MCA begins tuition-free Adult Arts Wellness Program

WINONA, Minn. — The Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts is offering tuition-free dance, fitness, and music classes to adults through the MCA Adult Arts Wellness Program.

Parents who have a child enrolled in a dance or music class/program at MCA may participate in their own class at no additional cost. Class options for parents include: Nia, Clogging, Power Piyo, Teen and Adult Ballet, Teen and Adult Tap and Jazz, and Adult Flute Choir.

“While our school’s focus is programming for youth, we think it is important for our student’s parents to also experience the joy of the arts,” said Christine Martin, managing director. “We hope this tuition-free opportunity will make it possible for more parents to participate.”

All classes and programs are held at MCA’s Valéncia Arts Center, 1164 West 10th St. Classes begin this week. Registration is currently being accepted at the Valéncia Arts Center, by mail, or online at www.mnconservatoryforthearts.org.

To accommodate the busy schedules of working parents, as well as stay-at-home parents, MCA adult classes are offered during the noon hour and in the late afternoon and evenings.

The Nia class, a fitness class for all levels, offers a dynamic blend of dance arts, martial arts and healing arts. Nia is held on Tuesdays from noon to 1 p.m. at the same time as MCA’s Creative Music class for 3- and 4-year-olds. Parents can sign up their young children for Creative Music while they enjoy the Nia fitness class.

Clogging I is offered for beginners on Mondays from 5:15 to 5:45 p.m., follow by Clogging II from 5:45 to 6:30 p.m. for those with experience.

Power Piyo is a Pilates and yoga combination class focusing on yoga postures and Pilates strengthening to offer the perfect conditioning class. Power Piyo is held Mondays from 4 to 5 p.m.

Teen and Adult Ballet, held on Mondays from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., provides an introduction to ballet technique, allowing adult students to experience the artistry of ballet while gaining flexibility, placement, strength and fluidity.

Teen and Adult Tap and Jazz provides adult students with an introduction to tap and jazz dance, offering a rhythmic-filled class and a great workout. This class is held on Tuesdays from 7:45 to 8:45 p.m.

MCA also offers music programming for adults through the new MCA Flute Choir. The flute choir is open to all community flutists of various performance levels. Flute choir members will study and perform a variety of music from serious recital pieces to fun seasonal/pops favorites. The flute choir will meet on Tuesdays from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

This activity is made possible in part by a grant provided by the Minnesota State Arts Board, through an appropriation by the Minnesota State Legislature from the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on Nov. 4, 2008.

For more information about MCA visit www.mnconservatoryforthearts.org, e-mail mca@smumn.edu or call (507) 453-5500.

Speaker to address Kwik Trip’s success Sept. 22 at Saint Mary’s

WINONA, Minn. — John McHugh, director of leadership development for Kwik Trip Incorporated, will discuss how the Wisconsin-based company evolved into an industry leader Thursday, Sept. 22, at Saint Mary’s University.

The event, hosted by SMU’s Kabara Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, will begin at 3:30 p.m. in Salvi Lecture Hall, located on the third floor of Saint Mary’s Hall.

Kwik Trip began in Eau Claire, Wis., in 1965. Since that time, Kwik Trip has grown to more than 400 stores with 10,000 coworkers in three states and has been named a “Top Workplace” in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

A commitment to innovation means that Kwik Trip is a convenience store company unlike any other. Kwik Trip not only serves customers with convenient, clean retail centers, but also produces many of the private label products featured in the stores. Kwik Trip’s La Crosse-based headquarters operates its own commissary, bakery, and dairy and also maintains its own distribution center and fleet under the Convenience Transportation name.

McHugh’s presentation is free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Trevor Hall at (507) 457-6978 or tmhall@smumn.edu.

Terrance Simien, Zydeco Experience kick off SMU’s Page Series Sept. 16

WINONA, Minn. — The 25th season of the Saint Mary’s University Page Series will kick off with the sweet southern sounds of Louisiana with Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience Friday, Sept. 16, at Saint Mary’s University.

The event, set to take the stage at 7:30 p.m., will be held in Page Theatre, located in the SMU Performance Center.

Incorporating his hypnotic blend of Zydeco, New Orleans funk, and reggae-flavored Afro-Caribbean sound, Terrance Simien aims to propel you out of your seat and have you dancing in the aisles.

