On a Monday evening last month, I returned to campus for the Jazz Ensemble II’s program of the music of Billy Strayhorn. After parking my car, I decided to take the scenic route to Tew Recital Hall through the Elizabeth Herring Memorial Garden. I saw a graduate midway through with her graduation robe slung over her shoulder posing for a photograph. I called out “congratulations,” and she reciprocated with a smiling “thank you.” Her mortarboard was festooned with flowers, and her robe sported the Rainbow Flag.
I mused that, for 130 years, graduates have been posing for photographs on campus. These graduation photo shoots often take place in the most iconic places on campus: by the bell tower, in front of the Alumni House, or in the Herring Garden. Although the first graduates chose a summer daisy as their class flower, today’s graduates are more likely to be surrounded by flowering dogwoods, creeping phlox, or azalea bushes. Flowers, photographs, and graduates have become an enduring rite of spring.
This month, CVPA will confer 77 graduate degrees, including terminal MFA degrees in art, dance, and theatre, and DMA and PhD degrees in music. Twelve of our graduates will also earn post-baccalaureate or post-master’s certificates. CVPA will also confer 163 undergraduate degrees. Eleven of these students double majored in such subjects as Arts Administration, Anthropology, Communication Studies, Elementary Education, English, Marketing, Philosophy, Political Science, Sociology, and Women’s and Gender Studies.
For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, each of our Schools of Art, Dance, Music, and Theatre will hold their own Graduation Recognition Celebrations on the afternoon of May 6th. At these Celebrations students will be individually recognized by their faculty. University Commencement will be held at the Greensboro Coliseum that morning preceded by the Doctoral Hooding Ceremony the previous day in the UNCG Auditorium. I look forward to congratulating each of our CVPA graduates on their achievements and know that many of you have been sources of inspiration and encouragement.
I am grateful that the relatively low infection rates and lull in the pandemic will allow us to meet in person for the full complement of Graduation Ceremonies. Together, as a community of artists, educators, performers, and scholars, we will gather to celebrate the Class of 2022. Amidst sprays of flowers and the traditions of tassel turning, bell ringing, and singing of the alma mater, our graduates will be presented with their academic degrees. To each graduate, I say Bravo, Well done, and Go make your mark!
Sincerely,
bruce d. mcclung, Dean
College of Visual and Performing Arts
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Kyrese Washington. Photo credit: Sarah Jones
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Kyrese Washington
BM Performance: Woodwinds
“Coming to college, I really found my sense of identity. I have figured out that there is nothing else that gives me more joy than performing for myself and others.”
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Chelsea Hilding teaching at Screen Door studio, 2015. Photo credit: Darnell Bennett
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Chelsea Hilding
MFA Dance: Choreography
“We’re told ballet is for very thin, young girls, and women. Ballet studios are so often decorated with gendered photos of girls in pink tutus. But I believe ballet is personal, and it’s for everyone.”
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Caroline Oliveira Crupi (’15 DMA, ’12 MM Vocal Performance) is the new Assistant Director of the Asheville Arts Council and will assume that position this summer.
Dan Crupi (’13 MM Vocal Performance) has been named Executive Director for the Asheville Symphony. Crupi comes to Asheville from serving as the Executive Director of the Santa Fe Symphony and Chorus.
Louisa Muller (’05 MM Vocal Performance) is currently the Stage Director for Handel’s
Amadigi di Gaula, a co-production between Boston Baroque and Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale. Muller is the 2019 recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award from the College of Visual and Performing Arts.
Thomas Dempster (’02 BM Music Composition) has been appointed Associate Dean for Arts and Humanities at the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts (ASMSA), a campus of the University of Arkansas System. Dempster founded the music program at ASMSA in 2018 and has since brought the program to regional recognition and acclaim for its innovative curriculum and student achievements.
