Amarillo entertainment in brief for Feb. 26, 2023

South Korean musicians to perform with, conduct WT Symphony Orchestra

CANYON — An acclaimed conductor and rising star pianist, both from South Korea, will team with the West Texas A&M University Symphony Orchestra for its next concert.

Dongin Youn, the music director and principal conductor of the CitiPhilharmoni Orchestra in Seoul, will lead the orchestra for their performance of his newly composed “Arirang Overture.” This is Youn’s second time to lead the WT Symphony following his appearances as guest conductor for the “Music of the Christmas Season” concerts in 2017. Also joining the orchestra: Jiyeon Kang, a winner of the CitiPhilharmoni concerto competition, for a performance of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2.

The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. March 4 in Mary Moody Northen Recital Hall on WT’s Canyon campus. Admission is free.

“We had hoped they would come to us in 2020, but the pandemic delayed their travels to us — a dream deferred, but not denied,” said Dr. Mark Bartley, director of orchestral activities and the Lilith Brainard Professor of Music in the School of Music in the Sybil B. Harrington College of Fine Arts and Humanities.

Also on the concert program is Pyotr Ilych Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5, conducted by Bartley. Youn’s “Arirang Overture,” based on a Korean folk melody, was written for both WT and CitiPhilharmoni to premiere in their respective venues, Bartley said.

Panhandle PBS captures Missa Solemnis 'From the Heart'

In 2022, Panhandle PBS partnered with the Missa Solemnis Alliance to produce and broadcast “Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the Texas Panhandle". The station also produced “From the Heart: The Making of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the Texas Panhandle,” the documentary that explores the journey form 2018, though the interruption of the pandemic, to the 2022 performance.

Now, DVD and Blu-ray copies of the performance and the documentary produced by Panhandle PBS are available through donations of $35 to the station.

Beethoven referred to the “Missa Solemnis” as “the greatest music I have ever written.” It was first performed in Saint Petersburg, Russia, in 1824. A total of 173 musicians are needed to perform the work, which is why it is typically only performed in large metroplexes today. The Missa Solemnis Alliance, made up of musicians from organizations from across the Texas Panhandle including Chamber Music Amarillo, the Amarillo Symphony, Amarillo Master Chorale, West Texas A&M University, Wayland Baptist University, Amarillo College and First Baptist Church, was formed to bring this complex work to Amarillo.

The Missa Solemnis Alliance attracted the largest number of performers assembled on the stage of the Globe-News Center. “From the Heart: The Making of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the Texas Panhandle” details conversations with influencers and musicians recalling the lead up to the performance. The program goes behind the scenes as an alliance of arts organizations join voices for this monumental undertaking – five years in the making.

For more information about “Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the Texas Panhandle,” “From the Heart: The Making of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the Texas Panhandle,” or to obtain your own copy, call (806) 371-5479.

'Achievement in Art: The Smith Collection' on exhibit at AMoA

The Amarillo Museum of Art is proud to present the 29th annual "Achievement in Art Exhibition" featuringa collection of genre and impressionist paintings by important French artists such as Alfred Sisley, Jean Baptiste Camille Corot, and Eugène Louis Boudin, among others.

The exhibit opened Jan. 14 and is on display through April 9.

In addition to luminous land and seascapes, the exhibition also includes a number of exquisitely rendered French pastoral scenes by Daniel Ridgeway Knight and Julien Dupré, as well as Parisian scenes by Edouard Léon Cortès. Viewing this exceptional collection will transport viewers into an enchanting and idyllic late-19th to early 20th century French countryside.

The Amarillo Museum of Art is located at 2200 S. Van Buren on the Washington Street campus of Amarillo College. Hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday, 1-5 p.m. For additional information, visit www.amoa.org, email amoa@actx.edu, or call (806) 371-5050 or (806) 371-5392 (weekends).

Southern Light Gallery to feature Christopher Hudson’s Crop Circles

Dr. Chris Hudson has long been drawn to the boundless crop circles that airline passengers cannot help but see blanketing the Great Plains, so much so in fact that he has drawn them – painted them, too. But it was not until Hudson, an assistant professor of English at Amarillo College, began downloading and digitally embellishing images of crop circles that his handiwork proved truly satisfying.

