Carolina Performing Arts Spring 2023

JANUARY 12

MOESER AUDITORIUM

THEO CROKER || LOVE QUANTUM ||

BOUNDARY-DEFYING MUSICAL STORYTELLER

Theo Croker is a storyteller who speaks through his trumpet. He arrives in Chapel Hill behind || LOVE QUANTUM ||, his seventh studio album and the latest iteration of his ever-evolving sound, which incorporates jazz, hip-hop, R&B and various other genres.

Photo by Obidigbo Nzeribe

MEMORIAL HALL HONG KONG BALLET ROMEO + JULIET

A VIBRANT FUSION OF DANCE AND DRAMA

Ancient grudges and warring families. Passion and tragedy. The iconic balcony scene. Shakespeare’s timeless tale of star-crossed lovers has captivated audiences for generations and is given a fresh and thought-provoking retelling in Septime Webre’s new Romeo + Juliet.

JEN SHYU ZERO GRASSES: RITUAL FOR THE LOSSES

A RAW EXPLORATION OF GRIEF AND THE ENVISIONED LIFE

Zero Grasses: Ritual for the Losses is dedicated to Jen Shyu’s late mother and father. Commissioned by John Zorn, this stunning work of theater, music and movement offers a profound exploration of grief and the envisioned life.

Photo by Ben Doyle

FEBRUARY 1

MOESER

AUDITORIUM

SO PERCUSSION AND CAROLINE SHAW

COLORFUL COLLABORATION OF SOUND AND TEXTURE

Sō Percussion and Caroline Shaw create innovative new avenues for classical music. Together, they team up to create an exciting world of color and sound.

Photo by Shervin Lainez

FEBRUARY 4

MEMORIAL HALL GEOFF SOBELLE HOME

CHOREOGRAPHY AND CONSTRUCTION INTERTWINE

HOME is a large-scale performance project that revolves around the life cycle of a house. Created through a mix of illusion, choreography, construction and live documentary, Geoff Sobelle’s work illuminates how the messiness of life transforms a house into a home.

Photo by Hillarie Jason

CAROLINA JAZZ FESTIVAL TERRI LYNE CARRINGTON + SOCIAL SCIENCE

MULTIDISCIPLINARY HEADLINING PERFORMANCE

Galvanized by seismic changes in the ever-evolving social and political landscape, Terri Lyne Carrington + Social Science confront a wide spectrum of social justice issues through a thrilling meld of jazz, R&B, indie rock, contemporary improvisation, and hip-hop. Don’t miss this Carolina Jazz Festival headlining performance.

Photo by Delphine Diallo

FEBRUARY 25 & 26

MEMORIAL HALL

OMAR

MUSIC

BY RHIANNON GIDDENS AND MICHAEL ABELS CONDUCTED BY JOHN KENNEDY DIRECTED BY KANEZA SCHAAL NC PREMIERE OF RHIANNON GIDDENS’ PROPULSIVE

NEW WORK

What does it mean to tell a story? How do we reckon with the gaps in our history? These questions animate the North Carolina premiere of Omar, an opera from Southern Futures at CPA Artist-in Residence Rhiannon Giddens and acclaimed composer Michael Abels. This expansive new work transcends bare biographical facts to illuminate the life of Omar ibn Said, a West African scholar enslaved in the Carolinas.

MARCH 7

MEMORIAL HALL

MAHLER CHAMBER ORCHESTRA

WITH MITSUKO UCHIDA, PIANO AND DIRECTOR MOVING AND MASTERFUL PERFORMANCES

MCO and Mitsuko Uchida return to Chapel Hill with a program that combines music from the two Viennese schools, pairing the finesse of Mozart with the expressionism of A. Schönberg.

Photo by Geoffroy Schied

TOSHI REAGON

POWERFUL MUSICAL PARTNERSHIPS

Toshi’s back! Our longest-running artist-in-residence returns to Chapel Hill for her culminating Creative Futures project: an uplifting musical event created in partnership with — and inspired by — the local community.

MARCH

MEMORIAL

HALL

TAO OF GLASS

MEDITATIONS ON LIFE, LOSS AND INSPIRATION

Tao of Glass is a celebration of the power of theatre. This personal collaboration between the great actor, puppeteer and director Phelim McDermott and composer Philip Glass is a partly autobiographical play and meditation on the power and influence of Glass’s music.

Photo by Tristram Kenton

MEMORIAL HALL

JEAN-YVES THIBAUDET DEBUSSY PRELUDES

AN EXHILARATING EVENING OF DEBUSSY PRELUDES

For more than three decades, Jean-Yves Thibaudet has performed worldwide, recorded more than 50 albums and built a reputation as one of the world’s finest pianists. Now, he brings his talents to Carolina’s own Memorial Hall, where he will perform the complete Debussy Preludes, Books I and II.

Photo by Andrew Eccles

Annie-B Parson, Molly Hickok and Paul Lazar, Big Dance Theater is known for its inspired use of dance, music, text and visual design. Experience two of the company’s iconic pieces: The Road Awaits Us and Cage Shuffle: A Duet.

Photo by Julieta Cervantes

ZOE | JUNIPER THE OTHER SHORE

AN IMMERSIVE INTERSECTION OF SPACE AND SOUND

The creations of zoe | juniper dissolve barriers and challenge expectations with a combination of bodies, light, sound and sculpture. the other shore is a thought-provoking, two-room installation that interrogates the audience-performer relationship and offers new perspectives on how we interact with stories.

APRIL

MEMORIAL

OSVALDO GOLIJOV FALLING OUT OF TIME

NAVIGATING GRIEF AND SOLACE THROUGH VOICE

Osvaldo Golijov presents Falling Out of Time, a song cycle whose performers include members of the Silkroad Ensemble that traverses vast and varied emotional landscapes to explore the theme of accompaniment in grief, and what we owe each other.

SOUTHERN FUTURES ARTISTS-IN-RESIDENCE AT CAROLINA PERFORMING ARTS

From campus research to community engagement, artists use their residencies to create transformative new works and contribute to larger conversations about the most urgent issues.

RHIANNON GIDDENS

Grammy- and MacArthur Award-winning musician Rhiannon Giddens leads a three-year research residency at the core of our Southern Futures at CPA initiative. Giddens is focused on discovering and sharing cultural artifacts, local histories, untold stories and unheard voices to challenge longstanding narratives about the American South.

DAVID NEUMANN, MARCELLA MURRAY AND TEI BLOW FOR ADVANCED BEGINNER GROUP

This trio uses digital imagery, dance and theater to explore issues such as race and vulnerability. In addition to their presentation of Distances Smaller Than This Are Not Confirmed this fall, their Southern Futures at CPA residency will allow them to create a new work that will make its world premiere at CPA in an upcoming season.

LEARN MORE ABOUT ALL OUR ARTIST RESIDENCIES AT CAROLINAPERFORMINGARTS.ORG/RESIDENCIES

Photo: Tei Blow