Imagination With A Twist

TAHLEQUAH An internationally acclaimed gospel choir, a rockin 60s musical soap opera and an intergalactic nemesis are just a few of the shows to tickle the imagination during The Sequoyah Institutes 22nd Annual Galaxy of Stars Series at Northeastern State University.

We have another thrilling season planned with an eclectic mix of music and entertainment sure to engage the imagination of everyone, said Megan White, director of The Sequoyah Institute. Imagine a season filled with the arts and youll find yourself at our Galaxy of Stars shows.

Native Oklahoman and guitar extraordinaire Edgar Cruz opens the season on Sunday, Sept. 23 with the Edgar Cruz Guitar Forum. Cruz will share the stage with Michael Kelsey, an award winning Progressive Acoustic guitarist from Indiana, Richard Smith, a finger style master from England whom the legendary Chet Atkins calls the most amazing guy I know on the guitar, and Mark Anthony Cruz, a two-time top prize recipient at the National Fingerpicking Championship at Winfield, Kan.

The Edgar Cruz Guitar Forum takes the stage at the NSU Center for the Performing Arts at 7:30 p.m. The concert is sponsored by BancFirst.

Edgar Cruz has been named Oklahomas Best Performing Artist/Acoustic Guitarist three years in a row and received numerous civic acknowledgments for his contributions to various charitable events. Each year he performs over 200 concerts and has played throughout America, Europe and South America. He has been a headliner at The Chet Atkins Festival in Nashville, Tenn. since 1995 and is a strong icon at most festivals in Oklahoma including Sunfest, Festival of the Arts, Paseo Festival, Global Oklahoma and more.

Imagine the powerful, spellbinding and propulsive sounds of the taiko drums as the stage comes alive with San Jose Taikos Rhythm Spirit on Tuesday, Oct. 9 at 7:30 p.m. in the NSU Center for the Performing Arts. The show is sponsored by Tahlequah Pediatrics.

The music of San Jose Taiko weaves traditional Japanese sounds with the beat of world rhythms. At San Jose Taiko, Japanese, African, Balinese, Latin, American rock and jazz merge to produce an innovative contemporary sound that bridges diverse styles and resonates with the Asian soul in America.

Since 1987, when San Jose Taiko became one of the first American taiko troupes invited to tour Japan, the company has collaborated in joint concerts with internationally renowned Asian performing artists including Kodo, Ondekoza, Eitetsu Hayashi, Michiko Akao, Oedo Sukeroku, Osuwa Taiko and Miyarabi Taiko.

Return to the era of episodic radio in the 1930s and join the audience of a broadcast studio as the latest and greatest show is about to take the air with The Intergalactic Nemesis. The show takes the stage at the NSU Center for the Performing Arts on Thursday, Nov. 8 at 7:30 p.m. The show is sponsored by Cox Pharmacy.

Imagine five microphones onstage alongside tables littered with every household gadget imaginable, from a bucket of mud to a kazoo to a vacuum cleaner. A man walks onto the stage, counts the audience down to radio silence, and says: "Ladies and Gentlemen, prepare to be taken on an epic journey of danger and adventure!

This performance will bring back the long-ago world of radio drama with marvelous sound effects performed live, onstage. Imagine Star Wars meets Raiders of the Lost Ark with a little of The Incredibles thrown in for good measure. This is the world of The Intergalactic Nemesis.

Celebrate the holiday season with a mix of traditional Celtic music at A Celtic Christmas, on Tuesday, Dec. 4 at 7:30 p.m. at the NSU Center for the Performing Arts.

Imagine a time long, long before Riverdance when ordinary Irish men and women in hobnailed boots knocked sparks off the flagstone floors with jigs, reels as the rafters rang with the fiery music of the fiddle, bodhran, tin whistle, and the mesmerizing uilleann pipes.

In A Celtic Christmas, Tomaseen Foley recreates the joy and innocence of a night before Christmas in an Irish farmhouse. Spend an evening with Foley and some of the most gifted Celtic musicians, dancers and singers performing today.

Discover the inspirational sounds of the world famous Harlem Gospel Choir, performing Friday, Feb. 1 at 7:30 p.m. at the NSU Center for the Performing Arts. The performance is sponsored by Go Ye Village.

Imagine an extraordinary evening of foot-stomping, hand clapping blues, jazz and gospel spirituals. From the heart of Harlem in New York City, the Harlem Gospel Choir is one of the pre-eminent gospel choirs in the world. They have performed for Nelson Mandela, Pope John Paul II, with U2, Lyle Lovett, The Chieftans, and Diana Ross. Their performance will touch the depths of your soul and raise your spirits to new heights.

The Choir was founded in 1986 by Allen Bailey, who got the idea for the Choir while attending a celebration in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at the renowned Cotton Club in Harlem. The Harlem Gospel Choir has shared its message of love, peace and harmony with thousands of people from various nations, backgrounds, and cultures.

Hum along with some of the classic rock classics of the era brought to life again when Suds, The Rocking 60s Soap Opera Musical takes the stage at the NSU Center for the Performing Arts at 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 9. The show is sponsored by Reflections.

Imagine its the swinging 60s, the Fab Four have just invaded America, it's Camelot in the White House and the hula hoop is all the rage. Set in a wash-a-rama, this musical soap opera virtually overflows with nostalgia.

Suds is loaded with good clean fun, bubbling energy and over 50 well-known songs that topped the charts of that decade including Where the Boys Are, These Boots are Made for Walking, Respect and so many more.

Discover a celebration of rhythm at its best with Tapestry Dance Company in The Souls Of Our Feet at the NSU Center for the Performing Arts on Thursday, April 10 at 7:30 p.m. The performance is sponsored by NEO Health.

Imagine seamlessly combining tap dance, live music, and vintage film clips. The Souls Of Our Feet is a fast-paced collection of footwork restaging the best of rhythm tap masterpieces from Fred Astaire & Eleanor Powell to The Nicholas Brothers, as well as, contemporary works of living masters.

Led by the live jazz music of the Eddy Hobizal Jazz Trio, this one-of-a-kind concert brings swingin' jazz and 18 feet keeping time to the pulse of this wonderful and indigenous American art form, tap.

Round out an amazing season of the arts with an evening of American acoustic music. Dry Branch Fire Squad: An Institution in American Acoustic Music takes the stage at the NSU Center for the Performing Arts on Saturday, May 3 at 7:30 p.m. The performance is sponsored by Advantage Audiology.

In over thirty years of music making, Dry Branch Fire Squad has become an institution on the American music scene. Their charming mix of bluegrass and uproarious comedy is the secret to their success.

Unlike most bluegrass groups, Dry Branch Fire Squad sells neither itself, its members, nor even particular bluegrass songs. What it markets are the emotions which stimulated the creation of bluegrass and mountain music as well as a taste of the culture in which this music evolved.

Season tickets are now available for eight shows that comprise Imagination With a Twist. Season tickets are $120 for adults, $108 for NSU alumni, $96 for NSU employees, $84 for seniors, $60 for children and students, and $30 for NSU students. If you cant attend all the shows, ask about the Pick Six season ticket special.

To purchase tickets, contact the NSU Box Office at 918-458-2078. Full season tickets are a great way to see all the shows at a discount.

Additional funding for the 22nd Annual Galaxy of Stars Series is provided by the Oklahoma Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.