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2019–20 Season at The Clarice Announced

July 02, 2019 School of Music | School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies | The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center

SITI Company performs The Bacchae.

Performances explore themes around gender, diversity and politics.

A play directed by five-time Tony Award-winning theater professor Brian MacDevitt. A surprising and stunning string duo consisting of legendary banjo player Abigail Washburn and Wu Fei, who masterfully plays a Chinese stringed instrument called the guzheng. And perennial favorite Handel’s “Messiah,” performed by the UMD Chamber Singers and the UMD Symphony Orchestra. These are just a few highlights of the 2019–20 season at The Clarice.

The schedule features more than 150 events, ranging in genre from classical and jazz to theater and contemporary dance. These events performed by student and faculty artists as well as acclaimed visiting artists will explore themes such as female empowerment, racism, toxic masculinity, LGBTQ+ representation and the current political climate.

The season kicks off Sept. 13 and 14 with the annual NextNOW Fest, an arts festival that celebrates the diversity of the arts, presented by The Clarice’s Artist Partner Programs and co-curated by students and campus departments. 

Other highlights:

  • The School of Music welcomes David Neely as he makes his debut as the UMD Symphony Orchestra's new music director with Antonín Dvořák's cheerful Symphony No. 8. 
  • The Visiting Artist Series brings the SITI Company to take on Euripides’ masterpiece “The Bacchae.” Although the story is more than 2,400 years old, this exploration of cult vs. society, tyranny vs. populism and restraint vs. excess remains relevant in modern-day America. 
  • The School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies highlights the power of women throughout history and racial pride in African American communities during the post-emancipation era in its presentation of Pearl Cleage’s  “Flyin’ West.”

Committed to making the arts accessible, The Clarice offers all UMD students free tickets. UMD faculty and staff receive $5 off each ticket. Find the full 2019–20 performing arts calendar here.

Photo: SITI Company performs "The Bacchae." (Photo courtesy of Stephanie Berger).