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‘Love and Information’ at McPherson College Shows Impact of Social Media-Style Interactions

Posted On: April 17, 2017
By: MC Admin

By Johanna Hoffman ’17, communication major

McPherson College Theatre Department will present Love and Information April 20-22 in Mingenback Theatre.

The play is a series of short scenes that focus on the way people communicate. According to Jd Bowman, associate professor of theater, this show is “a visual representation of Twitter,” where small parts of people’s everyday lives are shown. It was chosen for this season, which is centered on family, because technology creates a unique type of connection between people.

“I am fascinated by how people get to know each other 142 keystrokes at a time,” Bowman said. “It’s interesting to see the ways in which we build community online.”

Love and Information, the last show of the 2016-17 theater season, will be structured differently than previous productions. Few contextual clues are written into Caryl Churchill’s script. Because of this, much of the stage direction and portrayal is left up to the cast, which will be a mix of experienced actors and first-time performers.

Churchill, one of the most celebrated living playwrights in the theater community, intentionally made the script ambiguous, as she wanted each interpretation to be unique to the performers. Bowman is eager to help the cast make this show their own.

“I get really excited about plays like this because I’ve never done a show in this format before. It challenges me as an artist and an educator.”

More than half of the 28-person cast will be students in Bowman’s Performing for the Stage class. Bowman says he intentionally chose this show to coincide with the class because students with little theater experience, as well as those who have acted before, will all be able to relate to the concept. Because each performer has only a few lines, instead of concentrating on line memorization, his students are learning to focus on the emotion of the script.

This is the first production in which Kayla Burk, sophomore, Nickerson, Kan. will be involved. She is excited about the opportunity to try something new, especially in this format.

“I really like the short story structure because it’s different from plays I’m used to seeing. It displays several different structures and emotions throughout the whole play. I’m glad I get to be a part of it.”

Love and Information will be in Mingenback theatre April 20, 21, and 22. Start time is 7:30 p.m. Tickets cost $5 for adults and $3.50 for children ages high school and younger, as well as seniors. Reservations may be made over the phone through the theatre box office at 620-242-0444 or at [email protected].

Cast members:
Desmond Anderson
Tori Broers
Kayla Burke
Danielle Chapman
Amanda Connell
Deiah Curtis
Micaila Curtis
Jeromy Denton
Jonathan Feaster
Erin Fralick
Nick Greenway
Daija Isley
Johanna Hoffman
Aubrey Hollinger
Courtney Huff
Whitney Murray
Madison O’Brien
Jennifer Dale Pollard
Christopher Rakowski
Dan Reynolds
Logan Schrag
Bailey Short
Becky Snell
Brenda Tejero
Elizabeth Thornton
Tanner Trigg
Alex Tyler
Elisha Wilcock

McPherson College Presents VP of Amazon Business International Steve Frazier for Harter Lecture in Business

Posted On: April 4, 2017
By: MC Admin

Steve Frazier, Vice President of Amazon Business International, will present McPherson College’s Harter Lecture in Business on April 17, 2017, from 12p.m. to 1p.m., at the new Kansas Municipal Utilities Training Center.

Frazier, a McPherson native, will be presenting “Creating a Culture that Drives Growth and Innovation”. His talk includes insight on what makes Amazon work, what separates Amazon from other businesses, and how this information can translate to a smaller business model.

“You can tell Frazier really knows and understands McPherson, it’s clear he has a connection, which is why we’re so excited for him to come and speak with our students and the community,” Roger Brimmerman, Vice President for Advancement at McPherson College, said. “This is also a wonderful opportunity for us to collaborate with the new KMU facilities as a venue.”

Frazier is an integral part of Amazon’s business-to-business programs outside the U.S. He helps manage Amazon’s consumer business in Brazil. Since 1999, he has worked with Amazon as a country manager for Amazon United Kingdom and Amazon China. His work for Amazon in the U.S. helped expand Amazon from a media and book website to an online market place. He led teams in numerous departments and helped develop Amazon.com’s global Category Leader training program.

Previous to Amazon, Frazier served as Vice President for Payless Shoe Source, developing their online presence. He also worked for McKinsey & Co, a management consulting firm and as a reporter for the Wall Street Journal in Mexico City. Frazier holds an MBA from Northwestern University and a B.S. in Journalism from the University of Kansas. He sits on the Board of Trustees for the William Allen White Foundation and the KU honors program advisory board at the University of Kansas.

