ATLANTA – (August 1, 2018) The Office of the Arts at the Georgia Institute of Technology announces a new Arts@Tech Season celebrating the intersection of art and technology, along with a major renovation in the Ferst Center for the Arts and special “Fun and Free” campus programming for the fall semester.

The renovation of the Ferst Center will include the installation of new theater seating, lighting, carpeting, and upgrades to the accessible seating areas. The building will remain open during the fall for events and exhibitions scheduled in the Ferst lobby, although the theater itself closed on Aug. 19. When completed, the theater will have all new seats, two center section aisles instead of the existing single aisle in the lower level, a wheelchair lift, and more accessible seating.

The fall semester features “Fun and Free” programs that are exclusive to campus audiences, including the return of three events from last year: the popular RATS Hunt puzzle game, the Faculty and Staff Art Exhibition, and performer Dahlak Brathwaite who was a guest at the 2017 Georgia Tech Diversity Symposium. Fun and Free events will also include performances by Cardell Dance and Duet for Theremin and Lap Steel, events for Family Weekend, and Out of Hand Theater’s Zombie Outbreak.

Art and technology take center stage when performances resume in the fully refurbished Ferst Center in January. Office of the Arts Director Madison Cario has charted a new direction for the Arts@Tech Season of professional arts programming. Audiences will see music, dance, and theater in a range of presentation styles, all selected for both their artistic quality and implementation of new and innovative technologies on stage.

“Audiences will experience a hologram concert with Maria Callas, and another with virtual pop star Maya Kodes, performers with 3D-printed costumes, and a beautiful video game played live to live music — these experiences and more will combine for a season carefully curated at the intersection of art and technology,” said Cario. “We believe Georgia Tech is unique in the nation in presenting a performing arts season exclusively at this intersection.”

Each presentation will feature engagement activities that offer a deeper look into the themes, technology, and artistry of the work. Engagement activities are free and open to students, faculty, and staff, and can be arranged for a class or group. Visit arts.gatech.edu/engagement for more information.

All free events in the fall will require tickets. Admission is charged for the Arts@Tech season performances starting in January, and discounted tickets for those events are available for Georgia Tech students, faculty, and staff. All tickets will be available beginning August 20 at the Ferst Center Box Office at 404-894-9600. Information is also available at www.arts.gatech.edu. All programs are subject to change.

FUN AND FREE
Great events across campus

Out of Hand Theater: The RATS Hunt
Sept. 13-14, 6 p.m.
George P. Burdell has been sighted on campus and you have one hour to find him before he disappears again! Assemble your team, follow the clues, and solve the puzzles to beat the clock. Uncovering Georgia Tech's hidden treasures has never been so fun. Recommended for new and returning students, up to five per team, who did not play last year. Sign up at tickets.arts.gatech.edu.

The RATS Hunt begins in the Ferst Center Lobby. https://vimeo.com/280963592

Dahlak Brathwaite: Spiritrials
Sept. 24, noon and 6 p.m.
Addiction, religion, and the law intersect in a court-ordered drug rehabilitation program. A timely exploration of the American criminal justice system, this multidimensional play blurs the line between hip-hop and dramatic performance. Dahlak Brathwaite weaves through the autobiographical and the fictional, music and monologue, to examine his place in what appears to be a cultural rite of passage as a young black male. Tickets are available at tickets.arts.gatech.edu.

The Garage at Technology Square
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=10&v=VxNN1RX-M5Q

BANDALOOP
Sept. 26-30
The Georgia Tech Office of the Arts begins a two-year program with the internationally acclaimed vertical dance company BANDALOOP. The company founded by Amelia Rudolph will be in residence in late September to begin working on #ATLPublicCanvas, a major event that will encompass participation from all segments of the campus and community leading to performances in Spring 2020. The campus community will interact with the company at artist discussions, rehearsals performed on the outside wall of the historic Biltmore Hotel, and Family Weekend events. Call 404-894-2787 for more information. https://www.bandaloop.org/urbanmodern

Duet for Theremin and Lap Steel
Oct. 4, 7:30 p.m.
Duet for Theremin and Lap Steel is Scott Burland (theremin) and Frank Schultz (lap steel guitar). One critic has described this music as “evolving eddies of sound, vapors of tones that develop and transform gracefully. Hypnotic pulses and dreamy drones weave together to form a kaleidoscope of sounds and moods, ambient clouds and swooning collages that are as much about texture as they are timbre, like a long-lost soundtrack to a deep-sea documentary." Presented in conjunction with the Georgia Tech School of Music. Tickets are available at tickets.arts.gatech.edu.

