2019–2020 Season Calendar

Fall Recital
Chico State Guitar Ensemble
Friday, December 13
5:00 p.m.
Rowland-Taylor Recital Hall
The Chico State Guitar Ensemble will present a varied program comprised of solos, duos, quartets, and works for large ensemble. All student members perform on classical guitars and explore a diverse repertoire from around the world.
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
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Linda Colley - Inscribing a Modern World: Constitutions Across Borders Since 1750
Joanna Dunlap Cowden Memorial Lecture
Thursday, February 27
7:30 p.m.
Zingg Recital Hall
The spread of political constitutions around the world since the 18th century is usually linked to a notion of the inexorable rise of democracy and studied only with regard to particular nation-states.
It is also generally looked at in isolation from other forms of literature. Linda Colley, the Shelby M. C. Davis 1958 Professor of History at Princeton University, re-examines the contagion of constitutions across continents and its meanings. She also questions the future of this genre in a world where human relationships with words and print are dramatically shifting.
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
New Music by Student Composers
New Music Symposium
Thursday, February 27
7:30 p.m.
Rowland-Taylor Recital Hall
CSU, Chico's very own composition students and musicians present an evening of original musical creations and premiere performances.
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
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Splinter Reeds
New Music Symposium
Friday, February 28
7:30 p.m.
Zingg Recital Hall
"This ensemble consumes new music voracioiusly." – San Francisco Classical Voice
Splinter Reeds is the Bay Area's first reed quintet comprising five virtuosic musicians with a shared commitment to commissioning and performing the best of today's contemporary compositions. Freely juxtaposing multiple musical styles and aesthetics, the quintet will be presenting a program culled from their extensive performance repertoire, featuring compositions from their recent release, Hypothetical Islands.
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
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Servant of Two Masters
Theatre Production
Thursday–Saturday, March 5–7
7:30 p.m.
Saturday–Sunday, March 7–8
2:00 p.m.
Wismer Theatre
The style and flavor of this 18th century classic is faithfully maintained in a modern rendering. Here is all the charm of the original: the quickness of emotion, the directness of action, the intrigues, disguises and humor. When the delightful servant Truffaldino becomes embroiled in the problems of two sets of lovers, he gets more than he bargained for. Servant of Two Masters is one of the great classic commedia dell'arte plays of world drama.
Cost: $20 Adult | $18 Senior | $8 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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J.S. Bach: Influences and Influence
Chico Bach Festival
Organist Tom Mueller, Concordia University Irvine
Friday, March 20
7:30 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre Stage
Bach's incorporation of regional and historic musical styles is a defining feature of his compositional output. This recital on the Centennial Organ will present selected organ works of Bach alongside contextualizing pieces by his predecessors, contemporaries, and followers.
Cost: $15 Adult | $13 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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Organ Masterclass
Chico Bach Festival
Saturday, March 21
10:00 a.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre Stage
Tom Mueller, Concordia University Irvine offers a masterclass for organists around the North State. Sponsored in part by the American Guild of Organists.
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
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Lecture - Bach's Leipzig Organ Works: History, Context, and Influences
Chico Bach Festival
Saturday, March 21
3:00 p.m.
Rowland-Taylor Recital Hall
Compared to the first decades of his professional career, Bach's focus on organ composition declined during his tenure in Leipzig. However, important works such as the Clavier-Übung III, the Canonic Variations, and revisions to existing pieces date to this time period. This lecture will explore the history, influence, and context of these works.
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
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The Best of Bach
Chico Bach Festival
Saturday, March 21
7:30 p.m.
Zingg Recital Hall
Vocal soloists Dara Scholz, Ryan Downey, and Amanda Glover, accompanied by Timothy Westerhaus, bring their favorite Bach arias to the stage of Zingg Recital Hall. Come and enjoy the exquisite solo vocal music from the B-minor mass, "St. Matthew" and "St. John Passions," and the cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach.
Cost: $15 Adult | $13 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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What's Old is New
Chico Bach Festival
Bach Magnificat & Rutter Magnificat
Sunday, March 22
2:00 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
The North Valley Chamber Chorale and the CSU, Chico Chamber Singers join forces to present the eternally popular Magnificat of Johann Sebastian Bach, and the gorgeous and exciting Magnificat of contemporary composer John Rutter.
Cost: $20 Adult | $18 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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"The Smell of Jazz"
Jazz X-Press
Saturday, April 4
7:30 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
In 1973, Frank Zappa famously said, "Jazz is not dead...it just smells funny." The Jazz X-Press pays homage to the works of Frank Zappa with professor and student arrangements in a Big Band setting.
Cost: $18 Adult | $16 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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Acclamations
Symphonic Winds Ensemble
Saturday, April 11
7:30 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
Join the Chico State Band as they perform their favorite marches plus well-acclaimed standard band music, as well as something new.
