Ovations is IUP's premier performance series presenting touring artists from around the world.
The 2021–22 Season
From the best in jazz and classical music to theater and more, Ovations presents the best in performing arts and takes you on a journey that will entertain and engage.
Events Calendar for Lively Arts
for Lively Arts Events
Kandace Springs
Ovations Series
Live, In-Person Event
Gorell Recital Hall, second floor Sutton Hall
Wednesday, March 9, 2022, 8:00 p.m.
Once described by the late musical icon Prince as having “a voice that could melt snow,” Kandace Springs will present an evening of jazz not to be forgotten. This singer, songwriter, and keyboardist’s refined mix of R&B, jazz, and pop has been showcased on three albums released on the legendary Blue Note record label.
Germán López
Ovations Series
Live, In-Person Event
Gorell Recital Hall, second floor Sutton Hall
Wednesday, March 23, 2022, 8:00 p.m.
Brilliant young star of the “timple,” Germán López touches audiences with original instrumental music from the Canary Islands. On stage with guitarist Antonio Toledo, Germán López harnesses the grit of Spanish flamenco, the structure of West African rhythms, the flourishing spirit of jazz, and an innovative twenty-first-century approach to performing “island music.” His principal instrument is one of the grandfathers of the ukelele and part of the same instrumental family that includes the cavaquinho, the cuatro, and the charango. Germán López’s music has been praised for “entrancing” performances of “delicately rippling notes” (Huffington Post), notes that flow from musical traditions uniting Spain, Africa, and the New World.
Bunraku Bay Puppet Theater Presents: An Evening of Traditional Japanese Puppetry
Ovations Series
Live, In-Person Event
Fisher Auditorium, Smaller audience invited to be seated on stage to watch performance
(Please note that seating will be limited due to unique seating arrangements).
Friday, April 8, 2022, 8:00 p.m.
Company members from Bunraku Bay Puppet Theater will be presenting an evening of traditional Japanese Bunraku puppetry. Bunraku Bay Puppet Theater is the only theater in the United States that performs the traditional Japanese puppetry known as “ningyo joruri” or Bunraku.
The performers of the Bunraku Bay Puppet Theater have been trained in Japan by artists from the 170-year-old Tonda Puppet Troupe of Biwa-cho in Shiga Prefecture, northeast of the old capital of Kyoto, and the Imada Puppet Troupe and Kuroda Puppet Troupe—both more than 300 years old—of Iida City in Nagano Prefecture in central Japan.
PUSH Physical Theatre
Ovations Series
Live, In-Person Event
Fisher Auditorium
Thursday, April 21, 2022, 8:00 p.m.
Seeing the award-winning PUSH Physical Theatre is like watching a live-action movie. This talented group of performers inspires awe with physical illusions and gravity-defying, dance-infused, acrobatic high-jinx. It’s cool, it’s athletic, it’s a perfect metaphor-in-motion; the narratives of our lives played out with hope, strength, and optimism. These masters of physical storytelling captivate audience attention and ignite their emotions. Once you’ve experienced the myth and magic of PUSH, you will know the strength of the human soul expressed by the power of the human body.