Student One Act Plays: A Night of Comedy and Tragedy

Each Fall semester in our Studio Theatre we have opportunities for our students to direct one act plays for first time directors, and full length plays for second-time directors. There is always a wonderful variety and even some original works written by the directors. 

Student One Act Plays | A Night of Comedy and Tragedy

Show dates: Nov. 13, 14, 20, 21 at 7:30pm and 15 & 22 at 2:00pm.

All Tickets $5 | Studio Theater in Building M-East

1) Suicide Notes by Nicole Thompson is a story about a student, Cameron, who finds his name has been written into people's suicide notes blaming him for their deaths. This is also a story about how Cameron and his friends try to understand and cope with the situation. 

2) The Romancers by Edmond Rostandt. A Boy and a Girl... two disapproving Parents... a Wall and a Bandit. A Comedy Romance Fantastique. Directed by Ric Alpers. 

3) Shattered by Kristin Black is a one act play about the difficulties of facing trauma head on. It is a counseling session held between a counselor named Stephanie and a college student named Sara.

PURCHASE TICKETS HERE

Jazz Under the Stars | Student Review by Sarah Toth

The Jazz Under the Stars event held on Tuesday October 13th in the PVCC outdoor amphitheater was a night of toe tapping entertainment. Between the two “Big Band Music” groups, there was a variety of slow, to moderate, to fast tempos of music. Any age could go out and enjoy the lovely music being played. The causal environment made the whole atmosphere a family-friendly setting. The bands helped each other out on stage during the performance, and the director openly made jokes about himself and the band. The casual setting also made the performance all the more enjoyable. The entire performance was outstanding.

THE INSTRUMENTS BATTLED EACH OTHER IN DISSONANCE AND THEN RESOLVED THEMSELVES IN HARMONIES. MOST BANDS TRY TO STAY CONSTANT WITH THE OTHER SECTIONS, BUT JAZZ IS FREER THAN THAT. 

Each band kept the same tone throughout their movements. Hearing the instruments battling each other out in dissonance to resolve themselves in harmonies was a new experience. Most bands that play will try to stay constant with the other sections, but jazz is freer than that. For example, some pieces played were originally written for other instruments, such as the alto saxophone, but were manipulated for other instruments like the trombone. With each band, it was obvious that for some pieces, certain instruments were the focal point. With other pieces, adding an instrument made a huge difference. The addition of an instrument was the difference in making a classical piece modern.

Each band had soloists in every selection they performed. To highlight the soloists, they would stand and use a mic to amplify their instruments. Not only did the mic help the solo clearer, but the rest of the band would back off the notes and harmonies, just to crescendo back into the piece. In the first band, they had a key soloists perform with them. He is a professor at the University of Central Florida, Mr. Mike Wilkinson. Mike performed in several of the performances and added a new feel to the band.

The first band was bigger than the second band. They had larger sections for the instruments, as well as had more soloists. The first band is what you would think of with a stereotypical jazz band. The second band had an all around new style to the way they performed. The director was an actual band player himself and played in the performance. In this band, there was a more prominent feel to the revolutionary styles of jazz, and added more modern instruments, drum sets and a bass, to modernize the sets. Although the second band had fewer members, the power behind the instruments was well known. In the first band, the crescendos were powerful, and the sound carried throughout the amphitheater. Where the second band lacked in power, it made up for it in the difficulties of the music.

THE FIRST BAND BROUGHT A PROFESSIONAL TROMBONE PLAYER TO ASSIST THEM, WHERE THE SECOND BAND HAD A REALLY COOL ADVANTAGE OF HAVING A COMPOSER IN THEIR SET. 

Each band also brought something different to the table. The first band brought a professional trombone player to assist them, where the second band had a really cool advantage of have a composer in their set. The second band always tries to play a piece of his every show, this shows being titled Burk the Baby.

