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09.05.06

For Immediate Release: September 5 , 2006

Contact: Gina Atwater, gmatwat@learnlink.emory.edu, 404-712-6424

Emory’s STIR III Arts Fest Planned with Goal of Awakening Community Creativity
Release written by Gina Atwater

Now in its third year, STIR, Emory’s annual student arts festival, has increased its presence among artists, students and the Atlanta community. Whereas STIR I and II were 24-hour festivals, STIR III will feature nonstop and sometimes simultaneous artistic performances, workshops and competitions over the course of six hours. STIR III will take place on Saturday, September 9, from noon until 6 p.m. at the Patterson Plaza, the courtyard on the campus side of the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, 1700 N. Decatur Rd., Emory University. The event is free and open to the public, and convenient free parking is available on weekends at the Fishburne Parking Deck, located beside the Schwartz Center. Demonstrating the increasing presence and vitality of the arts at Emory, the festival is sponsored by Emory’s Student Arts Council, Emory College, the Department of Theater Studies, Theater Emory, the Visual Arts Program, the Art History Department, the Music Department, the Dance Program, the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts and the STIPE Society.

STIR was created to foster the development of new artistic work and encourage interdisciplinary collaborations among artists. STIR III was nicknamed “The Juggernaut” by the Student Arts Council because of the momentum of its three-ring circus format that will ensure that students are exposed to every major artistic discipline. The performance arena will feature Atlanta dance company Several Dancers Core as its special guests. Also performing on the main stage are such Emory student groups as Rathskellar (improvisational comedy), No Strings Attached (all male a cappella), Ad Hoc Productions (theater) and members of the Emory Guitar Ensemble.

STIR participants are not confined to the role of audience members. The STIR format encourages everyone to pursue artistic passions — and to discover previously hidden artistic skills. For this reason, the contest arena will feature a Bhangra workshop sponsored by Karma; a movie-making-in-a-day contest sponsored by EmoryVision; a Stage Combat demonstration; an interactive drum circle using unconventional drumming material; and a contest titled “So You Think You Can Dance?,” featuring judges from the Student Arts Council, Emory Dance Company and AHANA Dance.

For those interested in the visual arts, the STIR Art Gallery is available for creating and displaying sculpture, paintings, drawings, sketches and stencil works. The Haiku Chalking contest and the Chalk Art contest (sponsored by the STIPE Society) allow students to win prizes for participating in a favorite pastime. Body painting is also available for the adventurous and fun-loving visual artist. In addition, Student Arts Council member Kate Southern will be drawing caricatures for interested students.

Anyone wishing to escape the heat can enjoy STIR Cinemateque in the Schwartz Center’s Tharp Rehearsal Hall. The movie screenings feature past winners from Delta’s Campus Moviefest, films by Student Arts Council member Christie Pettitt-Schieber and Starving Artist Production’s “Electric,” directed by College senior Dave Quay. In addition, a Dance Dance Revolution activity space makes its STIR debut in the Cinemateque.

 Arts at Emory Mission and Background

Emory is home to a vibrant arts community and welcomes the public to more than 200 annual events featuring student, faculty and guest artists. The campus is home to the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, Michael C. Carlos Museum, Visual Arts Building and Gallery, Schatten Gallery of the Woodruff Library, Performing Arts Studio, Cannon Chapel, Glenn Memorial Auditorium, Mary Gray Munroe Theater, and the Heilbrun Music and Media Library.

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