Neil Shepherd (Business Officer in the School of Music) and the group he founded, Lexington Live Community Theatre, will present Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods May 13th–15th at the Edward C. Smith Civic Center in Lexington. Several alumni, two current students, and another staff member are also involved: in the production: Taiki Azuma (DMA candidate and ’16 MM Saxophone Performance) playing flute/piccolo in the orchestra, Matthew Emerson (’09 MFA Theatre) as Set Designer, Gitana Havner (’20 BFA Theatre) as Stage Manager, Blake Moran (’18 BA Theatre, Music Minor) playing the role of Jack, Alicia Reid (’19 MM in Vocal Performance) playing the role of Cinderella, and Jessie Stewart
(’16 BA Music) playing the role of The Baker’s Wife. Lauren Reinhartsen (Paint and Prop Shop Supervisor in the School of Theatre) designed and constructed some specialized props. Current student Luke Stikeleather is playing violin in the orchestra.
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Alumni News & Notes are compiled from self-submissions
and from the University’s news clip service.
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ONE MORE STOP ON THE ALUMN I TOUR THIS YEAR:
CVPA Alumni Happy Hour
McGee’s Pub, New York | May 7 @ 5:00 PM
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The School of Theatre kicked off its Centennial with fun for alumni and friends outside Taylor Theatre on April 23rd. The celebration was sandwiched between the two final performances of The SpongeBob Musical. Pictured above: Robi Arce-Martínez, Assistant Professor of Movement/Acting, and recently retired Business Officer Connie Prater.
Photo credit: Robi Arce-Martínez
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The School of Dance hosted alumni on April 23rd for an event to dedicate the Jan VanDyke Courtyard in the Coleman Building. The event also remembered the late Professor Emeritus John Gamble and honored Professor Melinda Waegerle who is retiring this year. Pictured above: School Director Janet Lilly (on left) and Professor Emerita and Alumna Sue Stinson, whose generous gift supported the courtyard project.
Photo credit: Martin Kane
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From left: Carla LeFevre, Elizabeth Keathley, Melinda Waegerle, and Patti Sink. Photo credit: Terri Relos
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Four faculty members are retiring from CVPA this year, and the UNCG Board of Trustees has confirmed these professors for emerita status:
Elizabeth Keathley, Professor Emerita of Musicology
Carla LeFevre, Professor Emerita of Voice
Patricia Sink, Associate Professor Emerita of Music Education
Melinda Waegerle, Assistant Professor Emerita of Dance Education
Together they have a total of 104 years of service and were recognized for their professional contributions at CVPA’s Closing Assembly on April 29th. Thank you, and best wishes!
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FACULTY/STAFF NEWS & NOTES
Dominick Amendum (’00 BM Piano Performance and Smart-Tillman Artist-in-Residence in Musical Theatre) has received a Kohler Fund Award to support a new study abroad experience for theatre students in London. Amendum will depart on May 7th with 32 students for intensive theatrical study in London—including workshops with the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, The Royal Shakespeare Company, Punchdrunk Theatre, Frantic Assembly, Shapes In Motion, and some of the West End’s finest talents.
Mark Engebretson (Professor of Composition) received the 2022 CVPA Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award.
Dan Hale (Visiting Assistant Professor of Animation) will be leading sessions during the American Association of University Women (AAUW) “UNCG Intersection: Summer Camp for Middle School Girls,” June 13th–17th, which addresses the gender disparity in IT fields by introducing girls at a young age to the STEM disciplines and technology.
Andy Hudson (Assistant Professor of Clarinet) recently gave guest artist masterclasses at Northwestern University, the San Francisco Conservatory, and Roosevelt University’s Chicago College for the Performing Arts.
Catrina Kim (Assistant Professor of Music Theory) had her article “Formal Excess in the Opening Movement of Fanny Hensel’s String Quartet in E-flat Major (1834)” accepted for publication in the journal Music Theory Spectrum—the most prestigious and selective American journal of music theory. The article is a project supported in part by a Dean’s Research and Creative Incentive Award and will appear in volume 45, no. 2 in Fall 2023.
