Friday, December 20, 2013

Wizard of Oz Dance Classes!

Last week, Adam Sergison, a member of the Wizard of Oz cast, taught Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists students choreography from the show! 
Adam Sergison teaches SPCP students                                                               Photo by Kristie Gaalswyk

Adam Sergison teaches SPCP students                                                            Photo by Kristie Gaalswyk

Alana Randall, also a member of the cast, taught choreography in both a Beginners Class and an Advanced Class open to the public. 

Alana Randall teaching a Beginners Class                                                             Photo by Kristie Gaalswyk

Beginners Class student                                                                                      Photo by Kristie Gaalswyk

Advanced Class students                                                                                          Photo by Shelly Quiala

Advanced Class students                                                                                       Photo by Shelly Quiala



To find out more about Musical Theater Training opportunities like this one, visit http://www.ordway.org/education/musical-theater-training/

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Wizard of Oz Dance Classes - Spots still available, but SPACE IS LIMITED!

Be sure to not miss this unique opportunity!

Join the Ordway to learn choreography from Andrew Lloyd Webber's touring production of Wizard of Oz!

Taught by Wizard of Oz cast member, Alana Randall, the dance class will run 90 minutes. Participants will learn dance combinations from the show, while building their dance repertoire.

Alana Randall is a musical theater professional who has starred in several productions such as Hairspray, Hair, Footloose, Cabaret, High School Musical, and the Pajama Game in theaters across the country.

Participants will need jazz shoes.

$15 to participate

Beginners Class:
Thursday, December 12
4:00pm - 5:30pm
Ages 12 and up
*Must have basic experience in learning choreography or dance combinations

Advanced Class:
Saturday, December 14
10am - 11:30am
Ages 12 and up
*Must have experience in advanced dance technique or have experience with advanced or professional musical theater choreography

To Register, Call 651.224.4222

Space is limited to 30 dancers in each workshop.

Classes will take place in Roy Wilkins Studios in Downtown Saint Paul.





Monday, November 25, 2013

Added Performance of Broadway Songbook: Gershwin!


Due to popular demand, we have added a Broadway Songbook: Gershwin performance!

This added performance will be on Wednesday, January 8 at 10:30am. Tickets are just $5 and bus reimbursement is available for all schools! Call 651.282.3115 to reserve your seats or for more information on this performance!

The Broadway Songbook Series gives your students a window into the world of musical theater through the works of some of the most famous songwriters of all time! Each 90-minute performance will be a mix of the composers’ life stories, a glimpse into what made their work extraordinary and a sampling of their work through live vocal performances. Broadway Songbook performances take place in the Ordway’s Musical theater Stage with the audience sitting on stage!

George Gershwin
January 7 & 8, 2014 | Recommended Grades 6-12
$5 Tickets | 90 Minute Performance
George Gershwin is one of the most celebrated writers in the history of Broadway. In his short lifetime, he composed luscious scores filled with timeless songs that are still popular today—The Man I Love, Someone To Watch Over Me, They Can’t Take That Away From Me, Swanee, I Got Rhythm, Summertime, and it’s impossible to overlook his orchestral masterpiece, Rhapsody In Blue.

Performance Availability for George Gershwin
Tue, Jan 7, 2014 10:30AM – 3 Seats Available
Wed, Jan 8, 2014 at 10:30AM – 105 Seats Available

Call 651.282.3115 to reserve your seats or for more information on this performance!







Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Spotlight on Ordway Education Alumna: Traci Shannon

Traci Shannon worked in Ordway Education as our Education Sales Assistant during the Fall of 2012. She has since returned to her first passion, performing. Last spring, Traci was offered and accepted the opportunity to be a member of the acting company at the Children’s Theatre Company.

We couldn’t be prouder of our old Education Sales Assistant and friend, Traci! Here are a couple of great articles on her and her work at CTC:



You can see Traci perform as the title character in Cinderella playing now at CTC until January 5. For more information, visit http://www.childrenstheatre.org


Way to go, Traci!!

Friday, November 8, 2013

Register for an Exclusive Dance Class with a Cast Member from The Wizard of Oz!

