Department of Performing Arts Season 2023-24 performingarts.georgetown.edu
Ballet Folklorico - History & Dance
August 28
Gonda Theater
Introducing the Ballet Folklórico de México. A conversation with Artistic Director Amalia Viviana Basanta Hernández exploring the origins, evolution, and goals of the Ballet founded by her mother, and which is still the leading company exploring the intersections of Mexico’s diverse peoples, their many ways of music, and the powers of their dances. The conversation will be followed by a performance by Corazón Folklórico, a DC affiliate of the Ballet.
Sponsored by the Georgetown Americas Forum and Department of Performing Arts.
Jake Blount Residency at Georgetown University
September 20-21
Performance Sept 21-7:30pm
Gonda Theater
A powerfully gifted musician and a scholar of Black American music, Jake Blount speaks ardently about the African roots of the banjo and the subtle, yet profound ways African Americans have shaped and defined the amorphous categories of roots music and Americana. His 2020 album Spider Tales (named one of the year’s best albums by NPR and The New Yorker, and earning a perfect 5-star review from The Guardian) highlighted the Black and Indigenous histories of popular American folk tunes, as well as revived songs unjustly forgotten in the whitewashing of the canon.
Jake Blount’s new album, The New Faith, is a towering achievement of dystopian Afrofuturism and his first album for Smithsonian Folkways (released September 23, 2022).
The Lab x Little Amal
September 19
Freedom Plaza
The Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics at Georgetown University welcomes Little Amal, the internationally celebrated 12Foot puppet of a 10 year old Syrian refugee girl, to the Nation’s Capital. For more information, visit: globallab.georgetown.edu
The New Faith is spiritual music, filled with hope for salvation and righteous anger in equal measure. The album manifests our worst fears on the shores of an island in Maine, where
Blount enacts an imagined religious ceremony performed by Black refugees after the collapse of global civilization due to catastrophic climate change.
Jake Blount’s music is rooted in care and confrontation. On stage, each song he and his band play is chosen for a reason - because it highlights important elements about the stories we tell ourselves of our shared history and our endlessly complicated present moment. The more we learn about where we’ve been, the better equipped we are to face the future.
Co-sponsored with the Racial Justice Institute, the African-American Studies Department, and the American Studies Program.
Supported by The CNDLS (Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship) LEAP (Learning, Equity, Access, and Pedagogy) Initiative.
Special EVENTS
LITTLE AMAL
BALLET FOLKLORICO
Gypsy and the Bully Door
By Georgetown University Racial Justice Institute Fellow, Nina Angela Mercer. Residency at Davis Performing Arts Center
September 28-October 8
Performance-October 8
Gonda Theater
Sara has a dream, but life just keeps happening in ways that seem to pull that dream further and further away at every turn, especially when she keeps losing the people she loves. Though she fights to hold on, determined to shake loose the haunting of many past lives, there’s a cost. There’s also a way to heal. But the choice to be well is often more difficult than it seems.
This story is a multi-media, immersive, and interactive ritual experience set to the undeniable call of DC’s go-go music, led by The Mayor, our funk conductor and “lead talker,” while the full cast of vibrant characters becomes The Pocket Roll Call, a percussive band of characters who fuel and foil Sara’s movements, no matter where she goes to escape.
Heart of Ryukyu Dance
Ryukyu Dance x Making a Go-Go Band, Nov 17-8pm
Gonda Theater
Ryukyu Dance, Nov 18, 12pm & 3pm
Gonda Theater
A group of traditional dancers from Okinawa, Japan, present their work, including a new number choreographed to a Go-go tune.
Lessons in Drag, with LaWhore Vagistan
By Kareem Khubchandani
February 8
Devine Theater
Dr. Vagistan, your favorite South Asian drag auntie, brings the nightclub to the classroom (and vice versa) to explain how critical social theory matters in queer nightlife. Touching on themes that include globalization, feminist theory, and islamophobia, she stages the nightclub as a site of politics and pleasure. Part lecture, part lipsync, part audience participation, the show demonstrates how much drag teaches us, even requires us, to be in relation with the rest of the world.
