New arts season brings broad scope of events to Middlebury this fall
MIDDLEBURY, Vt. ? Middlebury College steps up to the fall 2009 season with a lively selection of events for all to enjoy. Some of the highlights include the opening of a stunning collection of Italian Renaissance panel paintings, once considered to be objects of devotion as well as icons of status and wealth; an imaginative and thought-provoking interpretation of Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot” set in a post-Hurricane Katrina landscape; an exhibition and lecture by internationally recognized Pacific Northwest architect Jim Cutler, who is this year’s Cameron Visiting Architect; the debut of the Middlebury College Orchestra’s new director, Andrew Massey; and a free concert in Mead Chapel performed by the legendary Emerson String Quartet, as well as many other performances, productions, films and studio art events.
PERFORMING ARTS SERIES MUSIC
In addition to a full season of delightful performances, the Performing Arts Series is celebrating its 90th anniversary and its 25th year with director Paul Nelson at the helm. This fall’s musical offerings open with the jazz interpretations of the Aaron Diehl Trio on Sept. 18. Hailed by the Chicago Tribune as “the most promising discovery that Wynton Marsalis has made since Eric Reed,” Diehl’s distinctive piano interpretations of jazz masters like Art Tatum and Duke Ellington pay homage to tradition while establishing his own voice.
Many artists are returning to Middlebury for repeat performances over the year. The Emerson String Quartet will give a free concert on Oct. 2 in Mead Chapel. The group - named after New England’s Ralph Waldo Emerson - returns for its 31st performance at Middlebury. Other familiar faces include the Pavel Haas Quartet; cellist Sophie Shao; and legendary pianist Paul Lewis. Later in the year, Middlebury College 1982 graduate and musical iconoclast Philip Hamilton will return to perform “Voices,” an original a cappella concert that fuses global rhythms and influences.
New faces include young Russian violinist Alina Ibragimova, who will perform Bach unaccompanied and has been quoted by the London Times as “destined to be a force in the classical music firmament for decades to come,” and another bright young Russian, pianist Rustem Hayroudinoff, who will play selections from Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich and Chopin. After the new year, the college will welcome the chamber music duo of cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras and pianist Alexandre Tharaud; dynamic performance artist Guillermo Gómez-Peña; the Hugo Wolf Quartett; and pianist Richard Goode.
THEATRE
On Sept. 22 and 23, the Classical Theatre of Harlem presents its imaginative interpretation of Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot,” set in a post-Hurricane Katrina landscape. After a
online. Open Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 12-5 p.m., the museum is located in the Middlebury College Kevin P. Mahaney ‘84 Center for the Arts. Admission is free.