An assortment of Hudson’s variegated airborne imagery, dubbed “Crop Circles,” is on display now through March 22 at AC’s Southern Light Gallery.

Hudson, a native Texan with a trio of degrees from the University of Texas at Austin, returned to his home state and joined the AC faculty in 2018.

The Southern Light Gallery is located on the first floor of the Ware Student Commons on AC’s Washington Street Campus and is free and open to the public.

Curator of Plainview Contemporary Art Museum exhibits new works at WT

CANYON — A former West Texas A&M University student who founded an art museum in Plainview is featured in a new exhibition at WT. Kelly Allison’s “Get Behind the Mule,” featuring mixed-media paintings and video works, willhang Feb. 2 through April 1 in the Dord Fitz Formal Gallery in Mary Moody Northen Hall.

Allison, a Plainview native who was an artist of note in Houston for more than 30 years, attended WT in 1976. She returned to the Panhandle area in 2017 to care for her parents and founded the Contemporary Art Museum of Plainview, 219 E. Sixth Street.

The museum opened in November 2017 and has produced 12 major exhibitions and nine community projects including four large-scale murals, two involving students in the Juvenile Justice system and one involving WT art students. CAMP’s mission is to connect the Plainview community to a larger cultural dynamic, bringing people and ideas together through contemporary visual art.

Fitz Gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and by appointment Fridays and Saturdays. Email jrevett@wtamu.edu.

ALT presents 'These Shining Lives'

Amarillo Little Theatre, 2751 Civic Circle, presents "These Shining Lives", adapted for the stage by Melanie Marnich, at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 23 and March 2; 8 p.m. Feb. 24-25 and March 3-4; and 2:30 p.m. Feb. 26 and March 5.

Based on the book "The Radium Girls" by Kate Moore, "These Shining Lives" chronicles the historic strength, heroism and determination of the women at the Radium Dial Company during the 1920s – 1930s.

Catherine and her colleagues are becoming gravely ill by the day, but only through the acts of these brave and courageous women and their male allies were these women able to fight their town, the press, the medical community and the corporation.

Theirs is an inspirational story of survival in its most transcendent sense, as they refuse to allow the company that stole their health to kill their spirits or endanger the lives of those that come after them.

Tickets range from $13 to $21 (plus taxes and fees), depending on seating.

For more information or to reserve tickets, call the box office at (806) 355-9991 or visit them online at www.amarillolittletheatre.org

'Legally Blonde: The Musical' coming to city

"Legally Blonde: The Musical" is coming to Amarillo at 7 p.m. Feb. 27 and 28 at the Amarillo Civic Center Auditorium, 401 S. Buchanan St.

Fabulously fun and international award-winning "Legally Blonde: The Musical" is the ultimate Broadway tribute to Girl Power! The story follows the transformation of Elle Woods as she tackles stereotypes, sexism, snobbery and scandal in pursuit of her dreams, and proves that you can be legally blonde and STILL the smartest person in the room. This contemporary, sassy musical moves at a breakneck pace driven by memorable songs and explosive dances. "Legally Blonde: The Musical" warms the heart by proving that self-discovery can be way too much fun and hilarious to boot. Based on the beloved movie, the musical will take you from the sorority house to the halls of justice with Broadway’s brightest new heroine and, of course, her Chihuahua, Bruiser.

Tickets range from $30 to $75 (plus taxes and fees), depending on seating. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit panhandletickets.com

Harlem Globetrotters 2023 World Tour coming to civic center

The Harlem Globetrotters 2023 World Tour presented by Jersey Mike’s Subs is coming with game like never before. Your favorite Globetrotter stars are bringing out their amazing basketball skill, outrageous athleticism and a non-stop good time to the Amarillo Civic Center Complex on March 8.

Join the Globetrotters as they go head-to-head against the Washington Generals who will stop at nothing to try and defeat the world’s winningest team.

The Globetrotters welcome fans in the Amarillo area to join them for an interactive gameday packed with one-of-a-kind premium offerings.