Sponsored by Asian Studies Program, SFS, Culture and Politics, SFS, Dept. of Theater & Performing Arts; Women’s & Gender Studies Program; LGBTQ Resource Center.
The Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics Residency at
Davis Performing Arts Center
April 29-May 4:
Devine Theater
A biennial festival of performances, panels, and workshops hosted on campus at The Davis Center.
JAKE BLOUNT PHOTO BY TADIN BROWN
NINA ANGELA MERCER THE LAB
Theater & Performance Studies Program
Note from Artistic director
Put your hands up for our 23-24 season of “Together We Go-Go”! This year, the Theater and Performance Studies Program and Black Theater Ensemble co-present a season at the Davis Performing Arts Center, celebrating community, collaboration, and DC’s official music, go-go.
According to Professor Soyica Colbert: “Go-go is a cultural phenomenon indigenous to Washington D.C. Primarily associated with funk music of the 1970s and the rise of hip hop during the period, go-go, like hip hop, names a set of cultural practices that include music and dance. It also includes transforming a space into a culturally specific place.”
Inspired by go-go’s unstoppable rhythm, energy, and resilience, we will be bringing you an array of performances that boldly tell stories, transform spaces, and empower all humans to voice their existence. We welcome exciting collaborators throughout the season as well: go-go artist and educator Charles “Shorty Corleone” Garris (Wind Me Up Maria! 2016) returns to the Davis Center for Making a Go-go Band, a one-ofa-kind musical-meets-gameshow; in Hurricane Diane, directed by Professor Michael T. Williams, we will be working with the LGBTQ Resource Center and Department of Classics. Join us for a “Pride Night” for this show!
Our two thesis productions combine the personal, historical, and political. Camila Madero’s new play Our Dirty War tells the story of her father Robert (played by Camila herself), who escaped Argentina’s dictatorship in the 1970s. Shakeer Hood takes you on a journey of self-discovery through history of black queer identity in When the Two Hands Meet.
In addition to the four mainstage shows above, we will be presenting an array of interdisciplinary and partner events: Black Theater Ensemble will host their signature coffeehouse events once a month (yes we will serve coffee and have an open mic!); Gypsy and the Bully Door, presented by Racial Justice Initiative, is a workshop production of a go-go inspired new musical by Nina Angela Mercer; Music program hosts “Afrofuturist folklorist” Jake Blount in residency, with a concert, master classes, and a performance-lecture; Asian Studies Program (SFS) will bring acclaimed scholar-artist/ drag queen Kareem Khubchandani in Lessons in Drag, w/ LaWhore Vagistan in the spring. Join us, also, for the Music Week and Dance Concerts each semester.
So don’t mute your talent, make some noise, take up some space! We will be shaking up cutting-edge performances all year long. As in go-go, the audience completes the performance experience. For ways to participate on stage or backstage, scan the QR code on the back of this brochure to check out our website!
TPST Artistic Director, Professor Natsu Onoda Power and Black Theatre Ensemble Executive Producer, Shakeer Hood.
Professor Natsu Onoda Power
Our Dirty War
Written by Camila Madero
October 25, 27, 28-8pm
October 29-2pm
Devine Theater
Our Dirty War is a deeply intimate exploration of the Argentinian community in the 1970s, when thousands disappeared under the regime of a brutal dictatorship. Through dialogues with her father, Robert Madero, the playwright reimagines the tales and characters of the past. A poignant tribute to her father’s strength, the play celebrates the transformative power of storytelling to heal.
When Two Hands Meet
Created by Shakeer Hood
March 20-8pm
March 21,22-6pm & 8pm
March 23-2pm & 8pm
Gonda Theater
Follow the protagonist, a young, black, and queer individual, who must glean through history to find truth, identity, community, and purpose. Through spoken word, music, and dance staged in found spaces in the Davis Center and beyond, the audience is invited on a journey of self-discovery, joy and freedom.
