MESA, Arizona -- Sept. 25, 2017 -- Mesa Community College’s Fall 2017 Arts season is underway. Performances and exhibitions feature up-and-coming student artists and renowned craft masters presented in exquisite venues on MCC’s Southern and Dobson campus (1833 W. Southern Ave.). The Performing Arts Center delivers exceptional acoustics and visibility for musical, instrumental and dance performances. Boasting theatrical modernizations, MCC Theatre delivers an intimate experience to stage performances and the Valley-favorite Art Gallery embraces the dynamic and multidisciplinary nature of today’s visual culture. At the Red Mountain campus (7110 East McKellips Rd.), the Rehearsal and Performance (RAP) Centre has state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems, is located in the Saguaro Building and hosts several performances by the Arizona Cantilena Chorale.
This Fall’s Art Gallery exhibit, Tension and Territory, by Lauren Strohacker, is on display through Oct. 20. The time-based digital work and public installation is the result of her year-long collaboration with the Northern Jaguar Project and their efforts to sustain, protect and expand the population and binational habitats of the northern jaguar. Admission is free and open to the public during Art Gallery hours Mon. - Thursday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. On Friday, September 29, from 6:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m., there’s a reception with the artist in the gallery and exclusive showings of her time-based work Life and Death in the MCC Planetarium.
How are your spelling skills? Reserve seats for MCC’s musical production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which runs from Sept. 28-30 in the Performing Arts Center (PAC). It’s the spelling championship of a lifetime. Six spellers enter; one speller leaves. At least the losers get a juice box! Tickets start at $12.
The MCC Theatre & Film Arts mainstage season production of Story Theatre is a sure-fire hit for all ages that runs Oct. 6-14, including matinees. Reserve your seats now for an exciting, unconventional, dramatic romp through the Grimm Brothers Fairytales and Aesop’s Fables that will engage the young and spark the joyful memories of the young-at-heart. Tickets start at $9.
Audience favorite Beauty and the Beast is scheduled for Nov. 3-11 in the MCC Theatre. It’s the classic story of Belle, in a provincial town, and the Beast, who is really a young prince trapped under the spell. Tickets start at $18.
A top-notch production of Eurydice is also scheduled at the MCC Theatre and runs Dec. 1-9. With contemporary characters, ingenious plot twists, and breathtaking visual effects, the play is a fresh look at a timeless love story. Tickets start at $9.
Jazz fans: October brings the MPJE Jazz Concert on Oct. 3 in the Performing Arts Center and the Community, Concert Band and Orchestra Concert on Oct. 10, made up of MCC students and community members, directed by Rob Hunter, Paul Brewer and Brian Murphy. Reserve your seats now for the Oct. 11 Jazz Ensemble Concert, also at the PAC, playing under the direction of MCC alum, Paul Brewer. Started in the late-1960s, the ensemble continues to promote jazz at a high level throughout the Valley. All performances for these three events have tickets starting at $8.
Additionally on the music front, the Desert Echoes Flute Project Concert is on Oct. 13 in the PAC. It’s an exciting and adventurous flute choir program project sponsored by the Mesa Community College Music Department. The members are from the Phoenix metropolitan area and include professionals, music educators, college students and community musicians who all enjoy playing the flute. Rounding out the music performances is a Choir Concert on Oct. 19 featuring ensembles, a Cappella Choir, Chamber Choirs, Jazz Vocal Ensemble and Canto Vivo Chorale, directed by Joey Johnston and Dr. Craig Peterson, also priced at $8 or less.
On Oct. 27, in honor of American Architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s 150th birthday celebration, the Arizona Cantilena Chorale will present Frostiana in the RAP Centre at Red Mountain featuring a program of American composers. Tickets are $8 for adults, less for students and children.
If you missed the October performances, more concerts are performed in November and December; see the MCC Arts/events/music page for details.
Another special treat this fall is the MCC Dance Company’s Fall Dance Concert: “A Palette of Performance” on Nov. 16 and 17 at 7:30pm in the Performing Arts Center with special guests: OnTap, Propel, and Nicole Olsen. This concert showcases the eclectic mix of Modern, Ballet, Tap, and Jazz Dance that MCC is known for! Original choreography inspired by works of art and legendary people. Tickets start at $10.
But wait, there’s more! Reserve your seats now for NT Live Screenings for October and November which include Obsession starring Jude Law in a tale of passion and destruction on Oct. 20, Twelfth Night on Oct. 27, starring Tamsin Greig as Malvolia in a new twist on Shakespeare’s classic comedy of mistaken identity and Salomé, a charged retelling of the infamous biblical tale on Nov. 3. National Theatre Live is the National Theatre’s groundbreaking project to broadcast world-class theatre to cinemas in the UK and internationally. Shown in the MCC Theatre, tickets starting at $9.
On Dec. 8, a great way to celebrate the holiday is the Arizona Cantilena Chorale’s Songs of the Season, including “When Icicles Hang” by John Rutter and selected Christmas carols by various composers. All performances begin at 7:30 p.m. in the RAP Center at MCC’s Red Mountain campus.
Finally, we have a delightful holiday treat, the NT Live Screening of Peter Pan on Dec. 15, directed by Sally Cookson (NT Live: Jane Eyre). It’s a wondrously inventive production. Tickets are a bargain at $9 and make a great holiday gift.
Patrons should use the Solar Way entrance east of Dobson Road for easy access to the MCC Theatre and Art Gallery. The Longmore Way entrance west of Longmore Ave. is nearest to the Performing Arts Center.
Learn more and reserve seats by visiting MCC’s Arts website mesacc.edu/arts.
Those who are interested in a glimpse behind the scenes during the development of the shows are encouraged to follow progress on social media: MesaCC Facebook, MesaCC Twitter and MesaCC Instagram.
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Contact Dawn Zimmer, dawn.zimmer@mesacc.edu, 480-461-7892
Mesa Community College is nationally recognized for service-learning, career and technical programs, civic engagement and innovative approaches to education. The college serves as a resource for career readiness, transfer education, workforce development and lifelong learning. Host to 30,000 students annually, MCC offers more than 195 degree and certificate programs at its two campuses and additional locations. MCC is an emerging Hispanic Serving Institution with a diverse student body that enriches the learning experience. Award-winning faculty are dedicated to student success, providing the education and training that empowers MCC students to compete locally and globally. MCC, located in the East Valley of Phoenix, Arizona, is one of the 10 colleges that comprise the Maricopa County Community College District. For additional information, visit mesacc.edu.
Mesa Community College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association (NCA) http://www.ncahlc.org
The Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD) is an EEO/AA institution and an equal opportunity employer of protected veterans, and individuals with disabilities.