Kent State University at Tuscarawas will feature four area artists in its Performing Arts Center’s printed performance programs for the 2016-17 season that runs from September 2016 through June 2017.
“We are creating this showcase because I wanted to bridge the gap between the performing arts and the visual arts,” explains David Mitchell, general manager of the Performing Arts Center. “We have amazing artists with ties to Tuscarawas County, and I was looking for a way to expose people to our local homegrown talents.”
Four fabulous works of art, a glass sculpture and three paintings will be featured on the cover of our programs to be given to every patron who attends a Performing Arts Center show, including the Tuscarawas Philharmonic performances. Each artist will be featured separately throughout the year. The artists’ bios will be printed inside the programs. In addition, all four pieces of original art will be displayed in the Performing Arts Center lobby for visitors to enjoy during the academic year.
The featured artists include Dover residents Sarah Dugger, Jon Stucky and Kyle Valentini and Mark Sudduth of Cleveland Heights.
Dugger graduated with a Bachelor of Fines Arts in surface design from Bowling Green State University and has been actively working in the fashion, home furnishing and fine art fields for the past 20 years. She is the founder of Mr. McGillicutty Art Studios in Dover.
Stucky studied textile design at the Cleveland Institute of Art in Cleveland. He is represented by galleries in the U.S., as well as Australia, France, Israel, Japan and the U.K.
Sudduth earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a major in glass and a minor in drawing from the Cleveland Institute of Art. Originally from Dover, he currently resides in Cleveland Heights, where he has operated a private glass studio since 1983.
Valentini is a mixed media artist, using vintage paper, paint, wax, chalk and charcoal. In addition to creating her artwork, Valentini is the editor of the Bargain Hunter newspaper.
“These talented and accomplished artists were selected based upon professional recommendations,” says Bradley A. Bielski, Ph.D., dean and chief administrative officer of Kent State Tuscarawas. “As a group, their artwork is representative of diverse mediums, which we believe our patrons will find very intriguing and interesting. After showcasing the work in our spectacular lobby, we will auction off the original pieces during the 2017-18 season unveiling, with the proceeds benefiting the Performing Arts Center’s Endowment Fund.”
The date for the 2017-18 Performing Arts Center season unveiling will be announced in the spring.
The 2016-17 Performing Arts Center season begins Sept. 10 with Resurrection – A Journey Tribute and continues with hits such as the a cappella group VoicePlay, country favorite Lonestar, the nationally recognized pop quartet Under the Streetlamp, Mannheim Steamroller, the Broadway show 42nd Street, children’s show Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood – Live! and the international Irish dance phenomenon Riverdance, to name a few of the extraordinary scheduled performances.
A complete list of performances and ticket prices are online at www.kent.edu/tusc/pac. Tickets can be purchased in person at the Performing Arts Center Box Office, by calling 330-308-6400 or online at www.kent.edu/tusc/pac. The box office is open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Free and convenient parking is available for all shows. The Performing Arts Center at Kent State Tuscarawas is located at 330 University Dr. NE in New Philadelphia.