TPST x Black theatre Ensemble Coffeehouses
Aug 25, Oct 30, Dec 7, Feb 11, Mar 26, May 2 Davis Performing Arts Center Lobby
BTE will host several coffeehouses throughout the year in the Davis Center lobby. Students from a variety of backgrounds can come together to showcase their poetic, musical, or written talents.
Established in 1979, Georgetown University’s Black Theatre Ensemble (BTE) is dedicated to producing dramatic works that celebrate and enrich the Black American cultural heritage and the cultural heritages of all minority communities, expanding and challenging the discourse on the Black experience. Through the arts, BTE strives to provoke substantive dialogue, promote cross-cultural exchange, and engage the community.
Making a Go-Go Band
November 8-11-8pm
November 12-2pm
November 15-18-8pm
Gonda Theater
Aspiring go-go musicians from DC public schools spend a semester at the Davis Center, working with Georgetown Students to create a new, one-ofa-kind theatrical performance. Part concert, part storytelling, part teach-in, part documentary and part interactive game show, this production will give you a glimpse into the history of go-go, and teach you a quick lesson on how to participate at a go-go event. Each performance also includes an impromptu jam session with musicians from around the world.
Hurricane Diane
Written by Madeleine George
Directed by Michael T. Williams
April 11-13-8pm
April 14-2pm
April 17-20-8pm
Devine Studio Theater
Meet Diane, a butch gardener from Vermont with a down-to-earth swagger that belies her true celestial identity—the Greek god Dionysus. She’s determined to manifest a world where every yard is a permaculture, restored to its natural state and capable of sustaining itself. Where better to gather mortal followers in her environmental battle than with four housewives in a suburban New Jersey cul-de-sac? Part Greek comedy, part lesbian pulp fiction, part ecological thriller, Pulitzer Prize finalist Madeleine George hilariously eviscerates the blind eye we all turn to climate change. Bacchanalian catharsis awaits us, even in our own backyards.
“Hurricane Diane” is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com
Music Program
Friday Music Concert Series
The Friday Music Concert Series offers free performances each semester in McNeir Hall (New North Building) every Friday afternoon (12:30-1:45 pm) for the university community of students, staff, faculty, and neighbors in the city.
The concerts feature local, national, and international performers offering music from an array of genres including jazz, classical, opera, country, folk, world, chamber, roots, and traditional, highlighting broad cultural diasporas of art. The series is designed as a cornerstone of the undergraduate music curriculum with its focus on American musical culture, connecting to courses concentrating on historical musicology, ethnomusicology, performance, and theory as well as the extensive traditions practiced, created, and innovated in the DC Metro area and beyond. Guest artists are also featured in the affiliated course “Live Music in Context”, in masterclasses for students enrolled in music ensembles, and as lectures provided to academic courses.
The Fall 2023 semester includes performances by David Kim (world-renowned violinist and concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra), acclaimed Brazilian guitarist Rogerio Souza, the Alejandro Brittes Quartet from South America, contemporary composer and violinist Gregory TS Walker, and others.
September 8
September 15
September 29
October 6
October 20
October 27
November 3
November 10
November 17
Soloist David Kim and The U.S. Army Band, Pershing’s Own, Gonda Theater*
Enriqueta Somarriba
Alejandro Brittes Quartet
Tiago do Bandolim, Choro, Samba, Jazz
Francesca Hurst
Kamyar Arsani x Sunken Cages
Gregory TS and Lori Walker
Paul Bratcher
Modern Musick
ENRIQUETA
SOMARRIBA
KAYMAR ARSANI X SUNKEN CAGES
ALEJANDRO
BRITTES QUARTET
* All other performances take place in McNeir Hall, New North.
Georgetown University Concert Choir
Professor Frederick Binkholder, Director
Gregory Walker Residency Concert
November 3-2:15pm
Dahlgren Chapel of the Sacred Heart
Featuring the world premiere of his Mumblin’ Word, written specifically for this concert.
14th Annual Messiah Sing Along
December 4-7:30pm
Dahlgren Chapel of the Sacred Heart
Hosted by the Concert Choir of Georgetown University and accompanied by the early music orchestra Modern Musick and soloists from the Kennedy Center’s Cafritz Young Artist Series.