Join the Ordway for this unique opportunity to learn choreography from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s touring production of Wizard of Oz!
Taught by Wizard of Oz cast member, Alana Randall, the dance class will run 90 minutes. Participants will learn dance combinations from the show, while building their dance repertoire. Alana Randall is a musical theater professional who has starred in several productions such as Hairspray, Hair, Footloose, Cabaret, High School Musical, and The Pajama Game in theaters across the country.

Beginners Class: Thursday, December 12th from 4:00pm-5:30pm              
Ages 12 and up
*Must have basic experience in learning choreography or dance combinations

Advanced Class: Saturday, December 14th from 10am-11:30am         
Ages 12 and up
*Must have experience in advanced dance technique or have experience with advanced or professional musical theater choreography


Participants will need jazz shoes.
$15 to participate


To Register, Call 651.224.4222
Space is limited to 30 dancers in each workshop 
Classes will take place in Roy Wilkins Studios in Downtown Saint Paul. 

Friday, November 1, 2013

Yemen Blues at North High School

Thanks to funding from Best Buy, sponsor of the SLAM program (Student Leaders in Arts and Media), 3M and other Ordway Education sponsors, 175 students and teachers at North High School in Minneapolis engaged with Yemen Blues founder Ravid Kahalani in a lecture demonstration and music workshop.  Yemen Blues was presented through the Ordway’s Target World Music and Dance program which reaches thousands each year through concerts and school and community-based programming.  



North High School also posted information about the visit on their website.

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Ordway Education Receives Pro Lingua Award

Erin Matteson and Kristie Gaalswyk of Ordway Education
pictured here with Kay Edberg, MCTLC Awards Chair
On Friday, October 18, 2013, Ordway Education attended the Minnesota Council on the Teaching of Languages and Cultures 2013 Fall Conference to accept the Pro Lingua Award.

This award is given in recognition of outstanding service to and support of education in world languages and cultures by a person or Minnesota organization/business that is not a world-languages educator.

From the ushers to the production team, this award truly belongs to everyone at the Ordway whose efforts contribute to the success of the school performances and Children’s Festival each year.


Thank you MCTLC for this honor!

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

October is National Arts & Humanities Month!

Americans for the Arts describes National Arts & Humanities Month as a coast-to-coast collective celebration of culture in America. Coordinated by Americans for the Arts, it has become the largest annual celebration of the arts and humanities in the nation. From arts center open houses to mayoral proclamations to banners and newspaper articles, communities across the United States join together to recognize the cultural gems surrounding them.

Every individual can celebrate National Arts & Humanities Month, whether you are a school teacher, a doctor, a fourth-grader, or a grandmother. You can see a play, attend a local art gallery's open house, write your member of Congress asking for more arts funding, or participate in a poetry open mic night.

If you'd like to celebrate National Arts & Humanities Month with the Ordway, tickets are still available for Lizz Wright & Raul Midόn and Yemen Blues


We hope you have a wonderful National Arts & Humanities Month! :) 

Monday, October 7, 2013

Tickets Still Available for Lizz Wright & Raul Midón, Yemen Blues!

This fall, you will find the Ordway Education’s music performances a great launching pad for you and your students’ exploration of culture and music in accordance with the Minnesota academic standards for the arts. The Ordway’s study guides provide educators with a framework to connect live music performances with classroom curriculum and many standards, including:

-        Identify the characteristics of a variety of genres and musical styles; (4-5)
-          Describe how music communicates meaning; (4-5)
-          Analyze how the elements of music and related concepts such as articulation and major/ minor and fugue are used in the performance, creation or response to music (6-8)
-          Analyze how the characteristics of a variety of genres and styles contribute to the creation of, performance of, or response to music. (9-12)
-          Analyze how the elements of music including melody, rhythm, harmony, dynamics, tone color, texture, form and their related concepts are combined to communicate meaning in the creation of, performance of, or response to music. (9-12)


Tickets are just $3.50 and we offer Bus Reimbursement for ALL schools!! If you are interested in ordering or have any questions, feel free to call the Education Hotline at 651.282.3115.