Harlem Globetrotters fans can score the best seats at www.HarlemGlobetrotters.com To order tickets online: www.harlemglobetrotters.com or https://www.panhandletickets.com/

Tickets are available online at panhandletickets.com, Amarillo Civic Center box office, by phone at (806) 378-4246, or area United Supermarkets.

CMA presents Dvorak: Piano Quintet

Chamber Music Amarillo presents Dvorak: Piano Quintet at 7:30 p.m. March 11 at the Amarillo Botanical Gardens, 1400 Streit Drive.

After 25 years of CMA, it’s time for old home week with violinist Annie Chalex Boyle, violist Joanna Mendoza, cellist Jeffrey Lastrapes and CMA Artistic Director and founder David Palmer – some of CMA’s original musicians presenting a fun filled evening including the famous Dvořák Piano Quintet.

The repertoire includes: Ravel, Sonata for violin and piano; PDQ Bach, Sonata for viola four hands; St. Saens, Danse Macabre; John Williams, The Witches of Eastwick; and Dvořák, Piano Quintet in A major.

Tickets for this special concert are $40 each. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit amarillosymphony.org/ticketing-subscriptions/upcoming-events/

Cirque Italia presents: 'Paranormal Cirque,' March 16-19 in Starlight Ranch parking lot

Paranormal Cirque will present a unique creation of combined theatre, circus, and cabaret with a new European style flare when it comes to Amarillo March 16-19, under the White & Black Big Top Tent in the Starlight Ranch Event Center's parking lot, 1415 Sunrise Dr. Show times are 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 16; 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 17; 6:30 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, March 18 and 5:30 and 8:30 p.m. Sunday, March 19.

"Cirque Italia is now presenting a brand-new show for a mature audience. This innovative horror story features different shades of sexy and an incomparable storyline - the only thing you can be sure of during this unique experience is that you will not know what to expect!" an announcement reads. "It might be hard to divide reality and illusion! ... You will fall into a parallel world and end up surrounded by monstrous creatures with hidden talents that will amaze you with the circus arts."

The adrenaline filled performance is not for the faint of heart. A few of the circus arts you can expect to see in this new production include the jaw-dropping Wheel of Death, mystifying MAGIC, and more. Their Black unit also follows their strict animal-free policy. For more information visit www.paranormalcirque.com and/or their social media accounts.

Tickets can be purchased now starting at $10, depending on availability. Admission for those younger than 18 requires an accompanying parent or guardian. This show has adult language and material.

Paranormal Cirque is offering a special promotion: $5 off any full priced ticket purchased in levels 1, 2, or 3. This offer cannot be combined with any other offers, discounts or deals. Please call 941-704-8572 to get the promo code for your location. You can purchase tickets through their website, paranormalcirque.com/tickets or by phone at (941) 704-8572.

Disney on Ice coming to civic center March 16-19

Disney On Ice presents Let's Celebrate at 7 p.m. March 16 and 17; 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. March 18; and 1 and 5 p.m. March 19, at the Amarillo Civic Center Coliseum, entrances 5, 7 8 and 10.

Disney On Ice presents "Let’s Celebrate" featuring 14 classic and modern Disney stories in one epic production.

Grab your Mickey ears and get ready for non-stop fun when 50 of your favorite Disney friends come to life through world-class ice skating. Characters featured include from "Toy Story 4", "Frozen", "The Lion King" and more.

Tickets for each of the seven performances range from $25 to $65 (plus taxes and fees), depending on seating. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit panhandletickets.com

Symphony, choir collaborate on 'Carmina Burana'

The Amarillo Symphony, in conjunction with the Amarillo Master Chorale, will present "Carmina Burana" at 7:30 p.m. March 24 and 25. As of press time, this concert is planned to be held at the Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts, 500 S. Buchanan St.

Featuring the Amarillo Master Chorale, the orchestra’s performance of the beloved "Carmina Burana" will awe and delight. They will also present Mozart’s transcendent "Ave Verum Corpus" and the Overture to Mozart’s famous opera "Marriage of Figaro".

Guest performers are soprano Sarah Vautour, tenor Andrew Morstein, bass-baritone Johnathan McCullough and conductor George Jackson.

Tickets for this performance range from $21 to $71 (plus taxes and fees), depending on seating.

