Jeanette Colby, the University’s calendar editor, offers a selection of events and activities to do this weekend. Find daily information on upcoming events on the University Events Calendar at www.rochester.edu/calendar.
#1: Get a Seat to Obie Award-winning Play
The Obie-award winning play Circle Mirror Transformation opens at Todd Theater on Thursday, December 1, with shows on Friday, December 2, Saturday, December 3, and Sunday, December 4. The production, presented by the University’s International Theatre Program, explores the lives of a group of small town Vermonters through the minutely detailed lens of those characters taking an acting class. The play is guest directed by Brooklyn-based theater director, writer, and educator Pironne Yousefzadeh. Read more about the student cast. Performances begin at 7 p.m. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday; and 2 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets are $8 for Rochester students, $12 for alumni, faculty, staff, and seniors (65+), and $15 for the general public. Tickets may be purchased online at rochester.edu/theatre, or by calling (585) 275-4088. Tickets may also be purchased up to an hour before each performance at the box office.
#2: Hear Christmas Oratorio at Kodak Hall
The Eastman-Rochester Chorus and Eastman School Symphony Orchestra will present a concert on Friday, December 2. The concert is conducted by William Weinert and will feature J.S. Bach’s “Credo” from Mass in B Minor and Christmas Oratorio, Parts 1, 2, and 3. The collaborative performance will feature Eastman students as well as members of the Rochester community. The concert is free and begins at 8 p.m., at Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre.
#3: Make Holiday Crafts
Plan to create this weekend. Make holiday cards at the Memorial Art Gallery’s Art Social on Thursday, December 1. Meet up with friends, purchase wine or beer, and take part in casual art therapy with instructors Sara Blake and Casey Cardillo. All tools will be supplied. The class begins at 6:30 p.m. and the cost is $15. Call (585) 276-8959 with questions. On Saturday, December 3, Barnes & Noble at College Town will host a holiday crafting activity, from 1 to 3 p.m., with local artist Aggie Windig (children 8 to 16 must be accompanied by a parent). The Creative Arts Club at the University will also be at the bookstore that day making holiday bookmarks.
#4: Head to Strong Auditorium for ‘Fantastic Finales’
The Department of Music will host a few free concerts over the weekend. On Friday, December 2, the Wind Symphony concert will feature a piece “Love Can Heal,” written and guest conducted by Lindsay Bronnenkant ’10, as well as the traditional piece, “Sleigh Ride,” by Leroy Anderson. On Saturday, December 3, the Symphony Orchestra will present its concert of Fantastic Finales with well-known “big finishes,” from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Opus 67; Brahm’s Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Opus 68; and Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, Opus 14. Both concerts begin at 8 p.m., at the Strong Auditorium.
#5: Take in Chamber Music at Kilbourn Hall
Cellist David Ying, well known to concert audiences as the cellist of the Grammy Award-winning Ying Quartet, will perform as part of the Eastman’s Faculty Artist series on Sunday, December 4. As part of the quartet, he has performed worldwide in celebrated music venues around the world, including Carnegie Hall and the Sydney Opera House. Ying, associate professor of string chamber music and associate professor of violoncello at the Eastman School of Music, is also highly regarded as an individual artist. He will give a solo recital with his wife, pianist Elinor Freer, at 3 p.m., in Kilbourn Hall. Tickets are $10 for general admission and free to University ID holders.