Jazz Under the Stars was a very fun experience. From learning about music in class, to really hearing it live and in person is a whole new experience. From a college band, that amount of perfection put into these pieces was amazing. You wouldn’t have been able to tell if this was a class, or if it as a group of people doing what they love. Jazz Under the Stars was a really good all around experience.  

Call for Submissions: Western Eye Student Photography Competition

The Western Eye Photography Competition is open to all Maricopa Community College students. Photos must have been taken between November 2014 – October 2015. This year's judge is nationally-acclaimed commercial photographer Rick Gayle.

Cash prizes will be awarded for 1st, 2nd and 3rd places. A ribbon will be awarded for Honorable Mention.

1st place $400

2nd place $200

3rd place $100

Submissions will be accepted October 26 – 28, 2015 at the Eric Fischl Gallery or the Art Program Office in the ART Building at Phoenix College, 1202 W. Thomas Rd. in Phoenix. (602.285.7277)

The deadline for entries is Wednesday, October 28, 2015 by 6:30 p.m. Click here for full details and a downloadable submission form.

All winners will have their photography displayed in the Eric Fischl Gallery at Phoenix College from November 2 – 26, 2015. An opening reception will take place in the Eric Fischl Gallery on Monday, November 2, 2015 from 5:30 – 7:00 p.m. All are welcome! 

For more information, contact Jennifer Laffoon at 602.285.7280 or email jennifer.laffoon@phoenixcollege.edu

Art + Gender | Collective Art Project & Exhibition

PVCC students Katlynn McNab and Heidi Klotz pose in front of Kande Mickelsen's HERstory blog.

When the chance to organize a collective art project and exhibit on campus to celebrate Women’s History Month presented itself, budding curators Heidi Klotz and Katlynn McNab seized the opportunity.

Psychology faculty Caron Sada discusses the psychology of gender with the group.

Klotz and McNab became acquainted with one another this term as classmates in Dr. Caron Sada’s "Psychology and Culture" and Adria Pecora’s "Drawing" courses. Dr. Sada and Ms. Pecora entered into the spring semester eager to have their students collaborate on a creative project exploring gender for an activity of Women’s History Month, an idea that was also ignited by the enthusiasm of library faculty, Kandice Mickelsen who volunteered Buxton Library as the location and exhibition venue for the art project.

Sada’s students from “Psychology of Gender” and Pecora’s students from “Drawing” volunteered to participate in this extra-curricular project rooted in performance, specifically in conversation. Pecora has previously taught a course in “Gallery Operations” in which students have curated exhibitions on campus. She introduced the curatorial team to a type of art called “social practice” and to curatorial projects incorporating “relational aesthetics” that revolve around conversation. Klotz and McNab learned about the curators Nicolas Bourriaud and Hans-Ulrich Obrist and artists such as Rirkrit Tiravanija and the late Allan Kaprow (the creator of “happenings”).

Katlynn McNab and Heidi Klotz discuss social practice and relational aesthetics with Art faculty, Adria Pecora.

Pecora commented, “The idea of disrupting the regulated quietude of a library with a passionate discourse seemed suited to an artwork exploring gender.”

Moreover, the library’s new media lounge (a circular sofa with built in media station) suggested a more social role for the library, one in which exhibits might be rendered interactive by incorporating viewer feedback via messaging.

Library faculty Kande Mickelsen at blogging stations. 

Mickelsen had been orchestrating a library guide entitled “HERstory” to function as an informational hub for Women’s History Month events. After meeting with Klotz and McNab, Mickelsen helped arrange for the guide to also serve as a blog site for the artwork featuring audio and video excerpts of the conversation. Sada’s students brainstormed thought-provoking questions to guide discussion. Pecora’s students brought or created images that resonated of gender and posted them on an idea board in the space.

Artistic inspiration came in the form of a lecture exploring “How gender roles affect relationships”, presented earlier in the week by Counseling faculty, Donna Mosher. The art students also drew enthusiasm from a visit by PVCC alumni curators, Collin Pressler (Exhibitions Manager, School of the Art Institute of Chicago) and Eric Heimbecker (Manager, Corporate Social Responsibility Group) from whom they learned more about curatorial practice and socially engaged work beyond the studio.

