UNCSA Presents: September and October performance highlights

The UNCSA 2025–26 performance season, “UNCSA Presents,” continues this September and October with highlights including Fall Dance, the gospel and R&B musical “Choir Boy,” two concerts with the UNCSA Symphony Orchestra including a special collaboration with the Wake Forest University Symphony Orchestra, the return of the Chamber Music Festival, and a special Halloween event with the UNCSA Jazz Ensemble.

Tickets to all events are $25 per event for adults and $20 for non-UNCSA students with a valid ID. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling the box office at 336-721-1945.

Fall Dance –Sept. 23–27

The School of Dance kicks off its season with its annual Fall Dance, a contemporary showcase featuring students of all levels performing new and established works, restaged with a fresh perspective. This year, Gavin Stewart and Vanessa Owen of Asheville-based Stewart/Owen Dance return to choreograph for UNCSA after successfully launching the S/OURCE winter dance intensive in January. Guest artist Da’Von Doane also returns to premiere a new work, “Tabula Rasa,” with music by Arvo Pärt. New works by faculty member Fernando Carrillo and alumnae Adrienne Westwood (B.F.A. ’03) and Kate Jewett (B.F.A. ’05) round out the program.

Performances will take place Tuesday through Saturday, Sept. 23-27, at 7:30 p.m., and at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 27. All performances will take place in Agnes de Mille Theatre, located on the UNCSA campus, 1533 South Main St.

UNCSA Jazz Ensemble: Big Band! – Sept. 27

School of Music performances continue with the Big Band-themed concert featuring the UNCSA Jazz Ensemble under the direction of Steve Alford, assistant dean of Recruitment and Enrollment for Improvised Music and Jazz. The concert will feature timeless classics, including the sounds of Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Bill Holcombe and Stan Kenton, along with other high-energy pieces from the genre.

The concert takes place on Saturday, Sept. 27, at 7:30 p.m. at the Freedman Theatre on the UNCSA campus, 1533 South Main St.

Sampling as Storytelling: De La Soul and the Legal Limits of Creativity – Oct. 10

The School of Filmmaking will continue its Symposium series with a talk by law scholar Enriche Armijo on the landmark 1991 sampling lawsuit between De La Soul and The Turtles and its impact on music rights. The discussion will trace the legal and cultural implications of the case through to De La Soul’s 2021 battle over music ownership and distribution. Topics will include music sample clearances for streaming platforms, the legal limits of creativity and the inventive Ethos of Hip-Hop. 

The presentation is free to attend, and will take place on Friday, October 10, at 2:30 p.m. in the ACE Exhibition Complex on the UNCSA campus, 1533 South Main St.

Choir Boy– Oct. 23- Nov. 1

The School of Drama opens its season in October with “Choir Boy,” directed by faculty member Cliff Odle. From Oscar-winning playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney, this coming-of-age story follows Pharus, a gifted student at an elite all-boys prep school determined to lead the school’s renowned choir. With moving performances and an unforgettable finale, the production celebrates identity, resilience and the power of music to lift us all.

The show blends gospel and R&B in an entirely a cappella score, performed by student singers from the School of Music and School of Drama. Audiences can expect well-known spirituals such as “Motherless Child” and “Eyes on the Prize,” alongside R&B ballads popularized by New Edition and L.T.D. Dynamic choreography adds contemporary energy for fans of gospel and R&B.

Performances will take place Thursday through Saturday for two weekends, Oct. 23-25 and Oct. 30-Nov. 1 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 26, at 2 p.m. All performances will take place in the Catawba Theatre on the UNCSA campus, 1533 South Main St. 

UNCSA Symphony Orchestra: Tchaikovsky 4 – Oct. 14

The UNCSA Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Chelsea Tipton II, will perform Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4, described by the composer as deeply personal, with the recurring Fate motif framing a journey from darkness to light. He wrote: “This is Fate, that inexorable force that prevents our aspirations to happiness from reaching their goal, that jealously ensures our well-being and peace are not unclouded, that hangs over our heads like the sword of Damocles....” He dedicated this work to his mysterious patroness, whom he described as “my best friend.”

The Symphony Orchestra will also premiere a new work by faculty composer Lawrence Dillon, “Vanishing,”which adds a contemporary voice to the program. The short symphony unfolds in two movements, “Presence” and “Unselfing.” The opening is colorful and engaging, while the second movement turns austere and reflective. Inspired by philosopher Iris Murdoch’s concept of unselfing, the piece invites listeners to set aside life’s petty cares and trivial concerns in order to experience beauty more fully.

The performance will take place Tuesday, Oct. 14, at 7:30 p.m. in Brendle Recital Hall on the Wake Forest University campus, 1775 Wake Forest Road in Winston-Salem.

UNCSA Fall Chamber Music Festival – Oct. 18-25, 2025

The UNCSA Chamber Music Festival, led by artistic directors and faculty members Ida Bieler and Dmitri Vorobiev, returns for its fifth season with a fall installment showcasing students, faculty and guest artists. Featured guest performers include violinist Ilya Kaler, bassoonist Marcelo Padilla and cellist Edward Arron.

The program is highlighted by Sergei Taneyev’s Piano Quintet, a rarely performed and technically demanding work. Vorobiev will perform the piece alongside students, faculty and guest artists.

Performances will take place Saturday, Oct. 18; Tuesday, Oct. 21; and Saturday, Oct. 25, at 7:30 p.m. in Watson Hall, 1533 South Main Street in Winston-Salem. Tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for students. A livestream option is also available with registration.

Inter Alia, North Carolina Forests – Oct. 24

The UNCSA Symphony Orchestra and the Wake Forest University Symphony Orchestra will perform together in a free side-by-side concert. Conducted by Wake Forest’s J. Aaron Hardwick, the program features Jean Sibelius’ radiant Symphony No. 3 in C major and the world premiere of “Inter Alia,” a new work for soprano and orchestra by composer David Kirkland Garner.

Based on a poem of the same name by Ishion Hutchinson, a 2023 T.S. Eliot Prize finalist, the piece explores tree species native to Western North Carolina, including those found on the campus of Wake Forest. Soprano Jodi Burns, a UNCSA Music faculty member, joins the orchestras in this unique collaboration, showcasing students from both institutions in a powerful celebration of nature, music and creative partnership.

The performance will take place on Friday, Oct. 24 at 7:30 p.m. in Brendle Recital Hall on the Wake Forest campus, 1775 Wake Forest Road, Winston-Salem, NC.

UNCSA Jazz Ensemble: A Halloween to Remember – Oct. 30

The UNCSA Improvised Music and Jazz Studio will present “A Halloween to Remember,” a celebration of improvisational and multi-genre small group combos. The performance will feature the Jonathan Scales Fourchestra, a trio blending jazz, classical, and progressive rock with Latin rhythms and funk.

The Fourchestra includes Jonathan Scales on steel pans, E’Lon JD on electric bass and Maison Guidry on drums. The group has appeared on club and festival stages across North America and Europe, toured internationally as a U.S. Department of State Cultural Ambassador and performed on an NPR Tiny Desk Concert with Béla Fleck. The UNCSA Jazz Ensemble performs under the direction of Steve Alford.

The performance will take place on Thursday, Oct. 30, at 7 p.m. at a surprise off-campus location fitting for the holiday (to be announced). Tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for students.

Tickets and information about additional “UNCSA Presents” performances can be found at uncsa.edu/performances.

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