Campus & Community

OfA announces spring 2006 grant recipients

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Grants for dance

Sponsored in part by the Office for the Arts (OfA) at Harvard grant program, more than 2,400 students will participate in 47 projects in dance, music, theater, and multidisciplinary genres at the University this spring. Grants are designed to foster creative and innovative artistic initiatives among Harvard undergraduates.
Selected by the Council on the Arts at Harvard, the projects include music concerts by the Holden Choruses, original student-composed operas, literary publications, and cultural events such as Presencia Latina.

OfA grants are awarded to undergraduates, graduate students, faculty, and staff. Funded projects combine artistic merit, artistic experimentation, and educational benefit to undergraduates.

Council members at the time of selection include Robert J. Kiely (chair), Donald P. and Katherine B. Loker Professor of English; Elizabeth Bergmann, director, OfA dance program; S. Allen Counter, director, Harvard Foundation; Deborah Foster, assistant dean for undergraduate education; Jorie Graham, Boylston Professor of Rhetoric and Oratory; Annette Lemieux, professor of the practice of studio arts in visual and environmental studies; Cathleen McCormick, program director, OfA; Jack Megan, director, OfA; Robert J. Orchard, managing director, Loeb Drama Center and the American Repertory Theatre; Stephen Prina, professor of visual and environmental studies; Carol Oja, William Powell Mason Professor of Music; Marcus Stern, associate director, American Repertory Theatre (A.R.T.) and the A.R.T./MXAT Institute for Advanced Theatre Training; and John Stewart, senior preceptor in music.

The OfA, which administers the grants, also offers grants for projects taking place during Arts First 2006 – Harvard’s annual celebration of the arts. For further information, visit http://www.fas.harvard.edu/OfA.

Grants for dance

Crimson Dance Team in concert, Julia Choe ’09: Esther Kahn Grant for the team’s annual concert of dance routines combining funk, pop, and jazz styles.

Expressions Dance Company spring show, Pamela Santoyo ’08: Esther Kahn Grant for a performance showcase including hip-hop, jazz, and modern dance.

Harvard Bulgarian Club folk concert, Sonia Todorova ’07: Esther Kahn Grant for a performance of student-choreographed folk dances.

Mainly Jazz Dance Company spring concert, Christine Fitzgerald ’07: Esther Kahn Grant for a concert of jazz, hip-hop, funk, and lyrical dance performed by Harvard students and guest artists.

Harvard-Radcliffe Dance Company performance, Sonia Todorova ’07: Esther Kahn Grant for a student-choreographed show featuring traditional modern dance, as well as ethnic-themed, improvisational, and multimedia collaborative pieces.

Harvard Ballet Company spring performance, David Blazar ’06: Esther Kahn Grant for a performance of both classical ballet and contemporary dance showcasing new student choreography and commissioned work of Avi Scheier of the School of American Ballet.

Grants for literature

The Harvard Book Review spring issue, Emer Vaughn ’06: OfA Grant for the publication of a wide-ranging collection of student literary reviews.

Tuesday Magazine spring edition, Russell Krupen ’07: OfA Grant for a general interest publication providing a forum for student essays, fiction, and poetry, as well as opinion pieces and artwork.

Harvard Asia Pacific Review, Kevin Koo ’07: OfA Grant for an issue chronicling the dynamism of Asia, and offering literary, visual, and design art.

Grants for multidisciplinary arts

Harvard College Interfaith Council, “Art of Faith,” Nira Gautam ’08: OfA Grant for a multidisciplinary show featuring the dance, music, artwork, and cuisine of different religions.

Black Arts Festival, Kuumba Singers, Shayda Vance ’08: OfA Grant for the main performance of the Black Arts Festival, which will include the music and dance of student organizations.

Presencia Latina, Maria Teresa Herrera ’07: Esther Kahn Grant for the fourth annual Latino and Latin-American cultural show fostering artistic expression and featuring acts ranging from salsa and capoeira to poetry readings and painting displays.

Spoken Word Society, “Speaking Life Open Mic Series,” Angela Makabali ’06: OfA Grant for a twice-a-semester performance of undergraduate poetry and monologues, and instrumental and electronic music.

Grants for music

Kuumba Singers, 35th annual Dr. S. Allen Counter Christmas Concert, Maria Nardell ’06: Felicia Eckstein-Lipson Grant for Kuumba’s annual Christmas concert celebrating and sharing the rich creativity and spirituality of black cultures.

Holden Chamber Ensembles, 15th century English polyphony, Michael Barret ’98: Richard Solomon Grant for a concert of late medieval English polyphony in a vocal chamber setting.

Kuumba Singers, 36th annual Dean Archie C. Epps Concert, Kyle Frisina ’06: OfA Grant for a concert celebrating the creativity and spirituality of black culture through music, dance, and spoken word.

Harvard Sunday Jazz Ensemble, “A Latin Jazz Tribute to Chico O’Farrill,” Noel Swanson ’08: Richard Solomon Grant for a concert featuring the works of the renowned Latin jazz composer.

The Chamber Singers of the Harvard-Radcliffe Collegium Musicum, spring concert, Julia Cavallaro ’08: OfA Grant for a concert featuring rarely performed and never-recorded choral music from the early Renaissance.