Cost: $18 Adult | $16 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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Poetry in Song
Choral Ensembles
Saturday, April 18
7:30 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
Great poetry, both classic and new, is highlighted in this spring concert by the University Chorus, Acappella Choir, and Chamber Singers. Come and enjoy wonderful words and the music that sets them!
Cost $15 Adult | $13 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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A Serenade or Two
Jazz II and Concert Band
Wednesday, April 22
7:30 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
The Concert Band and Jazz II have a special evening of music planned for you. The evening will include everything from overtures and marches to big band swing and fusion.
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
For more information, please call 530-898-5152.
À La the Golden Age
Low Brass Choir
Saturday, April 25
7:30 p.m.
Rowland-Taylor Recital Hall
The Low Brass Concert will present a concert designed in the style of Patrick S. Gilmore, J. P. Sousa, and many others as heard in monster concerts during America's Golden Age of the Concert Band! Featured will be overtures, soloists both instrumental and vocal, and of course marches–a musical form found in civilizations all around the world. There will be lots of fun, toe-tapoing music at this concert!
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
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In the Heights
2020 Spring Musical
Thursday–Saturday, April 30–May 2
7:30 p.m.
Saturday–Sunday, May 2–3
2:00 p.m.
Laxson Auditorium
Music & Lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
Book by Quiara Alegría Hudes
"A groundbreaking 21st-century musical. This extraordinary blend of old and new pushes the sound of Broadway even deeper into fresh territory. It's one of the most satisfying musicals in years." – New York Magazine
From the Pulitzer Prize-winning creators of Hamilton, don't miss this Tony Award-winning Hip-Hop musical. Set in the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York's upper-upper West Side, this vibrant musical tells the story of Usnavi, whose parents emigrated from the Dominican Republic to give him a better life. Usnavi and his neighborhood inhabitants struggle with identity, the heat, and their daily lives. Don't miss the musical that made Lin-Manuel Miranda a star!
Cost: $20 Adult | $18 Senior | $8 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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Strums and Plucks
Chico State Guitar Ensemble
Friday, May 8
7:30 p.m.
Zingg Recital Hall
A small performance group of students with a passion for classical guitar, the Chico State Guitar Ensemble returns to the stage for their annual spring concert. Whether revamping classics or embracing newer original works, this group always gives entertaining and enthusiastic performances.
Cost: $15 Adult | $13 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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Past Events
Beautiful, Bold, and Beethoven
Chamber Music Recital
Sunday, September 8
2:00 p.m.
Zingg Recital Hall
Beethoven in a C minor is always bold. His piano trio in that key was so brash that audiences were taken by surprise. On the other hand, Schubert's Arpeggione Sonata is a beautiful song sung by cello and piano. Hindemith's Quartet, both bold and beautiful, is one of his most euphoniously romantic essays for chamber ensemble. Performers include Bradley Martin, pianist; Anna Presler, violinist; Leighton Fong, cellist; and Russell Burnham, clarinetist.
Cost: $20 Adult | $15 Senior | Free Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
For more information, please call 530-898-5152.
A Rothe Celebration
Organ Recital Series
Friday, September 13
7:30 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre Stage
David Rothe, University organist and music professor emeritus, will turn 80 in September. In honor of this milestone (and his 40 years of service to the University) the Department of Music and Theatre will present a concert featuring Rothe, his students, colleagues, and the University Centennial Pipe Organ. As a special bonus, all concert attendees will receive free copies of Rothe's critically acclaimed CD, Bach Organ Favorites.
Cost: $15 Adult | $13 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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HFA Soirée
Monday, September 23
3:00–5:00 p.m.
PAC Courtyard
The HFA Soiree is a mixer where College of Humanities and Fine Arts students and staff can network and learn more about the college. There will be hors d'oeuvres, refreshments and a jazz trio at the event for your enjoyment! The dress attire is business casual recommended but not required.
Free | Open to All Chico State Students
Julie Sze - Environmental Justice as Freedom
Humanities Lecture
Thursday, October 3
7:30 p.m.
Zingg Recital Hall
Julie Sze is a professor and the founding chair of American studies at the University of California, Davis. Sze is the author of Noxious New York: The Racial Politics of Urban Health and Environmental Justice; Fantasy Islands: Chinese Dreams and Ecological Fears in an Age of Climate Crisis; Environmental Justice in a Moment of Danger; and the editor of Sustainability: Approaches to Environmental Justice and Social Power. Cosponsored by the Department of Comparative Religion and Humanities and the Department of Philosophy.
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
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The Daniel Hiestand Memorial Concert: A Noteworthy Cause
Ensemble Concert
Saturday, October 5
7:30 p.m.
