Arts and Culture

Northern Michigan University Theatre and Dance will present its Holiday Soirée celebration and fundraiser for student scholarships on Wednesday, Dec. 11. The festive event kicks off with a holiday buffet and live auction from 6-7:30 p.m. in the Panowski Black Box Theatre, followed by student and guest-star performances from 7:30-9. There will also be a special visit from Santa Claus.

Northern Michigan University Theatre and Dance will present a festive new production titled “Home for the Holidays” Thursday through Saturday, Dec. 5-7 and 12-14 in Forest Roberts Theatre. The show is about a group of NMU students who convene to share tales of their diverse family traditions before they journey home for the holidays. It features musical singing and dance numbers—many familiar—with bits of dialogue to tie it all together.

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, the nation's longest-running and most prestigious scholarship and recognition program for creative teens, are accepting entries from teenagers across the country in grades 7–12 through Dec. 3. The Northern Shores Storywork Writing Project site at Northern Michigan University is serving as the Upper Peninsula affiliate of the awards.

Northern Michigan University Art and Design Professor Steve Hughes, whose freelance studio has the appropriate moniker Primary Hughes, has received some notable accolades for his boldly colorful acrylic paintings that meld portraiture with graphic elements and patterns. Most recently, he was selected as a monthly winner in the Figure & Portrait category of the 14th Annual PleinAir Salon Art Competition. He will compete for a $15,000 grand prize and a chance to have his work featured on the cover of PleinAir Magazine at a convention and expo in May.

NMUDoIt, a student theater group established early this year at Northern Michigan University, will present its first full-length production—the musical The Last Five Years—at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 14 through Saturday, Nov. 16, in the Panowski Black Box Theatre. Tickets are free (donations accepted). Written and composed by Drama Desk winner Jason Robert Brown, The Last Five Years is described as an emotionally powerful and intimate musical about two New Yorkers in their 20s who fall in and out of love over the course of five years.

Multi-platinum solo artists Chelsea Cutler and Jeremy Zucker, who released their new album brent iii today, will make a stop at Northern Michigan University on their "Brent Forever: The Tour" on Saturday, Nov. 16.

The Zodiac Trio, a premier violin-clarinet-piano ensemble, will perform as part of Northern Michigan University's Siril Concert Series at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 1, in Reynolds Recital Hall. The group will also host two free events earlier in the day, also in Reynolds: a music appreciation presentation at 11 a.m.; and a masterclass at 1 p.m.

For more than two centuries, Mary Shelley's 1818 Gothic novel Frankenstein has remained a favorite within the horror fiction genre. Its tale of a scientist's effort to bring back the dead by carving a new creature from their corpses—only to have his creation turn on him through a series of violent acts—has had an enduring influence on popular culture and spawned many creative adaptations. Northern Michigan University Theatre and Dance will premiere its version of the stage play, with opening night appropriately on Halloween.

Northern Michigan University's Arts Chorale and University Choir will perform their debut concert of the 2024-25 academic year at 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 20, in Reynolds Recital Hall. Admission is free.

Aubrey Svoboda, a secondary education music major at Northern Michigan University, will perform her senior recital at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 16, in Reynolds Recital Hall. Her performance will capture her musical journey on trombone throughout her time at Northern. The event is free and open to the public.