Richmond Symphony, 12 Angry Jurors headline fall performing arts calendar at Longwood

We are so pleased to continue this great partnership with the RSO and to give the Longwood and Farmville communities access to the leading professional symphony in our region with free admission. It is truly remarkable and unique, and underscores the importance of music and the arts in the DNA of Longwood.

Pamela McDermott, professor of music and music department chairTweet This

"We are so pleased to continue this great partnership with the RSO and to give the Longwood and Farmville communities access to the leading professional symphony in our region with free admission," said Dr. Pamela McDermott, professor of music and music department chair. "It is truly remarkable and unique, and underscores the importance of music and the arts in the DNA of Longwood."

The Symphony's performance is just one highlight of a terrific lineup of music and theatre events on campus this fall. [See below for the full calendar of fall music events.]

Longwood's theatre program kicks off its season this week with 12 Angry Jurors in the CSTAC Main Stage Theatre. The play runs Oct. 2-5, with shows nightly at 7 p.m., and then concludes with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, Oct. 6. The production will be directed by Jeffrey Todd Parrott, assistant professor in acting.

The cast rehearse for 12 Angry Jurors under the director's guidance.

Tickets for 12 Angry Jurors can be purchased online or by calling the Longwood Arts Box Office at 434-395-2474. Regular ticket prices are $8 for Longwood students; $10 for senior citizens, other students and Longwood faculty and staff; and $15 general admission.

The play, written by Reginald Rose and adapted by Sherman L. Sergel, contemplates the huge responsibility of 12 ordinary people as they consider the guilt or innocence of a young man accused of murder. It was first performed as a television play in 1954 then adapted for the stage and the big screen.

Determining truth can be difficult, especially with the caveat of reasonable doubt. Concepts of nuance, complexity and contradiction are sometimes lost in our modern world of quick fixes and fast answers. This is why this story and others like it get told so often.

Jeffrey Todd Parrott, assistant professor in actingTweet This

"This is a timeless piece of American theatre, worthy of being told over and over again, and through modern contexts," Parrott said. "Determining truth can be difficult, especially with the caveat of reasonable doubt. Concepts of nuance, complexity and contradiction are sometimes lost in our modern world of quick fixes and fast answers. This is why this story and others like it get told so often."

The second show of the theatre season is Neil Simon's hysterical comedy, Last of the Red Hot Lovers, which will run Nov. 20-23 at 7 p.m. and Nov. 24 at 2 p.m. in the CSTAC Main Stage Theatre. The show will be directed by Joyce Sweet.

The RSO concert is underwritten by the John Cook Cole Symphony Fund of the Longwood University Foundation. For more than a decade, the RSO has performed at Longwood through a partnership established by the late Dr. John Cook, a 1952 alumnus and benefactor of the Cook-Cole College of Arts and Sciences. The endowed partnership provides for one performance each academic year. The concert is hosted by Longwood's Department of Music and supported by a grant from the Virginia Commission for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities.

McDermott said that it is important to make time for the arts-especially music. She noted that most concerts and recitals at Longwood are free, with ample parking nearby. Audiences are a mix of students, parents and local music lovers.

"Submersing yourself in live music both takes time and provides time," she said. "As your brain processes and combines sound waves, you are transported, following along the time stream outlined by the music. While time passes, you find time to reflect, respond, to be surprised, to feel longing, to remember and to wonder."

Longwood University Music Department Fall Schedule

• October 7-Jazz Band, 7:30 p.m. in Jarman Auditorium
• October 14-Student recital: Trumpet and Low Brass Ensembles, 7:30 p.m.
• October 15-Student recital: Octubafest Student Showcase, 7:30 p.m.
• October 20-Chamber Music Series: BETA Flute Quartet, 4 p.m.
• October 23-Wind Symphony, 7:30 p.m. in Jarman Auditorium
• October 24-Chamber Orchestra, 7:30 p.m. in Jarman Auditorium
• October 29-Camerata & Chamber Singers, 7:30 p.m. in Jarman Auditorium
• November 1-Richmond Symphony Orchestra, 7:30 p.m. in Jarman Auditorium
• November 2-Student recital: Kara Johnson, soprano, 4 p.m.
• November 4-Percussion Ensemble, 7:30 p.m. in Jarman Auditorium
• November 10-Faculty recital: Emily Ilyes, violin; Szymon Czerniak, piano, 4 p.m.
• November 14-University Choir, 7:30 p.m.
• November 17-Faculty recital: Mike Waddell, euphonium; Kristen Topham, piano, 2 p.m.
• November 19-University Band, 7:30 p.m. in Jarman Auditorium
• November 24-Student recital: Deon Hansley, percussion, 4 p.m.

All concerts are held in Molnar Recital Hall in Wygal Hall unless otherwise stated. Parking for all concerts in Wygal Hall is the faculty/staff lot behind Wygal and the Greenwood Library, in the faculty/staff lots along Pine Street. Times and concerts are subject to change, so please check www.longwood.edu/music for up-to-date performance information.