SUN 1/22 @ 5PM -- BLUES IN THE LOFT
ACOUSTIC BLUES WITH COLIN JOHN, HEATH MENSHER AND BENOIR
Blues
Tickets: $15
SOPAC is excited to launch the new "In the Loft" series - a casual, affordable and fun concert series featuring up-and-coming musicians and seasoned professionals. Cash bar. No drink minimum.
An accomplished, versatile musician, Colin John commands the stage with both his guitar prowess and passionate singing honed from years steeped in Memphis' rich music community. His infectious, genre-defying style was described by the British music magazine Mojo as "ferociously entertaining funked - up R&B" and a reviewer in Akron's Beacon Journal suggested John sounds like "Albert King channeling Steve Vai."
Heath Mensher (Vocals, Harp) and Benoir (Guitars, Vocals) have been playing together since they were children, honing their blues skills on Long Island. They formed the Suffering Blues Band with renowned Bassist Kentucky Parkis and drummer Freddie McCondichie. Performing their traditional gutbucket blues and hard funk style, The Suffering Blues Band sound was an audience favorite at the 2011 South Orange International Blues Festival.
FRI 1/27 @ 8PM --THE SOUNDS OF SARAH VAUGHAN
Jazz
Tickets: $30, $40
Vocalist Rosena M. Hill (Come Fly Away, The Color Purple), trombonist Jason Jackson (Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Dizzy Gillespie All Star Big Band) and legendary jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut, pay tribute to the music of Sarah Vaughan, and the musicians that influenced her sound.
SUN 1/29 @ 3PM -- TOOMAI STRING QUARTET A Tribute to Two Latin American Masters: Ernesto Lecuona and Manuel Ponce
Classical
Juilliard@ SOPAC
Tickets: $20
During the first thirty years of the 20th century, Ernesto Lecuona and Manuel Ponce created musical innovations that are ingrained in the cultural identities of Cuba, Mexico, and Latin America as a whole. Toomai performs original arrangements of Lecuona's and Ponce's piano works, along with works by composers who were influenced by these icons of Latin American music.
TUE 1/31 @ 7:30PM -- GUITARIST EMANUELE SEGRE + BROOKLYN CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY
Classical
Tickets: $25. Seniors/Seton Hall Alumni $15. Seton Hall Students & Staff (with ID) $8.
Classical Concert Series Presented by Seton Hall Arts Council
In a concert celebrating music of Italy, internationally acclaimed Italian guitarist Emanuele Segre joins the Brooklyn Chamber Music Society in a concert featuring the Boccherini Quintet No. 4 for Guitar and Strings (“Fandango”), the Paganini Guitar Quartet, and Tchaikovsky’s beloved Souvenir de Florence.
SAT 2/4 @ 8PM -- CAROLYN DORFMAN DANCE COMPANY
Dance
Tickets: $25, $35
CDDC returns for its 4th captivating season with Inspired, an evening featuring world and company premieres by Dorfman and guest choreographer Doug Elkins. With works inspired by life and a gala theme celebrating lives inspired by dance, this performance brings dance that is fresh, passionate, and deliciously physical. With Dorfman’s sensuous and visceral duet, Keystone, intensely satisfying Hourglass and Elkins’ signature electric and, often hilarious, Narcoleptic Lovers, this program promises that you, too, shall be Inspired.
FRI 2/10 @ 8PM -- JANE MONHEIT
Cabaret, Jazz
Tickets: $35, $45
“Blessed with an extraordinarily warm and supple voice, perfect pitch, inventive musicality and an insightful approach to storytelling, [Jane Monheit] has the capacity to express herself convincingly in virtually any area of the music world.” —Los Angeles Times
An extraordinarily gifted vocalist whose sincere and romantic interpretations have made her a favorite in both the jazz and cabaret worlds, Monheit has garnered numerous accolades in the past decade.
Her first album, Never Never Land, was voted top debut recording by the Jazz Journalist’s Association and stayed on the Billboard Jazz chart for over a year. Subsequent albums either charted high, or in several cases, debuted at number one, and yielded two Grammy nominations in the Best Instrumental Arrangement accompanying Vocals category.
SAT 2/11 @ 11AM -- HUDSON VAGABOND PUPPETS: MAMMOTH FOLLIES
Kids & Family
Tickets: $15
Enter prehistoric times and be shaken by the earth-shattering dances of more than twenty dinosaur puppets. Through one-of-a-kind songs and original choreography, this dinosaur musical extravaganza focuses on the complications and tribulations of evolution. Is the show spectacular? "Of course!" says Bessie, our adorable Apatosaurus…now, would you argue with a 26-foot long dinosaur?
