The Schaefer Center Presents Spring 2022 Season Events

The Schaefer Center Presents Spring 2022 Season Events

BOONE, NC — The Schaefer Center Presents Spring 2022 season, presented by Appalachian State University’s Office of Arts and Cultural Programs, kicks off in March with a diverse lineup that is truly universal — BalletX: The Little Prince (March 19), a story ballet inspired by the beloved children’s novella; Nobuntu (March 22), an all-female a capella quintet from Zimbabwe; and acclaimed Americana-country singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash (April 9). A special abbreviated family matinee performance of The Little Prince will also be offered as part of the APPlause! Family Series. Tickets are on sale now at theschaefercenter.org, in person at the Schaefer Center box office (733 Rivers Street), or by calling 828-262-4046. A student discount is available for all shows, a faculty/staff discount is available for select shows, and a local resident discount is available for Nobuntu with proof of residence in Watauga, Ashe or Avery counties.

BalletX: The Little Prince

Saturday, March 19, 2022 at 7pm

Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts

Tickets: $25 Adult, $20 Faculty/Staff, $10 Student

Philadelphia’s powerhouse contemporary-ballet company BalletX, led by artistic and executive director Christine Cox, hits the stage with choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s The Little Prince. The full-length ballet performed to the original music of composer Peter Salem is inspired by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s timeless novella of adventure and enlightenment. Lopez Ochoa’s The Little Prince is a ballet for the whole family, sure to delight the imagination of children and adults alike. Set among a landscape of rugged mountains made from stacked white boxes and featuring a playful score that employs a variety of instruments — including a synthesizer, banjo and harmonica — the ballet tells the story of a young interstellar traveler who visits various planets in space, including Earth, while addressing themes of loneliness, friendship, love, and loss. Despite its style and interpretation as a children’s book, The Little Prince makes observations about life, adults, and human nature. The evening performance features a special pre-show introduction by Cox, who says this unique adaptation is “not a lights and tights ballet.”

This presentation is funded in part by a grant from South Arts in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Office of Arts and Cultural Programs at Appalachian State University.

Excerpts from BalletX: The Little Prince

Saturday, March 19, 2022 at 11am

Tickets: $10 Adult, $5 Children (with proof of enrollment in a K-12 school or homeschool)

Part of the APPlause! K-12 Performing Arts Family Series

This special 50-minute performance designed for young audience members features excerpts from BalletX’s full-length ballet. The matinee performance includes a special pre-show introduction by artistic and executive director Christine Cox, who will briefly talk to the young audience about the story’s deeply moving plot and explain how this enchanting ballet came together.

Nobuntu

Tuesday, March 22, 2022 at 7pm

Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
Tickets: $25 Adult, $20 Local Resident Discount (with proof of residence in Watauga, Ashe or Avery County), $10 Student

Nobuntu, a female a cappella quintet from Zimbabwe, has drawn international acclaim for its inventive and mesmerizing performances that range from traditional Zimbabwean songs to Afro Jazz to Gospel. The ensemble’s concerts are performed with pure voices, augmented by minimalistic percussion, traditional instruments such as the Mbira (thumb piano) and organic, authentic dance movements, all of which promote their mission of using music as a vehicle for change to transcend racial and gender boundaries.

Rosanne Cash

Saturday, April 9, 2022 at 7pm

Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts

Tickets: $40 Adult, $35 Faculty/Staff, $25 Student

One of the country’s pre-eminent singer-songwriters, Rosanne Cash has released 15 albums of extraordinary songs that have earned four Grammy Awards and 12 nominations, as well as 21 Top 40 hits, including 11 #1 singles. Her landmark 2009 album, The List, won the Americana Music Album of the Year award and her 2015 release, The River and the Thread — a collaboration with her husband, musician John Leventhal — earned her three Grammy Awards. She Remembers Everything — her latest release — is a poetic, lush, and soulful collection of songs that reckon with a flawed and intricate world, and marks a return to more personal songwriting after a trio of albums that explored her southern roots and family heritage. That legacy includes, of course, being the daughter of the Man in Black himself, Johnny Cash.

An American original, Cash will perform an evening of songs that are beautiful, emotional and powerful. On their own they tell stories, but Cash enhances the selections by telling the audience the stories behind the songs. She is also aware that for many live events taking place during the pandemic, shows have not sold out. But at a recent show at MPAC in New Jersey, she embraced that reality, explaining, “Our motto is we play for those who come, not for those who didn’t come.”

Cash became the 61st Edward MacDowell Medal recipient during a PBS televised special that premiered on Medal Day, Aug. 8, 2021. Cash was the first woman to win the Medal in composition, working in Americana, rock, blues, folk, and pop, influencing American culture across musical genres. She joins an august group of other MacDowell Medal winners, such as Thornton Wilder (1960), Georgia O’Keeffe (1972), Louise Bourgeois (1990), Toni Morrison (2016), and composers Aaron Copland (1961), David Diamond (1991), Sonny Rollins (2010), and Stephen Sondheim (2013).

Buy Tickets

Tickets are available to purchase at theschaefercenter.org, in person at the Schaefer Center box office (733 Rivers Street), or by calling 828-262-4046. A student discount is available for all shows, a faculty/staff discount is available for select shows, and a local resident discount is available for Nobuntu with proof of residence in Watauga, Ashe or Avery counties. To purchase tickets, visit theschaefercenter.org, stop by in person at the Schaefer Center box office (733 Rivers Street), or call 828-262-4046.

About “The Schaefer Center Presents”

“The Schaefer Center Presents” is a series offering campus and community audiences a diverse array of music, dance and theatre programming designed to enrich the cultural landscape of the Appalachian State University campus and surrounding area. By creating memorable performance experiences and related educational and outreach activities, the series promotes the power and excitement of the live performance experience; provides a “window on the world” through the artistry of nationally and internationally renowned artists; and showcases some of the finest artists of our nation and our region. Musical events range from symphony orchestra and chamber music performances to jazz, folk, traditional, international, and popular artists. Theatre productions run the gamut from serious drama to musical comedy. Dance performances offer an equally wide array of styles, from ballet to modern dance to international companies representing cultural traditions from around the world. For more information, visit theschaefercenter.org.

Thank You to Our Schaefer Center Presents Sponsors

Boone Tourism Development Authority, Allen Wealth Management, McDonald’s of Boone, The Horton Hotel, Holiday Inn Express, Our State Magazine, High Country Radio, WDAV 89.9 FM, WFDD 88.5FM, WETS, WKSK The Farm, and WASU 90.5FM