One Acts

When: Dec. 3 & 4 at 8 p.m.
Where:Xavier Hall Studio Theatre
Cost: free

On Dec. 3 and 4, a series of four student-directed, one-act plays will be performed in the Xavier Hall Studio Theatre.
Theatre-major seniors Erin Almand, James Canfield and Healy Rodman, along with junior Anita Shastri will be directing the plays as part of their Directing II class.
“A one-act is a short play that has no intermission. It can last anywhere between 10 to 60 minutes. All four of our one acts are around 30 minutes long each and tell a complete story within a short period of time,” Canfield said.
Almand, Canfield, Rodman and Shastri will each be directing their own one act.
“We each got the chance to pick which one we would be interested in directing,” Canfield said.
Canfield chose to direct “Freak!” The play tells the story of a new girl in school, who is suspected to be a robot.
“As rumors and gossip spread throughout the school, the New Girl and her classmates must find her way in this world and discover that she’s more than just a freak,” Canfield said.
In addition to “Freak!,” those in attendance will also be able to see “Jerry Finnegan’s Sister,” directed by Almand; “How to be a Good Son,” directed by Rodman; and “Boy Meets Girl: A Young Love Story,” directed by Shastri.
Auditions for the plays were held in October. Forty people came out and auditioned, and from those people the casts were selected.
“As a director, I have been in charge of casting the show, organizing rehearsals, staging and working on all aspects of the show from creating designs, helping actors discover their characters, and bringing the script to life on stage,” Canfield said.
The shows will take place at 8 p.m. Admission is free to the public.
“Students should come see the one acts because the SLU community needs to support the arts. Each one act is a fantastic piece of theatre that allows the audience member to discover a new world, as well as possibly discover something new about themselves,” Canfield said.

Guitar Ensemble

When: Dec. 2 at 7:30 p.m.
Where: Cupple’s House
Cost: free

The Guitar Ensemble will host a recital on Thursday, Dec. 2 at The Cupple’s House.
The ensemble will perform works by Barrios, Handel, Hindesmith and Walton.
According to director William Hopkins, there will also be three Christmas carols performed by seven guitarists.
Hopkins describes these carols as one of the highlights of the recital.
The Guitar Ensemble is made up of students who can enroll in the class for zero or one credit. They meet once a week to practice and are expected to practice on their own time as well. They have one trial recital at MOCRA before the actual recital.
This semester, the group consists of freshmen Jason Carter, Steven Freedman, Ben Minden-Birkenmaier, Andrew Patrick, Brandon Turnbull and seniors Ryan Pacatte and Stephen Siegner.
The recital will begin at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free.

String Orchestra

When: Dec. 3  at 7:30 p.m.
Where:College Church
Cost: free

Director Marc Thayer would say that beautiful music in an elegant place is just one of the reasons that students should attend The Saint Louis University String Orchestra’s fall concert.
The concert will take place on Friday, Dec. 3 in St. Francis Xavier College Church. The orchestra will be performing works by Marias, Ravel, Corelli, Holst, Gianelli and Bach. In addition, they will also be playing some holiday music. Special guest, Maryse Carlin will be playing the Harpsichord.
“The music was written for this kind of environment,” Thayer said.
The group has been preparing for the concert since the end of August by practicing once a week.  Students, staff and faculty make up the orchestra, which is in its second year. The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m., and the admission is free.“
It’s free, and [the String Orchestra is] one of the best things about SLU,” Thayer said.

Concert Choir
When: Dec. 6 at 6:30 p.m.
Where:College Church
Cost: free

The Saint Louis University Concert Choir will be performing on Monday, Dec. 6 in College Church.
The concert will consist of seasonal music sung by the Concert Choir, The Mastersingers, The Fleur de Lis, a women’s chorus and a women’s quartet. In addition, “Ode on the Imitations on Immorality,” a large work by Arthur Somvervell will be featured with a performance by guest soloist, Martin Dressler.
The choir is made up of 40-50 students. While these students come from various disciplines, they all have choral singing experience.
“Voice majors are required to be in this choir, which includes the Mastersingers as its nucleus,” director Jeral Becker said.
According to Becker, SLU has had a choir possibly from the beginning. However, the Concert Choir replaced the University Chorale four years ago.
The Fleur de Lis, which was formed 11 years ago, is made up of the women from the Concert Choir and the Mastersingers.
The Women’s Quartet was formed recently.
In order to prepare for the concert, the group practices once a week for the duration of the semester.
“If the choir is thoroughly prepared and sing with spirit, the audience will absorb such expression and be inspired.  To have young people absorbed and motivated by such a noble art as music is truly a wonderful and uplifting thing,” Becker said.
The concert will begin at 6:30 p.m. Admission is free, and the concert is open to the public.

Jazz Ensemble

When: Dec. 6 at 7:30 p.m.
Where:The University
Theatre
Cost: free

The Saint Louis University Jazz Ensemble will be performing its fall concert on Monday, Dec. 6.
The concert will feature a Big Band, Saxophone Quartet and Combo, which will feature a vocalist and solo opportunities for the performers.
They will be performing works by Sammy Nestico, Herbie Hancock, John Coltrane and Jerome Kern.
According to director and associate music professor, Robert Hughes, the ensemble as a class and co-curricular organization, is open to everyone in the SLU community including students, faculty and staff.
The ensemble, which was established in the fall of 2000, was originally founded as a traditional big band.
“The SLU Jazz Ensemble has adapted to try and meet the needs of the students interested in jazz,” Hughes said.
The group rehearses once a week from the beginning of the semester in order to prepare for their fall concert, which is held the last Monday of classes.
“Students are responsible for practicing their individual parts outside of class, and then rehearsal time is used to bring all of the individual parts together as a whole,” Hughes said.
The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. and will take place in The University Theatre located in Xavier Hall.