impromptu A newsletter from the College of Arts & Humanities at MSU Moorhead
Dear Colleagues, Students and Friends: COVID-19 is destined to join the long list of pandemics that changed the course of history. It certainly has changed academia – affecting enrollment, forcing courses online in greater numbers, and changing the traditional college experience for many. COVID-19 also affected our ability to gather as a community to enjoy speakers, exhibitions, music and theater events. But here on the MSUM campus, we adapted. That’s what Dragons do. Our commencement ceremonies went virtual. We had rehearsals outside. Theater productions were livestreamed. Choir rehearsals and concerts went virtual and Straw Hat held performances beneath the shade of the great elms on the campus quad. As we look forward to inviting audiences back for live events, we are inspired by earlier generations of creatives that survived past pandemics. The bubonic plague, or the “black death,” hit medieval Europe in 1347 and claimed an estimated 200 million lives in four years. It appeared to have run its course by the early 1350s, but subsequent waves wreaked havoc over the next few centuries. Indeed, William Shakespeare lived through five outbreaks of the bubonic plague during his lifetime. A particularly devastating outbreak of the disease in 1593 and 1594 convinced the queen’s Privy Council to close all public theaters in the interest of public health. Shakespeare survived the plague, without the benefit of modern science, by social distancing and avoiding crowds. I imagine Shakespeare wondered when his life would get back to normal. I imagine he wondered when theaters would open so people could gather for a performance of King Lear, which he wrote during one of those pesky outbreaks. Interestingly, the plague never showed up as a topic in his oeuvre even though it was a constant in his lifetime. Although Shakespeare didn’t write about it, other creatives before and after him have used the pandemics of their times for inspiration. Boccaccio’s The Decameron, Love in the
OCTOBER 2021
Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez, Tony Kushner’s Angels in America, and John Corigliano’s Symphony No. 1 (The AIDS Symphony) are just a few examples of pandemic art. Art created in response to COVID-19 is already making a cultural impact. Just last spring, through the magic of technology, MSUM faculty and students made their contributions to pandemic art with the world premiere of Distance, a multimedia work about social isolation in the Age of CoVID. Adapting is what creatives do. It is what Dragons do. Since the fall of 2020, the College of Arts & Humanities has embarked on a visioning process that involves faculty and the community. After our summer retreat, I am excited to share our vision, goals, and strategies for the College of Arts and Humanities with you.
Our Vision: Transforming lives through the nexus of the arts, humanities and technology.
Our Goals: 1 We commit to bringing the humanities to life 2 We commit to use the power of the arts to promote the health and wellness of the human spirit through creative arts therapies 3 We commit to being a center for creative technology 4 We commit to preparing the next generation of creatives for the world of work
Our Strategies: 1 Articulating career pathways 2 Curricular innovations 3 Cultivating a marketing mindset 4 Fostering arts & humanities identity within our community We’ll spend the remainder of the academic year implementing the actions necessary to build our vision. I’ll share some of those actions with you in future communications. With all this talk of adapting to change, one thing remains constant – our need to come together to experience great
impromptu performances. That’s why I’m pleased to announce the Cheryl Nelson Lossett Performing Arts Series is returning. The season opens with Ragamala Dance Company and continues with the Minneapolis Guitar Quartet with mezzo soprano Clara Osowski in February. The season closes with French jazz singer Cyrille Aimée and her quartet in the spring. Our Winter Celebration of the Arts returns December 3 – rebranded and recalibrated for our times. Additional opportunities to come together include gallery exhibitions, film showings and musical performances by our talented faculty and students. See the calendar below for more information. One thing is obvious: the creative spirit at MSUM is irrepressible. Our faculty and students have found imaginative ways to create, perform, and communicate what is essential because that’s who we are. That’s what Dragons do. With gratitude, Dr. Earnest Lamb, Dean, College of Arts & Humanities
Related Pandemic Articles “Pandemics That Changed History” - History.com Pandemic Literature: A Meta-List of the Books You Should Read in Coronavirus Quarantine - Open Culture.com “Plague in Art: 10 Paintings You Should Know in the Times of Coronavirus” - Zuzanna Stanska, Daily Art Magazine
