
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.

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.

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.

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.

Join virtuoso singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Tony Furtado for an unforgettable evening at the Muddy Creek Listening Room in Old Salem. Furtado is known for his work on banjo, cello-banjo, slide guitar and baritone ukulele.

Jennifer Rowley, lauded by the New York Times as "a singer of enormous gift and promise," illuminates Watson Hall with a voice of striking power and expressive nuance. From intimate reflection to soaring virtuosity, the program features music that demands both technical brilliance and deep emotional clarity, highlighting the full dramatic and lyrical range of the soprano repertoire. The recital moves between operatic arias and art song, showcasing the voice as both instrument and storyteller. Rowley is acclaimed for her powerful voice and commanding stage presence, with a repertoire spanning many of opera's great heroines. She has appeared on major international stages including the Metropolitan Opera, Staatsoper Berlin and Opernhaus Zürich and in roles such as Aida, Tosca and Turandot. She is also the founder of Aria Bootcamp and serves on the voice faculty at the Curtis Institute of Music. Jennifer Rowley performs at UNCSA as part of a year-long operatic celebration of the 25th anniversary of the A.J. Fletcher Opera Institute.
Session Resources:
Join us for an hour of Fun, Joy and Lightness (FUJOLI)! Dynamic leader Katrin Windsor will guide us through an hour of stress-busting activities that will both quiet your brain and get your heart pumping. This hour is certain to help you:
You won't want to miss this highly active, educational and beneficial workshop.

Katrin Windsor
Katrin Windsor used to be a stressed-out executive, a VP in Silicon Valley, a National Managing Director in NYC, a General Manager for EMEA based in London and Paris. She knows the pressures of corporate life and what it means to hold P&L responsibilities for international teams and operations. She also knows that fun and play are scientifically-proven, powerful and under-appreciated antidotes to stress and can help teams stay positive, creative and productive.
Katrin is a certified team and executive coach, leader developer, speaker and facilitator. She works with executives and their teams. See: The Windsor Group. She trains professional coaches in her role as Faculty for the Co-Active Training Institute, CTI, the gold standard in coach training. She's fluent in five languages and has coached teams in 40+ countries. She lives and plays in Boulder, CO.