By Caitlyn Finnegan
Plenty of talent will be taking the stage for the 2013-2014 University of Florida Performing Arts season, with national broadway acts, international performers and some of the world’s most promising up-and-coming virtuosos already signed on to make a stop in Gainesville.
UFPA Director Michael Blachly announced the lineup Monday evening at the Curtis M. Phillips, M.D. Center for the Performing Arts, with 76 performances set to take place from July through April.
Live musical performances will include Grammy-winning artists such as violinist Itzhak Perlman, vocalist Kathleen Battle, guitarist Pat Metheny and banjo player Bela Fleck – who has been nominated in more categories than anyone in Grammy history.
A number of unique musical pairings will also be featured, including the Turtle Island Quartet and Nellie McKay, the Indigo Girls and Jacksonville’s Symphony Orchestra, and Dala with Tim Shelton and Josh Miller.
There will be world premieres including UF alumna Stella Sung’s new opera “The Red Silk Thread,” featuring UF Opera and UF Symphony Orchestra, as well as a few farewell tours for groups such as the Irish Rovers.
There will be a range of broadway acts including the classic “Man of La Mancha,” 2010 Tony award-winner “Memphis,” the 1950s-inspired “ Million Dollar Quartet” and Cleo Parker Robinson Dance’s “Southland” – a recently revived play kept in the dark for 50 years due to a graphic scene – as well as the popular hits “Mamma Mia!” and “Hello, Dolly!”
Nearly 20 countries will be represented throughout the course of the arts season, including South Africa’s Johnny Clegg Band, China’s Peking Acrobats, India’s Manganiyar Seduction by Roysten Abel, Argentina’s Fire Tango and the Krasnoyarsk National Dance Company of Serbia.
There will also be family-friendly events such as the Salzburg Marionette Theatre and Trout Fishing in America, a duo of songwriters that have been dubbed the “Lennon and McCartney of kids.”
Fresh, young talent will be represented by the likes of jazz phenom Jonathan Batiste and revolutionary organist Cameron Carpenter, along with three classical performances from Young Concert Artists.
“This is just a boilerplate for next season,” Blachly said. “There is more to come.”
Tickets for the season go on sale to the public June 24 at noon. For a full list of the lineup, as well as access to any changes, visit the program’s website; performingarts.ufl.edu.
