2018-2019 McCain Conversations

The Birth, Growth and Constant Reinvention of American Musical Theatre

6 p.m. Sunday, May 19, Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Professor Jerry Jay Cranford, Broadway performer, 30-year Actor’s Equity member and K-State Theatre faculty

From “The Black Crook” to “The Cher Show,” the world has looked to a small strip of theaters in New York City to set the standard for popular musical storytelling. Thanks to the early contributions of talented Jewish immigrants, this American artform has allowed some success for British composers but remains rmly in the grasp of American artists. The invention of radio and television greatly shifted the musical tone and structure causing the critics to often lament the death of the musical but there is always a new, inspired voice waiting to reinvent the format and captivate a new audience. Join me as we track the changing history of musical theatre.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “101 Years of Broadway” show.

Please present your “101 Years of Broadway” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires June 7, 2019.

Exploring the fascinating diversity of The Dali Quartet's Program and Background

1 p.m. Sunday, April 14, Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Sławomir Dobrzanski, Ph.D., Professor of Piano, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, Kansas State University

Dr. Dobrzanski will explore the fascinating diversity of stylistic elements in Latin, Classical and Romantic chamber music repertoire. He will also discuss the historical background of the musical works included in this concert program, as well as interesting details about the performers, with special attention given to Olga Kern’s solo piano career.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “The Dalí Quartet with Olga Kern” show.

Please present your “The Dalí Quartet with Olga Kern” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires April 19, 2019.

Rogers and Hammerstein Ideology and the ‘Serious’ Musical

6:30 p.m. Friday, April 5, Flint Hills Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Shannon Skelton, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, Kansas State University

Though Rogers and Hammerstein are often viewed as antiquated products from the golden age of the American musical, their work continues to be popular and and relevant. How do their musicals turn a questioning eye toward American history? How do their works speak to issues of identity, gender, colonialism and racism? This multimedia presentation will analyze their most popular works and argue that Rogers and Hammerstein helped to introduce politically relevant issues into American discourse.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “The King and I” show.

Please present your “The King and I” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires April 19, 2019.

Beyond a Cappella: The Manhattan Transfer Meets Take 6

6:30 p.m. Sunday, March 31, Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Dr. Julie Yu, Associate Professor of Music and Co-Director of Choral Studies, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, Kansas State University

A Cappella literally means “of the chapel.” Join us in this pre-concert lecture to learn how this term has evolved over centuries to the present variations of a cappella singing. Come enjoy the fun as some of your fellow concert attendees have the opportunity to try out a little a cappella singing on their own!

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “The Manhattan Transfer meets Take 6” show.

Please present your “The Manhattan Transfer meets Take 6” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires April 12, 2019.

Upcoming conversations

Sir James Galway: Flutist or Flautist?

6:30 p.m. Friday, March 8, Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Dr. Susan Maxwell Instructor, Bassoon, Music Theory

This presentation will provide a context of who Sir James Galway is as a person, flutist and artist and how he has been able to transcend the classical music stage.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “Sir James Galway” show.

Please present your “Sir James Galway” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires March 22, 2019.

Lear, or Learning Too Late

6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21, Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Don Hedrick, Ph.D., A Kansas State University English Department Donnelly Scholar and recipient of the College of Arts and Sciences Gaches Lifetime Teaching Award.

Actors, directors and readers have often felt that Lear is the towering Everest to climb. Yet its excitements as a story make it a thrilling play, with the intrigues, thrills, violence, madness and even comedy that fans of its offspring “Game of Thrones” expect. At the same time, it raises profound questions about parent-child relations, belief in providence and the fate of rulers who learn too late that “They told me I was everything. ‘Tis a lie.” Professor Hedrick will give highlights and helps for enjoying the performance.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “King Lear” show.

Please present your “King Lear” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires March 8, 2019.

Postmodern Jukebox: Bringing the Jukebox Back!!

6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 14, Cottonwood Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Steve Maxwell, Associate Professor of Music, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, Kansas State University

Let’s take a trip into the modern jukebox and see how online tools such as YouTube have shaped our music forever. We will also talk about how Scott Bradlee and his Postmodern Jukebox ensemble have seamlessly blended style of the past with cutting- edge music of today.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox” show.

Please present your “Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires Feb. 28, 2019.

The Popularity of Harry Potter

6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 10, Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Karin Westman, Department Head and Associate Professor, Department of English, Kansas State University

What makes Harry Potter so popular? We will consider the literary heritage of Rowling’s series, its innovations and its continuing in uence across print, lm, stage and online for several generations of readers and fans.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “Potted Potter” show.

