Check out the dynamic arts performances and events that Holy Cross has lined up.
For directions to Holy Cross and arts venues on campus, please visit our Maps, Directions, Transporation and Parking site.
Spring 2020 Arts Events
Due to COVID-19 precautions at the College, all remaining events are canceled through the end of the semester. Some events may be rescheduled to a later date and the Cantor Art Gallery may reopen under reduced hours. Please contact sponsoring departments for more information.
All events are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted.
- View the spring 2020 arts brochure (PDF) » (Please note that this was created in Janaury. For a complete and accurate listing of arts events, please see below.)
- See our Events Calendar for a complete listing of events taking place at Holy Cross »
Jan. 22 – Feb. 29 │ 10 a.m.-5 p.m. M-F; Noon-5 p.m. Sat.
Cantor Art Gallery
“Peter Moriarty: Warm Room”
Through evocative black and white photography, Peter Moriarty explores the architecture and collections of a series of historic European and American greenhouses. Taken over the course of more than 20 years, Moriarty’s works explore the interactions of familiar architectural forms with the lush, exotic, and often disorienting collections housed within.
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Photo courtesy of Peter Moriarty
Jan. 23 │ 5-6:30 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Opening reception with a talk by the artist
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Jan. 28 | 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Silkroad Ensemble, Percussion All-Stars
In an evening highlighting the percussionists of the Silkroad Ensemble, get to know the artists and the works they’ve selected in an intimate performance space. Experience instruments, rhythms, and melodies from along the Silk Road and beyond, including Japan, India, Central Asia, the Middle East, Peru, Cuba, Africa, and America. The performance also features a new work commissioned by Silkroad and written by composer, arranger, and bassist Edward Pérez.
Tickets: https://silkroad-percussion-performance.eventbrite.com
Sponsored by Arts Transcending Borders
Photo courtesy of Max Whittaker
Jan. 30-31 and Feb. 1-2, 6-9 | 7:30 p.m. (Jan. 30-31, Feb. 1, 6-8) and 2 p.m. (Feb. 2 & 9)
“Cabaret”
Fenwick Theatre, O’Kane Hall
Book by Joe Masteroff, music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb
This celebrated musical play is set against the backdrop of Berlin in the early 1930s, where a young American writer in search of inspiration rents a cheap flat and discovers both the glories of the city and its sinister side – the Nazis and widespread anti-Semitism. He also falls in love with an aspiring singer, full of sexual bravado, who performs at the Kit Klub. Directed by Meaghan Deiter.
Tickets: 508-793-2496 or https://hc2020cabaret.eventbrite.com
Sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance
Photo courtesy of Samantha Langford
Feb. 4 | 12:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
First Tuesday Lunch Concert
The First Tuesday Lunch Concert Series presents short and enjoyable concerts featuring our artists-in-residence, various guest artists and students.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Feb. 13 | 7:30 p.m.
Rehm Library, Smith Hall
Vocation of the Writer Reading by Joshua Wolf Shenk
Join us as we hear Joshua Wolf Shenk, an essayist and arts leader. He is artistic and executive director of the Beverly Rogers, Carol C. Harter Black Mountain Institute at the University of Nevada Las Vegas and editor-in-chief of The Believer magazine. Shenk’s books include “Lincoln’s Melancholy,” named one of the best books of the year by The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Atlanta-Journal Constitution, and honored with prizes from The Abraham Lincoln Institute, the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, and the National Mental Health Association.
Sponsored by Creative Writing
Feb. 13 | 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Polytope
Polytope is a collaborative project between Jie Ma, traditional Chinese musician and composer; and Brian Saia, sound designer and producer. It is a deep listening experience, engaging the audience through a soundscape of electro-acoustic music with its unique cinematic ambient style, using Chinese instruments and live electronics with digital manipulation.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Photo courtesy of Brian Saia
Feb. 18 | 7:30 p.m.