Lizz Wright & Raul Midón
October 24, 2013 | Recommended Grade 4-12
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance
Singer-songwriters Lizz Wright and Raul Midón join forces to present an awe-inspiring collection of music that spans the genres of jazz, R&B, soul, and gospel. Midón combines phenomenal guitar chops, deftly executed vocal mouth trumpet and an impassioned voice likened to that of Donny Hathaway and Stevie Wonder. Wright’s luminous, smoky and perfectly pitched gospel-trained contralto voice emerges as an irresistible force of clarity and emotion. Backed by a full band, these two masters of song will share their effortless magnetic stage presence and music with educators and students.


Performance Availability for Lizz Wright & Raul Midón
Thu, Oct 24, 2013, 10:30 AM – 335 Tickets available



Raul Midón
October 24, 2013 | Recommended Grade 4-12
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance
Raul Midón is a one-man band who offers a fresh fusion of old-school soul, Latin jazz and folk-pop. The singer-songwriter began his solo career after touring and recording with contemporary pop stars Shakira and Enrique Iglesias. As a soloist, he combines phenomenal guitar chops, deftly executed vocal mouth trumpet and an impassioned voice likened to that of Donny Hathaway and Stevie Wonder. Blind since infancy, Midón is a rare musical force who reminds us how strong the connection between man and music can be.


Performance Availability for Raul Midón
Thu Oct 24, 2013, 12:30 PM – 500+ Tickets available



Yemen Blues
October 28 & 29, 2013 | Recommended Grade 6-12
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance
Join international music sensation Yemen Blues as they bring their fusion of multinational music to the Ordway’s Music Theater. Featuring the oud, gimbri, viola, cello, flute, trumpet, trombone, percussion, voice and bass, they merge West African rhythms and ancient Jewish Yemeni melodies with mambo, blues and funk. Yemen Blues seamlessly blends and improvises across musical genres and languages, flowing from Yemeni Arabic to Creole, Hebrew and Moroccan Arabic, all led by Yemeni-born Israeli singer Ravid Kahalani. The band’s multinational members from Israel, Finland, Uruguay and the U.S, embody their mission of bridging peoples differences, whether they stem from nationality, religion or other barometers.


Performance Availability for Yemen Blues
Tue, Oct 29, 2013, 10:30 AM – 500+ Tickets available
Tue, Oct 29, 2013, 12:30 PM – 500+ Tickets available


Tickets are just $3.50 and we offer bus reimbursement for ALL schools!!



Wednesday, October 2, 2013

LAST CHANCE! Only a few spots remain! Classes start this Saturday!

Ordway’s Musical Theater Dance classes will act as a dance boot camp, preparing performers to dance in various musical theater styles. Led by seasoned dance theater practitioners, participants build their dance repertoire with instruction in tap, jazz, ballet, and hip-hop as well as expand their dance vocabulary and audition techniques.

 Four classes of musical theater dance are taught by veteran Ordway performer, Lisa Bartholomew-Given. One class of theater tap dance is taught by James A. Rocco, Vice President of Programming and Producing Artistic Director at the Ordway.

To register, call 651.224.4222
Space is limited to 25 dancers

Friday, September 20, 2013

Fall Musical Theater Dance Classes!



Ordway’s Musical Theater Dance classes will act as a dance boot camp, preparing performers to dance in various musical theater styles. Led by seasoned dance theater practitioners, participants build their dance repertoire with instruction in tap, jazz, ballet, and hip-hop as well as expand their dance vocabulary and audition techniques.

Classes will run 90 minutes and consist of a 45-minute warm-up with instruction in dance technique and 45 minutes spent learning a Broadway musical theater dance combination.

Four classes of musical theater dance are taught by veteran Ordway performer, Lisa Bartholomew-Given. One class of theater tap dance is taught by James A. Rocco, Vice President of Programming and Producing Artistic Director at the Ordway.

