Aug 28 - Nov 13
School of Filmmaking Symposium
School of Filmmaking: Symposium

The School of Filmmaking's "Symposium" series opens a door into the world behind the screen, offering audiences a chance to engage with filmmakers, artists and creative thinkers from myriad disciplines who are shaping contemporary storytelling. Through screenings, conversations and engaging dialogue, each event becomes a unique space to come together and explore how art is made, why it matters and what it reveals about the world we live in.

Oct 1-8
Runied
"Ruined" by Lynn Nottage

Amid the upheaval of civil war in Congo, Pulitzer Prize-winning "Ruined" follows the formidable Mama Nadi, whose bar becomes a haven for women marked by violence, loss and survival. She must skillfully navigate violent power struggles while protecting those who rely on her courage and cunning.

4
Oct
UNCSA Improvised Music and Jazz Studio Fall Showcase
UNCSA Improvised Music and Jazz Studio Fall Showcase

A night of spontaneity, groove and creative risk unfolds as the UNCSA Improvised Music and Jazz Studio presents a smooth showcase of sound. Student performers explore a wide range of jazz and improvised traditions, from structured charts to fully open-ended creation - highlighting individual voice, ensemble listening and real-time musical decision-making.

4
Oct
Iain Quinn
Organist Iain Quinn in Recital

An intimate opportunity to hear a distinctive instrument at the hands of a world-renowned musician and cultural historian, Iain Quinn gives a recital on UNCSA's Fisk, Op. 75 pipe organ. Set within the power and subtlety of the organ, the program explores a full range of emotion -- from quiet, sustained tones to emboldened sound -- highlighting the instrument as much as the performer. Quinn is an award-winning organist, composer and scholar whose work spans performance, composition and musicological research across Europe and the United States. He is professor of organ and coordinator of sacred music at Florida State University, research fellow in the arts and humanities and director of the annual Festival of the Creative Arts in the Office of the Vice President for Research. Quinn is also an Honorary Research Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music.

8
Oct
A.J. Fletcher Opera Scenes
A.J. Fletcher Opera Scenes: An Evening at the Opera

Spend the evening celebrating 25 years of the A.J. Fletcher Opera Institute as Fletcher Fellows bring the drama, humor and intensity of opera to life through a series of captivating scenes from the repertoire. From an intimate theater setting, encounter emerging artists preparing for careers on the world's greatest opera stages. Fletcher Fellows are under the direction of Music Director James Allbritten and Artistic Director Steven LaCosse.

10
Oct
Christian Gray
Double Bassist Christian Gray in Recital

Philadelphia Orchestra double bassist Christian Gray became a sought-after double bass soloist following his 2nd Place and "Audience Favorite" awards in the Sphinx Competition in 2021.  Fresh from recitals in Texas and the Peabody Conservatory, he will present a wide-ranging program featuring Frank Proto's jazz-influenced Sonata 1963, Lawrence Brown's Spirituals, Vivaldi's Sonata No. 6 (originally for cello), and Bottesini's, Nel Cor Piu Non Mi Sento Variations. He is sure to delight the audience, because he is returning home to Winston-Salem and to UNCSA where he is a proud graduate (2010) of its high school program.  

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The Artist as Leader: An Introduction

We’d like to start a conversation about how artists lead – through their creative practices and beyond.

Over the coming months the Kenan Institute for the Arts, through a series of interviews published here on our website, will invite artists with diverse careers and experiences to reflect on how the creative process has helped them develop attributes of leadership such as vision, empathy, authenticity, persistence, patience, as well as the ability to listen deeply and to empower others.

We’ll ask emerging and established artists to explore the mediums in which they work to help us create a better shared understanding of how the arts influence and shape our society.

We hope to draw on the experiences of those working in the field to further develop the opportunities we offer for artists to strengthen the impact of the arts through leadership, entrepreneurship and innovative creativity. We believe these experiences can inform our programming. 

We also want to engage diverse leaders working beyond the arts to help identify where creative and artistic skills might translate to other settings. Professionals of all kinds — from the fields of business, medicine, law, education, social services and the nonprofit sector — lead and serve their communities in myriad ways, helping them to address the complex economic and social challenges of our times. Why aren’t more artists called upon to envision opportunities in economic and community development, urban planning and civic engagement? How about creative solutions to poverty and unemployment?

These are important questions for artists to answer. We have invited Rob Kramer of Kramer Leadership, which provides coaching and leadership training to a variety of social impact sectors, to serve as a guest expert to guide some of our discussions.

At the Kenan Institute for the Arts, we’re devoted to helping artists strengthen the impact of the arts through leadership, entrepreneurship and innovative creativity. We believe in enabling artists to be creative leaders who contribute to the economic and social well-being of our communities.

Ideally, this conversation will draw diverse voices, spur debate, inspire action and become a valuable resource for working artists and communities everywhere.

We hope you’ll join in the conversation.