Magical Starlight Theatre: “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”
While we are fortunate to live just a short distance from Chicago theatres, we also can take advantage of high quality, engaging performances in Naperville for a fraction of the cost.  For example, just last week, the Naperville Park District’s Magical Starlight Theatre finished a two-week run of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” at Naperville Central High School auditorium.

I was able to attend one of the Saturday evening performances and thoroughly enjoyed the show. It was fun, colorful, and full of surprises. The chorus and orchestra sounded bigger than their numbers, with the children’s voices adding freshness and charm. Joel Hamilton was a natural in playing Joseph, with his strong, pleasing singing voice. The evening flew by, with the cast enjoying the performance as much as the audience did.

Joseph and his brothers

From the scene with the Egyptian official, Potiphar

Magical Starlight Theatre will return in the fall of 2012 with a play and in January 2013 with a musical, both of which have not yet been selected.  Interested in participating in these productions?  Community actors from fourth grade up through adult are encouraged to audition. Watch for announcements in upcoming Park District Program Guides.

Élan Dance Company:  “String Theory”
Another performance which took place in January involved the Park District’s Élan Dance Company. Following their debut of a modern dance interpretation of “String Theory” in Michigan City last fall, the Élan Dance Company performed “String Theory” on Sunday, January 22 in a free workshop at the Yorkville Public Library. The workshop included an educational Q and A session with Élan’s artistic director Melissa Sallée and the Company. “The audience loved the performance and the discussion that followed,” said Sallée. “The dancers answered questions about both their training in dance and the artistic process of creating pieces,” she said.

The Élan Dance Company is now preparing for their next major event, which is the annual Showcase at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 17 at Naperville North High School auditorium. The performance is for audiences of all ages and features an eclectic collection of dances from classical ballet to jazz and modern dance. The Showcase promises to be another special evening of performing arts in Naperville. Hope to see you there!

   
   Élan Dance Company at the Yorkville Library. Photo by Melissa Sallée.

String Theory performance at the Yorkville Library.
Photo by Melissa Sallée

In 2011, the Naperville Art League celebrated its 50th anniversary. Congratulations to this fine organization! The Naperville Park District is proud to partner with the Art League to offer a variety of art classes for both children and adults. 

Beginners as well as experienced artists are welcome in any of the League’s classes. “Students can work at their own pace and can learn from each other,” said Debbie Venezia, executive director of the Art League since 2002.

Along with its own art classes, the Naperville Park District lists Art League classes for kids and adults in each season’s Program Guide, and art camps in the annual Summer Camps Guide.

One local adult student, Sam Dalinis, began taking “Oil Painting in a Day” as a beginner approximately 10 years ago. “I wanted something else to do outside of work,” he said. He enjoyed the class so much that he enrolled continuously in it for many years. “The teachers are good, and it’s a lot of fun to get together with other people. The class is interactive and small enough so that you get the attention you need from the instructor.”



Oil paintings by Sam Dalinis

Although Dalinis is no longer enrolled in the oil painting class, he still is enjoying his art and has moved on to acrylic painting.

Debbie Venezia has seen many aspiring artists grow and flourish through art classes and other means of support offered by the Naperville Art League. “They come here, get involved with the Art League, and then reach a level of professionalism where they can support themselves through their art,” she said. “We help them find an audience.”

The Art League’s biggest event each year is the Riverwalk Fine Arts Fair in September, which is a juried show, and one of the top outdoor art fairs in the country.  The League also supports artists through networking and sending frequent e-mail updates about other exhibits and commission work.

If you want to begin learning more about painting, woodcarving, pottery, or any other visual art, the Naperville Park District and the Naperville Art League have classes to fit your interest.  Or if you are an experienced artist and would like to fine-tune your technique, or enjoy practicing your art with others, classes such as “Painting Techniques: Advanced” are available starting in January.

We encourage you to step out and try something new, to grow your creative side, and to experience the benefits of art, from stress reduction and personal enrichment to creating art to share with others, or even launching a career.  

On Friday, Nov. 4, from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., ten members of the Élan Dance Company’s Senior Company are embarking on a new adventure: performing a modern dance as part of Jözef Sumichrast’s sculpture, “String Theory.”

The dancers will travel to Michigan City, Indiana to the Lubeznik Center for the Arts, where “String Theory” is one of the featured exhibits (through December 18).

What is string theory?
The sculpture is based on the theory in physics with the same name.  What is string theory, you may ask?  Élan’s Artistic Director Melissa Sallée recommended checking Wikipedia for a good, understandable description. The artist, Jözef Sumichrast, also posted a helpful explanation about string theory and how it relates to his work.

In physics, string theory assumes that matter is composed of strings, rather than particles, that oscillate in multiple dimensions. Sumichrast’s sculpture portrays the theory with a striking display of 11 life-sized, three-dimensional horses suspended by strings.

The sculpture is meant to portray a fourth dimension of motion and perception by the observer, which is an aspect of string theory.  The Élan dancers will highlight this aspect by their movement and interpretation of the abstract ideas in the sculpture.

The String Theory Dance Project
In a video interview, Sallée explained that she first heard about Sumichrast’s exhibit through a colleague when attending an arts conference.  Sallée seized the opportunity to combine the art of dance with visual art and as an example of “where science and art intersect.”  She charged her students to read about string theory prior to learning the choreography. “They are ready for a challenge,” said Sallée. “This is a new level of artistry, to portray abstract concepts, such as the passage of time and multiple dimensions.”

If you go….
The “String Theory” exhibit will be open to the public free of charge during Élan’s performance on Friday, Nov. 4 from 5:00 to 8:00 as part of the Center’s “First Fridays at 5” series.

The Lubeznik Center is located at 101 W. 2nd St., at the lakefront in Michigan City, Indiana.  Regular gallery hours are Tuesday through Friday from 10:00am to 5:00pm, Saturday and Sunday from 11:00am to 4:00pm. Galleries are closed on Mondays.

 
"String Theory" by Jözef Sumichrast

Élan Dance Company - Senior Company, Spring 2011