$75 for 5 class Fall session
Every Saturday, Oct 5 – Nov 9 (except Oct 19)

9-10:30am
Young Performing Artists Ages 12-18

11:30am – 1pm
Adult Performing Artists Age 18+

To register, call 651.224.4222
Space is limited to 25 dancers

Pre-requisite
You must have completed a beginner’s course in dance or have previous experience with dance and choreography in a musical.


Participants will need jazz shoes (jazz sneakers preferred) and tap shoes.

Monday, September 16, 2013

Welcome Alan Post, Education Assistant!

Greetings!
My name is Alan Post. I graduated from Hamline University in 2008 with a degree in Communication Studies. I’m originally from Yorba Linda, CA – “The land of gracious living!” I currently reside in St. Paul, MN. A quick fun, yet embarrassing, fact about me –when I was 18 years old and fresh off my first year in college spending the summer in sunny southern California, I was on the MTV dating show “NEXT.” Like I said, very embarrassing! I’m a team player at the Ordway and wear many “hats” being a part of the marketing department, ticket services team, and now, the education department.


We are very excited for Alan to join the Education Team! 
Welcome, Alan!

Friday, September 13, 2013

Featured Article: Ordway Partnership with WE WIN Institute, Connections to Independence and Sabathani Community Center

Here's a great article from InsightNews.com covering the partnership between the Ordway, WE WIN Institute, Connections to Independence and Sabathani Community Center that happened this summer. The program brought youth together with professional artists and "...helped children develop a respect for the arts and gave them an opportunity to participate in all aspects of the arts."


The Ordway is incredibly proud of our partnership with WE Win Institute, Connections to Independence, Sabathani Community Center and all of the young people who participated!





Wednesday, September 11, 2013

It's National Arts in Education Week!


National Arts in Education Week is September 8th-14th!

Here's a message from Sandra Ruppert, Arts Education Partnership (AEP) Director, in regard to National Arts in Education Week:


In July 2010, the U.S. House of Representatives passed House Resolution #275 designating the second week of September as “Arts in Education Week.” The resolution states, in part: "[...] Arts education, comprising a rich array of disciplines including dance, music, theatre, media arts, literature, design, and visual arts, is a core academic subject." 

Since that time, arts education has been the subject of news stories across the nation featuring both the opportunities and the obstacles to ensuring the arts are an essential element of a complete and balanced education for all students.

AEP recently asked a group of leaders in arts and education to share their thoughts on "What story about the arts in education still needs to be told?" You’ll find their candid, insightful, and eloquent responses on AEP's National Arts in Education Week Webpage.

It takes a thousand voices to tell a single story, according to an ancient Native American saying. Let’s make our collective voices heard. Add your voice to the stories that still need to be told about the arts in education and post it to our Facebook page or share it in an email.

Thank you for the extraordinary work that you all do every day on behalf of our nation’s young people. We join you in celebrating the power of the arts in education.


More Arts Education Resources from the AEP :


  • What School Leaders Can do to Increase Arts Education (2011): As the top building-level leaders, school principals play a key role in ensuring every student receives a high-quality arts education as part of a complete education. This brochure-length guide, prepared by AEP with support from the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH) offers three concrete actions—supported by low-cost or no-cost strategies—school principals can take to increase arts education in their schools. (Download the PDF)
  • Preparing Students for the Next America (2013): AEP’s latest research bulletin offers a snapshot of how the arts support achievement in school, bolster skills demanded of a 21st century workforce, and enrich the lives of young people and communities. It draws on the research in AEP’s ArtsEdSearch.org, the nation’s first clearinghouse of research on the impact of arts education on students and their school communities. (Download the PDF)
  • New Opportunities for Interest-Driven Arts Learning in a Digital Age, The Wallace Foundation (2013): This report delves into “interest-driven arts learning,” that is, exploration of the arts that emerges from children’s and teens’ own creative passions. The report identifies challenges and offers suggestions for future research, practice, and policy that build on current knowledge about interest-driven arts learning to enable more youth, particularly disadvantaged youth, to participate in the arts. (Download the full report)
  • Six Reasons That the Arts are the Ideal Vehicle to Teach 21st Century Skills (2013): Americans for the Arts (AFTA) Artsblog post by Lisa Phillips, CEO of Canada's Academy of Stage and Studio Arts shares how the arts offer an untapped opportunity to catapult 21st century students toward achieving their goals in life.