For more information, visit amarillosymphony.org/; to purchase tickets, visit panhandletickets.com

Christian musician Tomlin returns to Amarillo

American contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, and worship leader Christopher Tomlin returns to Amarillo for an evening of music and worship at 7:30 p.m. April 1 at The Church at Quail Creek, 801 Tascosa Road.

A native of Grand Saline, Tomlin has sold more than 7 million records. Some of his most well-known songs are "How Great Is Our God", "Our God", "Whom Shall I Fear (God of Angel Armies)" and his cover of "Good Good Father".

General admission tickets for this event are $34 or $24, depending on seating. Group discounts are available for groups of six or more.

There are also Gold Circle seating ($89) and Artist Circle seating ($59) available.

To purchase tickets, visit www.itickets.com/register/new/470791

John Bayless to perform for AC Art Force series in April

For the Art Force Piano Series, John Bayless will offer a variety of genres from opera to the Beatles. The free event is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 11 at Amarillo College, Washington Street Campus, Concert Hall Theater.

Bayless, who began playing piano at age 4, today is known for his keen ability to imaginatively improvise popular music through his own blend of classical training and piano technique. He is a Texas Panhandle native, originally from Borger. Bayless won a scholarship to the Aspen School of Music at age 15. He went from there to study at the Juilliard School of Music, and at New York University with Leonard Bernstein, among others.

Bayless tours widely in the U.S., Europe and Asia and frequently appears at Pops concerts.

Lone Star Ballet presents 'Alice in Wonderland'

Lone Star Ballet and the Lone Star Dance Academy present "Alice in Wonderland" Friday, April 14 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, April 15 at 2 and 7:30 p.m. at the Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts, 500 S. Buchanan St.

Based on the 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll, "Alice in Wonderland" details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creatures.

Tickets to this production range from $14 to $44 (plus taxes and fees), depending on seating.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit panhandletickets.com

ZZ Top to rock Civic Center

ZZ Top returns to Amarillo at 8 p.m. April 23 at the Amarillo Civic Center, 401 S. Buchanan St.

“That Little Ol’ Band From Texas” has been at it for well over a half century, delivering rock, blues and boogie on the road and in the studio to millions of devoted fans. With iconography as distinctive as their sound, ZZ TOP is virtually synonymous with beards, hotrod cars, spinning guitars and that magic keychain, all of which transcend geography and language.

Tickets for this concert range from $69 to $289 (plus taxes and fees), depending on seating and with three VIP package selections.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit panhandletickets.com

Musical festival set for April 27-29

The Greater Southwest Musical Festival, presented by the Amarillo Symphony, is scheduled for 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, April 27-29, at the Amarillo Civic Center, 401 S. Buchanan St.

A fixture of the Amarillo community for 50 years, the Greater Southwest Music Festival encourages musical excellence in K-12 students in a tri-state area through competition and performance, drawing between 10,000-12,000 participants annually.

Students compete at the Civic Center and Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Amarillo, as well as at Amarillo College. Emerging from the pandemic, the Amarillo Symphony is honored to continue the tradition of the Festival, immersing directors and students in performance and networking opportunities and receiving feedback from seasoned, prominent educators and adjudicators.

For more information, visit https://amarillosymphony.org/

Gatto bringing comedy show to Amarillo

Joe Gatto, a well-known comedian, actor, and producer, is best known for the hit TV shows “Impractical Jokers” and “The Misery Index" brings his comedy show to the Amarillo Civic Center on June 11, 2023.

Gatto is one of the founding members of The Tenderloins Comedy Troupe who has toured with a live comedy show to sold-out crowds across the world, including legendary arenas, such as Madison Square Garden in New York and the O2 Arena in London.

Gatto is a co-host of the “Two Cool Moms” Podcast and has also appeared on hit podcasts including This Past Weekend with Theo Von, What A Joke with Papa and Fortune and Life is Short with Justin Long.

Joe loves spending time with his two children and his ever-growing pack of rescue dogs affectionately known as the “Gatto Pups.”

Tickets are now available online at panhandletickets.com, by calling the Amarillo Civic Center box office at (806) 378-3096 or at area United Supermarkets.

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Amarillo entertainment in brief for week of Feb. 26, 2023