Famed Comedy Troupe Opens Series
Biggest SNL stars got their start at The Second City
Tina Fey. Steve Carell. Stephen Colbert and John Stewart. John Candy. James Belushi. Bill Murray and Gilda Radner. These men and women tested their wings, trained and conquered at The Second City, the country’s most prolific producer of successful comedians.
The Second City’s latest generation of comedians comes to MSUM Thursday, Sept. 8, to open MSUM’s Performing Arts Series. The comedy troupe will perform its trademark sketch comedy and improvisation in Hansen Theatre at 7:30 p.m.
Second in the Performing Arts Series’ lineup is the Takács Quartet, considered by many chamber music connoisseurs to be the best string quartet in the world. The Takács Quartet will perform work by Janacek, Britten and Ravel Thursday, Nov. 17, at 7:30 p.m. on the Gaede Stage.
Cantus, a men’s chorus from Minneapolis, joins forces with another Twin Cities group, Theatre Latté Da, Thursday, Dec. 8, in Hansen Theatre. The two groups will sing and act in a semi-staged performance of All Is Calm: the Christmas Truce of 1914. The musical theatre piece depicts the true story of a night during World War I when German soldiers and Allied Forces emerged from the trenches of the battlefield to sing carols and share Christmas cheer together.
The season closes with the return of James Sewell Ballet, a contemporary dance company from Minneapolis, and two of Fargo-Moorhead’s best-loved musicians and former residents–violinist Ben Sung and pianist Jihye Chang. Sung, Chang and cellist Hrant Parsamian accompany the ballet troupe as they dance to Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio and other music.
All performances are in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets for single performances are $28 for adults, $24 for seniors and $12 for students. Discounted subscription prices are also available. All tickets can be purchased online at www.mnstate.edu/perform or by calling the MSUM Box Office at 218.477.2271 Monday through Friday from noon to 4 p.m. The ticket website also provides links to more information about each artist performing in the Series this season.