My Heart be Brave
April 13-5:pm
Dahlgren Chapel of the Sacred Heart
A choral concert featuring works from the recently published Oxford collection Choral Music by Black Composers and new editions by Margaret Bonds taken from the Booth Family Special Collections of Georgetown University Library.
Georgetown University Chamber Singers
Professor Frederick Binkholder, Director
Georgetown Art All Night
September 29
St. John’s Episcopal Church Georgetown
DC Art All Night is a free annual arts festival that brings together local artists and businesses to celebrate the vibrant culture of Washington, DC.
Bolivian Soujourn
April 12-5:pm
Dahlgren Chapel of the Sacred Heart
Their last concert before departing to perform at the 14th Biennial Festival of Renaissance and Baroque Music in Santa Cruz Bolivia.
GU CONCERT CHOIR
GU CHAMBER SINGERS
Georgetown University Orchestra
Professor Angel Gil-Ordoñez
Fall Concert
November 11-7:30pm
Gaston Hall
Presenting Rachmaninoff’s piano concerto no. 2, with Kenny Zhang, the winner of the 2023 edition of the GU Orchestra Concerto Competition as soloist. Works by Tchaikovsky and Smetana will complete the program.
Spring Concert
April 27-7:30pm
Gaston Hall
World Percussion Ensemble
Professor David Murray
Fall Performance
December 3-6pm
Gonda Theater
The World Percussion Ensemble performs original compositions and arrangements, drawing on the wide variety of traditions and influences of cultures around the world.
Spring Performance
TBA
Gonda Theater
Guild Of Bands
Professor David Murray
Fall Concert
December 3-2pm
Gonda Theater
The Guild of Bands Showcase features GU students performing original music and lyrics in a variety of styles and genres, as well as some unique and creative covers of popular songs.
Spring Concert
TBA
Gonda Theater
GU Chamber Music Ensembles
Professor Benjamin Capps
Fall Performance
November 19-5pm
McNeir Auditorium
The GU Chamber Music Ensembles Program presents a gala concert featuring instrumental groups performing music from a wide variety of chamber music styles and genres.
GU Jazz Ensemble
Professor Paul Bratcher
November 30
Gonda Theater
Join the Georgetown University Jazz Ensemble for a performance featuring popular Big Band arrangements from classic and contemporary composers. Composers include Duke Ellington, John Clayton, Sammy Nestico, and much more.
Music Week
Join us for culminating performances of Georgetown music ensembles at the end of each semester. Music Week features GU students led by faculty directors, showcasing a variety of existing and original musical fare in a variety of styles.
Fall
November 28-December 3
Gonda Theater
Spring
April 22-28
Gonda Theater
GU ORCHESTRA
Dance Program
At Georgetown University, students have the opportunity to participate in dance in a variety of ways, including two academic and three co-curricular dance ensembles.
Student-run groups include Ritmo y Sabor Latin Dance (“rhythm and flavor” in Spanish), a diverse, student-run group that promotes awareness of Spanish-speaking Caribbean culture and of the northernmost countries of South America through dance; Groove Theory, a group that offers students the opportunity to learn, teach and enjoy hip hop dance; and Ballet Folklorico Mexicano de Georgetown, an ensemble that has embraced the Mexican tradition of folkloric dance from the various Mexican states, as well as modern styles including bachata, salsa and merengue.
The Georgetown University Dance Company and Black Movements Dance Theatre are professionally directed.
BLACK
DANCE
MOVEMENTS
THEATRE
BLACK MOVEMENTS DANCE THEATRE
Georgetown University Dance Company
Professor Raina Lucas, Artistic Director
Student Artistic Director, Chloe Holman
Fall 2023 Works in Progress Showing
November 29-7:30pm
December 1-7:30pm
Devine Studio Theater
Georgetown University Dance Company (GUDC) presents their Fall 2023 Works In Progress Showing. A prelude to their spring performance, this informal showing will feature 8 student choreographed works in styles including ballet, modern, jazz, and contemporary.
