Students, faculty combine in dance production
Students will strut the stuff they’ve learned in class during the 16th annual Faculty/Alumni Dance Production.
Dancers in the show — students enrolled in Dance Production and Jazz Performance Skills classes this fall — are able to develop their performance skills, technical operation and other aspects of putting on a production as a result of staging this event.
This year, the alumni choreographers and dancers include Reonaldo Cho, Aliem Jiles, Joseph Gurrola, Parker Harris, Daniel Kim, Esteban Martinez, Patt Paczynski, Amanda Green Richardson, Michaele Shaffer and Ani Simonian. Faculty choreographers are Dora Krannig, Lynn McMurrey, Victor Robles and Tamra Henna Swan.
Performances are 8 p.m. Dec. 10, 2 and 8 p.m. Dec. 11 and 2 p.m. Dec. 12 in the auditorium. Admission is free. No children under 5 will be admitted. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is advised.
The college is at 1500 N. Verdugo Road. For more information, call (818) 240-1000, Ext. 5739.
‘Tis the season for ‘Cosmic Christmas’
For the second year, presentations of composer/songwriter Eban Schletter’s “Cosmic Christmas” will be performed at 5 and 7 p.m. Sundays through Dec. 19 in the GCC Planetarium.
The multimedia experience is performed live in the college’s state-of-the-art digital full dome theater. It features live theremin performance and real-time animation performed by J-Walt, creator of the popular “Spontaneous Fantasia” shows.
“Cosmic Christmas,” released last year, is an offbeat yet melodious concept album by Eban Schletter, who is best known for his film and TV work (“SpongeBob SquarePants,” “Mr. Show with Bob and David”). The theremin-infused album depicts the awakening of artificial intelligence aboard a military satellite which, lost in space, drifted into a waft of Christmas Spirit. The holiday space opera was listed by Metromix as one of the “Top 10 weirdest Christmas records of all time” and was recommended holiday music by the New York Times and Los Angeles Times.
As a planetarium show, “Cosmic Christmas” is the result of the collaborative efforts of GCC Planetarium director Paul Buehler, who programmed and integrated the video material by Schletter, digital designer John Arballo, who brought the satellite to life, and J-Walt, who created the original animations. Schletter performs live on theremin along with Alexander Burke on vibraphone.
Other planetarium shows continue into December as well. “Evening with the Stars” is a digital-dome ride through the universe while answering guests’ astronomical questions and features exclusive images and data from NASA. Upcoming shows are 8 p.m. Dec. 17 and 6:30 p.m. Dec. 18 Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children under 12.
“The Omnicentric Universe” is a cosmic exploration performed live on the college’s state-of-the-art digital dome. The show follows a theme of cosmic and personal exploration as a planet is created and populated with plants, artifacts and dancing creatures. J-Walt is a Technical Academy Award-winning artist, programmer and composer. His show is an hour of 3-D real-time animation that is created live in front of the audience. Shows this month are at 8 p.m. Dec. 10 and 5:30 p.m. Dec. 11. Admission at the door is $15 general and $6 for children under 12.
For information on the shows or to make reservations go to https://www.glendale.edu/planetarium.
Holiday closures
Classes for the current fall semester will end on Dec. 15. The college will be closed for the holidays from Dec. 22 to Jan. 2. Priority spring semester registration begins Jan 10 for continuing students and for those who submitted an application for admission prior to Dec 3. Open registration begins Jan. 31.
Stay up to date with GCC
Keep up to date with campus news and events by following GCCPIO on Twitter, becoming a fan of Glendale Community College on Facebook, visiting GCC’s website at https://www.glendale.edu or checking the calendar of public events at https://www.glendale.edu/events.