The Harter Business Lecture is in recognition of the service of Jack Harter, ’54. Harter graduated with a B.S. in mathematics and later served on the board of trustees for 31 years. Harter, a retired chairman, CEO and president of Pacific Greystone Corporation, and his wife Eleanor, class of ’56, have also made generous financial contributions to McPherson College, including the naming gift for Harter Hall.

Frazier will be speaking to several business classes across campus and then at the KMU Training Center, located at 2090 E. Avenue A in McPherson, KS. Lunch is provided, but seating is limited. Reservations are required by April 14. RSVP online at www.mcpherson.edu/harter.

Simon Estes showcases breadth of his brilliant career

Posted On: March 15, 2017
By: MC Admin

The inaugural year for the Fern Lingenfelter Concert Series closed with a breath-taking and uplifting recital featuring two master musicians, bass-baritone Simon Estes and pianist Mei-Hsuan Huang on Sunday, March 12th in the McPherson Church of the Brethren on the campus of McPherson College. The Fern Lingenfelter Artist Series is generously funded by Mr. Steve Clark in honor of his mother, Fern Lingenfelter, who was a graduate of and longtime piano teacher at McPherson College. The series funds two annual concerts which musically enrich McPherson College and central Kansas by bringing in some of the top musicians in the world.

Sunday’s concert opened with Mr. Estes singing a set of operatic arias that showcased the breadth of his professional career which began in 1965 with the Deutsche Opera in “Aida”. Since then, Estes has sung more than 100 operatic roles and performed with 115 orchestras and in 84 opera houses world-wide. From his opening note, the mature resonance of his rich, bass-baritone voice filled every inch of the performance hall. The musical mastery that has made him famous world-wide for over five decades was on full display as he captivated the large and enthusiastic audience with his ability to emote the music, flawlessly articulate the Italian and German librettos, and capture the drama of the operatic scenes.

Mr. Estes’ second set featured traditional African-American spirituals which provided the audience an experience of his deeply religious character. Once again his mature, engulfing, deep voice shook the rafters of the hall. And although he sang from a seated position, the audience was lifted out of their seats by the closing song of this set, “Every Time I Feel the Spirit”. As a part of his social mission, Estes supports the United Nations Mosquito Netting Project to save children’s lives from malaria in Africa. His performance for the Lingenfelter Artist Series will also support that mission in lieu of an honorarium. When Estes sang, “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hand” in this set, his personae was on full display as a brilliant musician, deeply religious man and champion for social causes.

Mr. Estes’ final set featured songs from American Musical Theatre and Movies. In this set, the audience was able to gain insight into the personal struggles of Simon Estes, who worked his way through school cleaning windows, sleeping on floors and struggling to buy meals. Considering that just two generations before him slaveholders forced his grandfather into servitude, Estes’ rise to the top of the musical profession is an inspiration to musicians and non-musicians alike. His final song, “Climb Every Mountain”, certainly could have been interpreted as a reflection of his life as well as his challenge to all the members of the audience.

Mr. Estes was accompanied by Mei-Hsuan Huang who is a phenomenal musician in her own right. Ms. Huang is Professor of Piano at Iowa State University and a member of the Amara Piano Quartet. In addition to accompanying Estes, she played three solo selections composed by Frederic Chopin. Her elegant, long fingers danced on the piano and made the technically imposing Chopin pieces sound effortless. And the mastery of her phrasing, choosing what notes to bring out of the thick romantic harmonies and which melodic lines to emphasize, showed great musical maturity which defied her youthful appearance.

Mac College goes ‘Barefoot’ – McPherson Sentinel

Posted On: March 8, 2017
By: MC Admin

Exhibition at McPherson College Explores Landscapes, Nature in Contemporary Artwork

Posted On: February 27, 2017
By: MC Admin

A new exhibition at McPherson College called “Finding Balance” explores the role of the natural world in artwork of all sizes, media, and topics. The show is up now through March 11.

The work of Leland Powers, associate professor of interior design at Fort Hays State University, marks the starting point for the exhibition’s concept. MC invited him to show his work in the college’s Friendship Hall and to also select other artists to join him in the show.

That initial concept evolved into a collaborative show among Powers and two of his colleagues in higher education – Joel Dugan, assistant professor of painting at Fort Hays; and Matthew Ballou, assistant teaching professor of painting and drawing at the University of Missouri in Columbia, Mo.

Wayne Conyers, professor of art at McPherson College, said most of the art is on the theme of landscapes, nature, and the outdoors.

“The works in this exhibition explore the spaces that we inhabit, and the experiences that forge our understanding for what is the human condition,” he said. “As we look forward and consider what the future holds, the landscape exhibits memories of the balance we have endured to survive.”

