Greater Lansing residents who love the performing arts have much to be thankful for — this year and every year.
While the region is known for its athletic events, fewer people outside those directly involved are aware of how rich and full the community is when it comes to the arts. For a city of its size, Lansing and the surrounding areas are positively brimming with arts groups, small and large.
Wharton is perhaps the best known, a 43-year-old performing arts center that hosts tours from around the world. In 2019, it was ranked No. 10 internationally for venues of its size. Every year, it brings in Broadway shows, world-renowned dance companies, up-and-coming artists, sensational singers and orchestras. They recently expanded their small spaces to allow for intimate chamber concerts and comedians.
Having a major university with a superior College of Music means there are almost always music concerts in locations around the campus. The College is known worldwide for its jazz faculty, for the award-winning opera program and many, many ensembles.
The MSU Auditorium is home to the Department of Theater. The facility opened in 1939 with then-First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt in attendance. In addition to an innovative regular season that ranges from classical productions to new works to freshman showcases and storefront-style productions, the Department of Theater has hosted the free Summer Circle seasons outdoors since 1960.
Across town, Lansing Community College holds its own in the performing arts world. Its theater department has trained Michigan actors for decades and offers a plethora of performances that are free to the public in Dart Auditorium, a black box theater in Gannon and outdoors in the summer. LCC was once home to the biggest dance program in the area and jazz and rock artists both have found a home in the school’s ensembles.
It is no secret that the Lansing Symphony Orchestra is mid-Michigan’s powerhouse when it comes to music. Founded in 1929, the LSO has had just two artistic directors for the past 48 years — Timothy Muffitt (who is retiring after this season) and Gustav Meier. Their annual showcase concerts are the MasterWorks series that brings in guest artists to perform the great works from the classical canon. Alongside those concerts are a pops series and chamber concerts. Their outreach into the community helps open doors to classical music for students and schools.
In 1976, Diane Newman founded an organization that gave mid-Michigan its only professional dance company. It started out dancing on the Red Cedar River banks, where Summer Circle performed. Its name, Happendance, was born out of the people who “happened” by to watch its performances. it grew into a school and has provided opportunity for dancers and choreographers alike.
The Greater Lansing area has long been a home to those who want to make theater as well as those who want to watch it. From organizations that have been around for more than 50 years to ones that are only a few years old, theaters are producing all kinds of works for those of all interests. There is a danger in making a list of local theaters as the likelihood of leaving someone out is high, but an incomplete list includes:
An even harder and longer list to compile are the musical groups. Lansing Matinee Musicale is more than 130 years old and promotes music through multiple groups. The LGBTQ community has multiple choirs from the 40+-year-old Sistrum and Lansingout (formerly Gay Men’s Chorus) to the newly forming Queer Voices, a SATB group. There are children’s choirs, men’s choirs, classical choirs, bell choirs and ensembles of all sizes.
In addition to the cultural institutions that help to define the city, the region is filled with smaller groups, that contribute to the unique personality of local culture. These include independent artists, community groups and volunteer-run organizations. They include everything from spoken-word poetry events to drag performers to opera.
What is certain this Thanksgiving season is that when it comes to the performing arts, Greater Lansing is overflowing with reasons for gratitude.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Greater Lansing performing arts scene leaves much to be thankful for
Reporting by Bridgette M. Redman, For the Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal
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