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Shenandoah University and the Lorton Arts Foundation

Posted April 05, 2009:

Shenandoah Conservatory Stages Four Concerts at The Workhouse Arts Center in Spring 2009. Shenandoah University and the Lorton Arts Foundation (LAF) partnered this spring to bring remarkable talent from Shenandoah Conservatory to the Washington, D.C., met

The Viandante Quartet performed in a series hosted by Shenandoah University and the Lorton Arts Foundation at the Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton, Va., on March 28, 2009.

Shenandoah University and the Lorton Arts Foundation (LAF) partnered this spring to bring remarkable talent from Shenandoah Conservatory to the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. A four-part performing arts series, was held at the Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton, Va., featuring gifted, pre-professional artists led by outstanding faculty from Shenandoah Conservatory.   The series was underwritten by a generous gift from Charles (Chuck) and Beverly Veatch of Reston, Va., and from Shenandoah County, Va. Chuck Veatch is the chairman of Shenandoah University’s board of trustees and the founder of Environmental Concepts Inc., a development and consulting firm for residential and commercial projects throughout Northern Virginia.   The four performances in the series included: <UL> <LI> <DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0.5in 0pt 0in; LINE-HEIGHT: 18pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Saturday, Jan. 31 / Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” with a pre-concert and post-performance audience conversation with Director Mark Kittlaus.</DIV></LI> <LI> <DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0.5in 0pt 0in; LINE-HEIGHT: 18pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Saturday, March 28 / The Viandante Quartet with pre-concert and post-performance audience conversation with music professors Clyde Shaw and Doris Lederer.</DIV></LI> <LI> <DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0.5in 0pt 0in; LINE-HEIGHT: 18pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Saturday, April 18 / The Shenandoah Conservatory Dance Ensemble with pre-concert and post-performance audience conversation with dance professor Kim Gibilisco.</DIV></LI> <LI> <DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0.5in 0pt 0in; LINE-HEIGHT: 18pt; TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Saturday, April 25 / The musical “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change” with pre-concert and post-performance audience conversation with Director Jonathan Flom.</DIV></LI></UL>

“Our goal is to bring world-class performances to the region while expanding the artistic reach of our talented Shenandoah Conservatory students and faculty,” said former Dean of Shenandoah Conservatory Larry Kaptain. “We are always looking for creative ways to build and shape our student’s skills in developing, impacting and accessing their audiences. Today’s creative artists need to know more than just how to perform. They need to know how to interact with an audience and keep them coming back for more.”

Shenandoah University first partnered with LAF in 2007, when it awarded an honorary doctorate to world-famous dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov, who performed at a fundraiser for the Workhouse. The event was held to raise money in support of the performing and visual arts at the Workhouse Arts Center and the Baryshnikov Arts Center in New York City. The LAF/Baryshnikov partnership, like the Shenandoah University partnership, came from a shared vision for supporting the arts and providing a forum for artists to display their work and talent.   The Workhouse Arts Center, a program of the Lorton Arts Foundation, aims to enrich the lives of all within its reach by creating a vibrant cultural community that fosters a diverse offering of arts, education, social and entertainment experiences. Set on 55 acres of land in the former District of Columbia Workhouse and Reformatory, the center provides a home for more than 100 of the region’s finest professional and emerging artists, classes and arts education programs for people of all ages and artistic abilities, cooperative studies, performance venues and dedicated gallery and exhibition space. The Workhouse has a rich history, beginning in 1910, when prisoners first came to the site and began to make the bricks used to build the structures that are still standing today. When it functioned as a prison, the Workhouse was notorious for having held a group of women suffragists arrested for picketing in front of the White House as well as Norman Mailer, who was arrested for protesting the Vietnam War. More information about the history of the Workhouse can be found at <A href="http://www.workhousearts.org/">www.WorkhouseArts.org</A>.   Shenandoah University’s Shenandoah Conservatory is located in the historic Shenandoah Valley in Winchester, Va., approximately 70 miles west of Washington, D.C. More than 700 students are enrolled in baccalaureate, master’s and doctoral curricula in the areas of music, theatre and dance. In addition to collegiate instruction, the Shenandoah Conservatory Arts Academy provides non-credit instruction for nearly 2,000 students and includes performing ensembles for youth and adults. Shenandoah Conservatory is the oldest of six schools that comprise Shenandoah University, and has been an institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Music since 1940. For more information, visit <A href="http://www.su.edu/conservatory">www.su.edu/conservatory</A>. Share