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Holy Cross Chapel Artist Series
Michelle Sacco ’21 and Matt Luca ‘22
Organ Scholars Michelle Sacco and Matt Luca will present a program featuring organ concertos by George Frideric Handel. In addition, this program will feature a small string ensemble.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Feb. 20 | 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Song Concert
Join us for a varied concert of art song! A distinguished performer from Boston's art song and oratorio scene will present repertoire ranging from Schubert love songs to musical theater. Don’t miss this opportunity to experience the uplifting power of the human voice!
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Feb. 27 | 7:30 p.m.
Reading by Jane Brox
Rehm Library, Smith Hall
Come hear writer Jane Brox read from her newest book, “Silence.” Her previous book, “Brilliant: The Evolution of Artificial Light,” was named one of the top ten nonfiction books of 2010 by Time magazine. She is also the author of “Clearing Land: Legacies of the American Farm,” “Five Thousand Days Like This One,” which was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award in nonfiction; and “Here and Nowhere Else,” which won the L.L. Winship/PEN New England Award.
Sponsored by Creative Writing
Photo courtesy of Luc Demers
March 9 - April 10 | 10 a.m.-5 p.m. M-F; Noon-5 p.m. Sat.
“Joys, Sorrows, and Concerns,” Work by Susan Schmidt
A survey of the career of Susan Schmidt, whose works span across drawing, books, and prints. Throughout her career, Schmidt has responded to the spaces that she inhabits, and to her lived experiences. A professor in Holy Cross’ visual arts department, Schmidt’s work often explores the complexities of family and its powerful, difficult, and shifting bonds.
March 11 | 5 - 6:30 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Opening reception
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Photo courtesy of Susan Schmidt
March 10 | 12:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
First Tuesday Lunch Concert
Sponsored by the Department of Music
March 10 | 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Tania León
The Department of Music hosts guest composer Tania León for a tribute concert to her music featuring performances by the College Choir and artists-in-residence. Born in Havana, Cuba, Tania León is highly regarded for her accomplishments as a composer, conductor, educator, and advisor to arts organizations. A cofounder of the Dance Theatre of Harlem, she has played important roles in leading institutions such as the Brooklyn Philharmonic, the American Composers Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
March 12 | 7:30 p.m.
Rehm Library, Smith Hall
Reading by Andrew Altschul
Meet Andrew Altschul, the author of the novel “The Gringa,” forthcoming from Melville House Press in 2020. His previous novels are “Lady Lazarus” (2008) and “Deus Ex Machina” (2011). His short stories and essays have appeared in Esquire, McSweeney's, The Wall Street Journal, Ploughshares, Fence, One Story, Zyzzyva, The Huffington Post, and elsewhere, and have been anthologized in “Best American Nonrequired Reading,” “Best New American Voices,” “California Prose Directory,” and “O. Henry Prize Stories.”
Sponsored by Creative Writing
March 19 | 7:30 p.m.
Rehm Library, Smith Hall
Reading by Xu Xi
Join us to hear Xu Xi, author of 13 books, including five novels, six collections of short fiction and essays and most recently “Insignificance: Hong Kong Stories” by Signal 8 Press; the memoir “Dear Hong Kong: An Elegy for a City” (2017), as part of Penguin's Hong Kong series for the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to China. She is also editor of four anthologies of Hong Kong writing in English. Her newest book from Nebraska University Press is an essay collection “This Fish Is Fowl.”
Sponsored by Creative Writing
Photo courtesy of Leslie Lausch
March 24 | 7:30 p.m.
Hogan Ballroom
Las Cafeteras
Born and raised east of the Los Angeles river, Las Cafeteras are remixing roots music and telling modern day stories. Their Afro-Mexican beats, rhythms, and rhymes deliver inspiring lyrics that document stories of a community seeking love and justice in the concrete jungle of Los Angeles.