SUN 2/12 @ 5PM -- JAZZ IN THE LOFT: CLAUDIO RODITI
Jazz
Tickets: $15
SOPAC is excited to launch the new "In the Loft" series - a casual, affordable and fun concert series featuring up-and-coming musicians and seasoned professionals. Cash bar. No drink minimum.
"One of the very best performers in jazz" -- Allmusic.com
Brazilian-born born trumpet and flugelhorn player, Claudio Roditi kicks-off the first concert of the Jazz in the Loft series at SOPAC. Known for his warm, fluid sound combining post bop and Brazilian elements, Roditi has worked with Herbie Mann, Charlie Rouse, Paquito D'Rivera and Dizzy Gillespie's United Nations Orchestra. A current South Orange resident, Roditi has recorded a dozen albums as a leader and has received Grammy Award nominations for his albums Symphonic Bossa Nova and Brazilliance X 4.
SAT 2/18 @ 8PM -- ERIC ROBERSON with ANGELA JOHNSON
R&B
Tickets: $30, $40
Known in music circles as The King of Independent Soul, New Jersey-native and Grammy Nominated soul artist Eric Roberson makes his SOPAC debut. His records and performances have received rave reviews and praise from fans and artists. Jill Scott called him “a brilliant singer with a voice like red velvet cake.” Joining Roberson is the multi-talented, independent R&B singer/songwriter Angela Johnson.
THU 3/1 -- SAT 3/3 @ 8PM
SUN 3/4 @ 2PM -- SETON HALL THEATRE: “BABY” THE MUSICAL
Theater
Tickets: $15 General/$12 Seniors/Alumni/$8 Students/Staff/$5 Student rush tickets
Book by Sybille Pearson
Music by David Shire
Lyrics by Richard Maltby
Directed by Professor Peter Reader
Presented by Seton Hall Arts Council
FRI 3/9 @ 8PM -- MALACHY MCCOURT -- LOVING LIFE AND LAUGHING AT DEATH
Theater
Tickets: $35, $35
Throughout his rollicking life, Malachy McCourt has held a multitude of careers, from dish washer, longshoreman, and pub keeper to actor, writer, radio and TV host, and candidate for governor! He’s done everything he’s ever wanted to do in his life and encourages others to do the same. McCourt will share his experiences through poetry, song, and his outrageously hilarious stories.
SAT 3/10 @ 11AM -- ENCHANTMENT THEATRE COMPANY: SYLVESTER AND THE MAGIC PEBBLE
Kids & Family
Tickets: $15
Enchantment Theatre Company brings William Steig’s Sylvester and the Magic Pebble to the stage in an inventive production that incorporates projected scenery and animation with masked actors, puppets, theatrical magic, dance and original music. The good citizens of Oatsdale are all aflutter: the Duncans’ young son Sylvester is missing! No matter that the folks from Oatsdale are animals and Sylvester and his parents are donkeys, the concern and love they share in this delightful show are definitely human and lead to a renewed appreciation for one another and the happiest of happy endings.
SAT 3/10 @ 8PM -- PAM TILLIS
Country
Tickets: $35, $45
A child of country music royalty, multiple Grammy and Country Music Award winner Pam Tillis comes to SOPAC for an intimate, electric and heartfelt performance. With seven #1 hits including ‘Maybe it was Memphis’ and ‘Mi Vida Loca (My Crazy Life),’ and six million records sold, she is a bona fide Nashville superstar.
SUN 3/11 @ 3PM -- PIANIST TANYA GABRIELIAN
Classical Music
Juilliard @ SOPAC
Tickets: $20. Seniors & SOPAC Members $15.
Ms. Gabrielian’s program features Bach’s Liszt Prelude and Fugue in A Minor for Organ; Beethoven’s Sonata Op. 111; Debussy’s Four Preludes from Bk. II; Ghost Variations by Schumann; and Gounod’s Liszt Waltz from Faust.
SUN 3/18 @ 5PM -- JAZZ IN THE LOFT: JAZZ LEGACY ALL-STAR JAM WITH JOHN LEE
Jazz
Tickets: $15
As part of SOPAC’s new “IN THE LOFT” Series -- jazz/blue concerts in a casual, club café atmosphere in SOPAC’s upstairs loft space. Cash bar. No drink minimum.
Bassist, composer, educator and producer, John Lee is the co-founder of Jazz Legacy Productions and also serves as the executive director of the Dizzy Gillespie™ All-Stars and All-Stars Big Band with whom he performs regularly. A resident of South Orange, NJ, John has played in the bands of Sonny Rollins, Max Roach, McCoy Tyner, Larry Coryell, Joe Henderson, and Dizzy Gillespie. John Lee puts together a line-up of jazz artists from the area to perform in a classic Jazz Legacy All-Star Jam as part of the Jazz in the Loft series.