Spring 2023 Dance Concert
February 16-8pm
February 17-8pm
Gonda Theater
Georgetown University Dance Company (GUDC) presents their annual Spring dance concert showcasing a collection of works in a variety of styles featuring 8 student works and 1 faculty work, as well as works by GUDC’s 2023- 24 Guest Artists-inResidence, Tiffanie Carson and Kathryn Pilkington.
Black Movements Dance Theatre
Professor Alfreda Davis, Artistic Director
Dates TBA
Dance Residency at Davis Performing Arts Center
Fall
November 26-December 3
Devine Theater
Spring
February 11-24
Gonda Theater
GU DANCE COMPANY
Co-Curricular Theater
Mask and Bauble Dramatic Society
Mask and Bauble was founded in 1852 as The Dramatic Association of Georgetown College. The group first performed on February 27, 1853, and has since had an exciting and prestigious history. After a brief period of dormancy during World War I the club reorganized under the name of the Mask and Bauble Dramatic Society, reflecting its new emphasis on comedies and dramas.
Night of Musical Scenes
October 13-14
Location: TBA
Night of Musical Scenes is a low-pressure, short, and fun process open to all students and skill levels! It takes the form of a musical cabaret with different student performers for each song. It’s an annual tradition for Mask and Bauble focused on community building and student expression.
John Proctor is the Villian
Written by Kimberly Belflower
October 27-30
November 2-November 5
Poulton Hall, Stage III
Set in a rural Georgia high school amid the Me Too movement, John Proctor is the Villain questions the traditional teachings of classic literature in a modern cultural context. The show is a powerful coming of age story that offers a modern spin on The Crucible, with themes of female friendship and empowerment, and the struggle to be heard in a system that does not support you.
Don B. Murphy One Acts Festival
February 15-February 18
Poulton Hall, Stage III
Mask and Bauble’s 38th Annual One Acts Play Festival - show descriptions coming soon!
Visit www.maskandbauble.org or email maskandbauble@gmail.com for more information about their 172nd season!
www.nomadic-theatre.com
Founded in 1982, nomadictheatre is one of Georgetown University’s premier co-curricular student theatre groups. Since its inception, Nomadic has committed itself to creating theatre that is both technically ambitious and socially engaged. In that spirit, Nomadic pushes its designers and actors alike to create innovative productions that take artistic risks and feature challenging themes.
Betrayal
Written by Harold Pinter
November 3-5
It’s the return of our Square Pegs productions, now renamed Dead Bunny. Directed by Alex Wang and produced by Roshni Powers, this show exemplifies our technically ambitious attitude to all things theater!
Mask & Bauble x nomadictheatre present: PIPPIN
Written by Roger O. Hirson
April 11-14
April 18-21
PIPPIN follows a traveling theater troupe that tells the story of Pippin, a young boy trying to find his place in the world. He seeks to find purpose through love, sex, violence, and leadership, but he fails in all of his efforts. The classic musical ponders the meaning of success, relationships, fame, and ultimately, life. With Bob Fosse’s choreography, a score by Stephen Schwartz, and a dazzling, glitzy design, PIPPIN is bound to thrill everyone.
Miscast
February 2-3
Directed by Maya Dow, Miscast is a chance for everyone to sing and act in roles they wouldn’t typically be cast in! Everyone is encouraged to join as it also raises money for charities in the DC area.
PIPPIN is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI.www.mtishows.com
Georgetown University Improv Association Improv Shows
Oct 21, Nov 18, Dec 2, Jan 20, March 23, Apr 20
Bulldog Alley
The Georgetown Improv Association has been bringing live, improvised comedy to Georgetown since 1995! Once a month, its members go onstage without a script and turn the audience’s suggestions into comedic scenes which no one-including the performers--has ever seen before.
IMPROVFEST
February 9-10 Bulldog Alley
IMPROVFEST is a two-night improv festival during which the Georgetown Improv Association invites other improv troupes from around the country to come to Georgetown to showcase their various forms and styles of improv comedy. Roughly six or so other teams come to campus in total for an event that comedy lovers shouldn’t miss out on!