Harvard-Radcliffe Contemporary Music Ensemble, “First Nights,” Elizabeth Lim ’08: OfA Grant for a semi-staged performance of three new, student-composed operas.

Holden Choruses, Handel’s “Messiah,” David Baron ’07: OfA Grant for a combined performance by the Harvard Glee Club, Radcliffe Choral Society, and Harvard-Radcliffe Collegium Musicum.

Harvard-Radcliffe Chorus, Vivaldi’s “Gloria,” Gabriel Loperena ’06: OfA Grant for a concert featuring “Gloria” and works by Bach and Handel.

Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra, children’s concert, Johann Cutiongco ’06: Richard Solomon Grant for a program to foster interest in classical music for Cambridge elementary public school students.

The Harvard Jazz Bands, jam sessions, Charles Frongner ’06: OfA Grant for a set of sessions to improve the improvisational abilities of students.

Harvard-Radcliffe Collegium Musicum, Mozart’s “C Minor Mass,” Elaine Besancon ’06: OfA Grant.

Mozart Society Orchestra, Mozart’s 250th birthday concert, Peter Behroozi ’06: OfA Grant for a concert including Mozart’s “Requiem,” “Piano Concerto No. 20,” “Sinfonia Concertante,” “Cosi fan Tutte,” and “Jupiter Symphony.”

Harvard Pops Orchestra “Pops Goes West,” Perry Tsai ’07: OfA Grant for a music program of classical, contemporary, popular, film, and rock music, centered on the American West and featuring arrangements by student composers.

Dunster House Opera Society, Poulenc’s “Dialogues of the Carmelites,” Emily Zazulia ’06: OfA Grant for a fully staged undergraduate production of Poulenc’s 1957 opera.

Harvard Wind Ensemble, “Sounding Winds,” Laura Stoppel ’08: OfA Grant for a concert featuring compositions by Adam Gorb, Cindy McTee, and Michael Daugherty.

Brattle Street Chamber Players spring concert, Brendan Gillis ’06: OfA Grant for the performance of string chamber ensemble music, including a student-written piece composed by Julia Carey ’08.

Bach Society Orchestra, “A Mozart Celebration and Bach and Beethoven,” spring concerts, Matthew Smith ’07: OfA Grant for two programs: one in recognition of the 250th anniversary of Mozart’s birth, and the second featuring Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 and a collaboration with the Harvard University Choir.

Radcliffe Choral Society, “Spring Tour Preview: From Canny to Uncanny …,” Laurence Coderre ’07: OfA Grant for a joint concert given by the Radcliffe Choral Society and the Harvard Glee Club, featuring repertoire from their upcoming spring 2006 tours.

The Harvard Undergraduate Drummers, spring concert, Danielle Lehle ’07: OfA Grant for a concert featuring a variety of percussion ensemble pieces, including those for both traditional and nontraditional instruments and works composed or arranged by members.

The Harvard University Flute Ensemble, Bizet’s “Carmen,” Christina McCalla ’06: OfA Grant for a performance of Bizet’s masterpiece, as arranged for flute ensemble.

Grants for theater

Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club (HRDC), “Alcestis,” Jeremy Steinemann ’08: Timothy S. Mayer Grant for a January Loeb Ex (Experimental Theatre) production of a new adaptation of Euripides’ play featuring a student-composed original score.

BlackC.A.S.T., Shanai Watson ’07: Timothy S. Mayer Grant for a spring theater production of one acts.

Harvard STAGE, “Footloose,” Janine Mandel ’07: H. Todd Cobey Grant for a production of the musical; proceeds will benefit STAGE’s Boston-based after-school programs.

Harvard Classical Club, “The Birds of Aristophanes,” Emily Pickering ’08: Timothy S. Mayer Grant for the annual spring production of an original student translation of a classic comedy.

The Immediate Gratification Players (IGP), “Laugh Riot Improv Comedy Festival,” Chris Black ’07: Timothy S. Mayer Grant for the annual intercollegiate improv comedy festival.

“PROM,” Derrick Wang ’06: Timothy S. Mayer Grant for a production of a full-length student-written musical.

Harvard Radcliffe Dramatic Club, “RHINOCEROS,” Jess Burkle ’06: Timothy S. Mayer Grant for a production of the “theater of the absurd” classic.

Kirkland House Drama Society, “Bye Bye Birdie,” Jenny Taylor ’07: H. Todd Cobey Grant for a staging of a perennial favorite of the musical theater canon.

Harvard Story-Time Players, spring productions, Vivien Sun ’08: H. Todd Cobey Grant for productions by Story-Time Players, which brings interactive theater to children in hospitals and other venues.

Grants for traditional cultural arts

Harvard Korean Association, annual culture show, Yongjin Yun ’08: Richard Solomon Grant for a Korean culture showcase featuring a varied selection of plays, dances, and music.

Harvard Thai Society, “Thai Night 2006: Siam Chronicle,” Chayasith Uttamapinant ’07: Timothy S. Mayer Grant for a production presenting the story of early 20th century Siam during the reign of King Rama V.