West Village Performance Space, Room 175

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OOtROaFeBo

Out of Hand Theater: Zombie Outbreak
Oct. 30, 5 p.m.
A zombie epidemic has taken over! You are humanity’s last chance to survive, and health officials have left you materials to stop the outbreak. From microscope discovery to zombie quarantine, this is another fun Out of Hand Theater participatory experience for all Georgia Tech students, up to six per team. Sign up at tickets.arts.gatech.edu.

http://outofhandtheater.com/

Cardell Dance: Supper, People on the Move
November 6-7, 7:30 p.m.
This piece by choreographer Silvana Cardell is an examination of the human experience of all people on the move, looking for new horizons. Inspired by themes of migration, it explores the complex experience of dislocation. Cardell creates evocative forms of movement — abstract, personal, universal — performed with unrelenting physicality and striking moments of beauty. The full experience of this event includes a pre-show photography installation curated by artist Jennifer Baker that chronicles the stories of immigrants who came to the United States from around the world, and a talk with the artists after the performance.

Ferst Stage with all seating onstage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4XPURWHXbY

Georgia Tech Faculty and Staff Art Exhibit
Opening reception: November 13, 4-6 p.m.
Exhibit dates: Nov. 13 – Jan. 31
The Office of the Arts presents the second annual Arts@Tech Faculty and Staff Art Exhibit. This exhibit serves as a unique opportunity for Georgia Tech faculty and staff to display their artwork in the Ferst Center for the Arts. At the opening reception and for the first week of the exhibit, visitors can vote for their favorite piece of art. 

Ferst Center Lobby

Arts@Tech Season
In the newly renovated Ferst Theater

Manual Cinema: The End of TV
Jan. 12, 2019, 8 p.m.
Set in a postindustrial Rust Belt city in the 1990s, The End of TV explores the quest to find meaning amid a constant barrage of commercial images. The presentation features cinematic shadow puppetry and lo-fi live video, with music performed live by a five-piece band.

vimeo.com/218085970

Komansé Dance Theater: Skid
Jan. 25-26, 2019, 8 p.m.
Skid is a celebration of the vulnerability and strength of humanity. Komansé Dance Theater, led by Georgia Tech student Raianna Brown, takes a provocative look at homelessness and gentrification in the metro Atlanta area and beyond. Using an innovative set design and featuring 3D-printed costuming, this production brings together dance and technological innovation to embody the human connection between art and social justice.

www.komansedance.org

Fifth House Ensemble: Journey Live
Feb. 9, 2019, 8 p.m.
The video game Journey, described by critics as “the most beautiful game of its time,” takes center stage as Chicago-based Fifth House Ensemble teams up with composer Austin Wintory to present an original, interactive live performance of his Grammy-nominated score. Fifth House Ensemble performs the game's soundtrack as audience members play the game on stage. The calming, beautiful, and emotional video game comes to life in an immersive, interactive environment.
youtube.com/watch?v=9iOPp9ARXbI

Mark Nizer 4D Comedy Juggler
Feb. 16, 2019, 8 p.m.
World champion juggler, award-winning comedian, and inventor Mark Nizer brings his live 3D show to the stage, juggling laser beams, glowing red balls, and just about any new invention he can imagine. Nizer is constantly incorporating new technology into his hilarious performances.

youtube.com/watch?v=LVJFvDDPvS0

Callas in Concert: The Hologram Tour
Feb. 23, 2019, 8 p.m.
An Atlanta premiere, Callas in Concert brings the beloved opera star Maria Callas (1923–1977), considered by many as the best opera singer of all time, back to the stage as a hologram, accompanied by the Georgia Tech Symphony Orchestra. State-of-the-art digital and laser projection creates a full concert experience featuring original recordings that are digitally remastered.

youtube.com/watch?v=XrZEEUXYUgE&feature=youtu.be

Robbie Lynn Hunsinger: Music Technologist in Concert
March 8, 2019, 8 p.m.
A classical oboist turned technologist, composer, and interactive art installation and multimedia concert artist, Atlanta native and Nashville resident Robbie Lynn Hunsinger performs original multimedia works with live sampling and sound reactive projections. The audience will participate in this interactive installation in an intimate setting on the Ferst stage.

vimeo.com/181519562

Maya Kodes: The Virtual Singer
March 29, 2019, 8 p.m.
Maya Kodes is a singer who has released a dance pop song on iTunes, recorded an EP, performed over 30 concerts and amassed over 5,500 Facebook followers . . . all as a hologram! The world’s first interactive, real-time virtual pop star, Kodes is the creation of Neweb Labs in Montreal. Local dancers will join Maya onstage for this performance.

youtube.com/watch?v=E3EKg7SOPb0

For More Information:

Stephanie Lee at 404-894-9196 or stephanie.lee@arts.gatech.edu