For more than two decades the Grammy-award winning artist, an eighth-generation Louisiana Creole, has been shattering the myths about what his indigenous Creole Zydeco music is and is not. Leading his Zydeco Experience Band, Simien has become one of the most respected and internationally recognized touring and recording artists in roots music today.

He has performed over 5,000 concerts, toured to over 40 countries and reached at least a million people during his eventful 25-year career. In December of 2009, Disney Pictures released a Pixar animated film, “The Princess & The Frog,” set in New Orleans, which was scored by Randy Newman and features the music of Simien, Terence Blanchard and Dr. John.

Tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for seniors and students and are available online at www.pagetheatre.org or call the box office, (507) 457-1715, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. $10 student rush tickets may be available for some events 20 minutes before curtain.

Saint Mary’s is a fiscal year 2011 recipient of an Institutional Presenter Support grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is funded, in part, by the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund as appropriated by the Minnesota State Legislature with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on Nov.4, 2008.

Dance Repertory Company II Auditions are Sept. 17

WINONA, Minn. — The Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts will conduct auditions for the Dance Repertory Company II winter concert, at noon Saturday, Sept. 17, at the Valéncia Arts Center, 1164 West 10th St.

Auditions are open to beginning- and intermediate-level dance students ages 5 to 13. Boys and girls will be cast in concert dance pieces in one or more of the following genres: classical ballet, tap, jazz, hip-hop, and modern dance.

Parents are asked to accompany children to the audition, bring a photo of their child, and planning calendars. Auditioning students should wear proper dance attire.

“The DRC II is a great performance opportunity for our youngest performers,” said Christine Martin, managing director. “Our directors and choreographers work with the children in a positive, nurturing and rigorous, but non-competitive environment. We are looking forward to seeing new and returning students at the auditions.”

The DRC II will present winter concerts, Dec. 2-3, 2011 at the Valéncia Arts Center Academy Theatre. The concert will feature the DRC II members who train at MCA, as well as the MCA high school and college students in their choreographic debuts, presenting their own works as part of their semester-long choreography class.

Dance Repertory Company and the DRC II are the youth performing troupes of the Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts. Company members participate in rehearsals, technique classes (starting Sept.12, 2011) and stage performances. Past productions of the company include: The Firebird, Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, Paquita, Cinderella, Excerpts from Swan Lake, Cinderella, Youth In Motion, Tappin' to Connick, Pure Entertainment, Dance Mosaic, and An Evening with Benny Goodman, among others.

For more information about the DRC II or other programs offered at MCA, visit www.mnconservatoryforthearts.org, e-mail mca@smumn.edu or call (507) 453-5500.

Saint Mary’s international students tour Winona via trolley

WINONA, Minn. — On Aug. 29, Saint Mary’s University’s newest international students were invited to take a tour of Winona on the Trester Trolley. For most of the students, who arrived in Minnesota last week, this is their first time in the United States. Highlights along the way included the Minnesota Equestrian Center, Garvin Heights Elk Ranch, Garvin Heights Vineyards, the Garvin Heights look-out, and Prairie Island Park. SMU’s new international students this semester come from Saudi Arabia, Colombia, Japan, Korea, Poland, China and Canada and include, from left: front, Musab Alotaibi (Saudi Arabia), Mohammed Hadi (Saudi Arabia), Hussain Alqushairi (Saudi Arabia), Kanae Agena (Japan), Mohanna Aloufi (Saudi Arabia), Jesus Benavides Hernandez (Colombia), Ilham Albalawi (Saudi Arabia); back, Jane Cyrus (staff), Brit Wagner (staff), Tiantian He (China), Mohammed Alharbi (Saudi Arabia), Hamad Alzahrani (Saudi Arabia), Mustafa Alnofaily (Saudi Arabia), Anas Almowallad (Saudi Arabia), Mohanned Naquib (Saudi Arabia), Bader Albalawi (Saudi Arabia), Lupita Garza-Cienfuegos (staff) and Zainab Alnemer (Saudi Arabia).

Saint Mary’s plans third annual Young Alumni Weekend

WINONA, Minn. — Saint Mary’s University graduates from the past decade have been invited back to campus for Young Alumni Reunion Weekend, Sept. 9-11.