Tickets: https://las-cafeteras.eventbrite.com
Sponsored by Arts Transcending Borders
Photo courtesy of Rafael Cardenas
March 24 | 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Artist-in-Residence Concert
Michelle Ross, violin; Jan Müller-Szeraws, cello; Adam Golka, piano; with Brooks Scholars
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Photo courtesy of Lisa Marie Mazzucco
March 25 | 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
World Premiere: Matthew Pinder’s “Stations of the Cross,” featuring Holy Cross Orchestra, Mike Monaghan and guests
The core of Pinder’s Fenwick project, this hourlong work is written in 14 movements in a concertante style for string quartet, soprano saxophone, and orchestra. Combining research on the Stations of the Cross and the musical narratives of the orchestral Passion, Pinder renders an artistic expression of the experience of Jesus during his journey to be crucified, exploring His sufferings and His interactions with others during the heart of the Passion.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Photo courtesy of Elena Wang
March 26-28 and April 2-4 | 7:30 p.m.
Fenwick Theatre, O’Kane Hall
“Richard II” by William Shakespeare
Believing himself to be divinely anointed, Richard II acts capriciously, abuses his power and leads England into a ruinously expensive foreign war. What makes Shakespeare’s history play so fascinating is the journey of its protagonist: ultimately stripped of his crown, title and dignity, this arrogant and self-absorbed man confronts his own humanity and comes to terms with the true nature of power. Edward Isser directs one of Shakespeare’s subtlest and most surprising masterpieces.
Tickets: 508-793-2496 or https://hcrichardthesecond.eventbrite.com
Sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance
Photo courtesy of BlackJack3D
March 28 | 7:30 p.m.
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Holy Cross College Choir with WPI
Haydn's “Lord Nelson Mass” and “Te Deum”
Come hear the choirs of Holy Cross and WPI join together for one of Haydn's most legendary choral works, the “Missa in Angustiis” or “Lord Nelson Mass.” Written in the summer of 1798 when Napoleon was threatening Haydn's home of Austria, the music is alternately threatening and triumphant. Also on this program will be Haydn's “Te Deum” in C, and the Funeral March (Movement 2) of Beethoven's “Symphony No. 3,” the "Eroica" Symphony.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
April 2 | 7:30 p.m.
Rehm Library, Smith Hall
Reading by Robin Hemley
Come celebrate the new book by Jenks Chair, Robin Hemley. He is an international writer, who has published a dozen books as well as essays and short stories around the world. He is the founder and past President of NonfictioNOW, the leading international conference for literary nonfiction. He directed The Nonfiction Writing Program at the University of Iowa from 2004-2013 and is a professor emeritus at the University of Iowa.
Sponsored by Creative Writing
April 5 | 4 p.m.
Trinity Lutheran Church, Worcester
Holy Cross Chamber Singers
Bach's “St. Matthew Passion”
The Holy Cross Chamber Singers will join with the Trinity Choir and Orchestra, Diamonds from the Dust Vocal Ensemble, the Trebles of All Saints Choir Worcester, and a roster of professional soloists for what is arguably Bach's greatest composition. This Palm Sunday Passion promises to be an unforgettable experience.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
April 7 | 12:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
First Tuesday Lunch Concert
Sponsored by the Department of Music
April 14 | 7:30 p.m.
Fenwick Theatre, O’Kane Hall
“Vic’s Mix” by RUBBERBAND
Los Angeles native Victor Quijada brings together contemporary dance composition and west coast hip-hop like no one before him. “Vic’s Mix” blends musical and choreographic genres, urban and classical dance, tension and humor into a “best-of” showcase of a decade and a half of Quijada’s innovation for RUBBERBAND.
Tickets https://rubberband-vics-mix.eventbrite.com
Sponsored by Arts Transcending Borders
Photo courtesy of Bill Hebert
April 16-19 | 7:30 p.m. (April 16-18) and 2 p.m. (April 18-19)
The Pit, O’Kane Hall
“Bare: A Pop Opera”
Book by Jon Hartmere and Damon Intrabartolo, music by Damon Intrabartolo, lyrics by Jon Hartmere
“Bare” focuses on a group of high school students rehearsing a production of “Romeo and Juliet” at a co-ed Catholic boarding school. In the course of working on Shakespeare’s classic romantic text, they explore their own sexuality, as well as body image, religion and teen pregnancy. An Alternate College Theatre production directed by Brandon Brito ’20.
Reservations: 508-793-3536
Sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance
April 17 | 4 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Chamber Music Recital
Student ensembles will present the works studied during the semester as part of the Chamber Music Program.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
April 18 | 7:30 p.m.