The result of Powers’s work in organizing the show is 46 works, which he delivered to McPherson College. These range in size from smaller than a postcard through taller than a man, and works employ media that include ink, graphic, acrylic, watercolor, gouache, lithograph and much more.

While the exhibit has a theme of the natural world, the techniques and approach vary widely – everything from abstract grids of color to the downright surreal… such as a pink rabbit standing upright on the surface of a lake.

Powers said he sees the foundation of his work as a sense of “place” – even when the natural world isn’t immediately apparent.

“I am a native of the Great Plains and have always been moved by the influence of its large sky and low horizon,” he said. “The linear definition and worked surfaces in my images celebrate the subtle nuances and fleeting visual memories of that world.”

In addition to the featured artists, works are also included from Jacob Crook of Syracuse, N.Y.; Michael Knutson of Garden City, Kan; Eric Norby of Minneapolis, Minn.; Gordon Sherman of Hays, Kan.; and Jared Tadlock of Evergreen, Colo.

Spring Performance in Lingenfelter Artist Series at McPherson College Features Internationally Recognized Opera Singer Simon Estes

Posted On: February 17, 2017
By: MC Admin

The upcoming performer for McPherson College’s Fern Lingenfelter Artist Series has performed for Presidents and Popes, and paved the way for performing artists of color.

But bass-baritone opera singer Simon Estes takes no credit for himself. His deep Christian faith draws him to give God the recognition.

“I believe that God has given everyone a talent or a gift,” he said, “And that he’s given it to serve him first, and then to serve each other. I’m not a star. The stars are in heaven and God put them there. I’m just a human being who’s been blessed.”

Estes, who has been a major figure in the world of opera for the past half century, will be the second-ever performer in the Lingenfelter Series at 4 p.m., Sunday, March 12 at the McPherson Church of the Brethren adjacent to the MC campus.

He is excited about performing at MC and considers it a deep honor, he said, largely because his wife, Ovida, grew up in the Church of the Brethren (McPherson College’s foundational Christian denomination). In addition, three of his sisters-in-law attended McPherson College, with two graduating from MC.

Estes graduated from the University of Iowa, where he worked hard to make his way through – cleaning windows, sleeping on floors, and struggling to buy meals. Considering that just two generations before him slaveholders forced his grandfather into servitude, Estes considered his own situation a great opportunity.

“I just thought, if I’m blessed someday, I want to help young people in colleges as well as children,” he said. “I’ve been tremendously blessed by the Lord. I just believe we are put on this earth to love one another and help one another.”

Making his operatic debut in 1965 with the Deutsche Opera in “Aida,” Estes has since gone on to add more than 100 operatic roles to his repertoire.

Among his performances have been many historic and landmark roles – particularly ones that broke down walls of racism. As an African-American opera singer, he paved the way for people of color who went into the performing arts. Many of them seek Estes out after performances to share how his example was motivating.

“They have certainly thanked me, and I have been humbled by that,” he said. “I have been grateful that I was able to be used and they were inspired by that and didn’t give up.”

In a prominent groundbreaking role, Estes appeared in the title role of Richard Wagner’s “The Flying Dutchman” for six successive years at the Bayreuth Festival in Germany. That marked the first time a black male artist appeared in any role in the more than 140-year history of the festival, which was founded by Wagner himself.

Estes has performed with 115 orchestras and 84 opera houses worldwide. Among his audiences have been United States Presidents George H.W. Bush, Lyndon B. Johnson, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Richard Nixon and Barack Obama.

He’s the only vocalist to sing at both the 25th and 50th anniversaries of the United Nations. He helped to celebrate the opening of the Munich Olympic Games in 1972 and the centennial of the Statue of Liberty. He sang for the inauguration of the first black governor in the United States in 1990, performed for Nelson Mandela, and performed at the Conference of The Anatomy of Hate – which is funded by the Nobel Peace Prize Committee and The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity.

In addition, he’s been Grammy Nominated for Best Classical Album of the Year, inaugurated the role of Porgy in “Porgy & Bess” for the Metropolitan Opera, and worked with the likes of Leonard Bernstein, Jose Carreras, Placido Domingo, Harry Belafonte, Johnny Cash, Ray Charles, John Denver, Audrey Hepburn, Whitney Houston, Barry Manilow, Gregory Peck and Wynton Marsalis.

As a part of his social mission, Estes has held concerts to support the United Nations Mosquito Netting Project, which supplies and maintaining treated mosquito nets to save children’s lives from malaria in Africa. His performance for the Lingenfelter Series will also support the netting project in lieu of an honorarium.

