Forbes Center for the Performing Arts

When newly-engaged Abigail and Carver receive DNA tests as a wedding gift, they interrogate what it means to marry someone of a different race. As they grapple with their identities from midnight to dawn, family legends and stories interrupt their idealized future together. Can Abigail and Carver overcome the past and forge a new story together? This world premiere features students from JMU’s School of Theatre and Dance. More

Experience a thrilling interpretation of the ancient Japanese tradition of taiko drumming with Yamato, whose members use “every bit” of their bodies to create an intense and high-energy performance that sends audiences home with a new vitality and passion for life. Jhonetsu-Passion is an innovative program that highlights the group’s virtuosity, strength, spirit, and sheer endurance. More

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A captivating crew of storytelling musicians bring Oscar Wilde’s classic fairy tales to life in Tall Stories’ new show, Wilde Creatures, a fantastical journey through palaces, forests and beyond direct from London’s West End. Founded in 1997, England’s Tall Stories is internationally recognized for its exciting blend of storytelling, original music, and laughs. More

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Bluestone Winds is the faculty woodwind quintet-in-residence in the James Madison University School of Music. Featuring Beth Chandler (flute), Jeanette Zkyo (oboe), Sarunas Jankauskas (clarinet), Sue Barber (bassoon) and Ian Zook (horn), the ensemble will present a varied program of standard quintet repertoire as well as literature by lesser-known composers. More

Prepare to be uplifted and transformed by the critically-acclaimed American Spiritual Ensemble featuring some of the finest singers in the classical music world. ASE aims to keep the American Negro Spiritual alive by performing renditions of classic spirituals, jazz and Broadway favorites that highlight the black experience. The Madison Singers will sing a few select numbers with ASE in this concert. More

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The JMU Percussion Ensemble, directed by Casey Cangelosi, consists of nearly 30 students and has performed throughout the East Coast, including concerts at the Virginia Music Educators Association Convention and Virginia Days of Percussion. More

Award-winning conductor Vladimir Lande will lead the Siberian State Symphony Orchestra, one of the best orchestras in Russia, and a world-class piano soloist in a dazzling concert of Russian favorites including Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in D Minor, Op. 30; Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 in E Minor, Op. 64; and Shostakovich’s The Bolt, Suite from the Ballet, Op. 27a - Tango. More

Be swept away by the romance of hot Latin breezes in this enchanting evening of scenes and arias from your favorite operas! JMU Opera Theater students will perform songs from Massenet’s Don Quixote and Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, “Granada” and “Tico-Tico no fubá,” as well as others by Granados, Rodrigo, and more. Join the cast members for Latin-inspired desserts and coffee in the lobby following the performance! More

The JMU Jazz Ensemble and Jazz Band were founded in 1971 and are under the direction of Dr. Chuck Dotas. JMU jazz groups have performed at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts’ Terrace Theater, Montreux International Jazz and Blues Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival and VMEA annual convention. More

JMU’s senior dance majors are on the verge of graduation and entering into their exciting careers as dance artists. Come watch them as they showcase their amazing work in this annual concert. More

Three of opera’s most critically-acclaimed rising stars perform the world’s greatest arias, duets, and trios from Rigoletto, Faust, I Lombardi, La traviata, Manon Lescaut, La bohème, and more! This concert commemorates the 70th anniversary of the original Bel Canto Trio, and features the program that toured the United States in the 1947-1948 season. More

The JMU Brass Band is the university’s premier brass ensemble. Directed by professor of music Kevin Stees, it is one of only a few collegiate brass bands in the United States. More

“One of the most exciting classical guitarists today,” (The New York Times) Miloš Karadaglić is topping record charts and delighting audiences worldwide with playing that is “crisp, colorful and rhythmically alive.” (NPR) Voice of the Guitar features Miloš and a world-class musical quintet playing classical and pop favorites by musicians ranging from J.S. Bach and Enrique Granados to Astor Piazzolla and The Beatles. More

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Violet and Daisy Hilton shared a rare bond: they were literally attached at the hip. The conjoined twins are the real-life inspiration behind the 2014 Broadway musical revival Side Show, which follows the story of the English entertainers and their search for love and acceptance amidst exploitation and fame in the 1930s’ side show, vaudeville and Hollywood communities. Features students from JMU’s School of Theatre and Dance and School of Music. More

The JMU Symphonic Band is under the direction of Stephen P. Bolstad. More