S/BAD’s ‘New Beginnings’ reflects troupe’s new faces

Sacramento/Black Art of Dance (S/BAD) presents “New Beginnings,” a concert performance that reflects the changes in the company’s dancers.

Performances are in Sacramento State’s Solano Hall Dancespace at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 28 and March 6-7; 2 p.m. March 3 and 10; and 8 p.m. March 1, 2, 8 and 9.

“After 20 years of performances and concerts, we’re going into a new beginning,” says S/BAD founder, Professor Linda Goodrich. “Primarily all new people are in this production.”

Many of her previous dancers have gone on to other endeavors. Goodrich got to know some of the replacements when they performed with the company last year. “But there are several more new people I didn’t know at all,” Goodrich says. “They came out to the audition and they were wonderful.”

The University’s African-American theater group, Sons/Ancestors Players, also will take part in the concert. Group members will recite Maya Angelou’s poem “On the Pulse of Morning” with S/BAD dancers performing to the spoken word.

A total of 20 dancers will take part in eight pieces. Several guest choreographers, from the Theatre & Dance Department faculty and outside the University, are collaborating on the production.

Music ranges from Brazilian contemporary to African-Cuban to the popular, such as Maxwell.

Choreographer Nicole Manker is using a couple of Maxwell’s songs for her piece, which is about relationships. “The foundation of any beginning is some sort of relationship,” Manker says. “And this is about lots of different relationships and how people interact and don’t interact, and kind of collide.”

Manker enjoys working with the newcomers. “It’s been very interesting in giving me some new perspectives on things, which is always a nice thing about working with new dancers.”

One of those new dancers, Raven Wilson, is excited about the concert. “This show’s a lot fun,” she says. “I have Nicole’s piece I’m dancing in and she’s got a lot of groovy stuff.”

Tickets for the 6:30 p.m. performances are $8 general admission and $5 for children 12 years old or younger. All other performances are $12 general, $10 students and seniors, and $8 for children. Tickets are available at the University Ticket Office, (916) 278-4323 or www.csus.edu/sfsc/ticketoffice/.

Music, art, dance, theater: It’s all at Sac State this spring

Cabaret, a Saturday Night Live band member and the second annual U-Nite soiree at the Crocker Art Museum are coming up during Sacramento State’s spring season of performances, exhibits and lectures. And that’s just a taste of what to expect between now and the end of May.

Tickets for all events are available through Sacramento State’s Ticket Office,www.csus.edu/sfsc/ticketoffice/, or (916) 278-4323. For media assistance, call Sacramento State’s Public Affairs office at (916) 278-6156.

U-Nite/Festival of the Arts

The main event of the spring is the annual Festival of the Arts, which again begins with U-Nite (short for “University Night Out”) at the Crocker Art Museum.

U-Nite will be held from 5 to 9 p.m. Thursday, April 11, and feature artworks, dance, and music by Sacramento State faculty throughout the museum. The crowd is free to wander about, enjoying the special exhibits and performances while taking in the Crocker’s collections. Last year’s inaugural U-Nite drew a crowd of 1,800.

This season’s Festival of the Arts begins immediately afterward, on April 12, and consists of six days of theater, dance, music, design and fine art.

Music

New Millennium Series

This year’s installment of the noted series will help the music world say goodbye to one of the great string ensembles, the Tokyo String Quartet, and pay tribute to Professor Emeritus Deborah Pittman, the clarinetist who has been a shining light for the University’s Music Department and been a driving force in the city’s artistic scene.

First up is the Axiom Brass Quintet, winner of the 2008 International Chamber Brass and 2010 Fischoff Chamber Music competitions. This exciting young ensemble will perform works of Monteverdi, Bach and Astor Piazzolla. They’ll take the stage Wednesday, Jan. 30

Violinist Kim Kashkashian, with pianist Lydia Artymiw, will perform Sunday, March 17. Kashkashian has been praised by the San Francisco Chronicle and played with major orchestras in New York, Berlin, London and many other cities. Artymiw has been called “a compelling musical personality” by the New York Times. The two will perform Stravinsky’s “Pulcinella Suite” and more.

The annual Faculty and Friends Gala on Friday, April 12, will pay tribute to Pittman, who holds degrees in music performance from Brooklyn College Conservatory and played with the Sacramento Symphony from 1981 to 1990. The program includes works by Beethoven, Mahler and Steve Reich’s “New York Counterpoint,” a work for 11 clarinets. Sacramento’s Citywater ensemble will premiere a work written by Professor Stephen Blumberg.

The Tokyo String Quartet is making its last tour after 43 seasons. On Friday, April 19, it will perform Mozart, Schubert and “Farewell,” a new work written specifically for their final tour.

All performances are at 7:30 p.m. in the Music Recital Hall. Tickets are $20 general, $10 for seniors and $5 for students for the Jan. 30 and April 12 concerts; $30, $20 and $10 for the March 17 performance;