“I think God laid in on my heart,” Estes said of his support for the netting project.

To learn more about Estes, visit www.simonestesfoundation.org.

The Fern Lingenfelter Artist Series was established in 2016 thanks to a generous commitment to McPherson College, in honor of MC alumna and piano teacher Fern Lingenfelter. Her son, Steve Clark – chairman of Clark Investment Group in Wichita, Kan. – generously established the supporting fund at MC.

This cultural series consists of two annual music performance events, with a special emphasis on piano. Lingenfelter taught piano in McPherson for years – both to traditional college students on the MC campus and younger students at a studio downtown. Lingenfelter passed away in 1962, but her son, Steve Clark, said he has seen a long and lasting influence from her lifetime of work. Establishing the fund is his way to say, “Thank you,” and to support the music and the instrument she loved.

Wheat State League Honor Band Brings More Than 120 Students to McPherson College

Posted On: January 31, 2017
By: MC Admin

More than 120 top high school band musicians from around the area came to the McPherson College campus on Monday, Jan. 30, to learn under the direction of MC’s own Kyle Hopkins.

Hopkins, associate professor of music and director of bands, had the honor of being the clinician and conductor of the 2017 Wheat State League Honor Band.

Students from the high schools of Canton-Galva, Centre, Goessel, Herington, Little River, Peabody, Solomon, and Wakefield were all nominated by their school’s director to become part of the band.

The students rehearsed (for the first time together) during the afternoon, then presented a full concert that evening with the selections: “Sparks” by Brian Balmages, “A Hymn for Band” by Hugh Stuart, “Prairie Dances” by David R. Holsinger, and “Zia, Zia!” by Claude T. Smith.

The program also featured professor Hopkins on horn as a part of the professional “Heartland Brass Quintet,” which also includes Isaac Hopkins and Kyle Unruh on trumpet, Rob Tierney on Trombone, and Adam Keller on tuba.

“It was great for the honor band students to hear a professional level group,” Hopkins said, “And was a real inspiration for them to continue their music.”

‘For Colored Girls’ at McPherson College Gives Attention to Frequently Unheard American Voices

Posted On: January 23, 2017
By: MC Admin

With a title like “for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf,” the upcoming play at McPherson College will clearly be anything but “easy.”

Jd. Bowman, associate professor of theatre, said challenging audiences was one of his most important reasons for selecting the landmark play by Tony Award-winning playwright Ntozake Shange.

“My hope is that members of our campus community and our audience discover the beauty of this piece,” he said.

The 1975 play will be showing at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 2-4 in the college’s Mingenback Theatre. Reservations are required by contacting the theatre box office at 620-242-0444 or at [email protected].

Bowman said that the play consists of a series of inter-connected storytelling poems told by women who are identified only by the color of the rainbow they are dressed in.

It provides a glimpse into what it meant to be an African-American in the United States in the 1970s, but has grown to reflect many voices in America that are silent or unspoken.

Even though most of the local audience is Caucasian, Bowman said that just makes this play’s message even more important.

“That is all the more reason why this piece should be produced here – because we need to hear voices and stories that are different than our own,” he said. “When we look into a social mirror, we do best if that reflection is not what we expect.”

However, Bowman expects people in minority and majority populations alike to find connection to the play.

“One of my favorite poems starts with, ‘Somebody almost walked off with all of my stuff,’” Bowman said. “In the poem, a woman is realizing that gave so much of herself to a relationship that she almost let them run away with her identity. I can relate to that story and many more in this piece.”

Tickets to all shows cost $5 for adults and $3.50 for children ages high school and younger as well as seniors.

Cast for the show is: Whitney Murray, junior, Kansas City, Kan.; Nora Grosbach, junior, Evergreen, Colo.; Aysia Pryor, sophomore, Wichita, Kan.; Miaya Sample, freshman, Baytown, Texas; and guest alumna artists – Tracey Hughes ’91, Kansas City, Mo.; Colleen Gustafson ’06, McPherson, Kan.; and Kenyatta Harden ’13, McPherson, Kan.

Crew for the show includes: Elizabeth Thornton, freshman, Karval, Colo. (stage manager); Erin Fralick, junior, New Palestine, Ind. (lights); and Nancy Dorrell, freshman, Newton, Kan. (sound).

McPherson College Holds Second Annual Juried Student Art Exhibition

Posted On: January 13, 2017
By: MC Admin

Sometimes it’s recognition from a stranger that means the most.

