Arts at Bucks Celebration Starts Tuesday

The fifth annual Arts at Bucks celebration at Bucks County Community College will showcase the work of students and outside artists through a host of performances, exhibitions and demonstrations. It will be held April 19 to May 12.

“This event celebrates our students’ accomplishments by bringing them together and combining them with outside acts,” said John Matthews, assistant academic dean for the arts. “There isn’t just one thing to look forward to -- I look forward to a couple weeks of seeing one event after another.”

Run by the BCCC Department of the Arts in cooperation with the Hicks Art Center Gallery, Arts at Bucks boasts an impressive roster of activities.

If you’d like to sit back and be entertained, you can choose from an array of student performances, including improv comedy sketches and the play Addicted, which will have live music both before the play and during intermission. The BCCC Madrigal Singers, a select vocal ensemble, will present an advanced repertoire representing diverse genres, and the BCCC percussion ensemble will perform classical and jazz selections.

Movie buffs are invited to sample a juried selection of student produced and directed films. L'isola dei Sordobimbi (The Island of Deaf Children), a documentary nominated for the David di Donatello (the Italian Oscar), will make its United States debut. On Tuesday, there will be a screening and discussion with the movie’s director, Stefano Cattini.

If you feel like stretching your legs, you can breeze through some of the many open studios, including ceramics, woodworking, jewelry and glassblowing. Take in a bronze pour demonstration or a showing of transFORMation: Art Made with Recycled and Reused Materials. There will also be an art and craft sale, where student-made jewelry, ceramics, wood and printmaking may be purchased.

“I enjoy seeing the results of the students’ studies after a year, seeing their energy, effort and talent celebrated,” Matthews said. “You walk around, hear the music, look at the artwork, and when it all comes together it’s really exciting.”

Arts at Bucks also offers two musical performances from outside the college. You can watch Monkadelphia perform the music of Thelonious Monk on April 27, or see the Uri Caine Trio, a world-renowned jazz group known for its fluid funk, fusion and traditional jazz on May 5.
 
In conjunction with Arts at Bucks, the 46th annual student exhibition will take place April 23 to May 7, showcasing the best work made by students in the Department of the Arts.

Bucks County Community College (BCCC) is an accredited member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design and the National Association of Schools of Music.

“BCCC has a very nice program. I was happy to find a nice little art community there,” said Ilana Millhous, a seasoned local designer who took a web design class to brush up on her web skills and ended up designing the cover design and logo for the Arts at Bucks brochure. “I felt very honored to be asked to do something for the school.”

Most events take place in the Gateway Auditorium and the Hicks Art Center Gallery. Many are free but some performances do require an admission fee. To see the full roster of events or purchase tickets visit www.bucks.edu/artsatbucks.