The Way Of The Lord,” “Save The People,” and “Learn Your Lessons Well.” Gaye Burgess will direct with Lon Hurst as choreographer and Grace St. Pierre as vocal director. Matt Strand will lead the orchestra.

The second show, /Two Rooms /by Lee Blessing, will be November 17-21, 2009. The production is a senior capstone project for Theatre Arts major Alyssa Thompson. The play looks at global terrorism from the point of view of one couple’s story. While a university teacher is held as a political prisoner half a world away, his wife faces both a private personal struggle and a pubic moral dilemma with the government and media at home.

On March 2-6, 2010 the Department of Theatre Arts brings you a second musical of the year, /tick, tick . . . Boom! /by Jonathan Larson. The musical is an autobiographical look at the courage it takes to follow your dreams. Based on the writer’s experience as a struggling artist, the musical takes us on his journey to the Broadway success of /Rent/. Emily Cherry will direct.

The final production of the year, /Eurydice/ by Sarah Ruhl will be presented April 20-24, 2010. The play reinvents the classic myth of Orpheus through the eyes of its heroine. Dying too young on her wedding day, Eurydice begins her journey to the underworld and forgetfulness. Arriving, via a raining elevator, she is welcomed by her father, three odd characters, and a distinctly nasty guy. Above, Orpheus writes her letters while below she struggles to remember him. Will this classic tale end differently in Ruhl’s hands? Come and see. Eurydice will be directed by Kathleen Mclennan, Chair of Theatre Arts.

The Theatre production season includes “End of Semester Showcase Projects.” At the end of each semester students showcase work in acting, directing, dance, playwrighting, and design. These performances are open to the public and free of charge. See our web site for dates and times later in the semester at www.theatre.und.edu.

Varsity Bards Bestseller

Phil Schmidt, Dean Martha Potvin, and Dr. Fudge together as Schmidt presents Dean Potvin with a check for the UND Varsity Bards from Stand Up and Cheer.

Stand Up and Cheer, written by former conductor James T. Fudge, PhD, has become a UND bestseller. The book, which is about the founding of the University of North Dakota Varsity Bards, has raised over $3,000 for the Varsity Bards. The author Fudge, with handling and distribution help from former Bards Phil Schmidt and Doug McLeod, has donated their time and energy for this special fund-raising project. Fudge was the second conductor of the Bards from 1957-1968.

The book, full of many old photos and Bards’ Programs, relates the founding of the organization in 1952 by Carol Humpstone, at the encouragement of a few young male UND students. It also explains the great traditions that were established by the group during the first two decades of their award-winning existence. Dr. Fudge’s writing style is so vivid and lively you’ll feel as though you were right there with the Bards during those early years. Parts will have you doubled over with laughter and others will have your eyes brimming with tears as the author reveals the exciting and often rambunctious experiences of the Bards.

Accompanying the book is a CD with 15 songs recorded by the Bards from various classes during those years. The CD was prepared professionally and the sound quality is excellent. The book and CD combination is available for $49.95 (including shipping and handling). Student pricing (and for orders of 5 or more sets) is $39.95 each.

Please note that 100% of all profits from the sale of the book and CD set will be donated to the current Varsity Bards at UND.

Send your checks and mailing address to:

Phil Schmidt

8526 Amato Drive

Lakeside, CA 92040

Note: Make checks payable to Philip Schmidt, with a note on the check “For Bards Book & CD”.