Monday, September 9, 2013

Ordway Education Receives $60,605 Grant!

Ordway Education has received a $60,605 grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board Arts Learning program for residencies with three teaching artists (Leah Nelson, Karla Nweje, and T. Mychael Rambo). In these residencies, students will connect learning to artistic and cultural content in shows by Rennie Harris Puremovement, Step Afrika!, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo. These residencies are being developed within the Ordway models Dance to Learn and Share the Rhythm and align the program Taking Our Place Centerstage: the African Diaspora in Harmony

 Congratulations to the Education team and our teaching artists!



Wednesday, September 4, 2013

innOVATION Grant Awards Program

Ovation, America’s only arts network, has partnered with the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH); and Americans for the Arts (AFTA) to introduce the second annual innOVATION Grant Awards Program


This year’s innOVATION grant awards will be made to schools that have developed model STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) programs in an effort to raise awareness about the importance of integrating the arts into educational curriculum. The innOVATION Grant Program invites school administrators and teachers to submit programs that have effectively incorporated the arts with these core subjects into their curriculum and can show the creativity and innovation of the program as well as robust partnerships between the arts and their communities to enhance learning. innOVATION STEAM grant awards of $10,000 will be made to up to eight schools with exemplary STEAM programs. Open applications are currently being accepted. Elementary through high school-level schools within the United States, including charter and magnet schools, are eligible to apply online at http://www.ovationtv.com/innovation-steam


The submission deadline is October 28, 2013. The final eight grant award recipients will be announced at a special ceremony in Washington, DC, in early 2014.


A great opportunity!

Ordway Education Honored by the Minnesota Council on the Teaching of Languages and Cultures!

Ordway Education will be honored at the Minnesota Council on the Teaching of Languages and Cultures with the Pro Lingua Award for our support of education in world languages and cultures.  This award is given annually to a deserving organization that promotes and contributes to world language education. 

“You were nominated because of your Education Programs which always feature a variety of world music and dance, your Global Arts Workshops which allow students to explore cultures from around the world in a hands-on way, and the performances you bring to the Flint Hills International Children's Festival which allow students to experience music and dance from around the world.  Not only do you provide programs of exceptional quality, but you work hard to make performances and activities accessible to all schools regardless of socio-economic status.  The bus reimbursements and very reasonable ticket prices make it possible for all students to experience languages and cultures outside of the classroom. “
-Kay Edberg, MCTLC Awards Chair

From the ushers to the production team, this award truly belongs to everyone at the Ordway whose efforts contribute to the success of the school performances and Children’s Festival each year.


Kristie Gaalswyck and Erin Matteson will be accepting the award on October 18th on behalf of the Ordway at the MCTLC annual conference.  


Monday, August 26, 2013

Ordway Education Fall On-Sale on Friday, August 30 starting at 7am!

The annual Ordway Education Fall On-Sale will take place on Friday, August 30, 2013, starting at 7 a.m. for weekday matinee performances that are especially designed for students in kindergarten through 12th grades. Ordway welcomes all public, private, charter, and home schools to our school performances. Tickets are only $3.50 - 5.00 and we offer bus reimbursement to ALL schools that attend!





On-sale orders may be placed by:
Phone 651.282.3115
Mail: Education Sales, 345 Washington Street, Saint Paul MN 55102
Fax: 651.215.2135

All mailed and faxed orders arriving on or before August 30, 2013 will be processed at the end of the day on August 30, 2013, in the order they are received.

August 30, 2013 will be your first chance to order tickets to the Flint Hills International Children's Festival performances!

Download 2013-2014 Brochure >
Download 2013-2014 Order Form >
Frequently Asked Questions >
Request a Brochure >
Education Sale Policies >


2014 Flint Hills International Children’s Festival School Performances & Global Arts Workshops

Tickets go on-sale August 30 at 7am by phone!
Join the Ordway for the 2014 Flint Hills International Children’s Festival. Plan a day of excitement with your students, featuring the best international performing artists from around the globe and hands-on Global Arts workshops for only $3.50 a ticket!