Please present your “Potted Potter” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires Feb. 22, 2019.

Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn: Transcendent Music Making

6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 5, Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Dr. Alfred Cochran, Professor of Music, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, Kansas State University

As we make our journey through life, we encounter different types of music: at the bottom end, we hear music that offends our musical sensibilities or is boring; other music entertains us but is short-lived in our memories; at the top end is music that is so compelling and is of such excellence that it helps us transcend aspects of time and place. It encapsulates the past, works well in the moment, but also points to the future and allows us to think new thoughts and see ordinary things in a different light. Such is the music of Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn. We will explore some of the music of this oh-so-talented husband-wife team.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn” show.

Please present your “Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires Feb. 19, 2019.

Legally Blonde: From Book to Film to Broadway

6:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 2, Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Shannon Blake Skelton, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, Kansas State University

This multimedia presentation traces “Legally Blonde” as it moves from the written word (a semiautobiographical novel by Amanda Brown) and celluloid (the film adaptation) to its most recent incarnation, the award-winning musical.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “Legally Blonde” show.

Please present your “Legally Blonde” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires Feb. 15, 2019.

Judy Blue Eyes — the Amazing Judy Collins

6:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 7
Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Alfred Cochran, Professor of Music, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, Kansas State University

The storied career of Grammy Award- winning singer Judy Collins has provided the soundtrack for many Americans as we came of age in this puzzling and complex world. We will explore her many musical talents and the in uence she exerted upon popular music as she built a decadeslong career of excellence and authenticity — truly one of America’s great singers.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “Judy Collins: Holiday & Hits” show.

Please present your “Judy Collins: Holiday & Hits” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires Dec. 21, 2018.

Who are The Mavericks?

6:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 26
Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Steve Maxwell, Associate Professor of Music, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, Kansas State University

Are they country? Are they rockabilly? Are they Tex-Mex? Are they rock and roll? The answer is YES! We will talk about how they do it and why the Mavericks are not just another country band.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “The Mavericks: Hey! Merry Christmas!” show.

Please present your “The Mavericks: Hey! Merry Christmas!” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires Dec. 14, 2018.

THE GHOST-STORY CONTEST: the birth of science fiction

6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 13
Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Dr. Mark Crosby, Associate Professor and Director of the K-State Digital Humanities Center, Department of English, Kansas State University

On the shores of Lake Geneva during the dank and dismal summer of 1816, an 18-year-old girl was challenged to write a ghost story. Two years later, “Frankenstein” was published, launching the genre of science fiction, elevating the novel form from didactic entertainment to serious philosophical enquiry and giving the world the enduring figures of the hubristic scientist and his post-human creation. Like Victor excavating tombs and charnel houses, we will dig deep into the origins of Mary Shelley’s most influential work.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “Frankenstein” show.

Please present your “Frankenstein” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires Nov. 30, 2018.

The (Not-So-Short-But-Highly-Informative) History of Monty Python's Spamalot

6:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 5
Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Shannon Skelton, Instructor of Music, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance

Explore the origins the lm “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” and its adaptation into the award-winning musical “Spamalot.”

Warning: This lecture will include gratuitous images of killer (and non-killer) rabbits.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “Monty Python’s Spamalot” show.

Please present your “Monty Python’s Spamalot” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires Nov. 16, 2018.

Chanticleer:
The Clear-Singing Rooster

6:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 25
Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Dr. Reginald Pittman, Professor of Music/Voice Division Chair School of Music, Theatre, and Dance

Join us in celebrating the 40th year of Chanticleer as we explore the many voice types in this Grammy Award-winning male vocal ensemble.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “Chanticleer” show.

Please present your “Chanticleer” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires Nov. 9, 2018.

Emmylou Harris:
A Life in Music

6:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 12
Bluemont Room, K-State Student Union

Hosted by: Alfred Cochran, Professor of Music, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance

Over the course of more than four decades, Harris has charted and followed a course of musical excellence that has led to her collaborating and interacting with some of the most influential musicians in her field. We will explore this fascinating journey and contemplate some of the reasons why she is so highly regarded today.

Coffee and light desserts provided. Free to all ticket holders of the “Emmylou Harris” show.

Please present your “Emmylou Harris” McCain ticket at Chick-fil-A in the K-State Student Union for one free breakfast or lunch sandwich. Offer expires Oct. 31, 2018.