Allied Arts

With a title like “Divas Unleashed,” you might think of catfight and competition, not opera. What about all of the above? A delightfully different opera comedy, “Divas Unleashed” follows two opera divas as they are accidentally booked for the same benefit recital.

Presented by Cimarron Opera, “Divas Unleashed” has been described as “Bel Canto meets Charlie's Angels with the spirit of Victor Borge and Saturday Night Live mixed in.” 

Come watch (and hear) as the divas attempt to out-sing, out-sabotage and finally, out-muscle each other for the spotlight. The one and only show time is Saturday night (Jan. 23) at 8 p.m. at the Sooner Theatre in Norman.

Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for students and children. To purchase your tickets today call Cimarron Opera at (405) 364-8962 or click here to order online.

And don’t forget! CityCard holders get 2-for-1 tickets. For more information, visit www.okcitycard.com.

Think you don’t have any plans this weekend? Think again! There’s always something going on in the arts community.  Here are a few events to spark your interest:

Mauritius
Friday and Saturday
@ Carpenter Square Theatre
http://carpentersquare.com/

Divas Unleashed
Saturday ONLY!
@ Cimarron Opera
http://www.ccocopera.org/home.html

Red Dirt Improv
Saturday
@ IAO
http://iaogallery.org/

Ancient Bronzes of the Asian Grasslands
Opens Saturday!
@ Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art
http://www.mgmoa.org/
 
The Messenger – Film Screening
Thursday through Sunday
@ Oklahoma City Museum of Art
http://www.okcmoa.com/

Jason Peters: ANTI.GRAVITY.MATERIAL.LIGHT
Opens Thursday, January 28
Artist Talk, Wednesday, January 27
Members' Preview, Wednesday, January 27
@ Oklahoma City Museum of Art
http://www.okcmoa.com/

Educator Preview
Friday and Tuesday
@ Science Museum Oklahoma
http://sciencemuseumok.org/

In honor of the recent earthquake in Haiti, the artistic directors of Canterbury Choral Society are hosting the “Music of Comfort: Haitian Relief Concert.” The benefit concert will take place this Saturday, Jan. 24 at 4 p.m. at the Bishop W. Angie Smith Chapel on the Oklahoma City University campus.

The concert will feature performances by the Canterbury Adult Chorus, Canterbury Youth Choruses and other local guests.

All donations received will go to the American Red Cross in support of the victims in Haiti. For more information about how the American Red Cross is sending aid to Haiti visit: http://www.redcross.org/.

Your donation and attendance at this concert is greatly appreciated. For more information about the relief concert visit: http://www.canterburyokc.com/.

We owe a HUGE THANKS to Oklahoma Magazine for including Allied Arts in a two-page spread in its January issue. Thank you for helping highlight the importance of the arts in Central Oklahoma!

Below is January's cover with a little more information on the issue itself.




Thanks to the OK City Chorus (Sing magazine) and OVAC (Art Focus magazine) for including us in their fabulous publications as well!

Hi guys,

Thanks for checking in with us on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Whether you're at or off work, we hope you are having a great day!

I'm sure most (if not all) of you all know Lyric Theatre. I hope you've been able to catch one of their amazing productions. Either way, they have some great shows coming up that you'll have to check out this season. Read on for more details...

Name and Title: Erika Huffman, Director of Public Relations and Marketing
Organization Name: Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma
Organization Phone Number and Web Site: (405) 524-9312, www.LyricTheatreOKC.com    

Give us the gist of your organization, Twitter-style (that means 140 characters or less).  Lyric Theatre produces excellent professional musical theatre, nurtures artistic talent, promotes collaboration among the arts, and enriches the lives of Oklahomans.

What does your organization bring to Central Oklahoma?  Since 1963, Lyric has amazed audiences with stellar professional classic and contemporary musical theatre featuring both nationally known Broadway stars and local favorites, all produced and performed right here in Oklahoma.

In addition to the Civic Center season, Lyric also produces smaller-scale musicals and plays and holds workshops and staged readings for the development of new musical theatre works at the Plaza Theatre.

Also, Lyric’s Thelma Gaylord Academy helps empower future generations of children by teaching them the skillful art form of musical theatre and offers arts outreach programs to public schools free of charge. 

List a few things that your organization is looking forward to in the coming year. We have six shows slated for 2010. 

Our first two, SNAPSHOTS and DRIVING MISS DAISY, round out our “Lyric at the Plaza” season.  We are really excited about SNAPSHOTS because Stephen Schwartz, the man behind PIPPIN, WICKED and GODSPELL is coming to Lyric Theatre to help us out with this one-of-a-kind show. This production weaves together songs from Schwartz’ musicals past with new songs created for the show to tell the story of a couple who fall in love all over again while looking through photographs of their memories together. It’s a brand-new concept and we are really looking forward to it, especially since it is right around Valentine’s Day. 

Our “Lyric at the Civic Center” season includes PUMP BOYS & DINETTES, CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG, 42ND STREET, and BUDDY: The Buddy Holly Story.  We are eagerly anticipating CHITTY especially, as this will be the first time anyone has ever flown a car on the Civic Center stage!  We think our Civic season is one of the best things about summertime in Oklahoma City and we hope everyone joins us there.