Make a day of it! After attending a performance, workshop or both, head out into the Festivalgrounds in Rice Park and Landmark Plaza to eat lunch and experience FREE live performances by Minnesota artists on our outdoor stages, art make-and-take activities tents, the ARTwalk, and more.


STEP AFRIKA!


 May 27 - 30 | Recommended Grades PK-8 | 60 minute performances
Music Theater | 1709 Seat Capacity
Get ready for an explosive musical dance experience that uses the body as an instrument. Step Afrika! is the first professional company dedicated to the art of stepping, a traditional form of body percussion developed by African American college students. Stepping is based on a long and rich tradition in African-based communities. The dancers use movement, stomps, claps, and chants to create a percussive dance experience like no other, Step Afrika! is sure to enthrall and engage audiences with their highly visual rhythmic performances!


De Temps Antan

May 27 - 30 | Recommended Grades PK-8 | 60 minute performances
Lowry Lab Theater | 100 Seat Capacity

De Temps Antan presents traditional Quebecois music with charm, humor and impeccable musicianship that will have your toes tapping by the end of the first tune. The trio’s powerful style, which blends tradition with contemporary flair, is anchored by the “tac-tic-a tac” of les pieds, a form of seated tap dancing found only in French Canada, and features the fiddle, accordion, harmonica, guitar, bouzouki, and singing in French. De Temps Antan— the name translates as “From Bygone Times”—are influenced as much by their world travels as by their fieldwork and family ties. This talented trio is sure to provide a musical experience of boundless energy and the distinctive joie de vivre found in traditional Quebec music.

Alice in Wonderland
May 27 - 30 | Recommended Grades 2-8 | 60 minute performances
Lehr Theater| 120 Seat Capacity

The percussive dance and theater company, Flying Foot Forum, invites you to dive down the rabbit hole with one of its most ambitious productions yet, Alice in Wonderland. Audiences will be taken through Lewis Carroll’s classic literary tale in this innovative promenade-style performance that seeks audience participation to help Alice on her journey. Get ready to play croquet with the Queen of Hearts, sing along with the cast, participate in a dance off, and explore the wonder that is Wonderland, first hand.

LOVE
May 27 - 30 | Recommended Grades 2-6 | 60 minute performances
Weyerhaeuser Auditorium | 230 seat capacity

A storm is on its way and you are only able to take a few items with you. What would you take? Follow a very brave boy, Oslo, and his mother, Ruthy, on their journey of discovery as preparation for an impending storm has them help their community members pack the things they cherish, or as Ruthy calls it, “love luggage.” Together Oslo and his mother face the elements to learn what matters most through a world of stories surrounding each person’s love luggage. Hailing from Australia, Terrapin Puppet Theatre brings the heartfelt and lyrical story of Love to life with both traditional puppets and digital puppetry that create larger-than-life-characters and beautiful storytelling.

2014 Flint Hills International Children's Festival Global Arts Workshops

Engage your students in hands-on Global Arts Workshops during the Flint Hills International Children’s Festival. These one-hour workshops are taught by Twin Cities’ artists, and cost just $3.50 per student!

Latin American Folkloric Music
May 27, 2014 at 10:00AM & 11:15AM
Recommended Grades 2-6 | 60 minute workshops
Explore the music and instruments of Latin American folkloric music with Ecuadorian educator and performer Leo Lara. Students will learn the text and meaning of traditional songs and rhythms of Latin American countries through interactive demonstrations and instrument try outs!

Heart of the Dance: Fancy Dancing
May 28, 2014 at 10:00AM & 11:15AM
Recommended Grades 3-8 | 60 minute workshops
Work with championship Fancy Dancer Larry Yazzie to learn the basic forms and steps of high energy Fancy Dance. The workshop will end with a traditional round dance in which students can express themselves through their newly created dance steps!

