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

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.

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 12^th 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.

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.