Everything Nac

The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music will present the McDonald-Lysinger Piano Duo in a recital at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 23, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

Alex McDonald and Catharine Lysinger, both of Dallas, will present “The Orchestral Piano: Virtuosic Transcriptions,” which features works by Johannes Brahms, Igor Stravinsky and Maurice Ravel.

Brahms’ Variations on a Theme of Haydn, Op. 56b is now also called the Saint Anthony Variations, or the St. Anthony’s Chorale, according to Dr. Andrew Parr, professor of piano at SFA

“Although the work is better known in its orchestral version, Brahms wrote the two-piano version first,” he said.

Stravinsky’s “Firebird Suite,” arranged by McDonald for two pianos, was written for Stravinsky’s first collaboration with Sergei Diaghilev, the famed choreographer, in 1910. The story is based on Russian fairy tales of a magical glowing bird that can be both a blessing and a curse to its owner, according to Parr.

The program also features Ravel’s “La Valse.” “This difficult solo work was also arranged for two pianos by the composer,” Parr said. “It recreates the 19th century Vienna of waltzes and balls, but with a sinister twist.”

Lysinger is widely sought after as pianist, teacher and lecturer. A collaborator in chamber music concerts with duo-piano partner McDonald, she maintains an ongoing collaboration with Voices of Change, a Dallas-based professional ensemble comprised of members of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, which features chamber music written by living composers. She was recipient of the 2015 Outstanding Teaching Achievement Award for pre-collegiate teaching by Texas Music Teachers Association. She is professor of practice at Southern Methodist University’s Meadows School of the Arts where she teaches piano pedagogy and applied piano. She is also head of the piano pedagogy area and director of the Piano Preparatory Department.

McDonald is the festival director for Basically Beethoven, a thriving summer concert series in downtown Dallas’ Arts District now entering its 38th season. He also teaches privately, often in collaboration with his mother, Marcy McDonald. He was recipient of the 2017 Outstanding Teaching Achievement Award for pre-collegiate teaching by Texas Music Teachers Association. He has soloed with the Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de Mexico, the Louisiana Philharmonic, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and the Utah Symphony Orchestra, among others. He has performed across the United States as well as in Israel, Mexico, Canada, Japan and South Korea; additionally, he has been a featured performer on PBS.

Every theatre season needs a few good laughs. The 2017-18 Mainstage Series at Stephen F. Austin State University achieves that with the fall presentation of Molière’s “Tartuffe.”

One of the funniest plays ever written, “Tartuffe” is both timeless and timely, according to Scott Shattuck, professor in the SFA School of Theatre and the play’s director.

“Because of its insights into human behavior and its broad look at the forces that shape society, its humor and satire are as fresh today as they were when the play was written in 1664,” Shattuck said. “At the same time, the play confronts questions that dominate current events in America today: How can we tell what’s real and what’s ‘fake?’ What is a social good and what’s bad? Why are some people taken in by fraud that seems obvious to others?”

The School of Theatre will present “Tartuffe” at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, Oct. 3 through 7, in W.M. Turner Auditorium on the SFA campus. Set in the 17th century, the play depicts a con man (the title character) who has successfully duped a wealthy businessman named Orgon. Because he is so impressed with Tartuffe’s pretensions of moral purity and religious piety, Orgon has invited Tartuffe to move into his lavish Paris home and take full advantage of his hospitality.

“Orgon’s family smells a rat, but when they urge caution, he takes offense and offers Tartuffe even more access to his property – and even to his daughter and his sensible wife, Elmire.” Shattuck explained. The wife lays a trap for the lecherous imposter, but not before her husband has been taken for all they’re worth.

Whenever the School of Theatre produces a great classical play such as “Romeo & Juliet” or “Tartuffe” or even a Greek tragedy, directors hope that audience members leave with a sense that “these wonderful literary art works aren’t dusty museum pieces,” Shattuck said.

Shattuck believes audiences will be “pleasantly surprised” by how vital and seemingly contemporary “Tartuffe” is and how funny, sexy and satirically relevant it is in 21st century America.

“Our production will feature beautiful and colorful baroque-era costumes with elaborate wigs, highly decorative scenery, and a quick-paced and energetic acting style from the appealing young performers,” he said. “And there is bawdy physical comedy that never goes out of style.”

Because Tartuffe is a 17th-century sex maniac as well as a greedy grifter, there will be some funny moments that aren’t appropriate for kids or those with “delicate sensibilities,” Shattuck said.

“Otherwise I think everyone will enjoy the show – some mostly for its witty language, some especially for the historical costumes, and many for the hilarious way the story unfolds,” he said. A content advisory may be viewed at www.theatre.sfasu.edu.

Single tickets are $15 for adult, $10 for senior and $7.50 for student/youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.theatre.sfasu.edu.

What does a day in the life of a two- or four-person household living in poverty look like? What does it feel like to have to choose between baby formula and diapers? How can poverty affect and control even the smallest portions of life?

The Poverty Simulation, hosted by Stephen F. Austin State University’s Office of Multicultural Affairs, aims to address these questions and others through a simulated poverty experience.