TUE 3/20 @ 7:30PM -- PIANIST RICHARD GOODE
Classical Music
Tickets: $25. Seniors/Seton Hall Alumni $15. Seton Hall Students & Staff (with ID) $8.
Classical Concert Series Presented by Seton Hall Arts Council. One of today’s leading interpreters of Classical and Romantic music, Richard Goode has been hailed for playing of tremendous emotional power, depth, and expressiveness. This Grammy-winning artist returns to the Seton Hall series in a program featuring Mozart, Beethoven, and Chopin.
SAT 3/24 @ 8PM -- KYLE EASTWOOD BAND
Jazz
Tickets: $30, $40
Son of actor Clint Eastwood, jazz musician Kyle Eastwood has seen just as much success as his father. His second album, Paris Blue, hit number one on the French Jazz charts. An accomplished musician and composer, he has composed music for several movies that have gone on to win Academy Awards.
SUN 3/25 @ 2PM -- THE CASHORE MARIONETTES IN SIMPLE GIFTS
Kids & Family
Tickets: $15
Simple Gifts, is a series of touching portrayals and poignant scenes from everyday life set to stunning music by such composers as Vivaldi, Strauss, Beethoven and Copland. Through a combination of virtuoso manipulation, beautiful music, theatrical illusion, and artistic insight, the original vignettes presented in Simple Gifts provide an entertaining and sensitive vision of what it is to be human. The performance explores a range of emotions with characters and actions that are amazingly convincing. The marionettes are engineering marvels and the quality of movement is extraordinary.
SUN 3/25 @ 5PM -- BLUES IN THE LOFT (ARTISTS TBD)
Blues
Tickets: $15
As part of SOPAC’s new “IN THE LOFT” Series -- jazz/blue concerts in a casual, club café atmosphere in SOPAC’s upstairs loft space. Cash bar. No drink minimum.
TUE 3/27 @ 7:30PM -- JAZZ KNIGHTS OF WEST POINT
Jazz
Tickets: FREE
Jazz’ n the Hall Presented by Seton Hall Arts Council. Bringing over three decades of musical excellence to their audiences, the West Point Band’s Jazz Knights present the best in big band favorites, popular music, and original compositions and arrangements for jazz ensemble.
SAT 3/31 @ 8PM -- LES NUBIANS
R&B
Tickets: $30, $40
Grammy Nominated international recording artists Les Nubians have intrigued audiences for almost a decade with their inventive and glamorous Afropean style. Adoring fans pay tribute to the French/Cameroonian sister duo for their continuous flow of jazzy nuances, hard hitting drum 'n' bass lines, harmonious melodies, conscious proclamations and humanitarian endeavors.
SAT 4/14 @ 8PM -- ADAM PASCAL + ANTHONY RAPP
Cabaret
Tickets: $45, $55, $75 (Special $75 ticket includes private post-performance reception and meet-and-greet with Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp.)
Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp, original cast members of the Tony Award-winning musical RENT, reunite in an up close and personal concert featuring a mix of pop and original songs, popular Broadway music, as well as sharing the stage and their RENTaffiliation.
SUN 4/15 @ 5PM -- JAZZ IN THE LOFT: JOHN DUKICH
Jazz
Tickets: $15
As part of SOPAC’s new “IN THE LOFT” Series -- jazz/blue concerts in a casual, club café atmosphere in SOPAC’s upstairs loft space. Cash bar. No drink minimum.
South Orange resident John Dukich performs an evening of Jazz Standards and International songs. A versatile performer who sings in English, Spanish and Portuguese, John captivates his audiences with rich tones and a smooth, warm delivery.
John’s repertoire includes romantic ballads with moving lyrics and haunting melodies, swinging standards, smooth Bossa Novas, and popular Brazilian and South American songs less-known to audiences in the United States. His natural, easy approach to Brazilian music results from extensive visits to Brazil. His experience as an instrumentalist (trombonist) is conveyed in his phrasing and interpretation.
THU 4/26 -- SAT 4/28 @ 8PM -- SETON HALL THEATRE: RESURRECTION BLUES
SUN 4/29 @ 2PM -- SETON HALL THEATRE: RESURRECTION BLUES
Theater
Tickets: $15 General/$12 Seniors/Alumni/$8 Students/Staff/$5 Student rush tickets
By Mary Chase
Directed by Professor Deirdre Yates
Presented by Seton Hall Arts Council
Arthur Miller’s penultimate play, Resurrection Blues, is a satirical allegory that poses the question: What would happen if Christ were to appear in the world today? In an unidentified Latin American country, a revolutionary leader is rumored to have performed miracles throughout the countryside. The heads of state plan to crucify the mysterious man and sell the exclusive TV rights to an American reality show. Resurrection Blues is a comedic and tragic satire of precarious morals in our media-saturated age!