Mexihca Culture & Dance
May 28, 2014 at 10:00AM & 11:15AM
Recommended Grades 2-8 | 60 minute workshops
In this all-abilities dance workshop, students will learn the traditions, history and art of dance of the Mexihca (Aztec) culture with Kalpulli Yaocenoxtli.

Latin Social Dance
May 29, 2014 at 10:00AM & 11:15AM
Recommended Grades 2-8 | 60 minute workshops
Cowles Center instructor, Giselle Mejia, will teach a wide variety of social dances born out of Latin America. Styles include salsa, merengue, bachata, cumbia, and mambo. Students get ready to move, as we will learn the basic steps to
each dance style.

Taiko Drumming
May 29, 2014 at 10:00AM & 11:15AM
Recommended Grades 3-8 | 60 minute workshops
May 30, 2014 at 10:00AM & 11:15AM
Recommended Grades 3-8 | 60 minute workshops
Learn the techniques and history of taiko drumming with a taiko performing artist. Students get the opportunity to play on a taiko practice drum with a Mu Performing Arts instructor!

Hip-Hop Dance
May 30, 2014 at 10:00AM & 11:15AM
Recommended Grades 2-8 | 60 minute workshops
Join teaching artist Leah Nelson as she introduces students to the history of hip-hop dance culture through instruction in the fundamentals of popping, locking and breaking.

2013-2014 Performing Arts Classroom Series

50-60 minute performance | $3.50 Tickets | Recommended for grades K-12
The Performing Arts Classroom series provides students a unique glimpse in to World Music and Dance! These are 50-60 minute weekday matinees that feature world renowned performing artist from around the globe. Performing Arts classrooms take place in the Ordway’s Music Theater.These performances are on-sale now.
Please note: Ticket availability was last updated on 9/13 and is subject to change at any time

Lizz Wright & Raul Midón
October 24, 2013 | Recommended Grade 4-12
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance


Singer-songwriters Lizz Wright and Raul Midón join forces to present an awe-inspiring collection of music that spans the genres of jazz, R&B, soul, and gospel. Midón combines phenomenal guitar chops, deftly executed vocal mouth trumpet and an impassioned voice likened to that of Donny Hathaway and Stevie Wonder. Wright’s luminous, smoky and perfectly pitched gospel-trained contralto voice emerges as an irresistible force of clarity and emotion. Backed by a full band, these two masters of song will share their effortless magnetic stage presence and music
with educators and students.


Raul Midón
October 24, 2013 | Recommended Grade 4-12
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance
Raul Midón is a one-man band who offers a fresh fusion of old-school soul, Latin jazz and folk-pop. The singer-songwriter began his solo career after touring and recording with contemporary pop stars Shakira and Enrique Iglesias. As a soloist, he combines phenomenal guitar chops, deftly executed vocal mouth trumpet and an impassioned voice likened to that of Donny Hathaway and Stevie Wonder. Blind since infancy, Midón is a rare musical force who reminds us how strong the connection between man and music can be.

Yemen Blues
October 28 & 29, 2013 | Recommended Grade 6-12
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance
Join international music sensation Yemen Blues as they bring their fusion of multinational music to the Ordway’s Music Theater. Featuring the oud, gimbri, viola, cello, flute, trumpet, trombone, percussion, voice and bass, they merge West African rhythms and ancient Jewish Yemeni melodies with mambo, blues and funk. Yemen Blues seamlessly blends and improvises across musical genres and languages, flowing from Yemeni Arabic to Creole, Hebrew and Moroccan Arabic, all led by Yemeni-born Israeli singer Ravid Kahalani. The band’s multinational members from Israel, Finland, Uruguay and the U.S, embody their mission of bridging peoples differences, whether they stem from nationality, religion or other barometers.

