The Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State this week announced a full 2023-24 lineup that includes a wide variety of music, dance and theater.
Productions range from “Bluey’s Big Play,” a live stage show of the popular animated children’s program, to “Johnny Cash — The Official Concert Experience,” to a performance by eclectic folk musician Rhiannon Giddens. Classical ensembles, international music, classic and modern jazz, Indian and hip-hop dance and more will be featured throughout the year.
“Current research on awe highlights the regenerative power of wonder in our emotional and physical lives,” Sita Frederick, CPA director, said. “Through our events, we aim to co-create experiences that design conditions for everyday awe, such as overwhelming beauty, tear-inducing laughter or an unexpected act of kindness from a stranger.”
Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Aug. 3 online; by calling 814-863-0255; or in person from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays at Eisenhower Auditorium. (Tickets for “Bluey’s Big Play” are on sale now.)
Here’s a look at the complete schedule.
“Bluey’s Big Play”
6:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 7
Eisenhower Auditorium
The first live theatrical adaptation of the Emmy Award-winning children’s television series has an original story by “Bluey” creator Joe Brumm and new music by “Bluey” composer Joff Bush.
Move Mix Festival *
5 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 12
Eisenhower Auditorium loading dock
This free outdoor show features Brooklyn-based ensemble Red Baraat’s fusion of brass-band jazz, northern Indian bhangra, hip-hop beats and jam-band ethos. Local musician Ady Martinez Dancy Party and Penn State dance ensembles Caliente Dance Company and Sher Bhangra also will perform
Jam Session with Emmet Cohen *
7-9 p.m. Monday, Sept. 18
Recital Hall
Central Pennsylvania musicians can jam with the acclaimed jazz pianist during this free two-hour session.
Emmet Cohen Trio
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 19
Eisenhower Auditorium
The New York-based straight-ahead jazz ensemble marks its third visit to Penn State, this time joined by jazz vocalist Lucy Yeghiazaryan.
“A Thousand Ways: An Assembly”
1:30, 3, and 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 30
1:30, 3, and 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 1
2:30, 4:30, and 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 20
4:30, 6 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 8
4:30, 6 and 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 9
Noon, 1:30, and 3 p.m. Friday, Nov. 10
Eisenhower Auditorium
This immersive theatrical experience written and created by Abigail Browde and Michael Silverstone of the Obie Award-winning 600 Highwaymen, with Andrew Kircher, will make its Penn State debut with a series of performances. “The one-hour event takes a group of no more than 16 strangers to construct a shared and moving life experience,” according to a CPA release. “There will be multiple, unmoderated patron-performances of this event in locations throughout Eisenhower Auditorium.
Las Cafeteras
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 10
Eisenhower Auditorium
The Chicano band from East LA will perform its mix of roots music, Afro-Mexican rhythms and rhyme.
Bijayini Satpathy
“Abhipsaa—A Seeking”
7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, Oct. 18 and 19
Eisenhower Auditorium stage
Odissi classical Indian dance master Bijayini Satpathy makes her first Penn State appearance with her choreographic debut that reimagines classical Odissi forms through modern interpretation.
Classical Coffeehouse featuring Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center*
8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24
Hintz Family Alumni Center
Four musicians will deliver an intimate mini-concert featuring excerpts from the society’s repertoire and engage in conversation with attendees.
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
“Rachmaninov Celebration”
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 25
Recital Hall
Soprano Erika Baikoff, pianist Gilles Vonsattel, violinist Benjamin Beilman and cellist Clive Greensmith will celebrate the virtuoso pianist’s 150th birth anniversary with a performance of works by the Russian master, Rubenstein, Tchaikovsky, Balakirev, Glinka and Rimsky-Korsakov.
“Stomp”
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 15
Eisenhower Auditorium
The famed percussion group returns to Eisenhower Auditorium with a new show making use of matchboxes, hubcaps, garbage cans and much more to create a music, dance and theater experience.
“Mosaic”
4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 3
Eisenhower Auditorium
This popular annual concert features the Penn State School of Music’s most talented ensembles and soloists.
“A Choral Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.”
4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 20
Eisenhower Auditorium
Featuring hymns and protest songs that celebrate the legacy of King and other civil-rights champions, the second annual tribute concert will include vocal ensembles from Penn State and Centre County high schools.
Ephrat Asherie Dance
“Underscored”
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 7
Eisenhower Auditorium
The Harlem-based freestyle hip-hop ensemble will be joined by New York City club legends for a multi-generational collaborative performance celebrating the club scene from the 1970s to today and African diaspora-inspired styles of freestyle dance.
“Johnny Cash — The Official Concert Experience”
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 20
Eisenhower Auditorium
A multimedia performance brings The Man in Black to the Eisenhower stage, with from video from “The Johnny Cash Show” projected on a screen above the stage while a live band performs and sings in sync to Cash’s hits.
Time for Three
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 28
Eisenhower Auditorium
The inventive string trio’s performance will include songs from their 2023 Grammy Award-winning album “Letters for the Future.”
Rhiannon Giddens
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 19
Eisenhower Auditorium
Named by NPR as one of the most influential women musicians of the 21st century, the opera-trained eclectic folk artist and two-time Grammy winner will be making her Penn State debut.
Classical Coffeehouse with Dover Quartet*
8 p.m. Wednesday, March 20
Hintz Family Alumni Center
Free for University Park and high school students.
Dover Quartet and Haochen Zhang
7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 21
Recital Hall
The renowned string quartet and acclaimed piano soloist will share the stage for a performance for ensemble and solo performances of work by Beethoven, Marc Neikrug and Schubert.
Terence Blanchard
“Absence”
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 10
Eisenhower Auditorium
The Grammy Award-winning jazz trumpeter and composer and his electronic band The E-Collective will be joined by Grammy-winning genre-hybrid ensemble Turtle Island String Quartet for a show celebrating the legacy of jazz saxophone legend Wayne Shorter as well as a selection of Blanchard’s original compositions.
Coreyah: Psychedelic Korean Folk *
8 p.m. Thursday, April 24
HUB Alumni Hall
The sextet performs a psychedelic take on traditional Korean folk in a free show open to the public
*Free event, donation suggested