Laxson Auditorium
The Chico State Bands and Alumni invite you to join them as we honor the late Daniel Hiestand and support the scholarship in his name. The Chico State Wind Ensemble will open the first half of the concert with the Alumni Band rounding out the second half of the concert.
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
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Featuring Our Own
Low Brass Choir and Alumni
Saturday, October 12
7:30 p.m.
Rowland-Taylor Recital Hall
Music written and arranged for the Low Brass Choir by current students, former students, and other friends will be featured in our fall concert.
Original compositions such as Dave Chollet's "Cedar Flat," Michael Deaker's "Evening Song," Ryan Keyes' "White Light," Trevor Thompson's "Valley Uprising," Mary Guida's "Eventide," and Solana Blantz's "Song for Noah" will be heard alongside transcriptions of such classic pieces as Mary Colligan's version of Eric Whitacre's "Lux Aurumque," and others. This wide range of music is sure to entertain all in attendance!
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
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The Rocky Horror Show by Richard O'Brien
Musical Theatre Production
Thursday–Saturday, October 17–19
7:30 p.m.
Saturday–Sunday, October 19–20
2:00 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
"A musical that deals with mutating identity and time warps becomes one of the most mutated, time-warped phenomena in show business." – The New York Times
In this energetic cult classic, newly engaged sweethearts Brad and Janet get stuck in a storm and find themselves at the doorstep of Dr. Frank-N-Furter's mansion. As their innocence and commitment to each other is tested, Brad and Janet meet a houseful of wild characters, including a rocker biker and a creepy butler. Through elaborate dances and rock songs, Frank-N-Furter unveils his latest creation: an artificially made, physically perfect man named Rocky. You don't want to miss the chance to do the "Time Warp" with us!
Cost: $20 Adult | $18 Senior | $8 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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Hear the Joyful News
Choral Ensembles
Saturday, October 26
7:30 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
A healthy dose of gospel tunes and spirituals fill the air! Come enjoy the voices of the University Chorus, Acappella Choir, and Chamber Singers in this concert of uplifting songs featuring the Gospel Mass of Robert Ray.
Cost: $15 Adult | $13 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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Classically Bands
Symphonic Winds Ensemble
Saturday, November 2
7:30 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
The voice of the band has changed over the 100 years since Holst composed his First Suite for Band (1909). Hear the changes that have occurred since the first performance, through the 20th century to our modern day, in this remarkable walk through time with, of course, a host of marches.
Cost: $18 Adult | $16 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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100th Anniversary Reptrospective: A Peace to End All Peace? How the First World War Ended
History Roundtable
Thursday, November 7
7:30 p.m.
Rowland-Taylor Recital Hall
How did the peace treaties that brought World War I to an end 100 years ago shape the world we live in today? Join the Department of History for a lively discussion about these important documents and the conclusion of the Great War.
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
Soul-Ciology
Jazz X-Press
Saturday, November 9
7:30 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
Through jazz we live, through jazz we breathe, through jazz we X-Press. Come join the Jazz X-Press for a night of jazz celebration!
Cost: $18 Adult | $16 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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Bach to Basie
Jazz II and Concert Band
Wednesday, November 13
7:30 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
The Concert Band and Jazz II join forces to provide a wide array of concert music, including the music of Bach, Reed, Barnes, big band, fusion, and a march or two all in one concert!
Cost: Free (seating restrictions apply)
For more information, please call 530-898-5152.
She Kills Monsters
Theatre Production
Thursday–Sunday, November 14–17
7:30 p.m.
Saturday–Sunday, November 16–17
2:00 p.m.
Wismer Theatre
While cleaning up the room of her recently deceased sister, Agnes finds an unplayed Dungeons and Dragons campaign. In an effort to connect with her sister one more time, Agnes steps into the world she mocked and deepens their relationship by uncovering levels of her sister that she didn't know existed. This high energy dramatic comedy will give you a chance to reconnect with your inner geek and inner warrior.
Cost: $20 Adult | $18 Senior | $6 Youth & Chico State Student
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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Glorious Sounds of the Season
Festive Fundraiser
Friday–Saturday, December 6–7
7:30 p.m.
Sunday, December 8
2:00 p.m.
Harlen Adams Theatre
Join us for this Chico holiday tradition, a festive event featuring music and drama for the season. Faculty and students perform holiday favorites, with special treats galore! Performers include the CSU, Chico Choral Ensembles, the Symphonic Winds Ensemble, Jazz X-Press, chamber and theatre ensembles, soloists, and readers. Proceeds benefit student scholarships in the Chico State Department of Music and Theatre. Get your tickets early!
Cost: All tickets $20
Purchase tickets at the University Box Office, 530-898-6333, online, or at the door.
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RELATED LINKS

2019–2020 Season Calendar