Rennie Harris Puremovement 
February 5, 2014 | Recommended Grade 2-8
February 6, 2014 | Recommended Grade 6-12
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance
Rennie Harris Puremovement (RHPM) has emerged as an international hip-hop dance ambassador. RHPM’s goal is to provide audiences with a sincere view of the essence and spirit of hip-hop, rather than the commercially exploited stereotypes most often presented by the media. Harris, a North Philadelphia native, founded RHPM in 1982 based on the belief that hip-hop is the most important original expression of a new generation with the unique ability to express universal themes that extend beyond racial, religious and economic boundaries.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo
February 10, 2014 | Recommended Grade K-6
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance
Ladysmith Black Mambazo has been singing the story of South Africa for more than 50 years. The a cappella group gained worldwide fame when Paul Simon featured it on his 1986 album Graceland. The group has been traveling the world ever since “spreading the message of peace, love and harmony.” Borrowing heavily from the traditional Zulu musical style of
isicathamiya, the group features stunning vocal harmonies, mouth percussion and cascading melodies accompanied by graceful choreography.

Maria de Barros
February 18, 2014 | Recommended Grade 4-12
February 19, 2014 | Recommended Grade 4-12
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance
Maria de Barros was born in Dakar, Senegal, lived in Mauritania, and grew up in Rhode Island… but her heart belongs to Cape Verde. This island archipelago, off the Western coast of Africa, is the birthplace of her parents and home to the musical styles of morna and coladeira, which feature rhythms and cadences from West Africa, Brazil and Portugal. Accompanied by keyboard, bass, guitar, and drums, de Barros celebrates the musical legacy of her varied background through the subtle soulfulness of morna and the rich melodies and danceable beats of reggae, samba, bossa nova, and coladeira, a Cape Verdean dance rhythm. Your students will be captivated by the journey through genre, from dance music to ballad, with lyrics in Spanish, English, Portuguese, and the Cape Verdean creole language of Criolu, a blend of Portuguese with West African languages.

Axis Dance Company
March 19, 2014 | Recommended Grade 2-6
March 20, 2014 | Recommended Grade 6-12
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance
AXIS Dance Company, one of the world’s most acclaimed and innovative ensembles, will forever change the way you think about the possibilities of the human body. Under the artistic direction of Judith Smith, the company of seven dancers— with and without physical disabilities—challenges the possibilities of movement, expanding and enriching the art form itself.


This presentation is supported by the Arts Midwest Touring Fund, a program 
Arts Midwest that is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional contributions from the Minnesota State Arts Board and General Mills Foundation.


 
TU Dance May 8, 2014 |Recommended Grades 4-12
May 9, 2014 |Recommended Grades 4-12
$3.50 Tickets | 60 Minute Performance
Celebrating their 10 year anniversary, TU dance founders Toni Pierce-Sands and Uri Sands aim to uncover the connective power of dance for audiences, students, artists, and the community. TU’s work, featuring a fusion of modern, ballet, West African, and street dance, is ultimately about the human experience; be it through the music you hear, the performance you see on stage or the person sitting next to you in the audience.


2013-2014 Broadway Songbook Series

90 minute performance | $5.00 Tickets | Recommended for grades 6-12
The Broadway Songbook Series gives your students a window into the world of musical theater through the works of some of the most famous songwriters of all time! Each 90-minute performance will be a mix of the composers’ life stories, a glimpse into what made their work extraordinary and a sampling of their work through live vocal performances. Broadway Songbook performances take place in the Ordway’s Musical theater Stage with the audience sitting on stage!



Musicals of the 1950s
October 17, 2013|Recommended Grades 6-12
$5 Tickets |90 Minute Performance
The 1950s were a Golden Age of Broadway musicals. All the great cast of characters were in peak form and perfected the art of musical comedy. This decade was a virtual explosion of musical gems including Rodgers & Hammerstein II’s The King & I, Bernstein’s West Side Story and Lerner & Loewe’s My Fair Lady, just to name a few!


George Gershwin
January 3, 2014 | Recommended Grades 6-12
$5 Tickets | 90 Minute Performance
George Gershwin is one of the most celebrated writers in the history of Broadway. In his short lifetime, he composed luscious scores filled with timeless songs that are still popular today—The Man I Love, Someone To Watch Over Me, They Can’t Take That Away From Me, Swanee, I Got Rhythm, Summertime, and it’s impossible to overlook his orchestral masterpiece, Rhapsody In Blue.