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Chapel Artist Series Concert
Julia Brown
Dr. Julia Brown from Mayflower Congregational Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan will present a program featuring music by Buxtehude, Bach and Scheidt. Dr. Brown is well known for her interpretation of early music. Her recording of the complete work of Buxtehude has been well received by reviewers not only in the U.S. but also in Europe.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
April 21 | 5 p.m.
Rehm Library, Smith Hall
Fenwick Scholar presentation
Matthew Pinder Lecture
Sponsored by the Department of Music
April 22 – May 22 │ 10 a.m.-5 p.m. M-F; Noon-5 p.m. Sat.
Cantor Art Gallery
Senior Concentration Seminar Exhibition 2020
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
April 22 | 12 – 1:30 P.M.
Academic Conference Presentations
A perennial favorite of the spring semester, the Annual Senior Concentration Seminar Exhibition is the capstone presentation for graduating seniors who participate in a yearlong seminar course.
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
April 22 | Noon – 1:30 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Academic Conference Presentations by Senior Artists
Senior Concentration Seminar Exhibition 2020
Presentations of the Studio Concentration Seminar students as part of Academic Conference.
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
April 22 | 7:30 p.m.
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Holy Cross Orchestra
The Holy Cross Orchestra and conductor Adam Golka present Beethoven's immortal Fifth Symphony, and Brooks Scholar Kevin Chen '21 appears as soloist for the 1934 Piano Concerto in One Movement by genius and pioneer Florence Price, the first African-American woman to have had her compositions played by a major American orchestra.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
April 23 | 5 - 6:30 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Opening Reception: Senior Concentration Seminar Exhibition 2020
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
April 23 | 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
H-CLEF Concert
Join the Holy Cross Laptop Ensemble Federation and guest pianist Amy Williams for an evening of silent film accompanied by selections from John Cage's "Sonatas and Interludes" for prepared piano as well as original music performed on DIY synthesizers, repurposed smartphones and hacked game controllers.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Photo courtesy of Erik Oña
April 25 | 7:30 p.m.
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Holy Cross College Choir & Chamber Singers
Spring Concert: “New American Voices”
We are very excited to be premiering a work written for the College Choir and four-hands organ by our own faculty member Matthew Jaskot. Come hear the first performance of this exciting commission. Also on the program will be other great American composers of the 20th and 21st centuries. Don't miss this celebration of American music!
Sponsored by the Department of Music
April 26 | 2 p.m.
Hogan Ballroom
Holy Cross Wind Ensemble
Winds of Color
Spring Concert
Program will feature a work (solo bassoon and wind ensemble) commissioned specifically for the Holy Cross Wind Ensemble with guest artist Rachel Leeper. Additional selections include works composed by female minority and underrepresented composers as well as a possible selection performed by the Chamber Singers.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
April 28 | 6 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
End of Semester Student Recitals
Students who took private lessons through the Music Department Performance Program will present works from the solo repertoire they worked on during the semester.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
April 29 | 7 and 9 p.m.
Fenwick Theatre, O’Kane Hall
Dance Concert
Last year for the first time, our always eagerly anticipated annual dance concert took on a theme: all the pieces were choreographed to songs from The Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” We’re excited to see what shape it takes this year, as our four dance instructors — Jimena Bermejo, Kaela Lee, Audra Carabetta and Jaclyn Waguespack — bring together the students from all their classes.
Sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance
April 29 | 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Spring Concert: Holy Cross Jazz Ensemble
An evening of Big Band Jazz music that plays from the classic to the contemporary. The band will play music drawn from the libraries of jazz legends Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Buddy Rich, as well as contemporary jazz artists Herbie Hancock and Wynton Marsalis. Our student soloists will be featured throughout the concert.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
May 1 | 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Gamelan Gita Sari
A glorious melding of Balinese gamelan music and Balinese dance, under the supervision of our Balinese performing arts instructor, I Nyoman Catra. The Balinese dance concert provides an opportunity for the community to experience the awe and wonder of the sacred art of Bali.
Sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance and the Department of Music
Photo courtesy of Eric Culver