Kent State offers multiple opportunities to enjoy the performing arts right here on campus, so don’t spend precious time and money driving to a concert or a play.

The Hugh A. Glauser School of Music and the School of Theatre and Dance provide students and faculty a full season of entertainment for little to no cost, said Josef Knott, director of the Hugh A. Glauser School of Music.

This year’s season began smoothly with no conflicts and no double-booked classrooms, Knott said.

The audition processes are finished, and there is a buzz with a lot of energy in all the departments, said Rebecca Balogh, managing director of the School of Theatre and Dance.

All of the music ensembles began rehearsal on the first day of class, except for the marching band, which has been meeting for rehearsals since Aug. 20, said band director Wayne Gorder.

Knott said the first event they are really excited about this semester is the Kent Classic Arts’ Gala Opening Concert: An Evening with Mozart.

“This is of interest to students and the community because, well, everyone loves Mozart,” he said. “And also, it’s in honor of Margaret Baxtresser.”

Baxtresser taught piano at the university from 1966 until her retirement in 1991; she passed away in June.

The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 18 in the University Auditorium.

John Crawford, the director of the School of Theatre and Dance, said the events he is really excited about this semester are the Porthouse Theatre productions.

“We are all looking forward to the opening of the ‘School for Wives’ in October,” he said.

“School for Wives” is a humorous tale of a man’s obsessive fear of betrayal and his idea of the perfect wife, according to an informational brochure from the school. It promises to be a brutal comedy where everyone gets what’s coming to them.

This theatrical production will premiere Oct. 7 in the E. Turner Stump Theatre and will run through Oct. 16.

The School of Theatre and Dance also offers performances by the Kent Theatre Ensemble, the Kent Dance Ensemble and a guest-artist series.

The Hugh A. Glauser School of Music also offers performances by the Symphonic Band, the Marching Golden Flashes, the Wind Ensemble, the Concert Band, Jazz Ensembles I and II, the Orchestra, the Percussion Ensemble, the African Ensemble, the Chinese Ensemble, the Thai Ensemble, the Steel Band, the Kent Brass Quintet, the Kent Camerata, the Kent Wind Quintet, the Miami Quartet, the Opera, the Gospel Choir, the KSU Chorale, the Kent Chorus, the Women’s Chorus, the Men’s Chorus and the Ars Nova Singers.

“We provide a public face for the university and, like athletics, it is visible on and off campus,” Knott said.

The Hugh A. Glauser School of Music offers students numerous opportunities for the study and creation of music. The following degrees are offered: Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Arts, Master of Music, Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy.

The director to the Hugh A. Glauser School of Music is brand new this year. Knott served as assistant director of the University of Arizona School of Music and Dance and as associate professor of choral music prior to his appointment in July.

Diverse groups of faculty who are professionally active in theatre and dance production run the School of Theatre and Dance as well. This school offers the following degrees: Bachelor of Theatre Studies, Bachelor of Fine Arts, Master of Theatre History and Criticism, Master of Fine Arts degree in Advanced Acting and Master of Fine Arts degree in Design/Technology.

New this year, a Master of Fine Arts degree for theatre teachers will be offered, Crawford said.

There are many brand-new people and programs in the School of Theatre and Dance. Joan Meggitt is the new artist-in-residence, Rebecca Balogh is the new managing director and Kathleen Pierson is the new accompanist.

“We are very excited,” Crawford said. “(Pierson) is our first full-time staff dance musician ever.”

There is also a new certificate program being offered for the first time this fall to students enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts in theatre studies major or to any specially admitted non-degree student, Crawford said. It is one of the country’s only certificate programs in entertainment arts and technologies, with certificates in sound, stage lighting, event-based video production, automated lighting, stage and arena rigging and stage scenery.

For event calendars or more information on the School of Music, visit http://dept.kent.edu/music.

For event calendars or more information on the School of Theatre and Dance, visit http://www.theatre.kent.edu.

Contact performing arts reporter Erica Crist at [email protected].