‘A Force of Nature’ Feb. 7

Described as “a force of nature” by The New York Times, dancer Kirstie Simson is internationally renowned for creating virtuoso improvisational performances. On Tuesday, Feb. 7, Simson — the 2012 Marcus Artist in Arts & Sciences — will present a free, informal concert in WUSTL’s Annelise Mertz Dance Studio. The event will include a performance of Simson’s solo Somewhere and excerpts from the documentary Force of Nature as well as a new improvisational work created in collaboration with dance professor David Marchant.

Danforth University Center Chamber Music Series

The husband-and-wife team of Roger Kaza, principal horn of the St. Louis Symphony, and pianist Patti Wolf will launch the Danforth University Center’s spring Chamber Music Series with a free performance at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 31. Sponsored by the Department of Music in Arts & Sciences and the Danforth University Center, the performance is the first of five scheduled for the spring semester.

Dancer Melinda Myers Jan. 30

Dancer Melinda Myers, praised for her “emphatic muscularity” by The Village Voice, will present an informal lecture/performance Jan. 30. Myers, a former member of the Trisha Brown Dance Company, will be on campus as the 2013 Marcus Residency Dance Artist in the Performing Arts Department in Arts & Sciences.

Washington University’s Eliot Trio in concert

Maurice Ravel’s Trio in A minor is among the most technically difficult works in the piano trio repertoire, demanding virtuosity on the part of all three players. Ludwig van Beethoven’s Trio in B-flat major, opus 97 — the “Archduke Trio” — is widely acknowledged as a masterpiece of the form. At 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan 22, Washington University’s Eliot Trio will present both works, along with Alexander Zemlinsky Trio in D minor, opus 3, for an intimate concert in Holmes Lounge.

Sam Fox School spring Public Lecture Series begins Jan. 20

The Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts’ Public Lecture Series presents free weekly lectures by nationally and internationally recognized artists, architects, historians and critics. This spring, the Public Lecture Series — which begins Jan. 20 — will feature talks by Hungarian installation artist Balázs Kicsiny and by architect Craig Dykers, whose firm, Snøhetta, designed the National 911 Memorial Pavillion in New York. Other highlights will include lectures by landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh, New York illustrator Jessica Hische and art historian Susan Laxton.

Edison receives NEA Challenge America grant

Edison Theatre at Washington University in St. Louis has received a prestigious Challenge America Fast-Track grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). A repeat recipient in the Challenge America category, Edison will use the $10,000 award to support Algo Nuevo (Something New), a series of free activities to be held in March exploring the history and aesthetics of Hispanic dance and traditional costuming.

Balázs Kicsiny: Killing Time opens at Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum Jan. 27

The army, the circus and the restaurant: three diverse institutions, each embodying distinct ideas about the nature of service. In Killing Time, Hungarian installation artist Balázs Kicsiny both investigates and conflates these institutions and their raisons d’être: to protect or kill, to entertain, and to feed. Beginning Friday, Jan. 27, the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum will present Killing Time, Kicsiny’s newest work and his first U.S. museum exhibition, developed while in residence with the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts as the Henry L. and Natalie E. Freund Visiting Artist.

Jackie and Me at Edison Jan. 11-27

In 1947, Jackie Robinson took the field with the Brooklyn Dodgers and changed baseball forever. Now, imagine traveling back in time to witness Robinson’s historic season first-hand. In Jackie and Me, young Joey Stoshack does exactly that, when a rare baseball card transports the headstrong Little Leaguer to Ebbets Field.

Moving Brian Brooks dance piece Motor makes ‘spirit soar’

With the delicacy of a spider web and the rigorous logic of a chain reaction, three miles of sky blue cord stretch outward from the stage and into the seats, enveloping dancers and audience alike. Choreographer Brian Brooks is known for creating works defined by their cheeky wit, audacious visuals and superhuman endurance. In January, the Brian Brooks Moving Company will present Motor, a major new piece exploring notions of time, entropy and perpetual movement, as part of the Edison Ovations Series.

Double or Nothing

There is an undeniable romanticism to the sculpture of Patrick Dougherty. Working with the simplest of materials — sticks, branches and saplings — the North Carolina-based artist creates playful architectural forms that variously suggest nests, primitive shelters and fairy-tale castles. This fall, Dougherty enlisted dozens of students to help construct Double or Nothing, a new commission for the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts.
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