CHAIR
Benjamin J. Harbert, Ph.D. Professor; Music Program Director
THEATER & PERFORMANCE STUDIES PROGRAM FACULTY
Kate Yust Al-Shamma, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of the Practice; Theater and Performance Studies Program Director
Dorothy Barnes-Driggers, M.F.A. Assistant Professor of the Practice; Costume Shop Manager
Soyica Colbert, Ph.D. President for Interdisciplinary Initiatives. Professor of African American Studies and Performing Arts; Idol Family Professor
Fatima Dyfan, B.A. Adjunct Lecturer
Christine Evans, Ph.D. Professor
Angelisa Gillyard, Ph.D. Adjunct Lecturer
Derek Goldman, Ph.D. Professor; Co-Founding Director, Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics
Anita Gonzalez, Ph. D. Professor of African American Studies and Performing Arts; Founding Co-Leader of the Racial Justice Institute
Emma Jaster, B.A. Adjunct Lecturer Associate Director; The Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics
Sarah Marshall, B.F.A. Adjunct Lecturer
Natsu Onoda Power, Ph.D. Professor; Artistic Director, Davis Performing Arts Center
Maya Roth, Ph.D. Della Rosa Professor
Kimberly Schraf. B.A. Adjunct Lecturer
Sivagami “Shiva” Subbaraman, M.A. Adjunct Lecturer Lead Advisor; Faculty Initiative for Justice, Equity and Community
Michael T. Williams, M.F.A
Assistant Professor of the Practice; Artistic Advisor for Co-Curricular Theater, Associate Artistic Director, Davis Performing Arts Center
MUSIC PROGRAM FACULTY
Benjamin J. Harbert, Ph.D. Professor; Music Program Director
Frederick A. Binkholder, M.M. Professor of Practice
Jessica Boykin-Settles, M.M. Adjunct Lecturer
Michael Bracy, B.A. Adjunct Lecturer
Paul Bratcher, M.M. Adjunct Lecturer
Benjamin Capps, M.M. Adjunct Lecturer
Anthony R. DelDonna, Ph.D. Thomas E. Caestecker Professor
Angel Gil-Ordoñez, Artists Diploma Adjunct Professor of Practice
Jay Hammond, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Practice
David Murray, M.M. Adjunct Lecturer
Tauheed Rahim II, United States Cultural Ambassador Artist-in-Residence
David Schulman, M.S. Adjunct Lecturer
Carlos Simon, D.M.A. Associate Professor
Robynn J. Stilwell, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Head of Dance
Department of Performing Arts Faculty/Staff
Wan-Chi Su, D.M.A. Adjunct Lecturer
DANCE FACULTY
Alfreda Davis, B.F.A. Artistic Director; Black Movements Dance Theatre
Raina Lucas, M.F.A. Artistic Director; Georgetown University Dance Company
ASSOCIATED THEATER & MUSIC FACULTY
Mikyoung Cho, M.M. Accompanist
Gianni Cicali, Ph.D. Professor, Italian
Maurice Jackson. Ph.D. Associate Professor, History
Bryan McCann, Ph.D. Associate Professor, History
Guy Spielman, Ph.D. Professor, French
Russell Weismann, D.M.A. LIiturgical Music Director
DEPARTMENT OF PERFORMING ARTS AND DAVIS CENTER STAFF
Stanley Bahorek, M.A. Community Engagement and Development Manager
Alicia DiGiorgi, B.A. DIirector of Production
Holden Gunster, B.A. Technical Director
Caitlin Lawlor, B.A. Public Relations, Marketing and Special Events Specialist
Clarielle Marsh, M.F.A. Operations and Events Manager
Todd Michael Porter, M.A. General Manager
PROF. BENJAMIN J. HARBERT
PROF. MAYA E. ROTH, ONE FLEA SPARE TALKBACK
PROF. KATE YUST AL-SHAMMA
PROF. SOYICA COLBERT
Season 2023-24 performingarts.georgetown.edu