That’s the idea behind the second annual McPherson College Juried Student Art Exhibition, on display now through Feb. 5 in Friendship Hall on the campus of McPherson College. It will conclude with a reception for the student artists on that date from 2 to 3:30 p.m., and the public is invited and encouraged to attend.

Wayne Conyers, professor of art, said that before last year, the works in the student exhibition were selected by the faculty. Now, however, the college brings in an outside juror to name the student award winners. Conyers said it created a more realistic experience of trying to get into real-world show.

“When they do this, it’s like a professional exhibition,” he said. “They’ve got to apply. They’ve got to prepare.”

This year the exhibition includes 78 works by students in media as diverse as ceramics, graphic design, paint, and even fabrics.

The juror this year is Ron Michael, director of the Birger Sandzén Memorial Gallery in Lindsborg, Kan. He named the best of show winners as well as 14 “Merit Award” recipients from among the works on display.

“We’ve realized that part of assessment of what we’re doing is having outsiders come in and evaluate,” Conyers said.

The “Best of Show: Studio winner” was Italia Venegas, freshman, Shawnee Mission, Kan.; and the “Best of Show: Graphic Design” recipient was Jaden Hilgers, sophomore, Wichita, Kan.

The other MC students accepted for the exhibition are: Chloe Cloud, sophomore, Wichita, Kan.; Alley Domar, senior, McPherson, Kan.; Monica Ewy, senior, McPherson, Kan.; Micah Gilbert, freshman, Elkhart, Ind.; Nora Grosbach, junior, Evergreen, Colo.; Joshua Hall, senior, Tonganoxie, Kan.; Jennifer Jacobitz, sophomore, Muskegon, Mich.; Lisa Koehn, senior, Galva, Kan.; Lillian Oeding, freshman, Wichita, Kan.; Ian Rhoten, sophomore, Wichita, Kan.; Miguel Luna Sanchez, senior, Salinas, Calif.; Logan Schrag, junior, McPherson, Kan.; Amber Shuey, freshman, Wichita, Kan.; Sarah Tajchman, freshman, Marion, Kan.; Brenda Tejero, senior, Aurora, Colo.; Channing Wall, senior, McPherson, Kan.; Madison Whaley, junior, McPherson, Kan.; and Carol Zerger of McPherson, Kan.

McPherson College Band Concert Offers Selections on Theme of ‘The Ascension’

Posted On: November 15, 2016
By: MC Admin

The McPherson College band program went from just eight members four years ago to 57 members this semester. With that astounding increase, the theme for this Sunday’s band concert of “The Ascension” seems particularly appropriate.

Kyle Hopkins, associate professor of music and director of bands, said he was impressed not only with the increased numbers of students, but also with the increasing abilities of the students.

“We’re at a point in our band that we can do some really demanding works,” he said. “I really see our quality has gone up this year, as well as our quantity.”

The program will include both the McPherson College Jazz Band and the McPherson College Concert Band at 4 p.m. Nov. 20 in Brown Auditorium. The public is invited and encouraged to attend the free event.

The jazz band will perform such popular standards as “In the Mood” by Joe Garland and “Blue Skies” by Irving Berlin, featuring jazz vocalist and MC Band member Jennie Jacobitz, sophomore, Muskegon, Mich.

The concert band, meanwhile, will perform several selections by Robert W. Smith – “Currents,” “In a Gentle Rain,” and “The Ascension.” The last is a musical interpretation of part of “The Divine Comedy” by Dante, and gives the program its name.

Smith is a living, modern composer with more than 600 works in print – many of which have achieved worldwide acclaim and have been performed on every continent but Africa and Antarctica.
Hopkins said the band is now at a point where it can recruit top high school musicians. This year that includes a number of students who were selected for their state’s district and state honor bands, the highest achievement a high school instrumentalist can achieve.

In particular, Hopkins praised Kento Aizawa, freshman, McPherson, Kan., who will be the solo clarinetist on “Concertino” by Carl Maria von Weber. Aizawa not only made it into state band all three years that high school students are eligible, he also landed first chair clarinet every year he went.

Hopkins likened it to a high school athlete winning at an individual state competition every year of their high school career.

“We have others who are right up there with him,” Hopkins said, “but he represents the cream of the crop.”

Aizawa said he was considering other colleges, but it was after having Hopkins as his clinician and conductor in the Kansas Music Educators Association District Honor Band that he started to change his mind and ultimately decided on McPherson College.

“He made a really great impression on me. I felt connected to his passion for music,” Aizawa said. “It’s great to be in a band that’s thriving and getting even better as the year goes on, so I’m excited to see where it goes.”