Over 150 alumni are expected to attend the full weekend of events which will include a faculty and staff social, a young alumni gathering at Mulligan’s, ropes course activities, a barbecue with live music on the Plaza, disc golfing and a pig roast picnic. Additionally, special events are planned for the anniversary years of 2001 and 2006. The weekend also coincides with Cardinal ‘M’ Club Weekend, giving SMU alumni opportunities to cheer on Cardinal athletics.

For more information about the Young Alumni Program, please contact Bob Fisher at (507) 457-6658 or rfisher@smumn.edu. To read more about this event, or to register, go www.smumn.edu/yaweekend.

SMU receives funds from IME-Becas to help Mexican students

Jessica de la Rosa, a SMU alum and admissions counselor, and Brother Ed Siderewicz, Assistant to the President for First Generation and LaSallian Initiatives

WINONA, Minn. — Saint Mary’s University was one of three universities selected by the Consulate of Mexico in the Twin Cities to receive scholarship funding for Mexican and Mexican-American students. Mexican Consul Ana Luisa Fajer recognized recipients of the IME-Becas 2011/2012 Program at a ceremony in Minneapolis on Aug. 24.

Receiving funds from the Institute for Mexicans Abroad were: Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota; Centro, Inc.; Latino Economic Development Center; Minnesota State University, Mankato; and Saint Catherine’s University. Saint Mary’s received $9,000 for scholarships.

The objective of the IME-Becas 2011/2012 Program is to help raise the education level within the Mexican population in the United States. The Consulate of Mexico formed a Minnesota committee to determine the assignation of the funds to the selected institutions.

Saint Mary’s University’s First-Generation Initiative offers academic, personal and financial support to first-generation college students — many of whom are Hispanic and Latino — as they transition to higher education.

This committee based its decisions on the following criteria:

• The selected institutions have programs available to Mexican students or students of Mexican origin to pursue higher education.

• Institutions are able to match or improve the funds.

• There would be no indirect expenses affecting the allocated funds

• The selection process considered geographic diversity, as well as diverse professional opportunities for students in the Twin Cities area, as well as outside the metropolitan area where there is a significant number of Mexican people.

MCA announces registration open house Sept. 8

WINONA, Minn. — The Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts will conduct its semester I registration open house, 4 to 7 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 8, at the Valéncia Arts Center, 1164 West 10th St.

Registration for Semester I dance and music programming will be accepted at the open house. Tours of the facility will be available, refreshments will be served, and students will have the opportunity to meet new and returning faculty and staff. Additionally, students can be fitted for all their dance attire needs at the open house. MCA’s dance attire boutique offers quality basics for children including leotards, tights, ballet slippers, jazz shoes and tap shoes.

Dance class offerings, beginning Sept. 12, are available for youth ages 3 to adults and include beginning through advanced levels in classical ballet, tap, jazz, creative movement and modern, hip hop, leaps and turns, choreography, and a special tuition-free boys and men dance program. Semester I also provides programming specifically for beginning teens and adults by offering classes in partnership with Winona County Community Education, including: clogging I, clogging II, nia, power piyo, teen and adult ballet, and teen and adult tap and jazz. Parents who have a child enrolled in a dance or music class at MCA may participate in an adult class or choir tuition-free through the MCA Adult Arts Wellness program.

Academic credit is available to high school and college students through Cotter High School and Saint Mary’s University for a variety of MCA classes. Beginning and intermediate dancers ages 5 to 13 are encouraged to audition for MCA’s Dance Repertory Company II winter concert, offering exciting performance opportunities for MCA’s young performers in a nurturing and rigorous but non-competitive environment. Auditions are noon Saturday, Sept. 17, at the Valéncia Arts Center.

MCA music division offerings include Creative Music for children ages 3 to 4 years old, Winona Area Youth Singers, for students in grades four to eight, a flute choir for teens age 16 to adults, and private instrumental lessons in flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, French horn, trombone, euphonium, tuba, violin, cello, piano, voice and mandolin.

MCA Semester II music and dance programming provides five to 12 weeks of instruction depending on specific course/activity registered for. Dance classes conclude with a demonstration week, Nov. 14-19. Those dancers in the Dance Repertory Company II will perform in the MCA Winter Dance Concert, Dec. 2-3. Winona Area Youth Singers, member of the MCA flute choir and selected instrumental lesson students will conclude the semester with the MCA music division winter concert, Dec. 5. Tuition for MCA programming varies depending on course length and level. Discounts and scholarships are available.

