<h2>Red Wing Roots Music Festival Named 2025 Recipient of the Circle of Excellence in the Arts Award</h2> <h5>Recognizing individuals and organizations that enhance and strengthen the Shenandoah Valley’s Cultural Community</h5>

Friday, June 12, 2026 (Harrisonburg, Va.) – The Forbes Center for the Performing Arts at James Madison University (JMU) has announced its highly anticipated 2026-2027 Masterpiece Season. Audiences are invited to experience an inspiring lineup of world-class dance, theatre and music performances, alongside cherished family-friendly favorites from the popular "Forbes Family Fun" series. Subscription packages and single tickets go on sale to the general public on Monday, June 29, at 10 a.m. and can be purchased online, by phone at 540-568-7000 or in person at the Forbes Center Box Office.  

Top performances this season include:

• TAIKOPROJECT, an award winning American taiko group who’s performed at the Academy Awards, the GRAMMY® Awards, NBC’s The Voice and The X-Factor.
• GRAMMY® Award-nominee and Billboard-topping pianist and vocal artist, Simone Dinnerstein, performs her program Solo Dialogues.
• Three-time GRAMMY® award nominee, Stile Antico, one of the world's most accomplished and innovative vocal ensembles, will perform Renaissance polyphony.
• Danú’s A St. Patrick’s Day Celebration, will delight audiences with their mix of ancient Irish music and new repertoire.
• The most decorated group in world music history with five GRAMMY® Awards and 19 nominations, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, will warm hearts and minds.
• The Cory Band, will bring 50+ musicians from the Welsh Valleys to the Forbes Center for the third time to fill it with a wall of brass that is precise, powerful and deeply alive.
• The Other Mozart, a play by Sylvia Milo, tells the true story of Nannerl Mozart, a prodigy, keyboard virtuoso and composer, in this award-winning solo performance.

Other exciting Encore performances include:

• Hayde Bluegrass Orchestra, a seven-piece acoustic band from Oslo, Norway, performs a unique blend of bluegrass and Nordic folk.
• Named 'Best Group/Duo’ by the International Acoustic Music Awards, Ryanhood’s sound threads folk, rock and pop together and will be an energetic and quietly moving evening.
• Women of the World, an award-winning international vocal ensemble, performs original and traditional folk music with a contemporary twist.
• PHILADANCO!, has spent more than five decades breaking barriers and building bridges across cultural divides through the power of dance.
• A duo that bridges the depth of Western classical music with the mesmerizing elegance of Korean gug-ak (traditional Korean music); CelloGayageum performs a musical journey.
• Different Ships, Same Boat is a multidisciplinary performance combining spoken word, music and song to explore the multifaceted ways Americans risk, live, love and laugh.
• A jazz ensemble celebrated for its electrifying take on hot jazz and early swing; The Hot Sardines’ show will feel like a roaring club brought to the present.
• Camerata RCO is a unique ensemble comprised of members of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam that performs chamber music that feels personal and intimate. 

The Forbes Center is proud to present its "Forbes Family Fun" show lineup, inviting families with children who enjoy the performing arts, including:

• Making a splash on Season 8 of American’s Got Talent, Catapult’s dancers transform their bodies to tell stories and stretch the imagination in Magic Shadows.
• Who’s Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf? is a 35-minute children’s opera sung in English that uses themes from one of Mozart’s great operas.
• Everyone’s winter family favorite HolidayFest will fill audiences with cheer once again in December with this year's theme: Magic and Memories.
• Anastasia: The Musical is about discovering who you are and defining who you’re meant to be and follows Anya as she sets out to discover the mystery of her past.
• Captain Nemo’s Adventure Academy: 20,000 Laughs Under the Sea entertains, inspires and challenges young audiences in an immersive theatrical experience.
• Doktor Kaboom: Under Pressure! combines science and comedy to empower young audiences and show them they can become scientists, too. 

In JMU’s School of Music, concertgoers can experience:

• Madison Trust is sponsoring Angela Brown, a soprano whose vocal power has graced stages including Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center and the National Opera of Paris.
• The 45th Annual Contemporary Music Festival is back featuring guest composer Texu Kim, JMU’s Chamber Orchestra, Madison Singers, Wind Symphony and Symphony Orchestra and more.
• The Magic Flute, tells the story of Prince Tamino as he sets off on a magical quest. Expect lots of twists and turns in this classic Mozart opera that’s equal parts fairytale and allegory.
• JMU Opera Theatre’s 2027 evening of Opera Scenes will include the world premiere of a new community opera, The Friendly City, composed by JMU student Colin Cossi.

In the School of Theatre and Dance (STAD), this season’s theatrical highlights include:

• Kick off your dancing shoes and cut loose with Footloose! This high-energy stage adaptation of the iconic film is packed with heart and humor from start to finish.
• Dancescapes will feature JMU’s Virginia Repertory Dance Company and choreographic work by guest artists from across the country and JMU faculty and students.
• Nuyorican playwright Migdalia Cruz reimagines Macbeth, giving this tragedy new light where the Witches run the world and spin their fate.
• Galatea, or Whatever You Be by MJ Kaufman reimages John Lyly’s 1585 play Gallathea as a queer love story set against the backdrop of a climate crisis.
• New Voices in Dance, is an inspiring concert showcasing the talent and vision of JMU’s Contemporary Dance Ensemble, celebrating original works by dance majors.
• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, a play by Simon Stephens, based on the novel by Mark Haddon, is the touching and humorous tale of a mind like no other.

The 2026-2027 Forbes Center Masterpiece Season is sponsored by Kathy Moran Wealth Group. For more information, visit www.kmwealthgroup.com or call 540-434-7470.

To purchase Subscription and single tickets beginning on Monday, June 29, at 10 a.m. or for more information on the Forbes Center, visit our website.