The Clark State Performing Arts Center will feature more than a dozen performances during the 2016-17 season, which kicks off Friday, September 23 with a Club Kuss presentation of Shotgun Wedding.
“There is a wide variety of genres in the upcoming season,” said Adele Adkins, executive director of the Clark State Performing Arts Center. “We have comedy, country, folk, National Broadway tours and a family who has a Reality TV show.”
The Performing Arts Center is once again partnering with the Springfield Arts Council for the three Broadway performances featured this season, including: Rent, Once and Pippin.
Like the Aquila Theatre Company last season, this season Black Violin and Basetrack Live will partner with the Performing Arts Center for community outreach programs.
Adkins said the Clark State Performing Arts Center strives to inspire, engage and entertain because the surrounding community is enriched through the events presented. “We provide diverse programming to celebrate and reflect the diversity in our community,” she said.
“We continue to work harder than ever to bring people to the Performing Arts Center so that they, too, can experience that inspiration,” she said.
Tickets for the Performing Arts Center 2016-17 season events go on sale Monday, June 20, and are available at pac.clarkstate.edu.
Clark State Performing Arts Center 2016-17 Season
Shotgun Wedding | Friday, September 23 at 7:30 p.m. (Club Kuss)
You don’t have to be from the south to feel a deep connection with country music. Shotgun Wedding draws from a wellspring of country, Americana, alt-country, rock n’ roll and the boogie-and-stride piano tradition.
Basetrack Live | Friday, September 30 at 8 p.m.
En Garde Arts presents BASETRACK Live. Based on the true stories of families and Marines who served in Afghanistan, the show was praised as “a viscerally powerful depiction of war and its aftermath” - National Book Award winner Phil Klay (Redeployment).
The Art of Time Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band | Friday, October 7 at 7:30 p.m. (Club Kuss)
Steven Page and Wesley Stace join singers Andy Maize and Craig Northey in a re-imagining of the Beatles’ groundbreaking album, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” The singers and Art of Time’s world class orchestra, collaborate for an incredible night of music.
The Complete History of America (abridged): Election Edition | Friday, October 21 at 7:30 p.m. Reduced Shakespeare Company (Club Kuss)
Just in time for the election, the Reduced Shakespeare Company returns with 600 years of history in 6,000 seconds! The “bad boys of abridgment” go from Christopher Columbus to Neil Armstrong, from George Washington to Barack Obama...verily, from the New World to New World Order. It’s a ninety-minute roller coaster through the quagmire of politics.
Black Violin | Tuesday, November 1 at 7:30 p.m.
Black Violin blends classical, hip-hop, rock, R&B and bluegrass music. Accompanied by a drummer and a DJ, Black Violin (declared one of the hottest bands of SXSW), has been performing to standing room only crowds. Black Violin has performed at the Presidential Inauguration Ball for President Barack Obama, NFL celebrations for three Superbowls, US Open with Jordin Sparks, SXSW Opening Keynote performance and for US troops in Iraq.
Rent 20th Anniversary Tour | National Broadway Tour | November 8 at 7:30 p.m.
Co-presented with the Springfield Arts Council
In 1996, an original rock musical by a little-known composer opened on Broadway…and forever changed the landscape of American theatre. Two decades later, Jonathan Larson’s RENT continues to speak loudly and defiantly to audiences across generations and all over the world. And now, this Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award®-winning masterpiece returns to the stage in a vibrant 20th anniversary touring production.
The TEN Tenors Home for the Holidays | Friday, December 9 at 8 p.m.
The TEN Tenors are undoubtedly one of Australia’s most successful touring entertainment groups of all time. Following 16 years of sell-out performances across the globe, The TEN Tenors have cemented their place as one of the worlds most loved contemporary music groups. “Home for the Holidays” is the perfect way to celebrate the spirit of the season.
Central State Choir | Thursday, February 2 at 7:30 p.m.
If you enjoy passionate vocals and raw young talent, the Central State Choir has the show for you. The highly acclaimed CSU Chorus is admired locally for their beautiful styles of African American spiritual, gospel and jazz music.
Rosanne Cash | Saturday, February 11 at 8 p.m.
Singer and songwriter Rosanne Cash’s exciting show celebrates her highly-acclaimed and three time Grammy winning album “The River & the Thread.”
Once | National Broadway Tour | Sunday, March 5 at 4 p.m.
Co-presented with the Springfield Arts Council
Winner of eight 2012 Tony Awards® including Best Musical, Once is a truly original Broadway experience. Featuring an impressive ensemble of actor and musicians who play their own instruments onstage. Once tells the enchanting tale of a Dublin street musician who’s about to give up on his dream when a beautiful young woman takes a sudden interest in his haunting love songs.
STOMP! | Thursday, March 9 at 7:30 p.m.
Matchboxes, brooms, garbage cans, Zippo lighters and more fill the stage with energizing beats at STOMP!, the inventive and invigorating stage show that’s dance, music and theatrical performance blended together in one electrifying rhythm.
Danú St. Patrick’s Day Celebration | Saturday, March 11 at 8 p.m.
Hailing from historic County Waterford, Danú is one of the leading traditional Irish ensembles of today. Their standing room only concerts throughout Ireland are true events featuring high-energy performances and a glorious mix of ancient Irish music and new repertoire.
Scott Kirby | Friday, March 24 at 7:30 p.m. (Club Kuss)
A native of Ohio, Scott Kirby began his study of music at the age of six and continued formal piano instruction for seventeen years. He worked under Robert Howat of Wittenberg University and Sylvia Zaremba at The Ohio State University. Kirby recorded the complete rags of Scott Joplin and made his debut at all of the major ragtime festivals.
Pippin | National Broadway Tour | Tuesday, May 2 at 7:30 p.m.
Co-presented with the Springfield Arts Council
Pippin is a high-flying, death-defying hit Broadway musical! Full of extraordinary acrobatics, wondrous magical feats and soaring songs from the composer of Wicked, Pippin will lift you up and leave you smiling. This unforgettable new production is the winner of four 2013 Tony Awards® including Best Musical Revival.