Randy Kohlenberg (Professor of Trombone) presented “Beneath the Mask: Addressing Student Mental and Physical Health Challenges” at the Lilly Evidence-Based Teaching & Learning Conference on April 21st. Kohlenberg was also awarded the Student Learning Award at this spring’s Faculty Awards Ceremony.
Connie Prater (retired School of Theatre Business Officer) received the 2022 CVPA Staff Excellence Award.
Nicole F. Scalissi (Assistant Professor of Contemporary Art History) was a guest on the University Teaching and Learning Center’s equity, diversity, and inclusion-focused podcast “Small Steps, Big Impact.” The episode “Power & Language in Practice” with Brad Johnson focuses on how to apply student-centered, power-sharing EDI practices surrounding language. Listen to the podcast here.
Erin Speer (Assistant Professor of Musical Theatre) is the recipient of the James Y. Joyner Award for Teaching Excellence. The award recognizes one professor from across the University and was given at this spring’s Faculty Awards Ceremony.
Emily Voelker (Assistant Professor of Art History) has received a $5,000 award from the 2022 Spring Internal Funding Competition for her book Circulating Pictures/Contested Geographies: Photography, Native American Sovereignty & the French Atlantic Imaginary.
Clarice Young (Assistant Professor of Dance) has received a $5,000 award from the 2022 Spring Internal Funding Competition for her project “The Movement Style of Choreographer Ronald K. Brown.
Faculty/Staff News & Notes are compiled from self-submissions
and from the University’s news clip service.
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IN MEMORIAM: GEORGE KIORPES
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Professor Emeritus George Kiorpes passed away on April 27th.
A memorial service will be held at 3:00 PM on July 10th at First Moravian Church in Greensboro.
Dr. Kiorpes was Professor of Piano for forty-five years at UNCG from 1965 to 2010. Prior to UNCG, Dr. Kiorpes taught at Greensboro College from 1955 to 1965. Highlights from his UNCG career included serving as head of the keyboard area for twenty years and receiving the Outstanding Teacher Award from the School of Music in 2002. Dr. Kiorpes published articles in national periodicals and for four years was editor of the North Carolina Music Teacher.
His compositions for piano were published by Ditson, Willis, and Kjos music publishers. As a pianist, he participated in solo, ensemble, and concerto performances throughout the United States and East Asia. Concerto collaborations included performances with conductors Reginald Stewart, Arthur Fiedler, David Moskowitz, and Herbert Hazelman. Read more here.
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UNC GREENSBORO CONCERT AND LECTURE SERIES
SEASON SUBSCRIPTIONS ON SALE NOW
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Season Subscriptions are also on sale now for the 2022–2023 University Concert and Lecture Series, which includes Winston Duke, star of the blockbuster Marvel Studios movie Black Panther; violinist Joshua Bell, one of the most celebrated musicians of our time; Urban Bush Women, a dance company whose works weave contemporary dance, music, and text with history, culture, and spiritual traditions of the African Diaspora; the Indigo Girls, a folk-rock duo that has been the voice of a generation since its beginnings in Atlanta and which will be accompanied by the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra; and Seraph Brass, a dynamic ensemble drawing from a roster of America’s top female brass players. The series also includes a free artist talk by Shaun Leonardo.
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CLOSING SPOTLIGHT
A soon-to-be graduate taking a traditional cap-and-gown photo on a warm April day
in the Elizabeth Herring Memorial Garden. Photo credit: bruce d. mcclung
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The College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA) e-Newsletter is published eight times a year in September, October, November, December, February, March, April, and May.
The Newsletter is emailed to CVPA alumni, faculty, staff, students, patrons, and donors. Please feel free to forward your copy, and anyone who would like their name to be added to our distribution list can contact us via uncgarts@uncg.edu.
The e-Newsletter is edited by Terri Relos, Director of External Relations. Archived issues can be found in the “News” section of the CVPA website. To submit Alumni News & Notes, please use this form. To submit Faculty/Staff News & Notes, use this form.
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100 McIver St, Greensboro, NC 27412-5010
Tel: 336-334-5789
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