Walton Arts Center patrons gathered March 7 for a sneak peek at the center's 2022-23 Procter & Gamble Broadway Series. Scott Galbraith, vice president of programming and executive producer, and Jennifer Ross, director of programming, shared with those gathered that the upcoming season consists of beloved classics and contemporary crowd-pleasers. "It's rare that one season would contain two recent Tony Award-winning best musicals and a Tony winner for best revival of a musical," Gailbrath said. "This lineup really is a testament to how the touring Broadway industry has come to value Northwest Arkansas audiences, and we are ecstatic about that."
Broadway shows coming to Northwest Arkansas are:
• "My Fair Lady" -- Aug. 9-14;
• "Pretty Woman: The Musical" -- Sept. 20-25;
• "Chicago" -- Nov. 8-13;
• "Tootsie -- Jan. 17-22;
• "Moulin Rouge! The Musical" -- Feb. 9-19; and
• "Hadestown" -- May 23-28.
Broadway subscriptions and tickets are available by calling the Walton Arts Center box office at (479) 443-5600 or waltonartscenter.org.
Friends of the Walton Arts Center who gathered for a post-peek reception included Marti and Kelly Sudduth, Cynthia Jones, Carol and Ed Clifford, Robert Murphy III, Beau Reynolds, Debbie and Robert Murphy II, Marybeth and Micky Mayfield, Barbara and Robert Reynolds, Georgia and Bill Ross, Wilma and Ed Gray, Martha Fritts, Debbie Ogg, Kathy Pierce, Diane and Dick Higgins and Bonnie and Gary Martineck.
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art welcomed sponsors, lenders, artists and other supporters March 10 for a preview of the museum's latest exhibition, "The Dirty South: Contemporary Art, Material Culture, and the Sonic Impulse" which opened to the public March 12. The exhibition runs through July 25.
Rod Bigelow, Crystal Bridges executive director and chief diversity and inclusion officer, told the group: "We are fortunate tonight to celebrate the opening of a deeply thought-provoking exhibition. 'The Dirty South' shows how Southern Black culture, across geography, has shaped and influenced the South and contemporary culture at large ... Its run here offers all of us a chance to think critically and specifically of the sustaining influence of Southern Black culture."
Organizers say the exhibition features "works of sculpture, paintings, works on paper, assemblage, textiles and music as well as ephemera from music culture, including instruments, music videos, costumes, lyrics and personal effects."
The exhibition is sponsored by the Harrison and Rhonda French Family, Ramsay, Jaquita and Sarah Ball, Catherine and Stephan Roche, Esther Silver-Parker and Deborah Wright.
For more event photos -- nwadg.com/photos/society.
Columnist Carin Schoppmeyer can be reached by email at [email protected].
Debbie Murphy (from left), Robert Murphy, III, Gaby Dobson and Beau Reynolds gather at a reception following the Walton Arts Center's 2022-23 Broadway series announcement March 7 at the center in Fayetteville. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Carin Schoppmeyer)
Louis and Jennifer Martin (from left) and Catherine and Stephan Roche gather in front of "The Seasons — Summer" by Michi Meko at The Dirty South sponsor preview March 10 at Crystal Bridges. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Carin Schoppmeyer)
Kerry and Mark Fowler (from left) and Solomon Hardy and Summer Searcy visit at the Crystal Bridges preview reception March 10. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Carin Schoppmeyer)
Dick and Diane Higgins (from left), Cynthia Jones and Bonnie and Gary Martineck gather at the Walton Arts Center on March 7. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Carin Schoppmeyer)
Carol and Ed Clifford attend the post-announcement reception at the Walton Arts Center. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Carin Schoppmeyer)
Brenda Goodwin (left) and Deborah Wright attend the sponsor preview at Crystal Bridges. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Carin Schoppmeyer)
Rosa and Winton Eugene, artists whose work is featured in "The Dirty South," enjoy the sponsor preview reception. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Carin Schoppmeyer)
Micky and Marybeth Mayfield (from left), and Wilma and Ed Gray gather at the Walton Arts Center on March 7. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Carin Schoppmeyer)