Counseling faculty Donna Mosher

PVCC alumni Collin Pressler and Eric Heimbecker visit Katlynn McNab, Heidi Klotz and PVCC art students in the painting and drawing studio to discuss their work with curating and social engaged projects. 

The conversation lives online and awaits your thoughts. Please tag #pvccfinearts.

HERstory library blog: paradisevalley.libguides.com/HERstory

Twitter and Instagram: #artandgenderchatroom

Student Spotlight: Jo Van Loo, Fabric Artist

Jo VanLoo is a fabric artist, specifically working in the medium of quilting for eighteen years. Her quilts have been exhibited in national shows, and are currently showing in the Center for Performing Arts Gallery.

From Jo's blog:

Some of my quilts emphasize aesthetics and craft; others meaning and relationships, and others make socio-political statements. Some speak to all three.

Tomb of the Unknown Quilter

I love the inter-mingling passion, storytelling and, tactile nature of fabric arts. Using commercial and hand dyed fabrics I am able to express my feelings using a variety of manipulations and methods. 

Ceiling View. Inspired by Jo's trip to Hagai Sophia in Instabul, 2011.

Because I was a teacher for more than thirty years, I love to share my passion for quilting with others through quilting classes. I have taught quilt making in Canada, the United States, Uganda, Haiti, and Nicaragua. Through teaching the art and craft of quilting, I have become a learner of culture, of values, of life. 

Las Cocinaras

View Jo's complete gallery, blog and shop at her website: www.jomamavl.com

Grass Roots Effort: ART 113 Color Installation

As artists, we must engage with our world. For this project students were asked to select a public issue that is important to them; it may be women’s issues, the environment, global warming, health care, a particular disease or disability, the homeless, politics, war. Within their theme, they were asked to make a series of mini "lawn" flags that were then displayed near classroom J141. Their set of 4 flags revolved around the central theme of their choosing.

Installation created by students in Ann Morton's ART 113 Color class. 

Maricopa Community Colleges District-Wide Dance Competition

Each year, the Maricopa Community Colleges sponsors a district-wide student competition to encourage and recognize choreography and dance. Entry deadline: Monday, February 9, 2015. http://mcli.maricopa.edu/arts/dance

Musicians Wanted: The PVCC Community Band | MUP161 #36984

This course is a modern American approach to the American Wind Band tradition.

Our mantra is: Living Music by Living Composers.

This ensemble, while rooted in the past traditions of the Great American Band, is a look forward to its place in the 21st century. The band is going to perform music by living composers sometimes before the ink is even dry! There will also be a mixed media component, ranging from student-driven video content to live dance and visual art being performed with the ensemble.

Our faculty has a wide open approach to guiding our students in whatever direction their imaginations come up with.

PVCC Community Band performances will be an event, an experience. Selections for MUP161 come from some of the most famous living composers of Movie and Wind Band music, such as Michael Giacchino (Lost, Star Trek, Up), Rossano Galante (3:10 to Yuma, Live Free or Die Hard), Robert W. Smith, Eric Whitacre, John Mackey and Dan Bukvich.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR MUP161: COMMUNITY BAND

Student Spotlight: Sonja Torres

Introduction to Art (ARH 100) teaches the student the understanding and enjoyment of art through the study of painting, sculpture, architectural design, photography, and the decorative arts. There is an emphasis on contemporary topics and cultural diversity in the arts. Visual artist Sonja Torres turned her ARH 100 class into an Honors Project. This large scale painting was the visual component of her final presentation. 

"Sonja's inspiration for the piece was the idea of harmony through diversity, nourished by the natural environment. She wanted to show a green utopia where humankind lives in harmony with both nature and each other." - Tomi Johnston, Fine Arts Faculty

The Ceramics Studio

Take a video tour of PVCC's new Ceramics Studio with Professor David Bradley.