“The Poverty Simulation is designed to help participants begin to comprehend what it might be like to live in poverty from week to week,” said Veronica Beavers, OMA director. “Participants will experience some of the daily challenges a family in poverty may endure through a simulated experience. I hope participants gain understanding and awareness of poverty in society. I also hope that participants become empathetic to what some families deal with day to day.”

Budgeting is a focus of the simulation; however, the psychological stress families in poverty endure also will be discussed.

The OMA partnered with the East Texas Human Needs Network, which conducts the simulation. The OMA also is interested in collaborating with other Nacogdoches organizations for volunteers. Any person interested in volunteering can sign up at sfasu.edu/oma.

Two Poverty Simulation sessions are being offered. The first will be at 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 29, and the second at 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 30, both in the Norton H.P.E. Complex on the SFA campus. The event is open to the SFA and Nacogdoches communities. It will last approximately two to three hours.

Seats are limited for this event. Preregister by Wednesday, Sept. 27, on the OMA website.

By Christine Broussard, senior marketing communications specialist at Stephen F. Austin State University.

SFA’s College of Liberal and Applied Arts is launching the Applied Skills Internship for juniors and seniors in the 2018 spring semester. This is the first program of its kind in the nation.

Students who are chosen for the internship will work on campus in a team under a high-level executive. Students will earn three credit hours toward their degree and gain practical experience.

Eight applicants will be chosen and then split into two teams that will each be overseen by a high-level executive.

“This size enables supervisors to maintain close contact with each student,” Dr. Brian Murphy, dean of the College of Liberal and Applied Arts, said. “The internship involves team members working collaboratively to define a solution to a real-life workplace problem.”

According to SFA’s internship policy, internships allow students to gain practical work experience and academic credit at the same time. Internships are intended to provide students with the opportunity to apply what they are learning in class to real-world situations.

Students who participate in internships tend to be hired more quickly and at a higher salary. In one report from The Chronicle of Higher Education, employers place more weight on professional experiences acquired during school versus academic credentials.

Students also can make connections through internships. Murphy said that students who participate in the Applied Skills Internship “will receive mentoring from a high-placed corporate executive who can attest to their competence to potential employers.”

Students will be assessed for seven skills, including collaboration, professionalism and intercultural fluency, among others, and can earn certificates for any of the skills in which they demonstrate proficiency. These skills can be included on résumés.

The college’s goal with this internship is to exhibit that liberal arts students hold the skills to succeed in various careers. Research has shown that liberal arts students have the potential to exceed other undergraduate majors in terms of income but it takes longer to accomplish this task.

“We want to prove our students are ready now,” Murphy said. “Unlike most programs that award certificates for skills, our program has designed an objective way to verify student skill acquisition.”

The selection for the internship will be based on three criteria: prior graduate performance, relevance of career plans to the program’s objectives and quality of the application essay. The selection committee will follow college policy on internships. This includes that the applicant must have a cumulative 2.0 GPA or above, completed at least two upper-level courses in his or her major, and be of junior or senior standing.

To obtain an application, send an email request to Dixie Groll at grollda@sfasu.edu. The application must be received no later than 5 p.m. Nov. 1, 2017.

By Emily Brown, marketing communications specialist at Stephen F. Austin State University.

Stephen F. Austin State University’s SFA Gardens will host a BioBlitz event Friday and Saturday, Sept. 22 and 23, in the Pineywoods Native Plant Center, located at 2900 Raguet St.

Elyce Rodewald, education coordinator for SFA Gardens, explained that a BioBlitz is an event in which teams of scientists and community members work together to find and identify as many species as possible of plants, animals, fungi and other organisms within a designated area.

Professors and students from the Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture as well as the College of Sciences and Mathematics will lead participants through the 42-acre center to identify and document a range of organisms and species.

The event begins at 6 p.m. Friday with mammal identification led by Dr. Daniel Scognamillo, SFA associate professor of wildlife, followed by amphibian identification beginning at 8:30 p.m. led by Erin Childress, lab coordinator in the SFA Department of Biology. The final event of the night will be an 11 p.m. bat walk guided by the SFA student chapter of the Wildlife Society.

Saturday’s first session begins at 6:30 a.m. with a bird identification walk led by members of the Audubon Society followed by fungi identification at 8 a.m. with Dr. Josephine Taylor, SFA professor of biology; fish identification at 10 a.m.; and macroinvertebrate identification at 2 p.m. with Dr. Matthew McBroom, associate dean of the Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture.

Event planners encourage those who attend to download the free iNaturalist app to document and upload their findings.

“iNaturalist allows people from around the world to document species observations that are then shared with scientific data repositories,” said Jessica Pruneda, a senior fire ecology major at SFA and BioBlitz event planner.

A number of other family-friendly, outdoor activities will also take place during Saturday’s sessions from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The SFA Gardens’ Nacogdoches Naturally team encourages families to join them in making hand-cranked frozen yogurt, creating eco-art, using binoculars on a nature hike, fishing for “backyard bass” and other outdoor adventures.

For more information, contact Rodewald at (936) 468-1832 or erodewald@sfasu.edu.

By Sarah Fuller, outreach coordinator of the Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture at Stephen F. Austin State University.