SUN 4/29 @ 5PM -- BLUES IN THE LOFT (ARTISTS TBD)
Blues
Tickets: $15
As part of SOPAC’s new “IN THE LOFT” Series -- jazz/blue concerts in a casual, club café atmosphere in SOPAC’s upstairs loft space. Cash bar. No drink minimum.
TUE 5/1 @ 7:30PM -- SETON HALL UNIVERSITY FACULTY JAZZ ENSEMBLE
Jazz
Tickets: FREE
Jazz’ n the Hall Presented by Seton Hall Arts Council. Ever growing in popularity since its debut two years ago at SOPAC, the Seton Hall University Faculty Jazz Ensemble has become widely known by the University students and general public for its exciting performances of great historic jazz music of every style.
THU 5/3 @ 7PM -- SETON HALL UNIVERSITY ORCHESTRA
Spring Concert, Classical
Tickets: FREE
Presented by Seton Hall Arts Council. The Seton Hall Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of Murray Colosimo, will present a Spring Concert of light classical orchestral favorites.
SAT 5/5 @ 11AM -- THEATER IV: A.A. MILNE’S HOUSE AT POOH CORNER
Kids & Family
Adapted by Bettye Knapp
Tickets: $15
Whether we are very young or wise to the ways of the world, every so often each of us has to “get back to the House at Pooh Corner” to spend some tender time with faithful friends. You know their names by heart: Piglet, Eeyore, Tigger, Kanga and Roo, Rabbit, Christopher Robin, and of course, that lovable bear called Winnie-the-Pooh. This production is based on the A. A. Milne classic of the same name. Featured stories portray the building of Eeyore’s house, Tigger’s arrival in the Hundred Acre Wood, the origin of the game of Pooh Sticks, Rabbit’s plan for reducing Tigger’s bounce, and Christopher Robin’s growing up and leaving for school.
SUN 5/6 @ 3PM -- LYSANDER PIANO TRIO Beloved Piano Trios: From Viennese Classics to Piazzolla
Classical Music
Juilliard @ SOPAC
Tickets: $20. Seniors & SOPAC Members $15.
Lysander Piano Trio (Grand Prize 2011 Coleman Chamber Music Competition) performs some of the great works of the piano trio repertoire. Previously the Bronze Medal winner and highest ranked piano trio at the 2010 Fischoff Competition, the ensemble was founded by graduate students at The Juilliard School in New York in the fall of 2009.
THU 5/10 @ 8PM -- SUZANNE VEGA
Folk Music, Pop
Tickets: $45 & $55
With her sultry voice, Suzanne Vega seamlessly joins her poetry and contemporary folk song with a sound that is utterly unique and identifiable to her alone. A pioneer among singer-songwriters, Suzanne has embarked on a project to re-imagine her own songbook, including 'Luka' and 'Ton's Diner,' in a stripped down and intimate manner.
SAT 5/12 @ 8PM -- TOM WOPAT
Cabaret
Tickets: $30, $40, $50
Best known for his role on "The Dukes of Hazzard," Tom Wopat has also appeared on Broadway in Sondheim on Sondheim, I Love My Wife, Guys and Dolls, Chicago, 42nd Street, Glengarry Glen Ross, and Catch Me If You Can. He received Tony nominations for his roles in A Catered Affair and the revival of Annie Get Your Gun. Wopat’s latest CD Consider it Swung is a swinging collection of standards.
SUN 5/20 @ 2PM -- ARTSPOWER: ARE YOU MY MOTHER?
Kids & Family
Tickets: $15
Ages 5-7
Not knowing that her mother has left the nest to gather food, Baby Bird decides to find her. While searching, Baby Bird meets an array of colorful characters - Cat, Dog, and Hen - each of whom she greets with the simple plea: are you my mother? Unfortunately for Baby Bird, neither Cat nor Dog nor Hen turns out to be her mother. Baby Bird, however, is persistent. She is determined to find her mother no matter what. Her courage is bolstered by the unlikely “family” of characters who are ready to lend a paw or a wing to help their friend.
Based on P.D. Eastman’s classic picture book for young readers, Are You My Mother? Is ArtsPower’s enchanting musical about Baby Bird’s journey -- an adventure that overflows with love, dedication, and friendship. Adapted for the stage by playwright and lyricist Greg Gunning and composer Richard DeRosa, Are You My Mother? shows children and adults alike how loss can be turned into empowerment and how Baby Bird ends up finding more than she is looking for.