For more information about MCA’s open house, or dance and music offerings, visit www.mnconservatoryforthearts.org, e-mail mca@smumn.edu or call (507) 453-5500.

Placement audition for WAYS scheduled for Sept. 12

WINONA, Minn. — The Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts will conduct placement auditions for Winona Area Youth Singers (WAYS), at 6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 12, at the Valéncia Arts Center Recital Hall, 1164 West 10th St.

WAYS is seeking students in grades four through eight who have been introduced to choir/music in their academic school setting and desire additional educational and performance opportunities in vocal music.

Throughout the semester, the choir will rehearse on Mondays, 6 to 7:30 p.m. Performances will include the annual MCA Winter Music Division Concert on Dec. 5, as well as holiday caroling and other community events.

WAYS is directed by Lindsy O’Shea. O’Shea holds a Masters of Arts in Instruction and a Bachelor of Arts in Vocal Music Performance from Saint Mary’s University. She has been involved with choral music, as a singer or director, for 20 years. O’Shea previously taught choral and general music in the Rochester and Faribault Public Schools. Additionally, she worked with the choirs of Blue Lake Fine Arts camp and with the Michigan State University Children's Choir. She is currently adjunct faculty with Saint Mary’s University, directing the Women’s Choir and teaching private voice lessons.

Registration for WAYS, as well as other MCA semester I dance and music programming will be accepted at the MCA registration open house, Thursday, Sept. 8, from 4 to 7 p.m. Interested students may also register online at www.mnconservatoryforthearts.org.

WAYS is offered tuition-free for the 2011-2012 academic year. This activity is made possible in part by a grant provided by the Minnesota State Arts Board, through an appropriation by the Minnesota State Legislature from the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on Nov. 4, 2008. This activity is also made possible in part by a grant from the Young Singer’s Foundation.

For more information about MCA’s music division or other arts programming, visit www.mnconservatoryforthearts.org, e-mail mca@smumn.edu or call (507) 453-5500. The Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts is an affiliate program of Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota.

MCA offers new flute choir for teens and adults

WINONA, Minn. — The Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts announces a new flute choir, open to all community flutists, ages 16 to adult.

Throughout the semester, the choir will rehearse and perform a variety of music from serious recital pieces to fun, seasonal favorites. Performances will include the annual MCA Winter Music Division Concert on Dec. 5, as well as other community events.

All ability levels are welcome. The choir will rehearse on Tuesdays, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. in MCA’s Valéncia Arts Center Recital Hall, 1164 West 10th St. Tuition is $60 for the semester or free to parents who have students enrolled in a MCA dance or music class, through the MCA Adult Arts Wellness program.

The MCA Flute Choir is directed by Amanda Moburg. Moburg holds a Masters of Music Education Degree from VanderCook College of Music in Chicago and a Bachelor's of Science in Music Education degree from Towson University in Towson, Md. She has extensive experience teaching band and orchestra in the public school system, as well as private flute lessons. Moburg taught in Maryland for six years prior to moving to Minnesota. Moburg was an active woodwind adjudicator for Solo and Ensemble Festivals throughout the state of Maryland and served as a board member for the Maryland Music Educators Association, as well as the Maryland Band Director's Association. In addition to teaching and adjudicating, she has many years of performing experience as a freelance musician in the Baltimore and Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Some of her most notable performances were at the Washington Flute Society’s annual conference and at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. She has held positions as a flutist with the Annapolis Wind Symphony, Columbia Concert Band, and, most recently, the Winona Municipal Band and Saint Mary’s University Concert Band.

Registration for the Flute Choir as well as other MCA semester I dance and music programming will be accepted at the MCA registration open house, Thursday, Sept. 8, 4 to 7 p.m. Interested flutists may also register online at www.mnconservatoryforthearts.org.

This activity is made possible in part by a grant provided by the Minnesota State Arts Board, through an appropriation by the Minnesota State Legislature from the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on Nov.4, 2008. This activity is also made possible in part by a grant from the Young Singer’s Foundation.

For more information about MCA’s Music division or other arts programming, visit www.mnconservatoryforthearts.org, e-mail mca@smumn.edu or call (507) 453-5500. The Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts is an affiliate program of Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota.