Dear Friends
//////////////////////////2012/13
The early 20th century saw a decade that witnessed global revolution. From the Mexican Revolution in 1910 and the Xinhai Revolution in 1911 to the start of World War I in 1914 and the Russian Revolution in 1917, the world was convulsing with change. This torment was reflected in the arts, including the world of ballet. On May 29, 1913, Serge Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes took to the stage in Paris to give the first performance of The Rite of Spring, choreographed by Vaslav Nijinsky to a score by Igor Stravinsky. The shock wave unleashed that evening is still being felt today. In the centennial year of this premiere, Carolina Performing Arts at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill presents The Rite of Spring at 100 (Rite 100) as part of our eighth season. Rite 100 will include 15 performances by world-renowned artists, who will be revisiting, re-examining and responding imaginatively to the Stravinsky-Nijinsky masterpiece. We will present nine world premieres, two U.S. premieres and 11 works commissioned by Carolina Performing Arts specifically for Rite 100. We will explore a variety of themes related to The Rite of Spring throughout the year. Choreographer Bill T. Jones and theater director Anne Bogart will bring their companies together for the first time for a personal and visceral meditation on The Rite. The string quartet Brooklyn Rider will present an evening entitled Make It New!, tracing how this Modernist imperative has been absorbed in new works by Colin Jacobsen, Shara Worden and Gabriel Kahane. The season also includes an unparalleled opportunity to experience the most distinctive versions of The Rite, performed by the Joffrey Ballet, Compagnie Marie Chouinard and Martha Graham Dance Company.
The Rite of Spring is only the beginning. Our 12/13 season features highly anticipated performances by returning artists such as legendary Brazilian musician Gilberto Gil and the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romatique. The orchestra will perform Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Monteverdi Choir in one of only three stops on their U.S. tour. We will also welcome several new faces to Memorial Hall this year, including indie bluegrass band the Punch Brothers featuring Chris Thile. We continue to deepen our relationship with the academy and are very excited to be partnering with the Center for Global Initiatives and the Center for the Study of the American South to host two performances as part of the annual Global American South Conference. The Carolina Chocolate Drops will perform with fellow returning artist Vusi Mahlasela, “The Voice” of South Africa. The following evening, Abigail Washburn will return to perform with Kai Welch alongside Wu Fei, an internationally acclaimed guzheng master. We gratefully acknowledge our university partners for Rite 100, the College of Arts and Sciences and the Institute for the Arts and Humanities. Major funding for the initiative has been provided by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and The William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust. Rite 100 would not be possible without the generous support of individual donors, who have allowed us to dream big, and the leadership of our National Advisory Board. Their collective enthusiasm for this project — and our entire 12/13 season — has been inspiring. Carolina Performing Arts seeks to change lives by creating and presenting exceptional arts experiences. We strive to nurture artistic innovation and the development of new works; to challenge and inspire audiences with powerful and transformative performances; and to integrate the arts into the core mission of the University, embracing its mandate for teaching, research and public service. With Rite 100, our most ambitious effort to date, our commitment to these goals has never felt more complete or more alive. Thank you for your continued support.
Emil J. Kang Executive Director for the Arts Director, Carolina Performing Arts Professor of the Practice Department of Music
carolina performing arts 2012/13
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