How can people get involved with your organization?  There are several ways to share your time and talents with us at Lyric:

• The Lyric Theatre Associate Board plans several events throughout the year, including opening night parties, holiday celebrations, and the renowned Lyric Indian Taco booth at the annual Festival of the Arts. The Associate Board also assists in donor-related events, such as the nightly reception at the Civic Center during Lyric's summer season.  
• The Lyric Understudies is made up of men and women ages 40 and under who cultivate a love of theatre and passion for Lyric in the Oklahoma City community.  Social events are planned throughout the year that coincide with Lyric productions. Membership is open to anyone 40 and under who enjoys a night out with good food, friends, and excellent theatre.  is made up of men and women ages 40 and under who cultivate a love of theatre and passion for Lyric in the Oklahoma City community.  Social events are planned throughout the year that coincide with Lyric productions. Membership is open to anyone 40 and under who enjoys a night out with good food, friends, and excellent theatre. 
• We also have ushering opportunities available at our Plaza Theatre. 
• If you want to keep up with what is going on at Lyric, you can follow us on Twitter (@LyricTheatreOKC), become a fan of Lyric on Facebook (Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma), or check out our new YouTube channel (LyricTheatreOKC).    

Name your favorite piece of art or art performance.  It’s difficult to choose which performance is my favorite because every show at Lyric has its own life and its own personality. Each of our productions is innately unique and this makes them hard to compare to one another. 

But, if I were forced to choose, I would say that our 2007 performance of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND has been my favorite thus-far. It’s an absolutely beautiful, touching show that emitted such a positive energy throughout the audience. That’s the one that still stays with me.  

Creativity takes courage.

- Henri Matisse

Allied Arts LOVES highlighting local arts groups, whether they are part of our specific arts umbrella or not. That’s why you’ll see us periodically posting information about arts organizations that bring cultural value to Oklahoma City and beyond.

Today, we hope you’ll get to know Brightmusic. Brightmusic is a chamber music ensemble made up of some of the area’s finest professional musicians. Members of Brightmusic are prominent local musicians, teaching at leading universities and holding titled chairs in the Oklahoma City Philharmonic.

Chamber music is said to be the most intimate of musical forms, and Brightmusic strives to add dimension and richness to Central Oklahoma through a diverse repertoire of performances. In addition to enjoying the concerts, audiences can connect with the musicians through informative talks and “meet and greets” during and after the shows.

This below photo was taken at Brightmusic’s Aug. 25, 2009 concert. The musicians in the photo are: Gregory Lee (violin), Royce McLarry (viola), Amy I-Lin Cheng (piano), Jonathan Ruck (cello), Chad Burrow (clarinet) and Kate Pritchett (horn).

 

Allied Arts encourages you to attend an upcoming Brightmusic performance. Admission to concerts is on a donation basis for OKCityCard holders.

UPCOMING BRIGHTMUSIC CONCERTS

“Music for Three I”
Feb. 9 – 7:30 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral

“Music for Three II”
March 23 – 7:30 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral

“Season Finale”
April 19 – 7:30 at Casady School Fee Theatre
April 20 – 7:30 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral

Some Brightmusic performances are held in the beautiful St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral in downtown Oklahoma City at 127 NW 7th and Robinson, featured above.

For more information visit www.brightmusic.org.

Check out our first video blog post! We'll be bringing you the latest news and reviews of arts activities in the metro area. Up first? The Red Dirt Improv.



Like what you heard? Check out www.reddirtimprov.com for more info.

This week our agencies have so much going on that their activities stretch through the weekend and into next week.  We’d hate for you to miss out on any of the action, so we thought we’d go ahead and include everything that’s happening between now and next Thursday!  There are lots of opportunities to show off your talent or learn something new - or, you can always relax with dinner and a movie.  Either way, you can't go wrong!

Teaching Artist Toolbox I
Tuesday, January 19th
@ Arts Council of Oklahoma City & City Arts Center
http://www.artscouncilokc.com/; http://www.cityartscenter.org/

Mauritus
Opens Friday, January 15th, also playing Saturday
@ Carpenter Square Theatre
http://carpentersquare.com/

Opening Reception for Shrestha/Twilley Exhibit
Saturday, January 16th
@ IAO Gallery
http://iaogallery.org/

OK City Star! Competition
Saturday, January 16th
@ OK City Chorus
http://okcity.org/

35 Shots of Rum – Film Screening
Thursday through Sunday
@ Oklahoma City Museum of Art
http://www.okcmoa.com/

The Beaches of Agnes – Film Screening
Friday and Saturday
@ Oklahoma City Museum of Art
http://www.okcmoa.com/

2009 Sundance Short Films
Wednesday, January 20th
Dinner and a movie option offered!
@ Oklahoma City Museum of Art
http://www.okcmoa.com/

Were you inspired after watching “The Sing Off?” Do “American Idol” tryouts make you want to show off your singing skills? Could you be a singing star on “America’s Got Talent?”

Then start local! The OK City Chorus wants to hear your talent at its annual OK City Star 2010 competition.

The OK City Chorus – Oklahoma’s top a capella singing group – is offering singers ages 16-25 an opportunity to become the next OK City Star. The first place finalist will win a prize package including a $2,000 Visa GiftCard and an original song professionally recorded.

Open auditions are Jan. 16 at 9 a.m. at Quail Springs Mall. Callbacks begin at 10:30 a.m. that same day.

For more information and registration forms, visit: http://okcity.org/okcitystar.html.