Select CAH Virtual Events from 2020-2021 MSUM Distance: A collaboration between School of Media, Arts and Design, Entertainment Industries and Technology, and School of Performing Arts https://youtu.be/MLXS9-PrFWc MSUM Spring 2021 Choir Concert https://www.facebook.com/590222064371140/ videos/976500856491922 Virtual Art Gallery Exhibitions https://www.mnstate.edu/academics/colleges-schools/art/ gallery/past-exhibits/
RAGAMALA PERFORMS AT MSUM This September, the world premiere of Fires of Varanasi: Dance of the Eternal Pilgrim opened the 50th anniversary season of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Arts in Washington, D.C. On Saturday, Oct. 16, Ragamala brings its immersive new production to the Hansen Theatre stage at MSUM. Fires of Varanasi was conceived by mother-daughter creative team Ranee Ramaswamy and Aparna Ramaswamy following the death of Ranee’s father four years ago. “We began envisioning this project after the death of our father/ grandfather away from his homeland of India,” said Ranee. “A devout Hindu, his desire was for his ashes to be scattered in the Ganges River in Varanasi just as our ancestors before him.” Ragamala’s engagement at MSUM is the first of three live performances planned for the 2021-2022 Cheryl Nelson Lossett Performing Arts Series. The second event of the upcoming season features the Minneapolis Guitar Quartet and mezzo-soprano Clara Osowski. The group will perform Saturday, Feb. 19, 2022, on the Gaede Stage. The quartet will also lead a free masterclass or workshop earlier in the day. The third and final event features French singer Cyrille Aimée and her jazz quartet on Saturday, April 2, 2022, on the Gaede Stage. All three performances and related workshops take place in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts on the MSUM campus. For more information and to purchase tickets to Ragamala’s evening performance, go to www.mnstate.edu/perform or call the MSUM Box Office at (218) 477-2271 Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tickets for the evening performance are $28 for adults; $24 for seniors, MSUM faculty and staff; and $12 for non-MSUM students. MSUM students get in free with MSUM ID. Tickets are also available at the door. Masks are required in all MSUM buildings. Any changes or cancellations regarding public health challenges that affect public events will be posted on the website www.mnstate.edu/perform. More informationa about Ragamala can be found at www.ragamaladance.org
impromptu Afternoon workshop open to all Ragamala Dance presents a free, hour-long workshop for community members of all ages. The familyfriendly event takes place Saturday, October 16, at 1 p.m. in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts. Participants will learn about the history and background of Kolam – intricate designs made of rice flour on the ground in front of the main entrances to homes in southeastern India. Participants learn to draw several Kolam designs on paper, and then create them with rice flour on the floor to experience the traditional method. Please register with Rebecca Sundet-Schoenwald at 218.477.2178 by 12 p.m. (noon) on Thursday, October 8, 2021. Drop-ins are welcome if space remains available. Masks are required in all MSUM buildings.
NOVEMBER
01
MSUM Music presents: Commercial Ensemble Concert
Hansen Theatre, 7:30 p.m.
MSUM Music presents: Jazz Ensemble Concert 09 Glasrud Auditorium in Weld Hall, 7:30 p.m.
15
MSUM Music presents: Guitar Ensemble Concert
Glasrud Auditorium in Weld Hall, 7:30 p.m.
18
Fox Recital Hall, 7:30 p.m.
21
Gaede Stage, 4 p.m.
MSUM Music presents: Piano Ensemble Recital MSUM Music presents: String Ensemble
DECEMBER
FALL AND WINTER 2021 PERFORMING ARTS EVENTS
the Date! More information to come about a 03 Save festive, fun holiday event hosted by MSUM’s College of Arts & Humanities.
MSUM School of Performing Arts presents: 07 Works In Progress/Dance Show
OCTOBER 01
Hansen Theatre, 7:30 p.m.
MSUM Theatre presents: Loving Repeating Gaede Stage, 7:30 p.m.
MSUM Music presents: Music Alumni Concert 02 Hansen Theatre, 7:30 p.m.
FALL AND WINTER 2021 VISUAL ARTS EVENTS
MSUM Music presents: Wind Ensemble Concert 07 Hansen Theatre, 7:30 p.m.
(opened Sept. 20; closing Oct. 14); Reception Sept 2, 5-7 p.m.
16
MSUM Peforming Arts Series presents: Ragamala Dance Company
(opening Oct. 18; closing Nov. 11); Reception Oct. 21, 5-7 p.m.
Hansen Theatre, 7:30 p.m. (performance); 1 p.m. (Kolam workshop)
(opening Nov. 15; closing Dec. 16); Reception Nov. 18, 5-7 p.m.
28
MSUM Music presents: Choir Concert
MSUM Art Gallery presents: BFA 1 Exhibit MSUM Art Gallery presents: BFA 2 Exhibit MSUM Art Gallery presents: BFA 3 Exhibit
Glasrud Auditorium in Weld Hall, 7:30 p.m.
MNSTATE.EDU/TICKETS Minnesota State University Moorhead is an equal opportunity educator and employer. This information will be made available in alternate format, or if a disability-related accommodation is required, please contact Accessibility Resources at 218.477.4318 (voice) or 1.800.627.3529 (MRS/TYY).