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 29 - Nov 7
Angels in America
"Angels in America, Part 1: Millennium Approaches" by Tony Kushner

In a world of surreal encounters and shifting realities, lives collide in 1980s America as friends, lovers and strangers navigate beautiful and challenging transformations in Tony Kushner's "Angels in America," the Pulitzer Prize-winning play that was also adapted into an acclaimed HBO miniseries.

Oct 29-31
“Macbeth” by William Shakespeare
"Macbeth" by William Shakespeare

Chilling premonitions drive this story of ambition, power and fate. Each scene is charged with suspense and despair in one of Shakespeare's most celebrated tragedies. "Fair is foul, and foul is fair" when blood, betrayal, and dark magic collide in this daring, all-female production. Alumna Acadia Barrengos (B.F.A. Drama '22) directs, bringing a bold, contemporary perspective to the Scottish tragedy. The cast challenges traditional gender roles while playing amongst the dangerous allure of power and collision with destiny. Step into a visually striking world where nothing is as it seems -- promising a gripping experience of theatrical thrills. Just don't say the name of the play out loud! Barrengos returns to UNCSA as an alumni director with support from the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts.

31
Oct
UNCSA Symphony Orchestra
UNCSA Symphony Orchestra

Expansive sound, bold soloists and high-stakes musical energy unite in a Symphony Orchestra program built to thrill. Hailed by Fanfare as a "rising young conductor," Ian Passmore returns to lead a dynamic evening of contrast and power.

1
Nov
Wind Ensemble
UNCSA Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Winds: Classics!

From rhythmic vitality to neoclassical precision, the UNCSA Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Winds trace a wide musical range across contrasting tones. Dmitri Shostakovich's "Folk Dances" opens the program with driving energy and spirited motion, drawing themes from the Russian ballet tradition. Richard Strauss' Serenade, Op. 7 follows with youthful grace, revealing the composer's early command of elegance and line. Igor Stravinsky's Octet introduces a shift in texture and form, offering crisp neoclassical writing defined by wit, clarity and inventive structure. Vincent Persichetti's Symphony No. 6 closes the program with sweeping contrast and rich detail in transformation -- inviting audiences to listen for musical form in addition to melody. Under the direction of Mark Norman, the ensembles move between energy, refinement and growing musical architecture within a single program.

1
Nov
Going for Baroque
Going for Baroque: Vocal Treasures of the 17th-18th Centuries and Beyond

The UNCSA Voice Department will present an afternoon of solos and ensembles reaching back to the Renaissance and Baroque periods, while also sampling more contemporary composers who emulate Early Music styles. Of course there will be Bach and Handel, but keep an ear out for surprises from Lully, Strozzi, Purcell, Caccini, and Betinis as well. Featuring high school and undergraduate students from the studios of Marilyn Taylor, Glenn Siebert, Phyllis Pancella, and Jodi Burns.

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Happy Hill Partnership

The Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts works in partnership with the Happy Hill Neighborhood Association to present Happy Hill Arts, a place-based arts and cultural initiative in a historically African American community adjacent to the University.

Additionally, in 2019, UNCSA, in partnership with the Kenan Institute and the Winston-Salem Department of Community Development, was recomended for a $50,000 Our Town grant from the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA) to support an artist-led cultural restoration project in the Happy Hill neighborhood. 

Happy Hill Arts

Happy Hill Arts sponsors cultural arts activities and events that engage both its youth and adult populations, thereby enhancing and enriching the quality of life and educational opportunities for residents. The Happy Hill Summer Arts Program, launched in the summer of 2017, offers participating children diverse experiences, including dance, drumming and photography classes, as well as field trips to arts and cultural destinations in Winston-Salem. In April 2018, Happy Hill Arts added After-School Arts, providing an opportunity to build on the success of the summer program and provide more consistent interaction with the community.

Project Goals

  • Expose Happy Hill children (Grades 1-5) to a positive experience with art, culture, and learning
  • Enhance cognitive abilities and skills such as critical thinking and problem-solving, that will support greater academic success through the arts
  • Instill communal knowledge of and pride in the historical significance of Happy Hill
  • Instill knowledge of African American history, identity and achievements
  • Foster greater involvement by the parents of Happy Hill in enriching and improving their lives and the lives of their children, using such vehicles as communal meals and music to restore a sense of community
  • Support community-based creative leaders of color

In May 2018, the Winston-Salem Foundation presented Happy Hill Arts founders Amatuallah Saleem and Rebecca Bryant Williams with an ECHO Award, presented to local individuals and organizations that are building social capital.

The program is led by the Happy Hill Neighborhood Association with technical and administrative support from the Kenan Institute.

Our Town Grant

In 2019, UNCSA, in partnership with the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts and the Winston-Salem Department of Community Development, was recommended for a $50,000 Our Town grant from the National Endowment of the Arts to support an artist-led cultural restoration project in the Happy Hill neighborhood. The grant was announced in May 2019 by the NEA.

The grant supports research and planning for the three-part Happy Hill Cultural Restoration Project. Led by a coalition of artists, residents and community leaders, the project will identify and build upon the historic neighborhood’s community assets, reenvision housing development, and create a master plan for reengaging the community through arts programming.

UNCSA, through the Kenan Institute, was inspired to apply for the grant after partnering with the Happy Hill Neighborhood Association on Happy Hill Arts.

The project includes three parts:

  • Cultural asset mapping: The first part of the cultural restoration project, cultural asset mapping, includes data collection, outreach and engagement through surveys, focus groups, research and oral histories to inventory key cultural and historical resources. The working group will identify the community’s most valued assets and will develop strategies to improve or expand them.
  • Community Innovation Lab: For the second part, the Kenan Institute with its resident partner, EmcArts, facilitated a Community Innovation Lab with Happy Hill residents, city officials, business and faith leaders, artists, academics and others to explore barriers to restarting housing development in Happy Hill, opportunities for development and what role artists can plan in reenvisioning housing in the community.
  • Cultural master plan: The final component of the project, a cultural master plan, is led by a nonprofit consultant team, who will meet with artists, residents, city officials, university representatives, funders and other stakeholders to kick-start visualizations for the cultural master plan. The public will be invited to participate in developing the plan for community reengagement though arts programming, telling the story of Happy Hill, and finding creative uses for properties.

For more information about the Happy Hill Partnership, contact Liza Vest at vestl@uncsa.edu or the Happy Hill Neighborhood Association at hhnaofws@gmail.com.