TROY News Center

March 27, 2012

TROY Davis Theatre gets marching with musical "Band Geeks!"

MONTGOMERY— Troy University's Davis Theatre for the Performing Arts will present a fun-filled tribute to marching bands and misfits everywhere with a performance of the musical "Band Geeks!" on Friday, April 20 at 7 p.m.

Presented by the TROY Department of Theatre and Dance, "Band Geeks!" follows the misadventures of the Belleview High Marching Beavers. With just a few members and dwindling funds, the band is close to extinction. When a troubled athlete is relegated to their ranks, tuba-playing band captain Elliott and his best friend Laura must find a way to unite the band, embrace their inner geek and save the Marching Beavers.

"Band Geeks!" features music by Mark Allen, Gaby Alter and Troy University alumnus Tommy Newman, and lyrics by Alter and Newman. The book is by Newman and Gordon Greenberg, who directed the original production for Goodspeed Musicals, based on a concept by Newman.

Tickets for the performance range in price from $15 to $25. A limited number of tickets for this performance are being offered at the special rate of "buy one, get one free."

The Davis Theatre is located in downtown Montgomery at 251 Montgomery Street. For more information, or to purchase tickets, call the Theatre office at (334) 241-9567. Office hours are Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday, 8 a.m. to noon.

The performances of "Band Geeks!" are being presented as part of TROY's yearlong 125th Birthday Celebration.

March 27, 2012

Charlotta Janssen exhibit "Threads of a Story" coming to Rosa Parks Museum

MONTGOMERY—Artist Charlotta Janssen, whose paintings pay tribute to the men and women who took part in the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Freedom Rides, will be featured in an exhibit at Troy University's Rosa Parks Museum starting April 1.

"Threads of a Story: History Inspiring Art" will be on display in the museum's exhibit hall through May 28. The exhibit features paintings that recreate the mug shots of people arrested for their participation in the Bus Boycott and Freedom Rides.

Using oil, acrylics, rust and collage, Janssen re-imagines these arrest mug shots as a tribute to those who took part in the civil rights movement. "Threads of a Story" has been displayed at exhibits in New York and at the Nashville Public Library.

Janssen was born in Maine to German parents living in the U.S. under the Marshall plan. In 1973 the family moved to Iran, and later fled during the 1979 revolution. She studied painting at the University of Arts in Berlin from 1986-1989, later dropping out and travelling the world as a street musician and performance artist. She returned to painting in 1991 and currently lives and works in Brooklyn, N.Y.

The exhibit hall at the Rosa Parks Museum is free and open to the public from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday.

For more information on this exhibit or other upcoming events, contact curator Viola Moten at 334-241-8701 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

March 23, 2012

Troy University and State of Alabama plays host to China-Alabama Week

TROY – The official dedication of Confucius Institute at Troy University will highlight Alabama-China Week March 28-30 on the Troy Campus.

The Confucius Institute at Troy University, the state's only such center for cultural, language and business exchange with China, was established at the University in 2007 and was the 23rd institute in the United States.

University officials, Alabama officials and Chinese dignitaries will formally dedicate the Institutes' permanent offices in Bibb Graves Hall on March 29 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony following an address by Consul General Xu Erwen, whose consulate in Houston, Texas, represents China in 13 states, including Alabama.

Consul-General Xu's address will take place in the Trojan Center Theater at 9:30 a.m. The dedication ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. at the Confucius Institute entrance on the lower level of the newly completed Bibb Graves Hall annex.

Also speaking at the dedication ceremony will be Shulian Guo, Deputy Director of the Education Department of the Hebei Province in China and State Superintendent of Education Tommy Bice, who will sign a cooperation agreement between the State Department of Education and the Hebei Province for educational programs.

TROY Chancellor, Dr. Jack Hawkins, Jr., will officiate the ceremonies, and addresses will be given by Lt. Gov. Kay Ivy, Dr. Guohua Yan, Director of the Department of Education of the Houston Consulate, and Yongli Want, Deputy Director of Hanban, the Chinese government's agency that oversees student exchange programs.

Following the ceremonies, the Alabama-China Education Symposium will begin in the Confucius Institute and continue on Friday, March 30.

Highlighting the symposium on Friday will be a performance by the choir of Birmingham's Highland Middle School, a Confucius Classroom site, and presentations on Confucius Classrooms by Highland Principal Kathryn Barr, and Mr. Steven Frost, who teaches Mandarin Chinese at Loveless Academic Magnet Program High School in Montgomery. The symposium will also hear a presentation by Jun Yang, vice-principal of Qinhuangdao New Century High School in China. Friday's symposium will be presided over by Senior Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs, Dr. Earl Ingram.

March 23, 2012

Alabama-China Week/Confucius Institute dedication March 28-30

Troy University is hosting a delegation from the People's Republic of China, the nation's consulate office in Houston, Texas, and various state officials on the Troy Campus Wednesday-Friday. Various events are taking place during this time including the official dedication ceremonies of the Confucius Institute at Troy University.

Following is a schedule of events:

Wednesday, March 28:
3 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.: Confucius Institute board meeting 115 Bibb Graves Hall
5 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.: Private reception CI Library Bibb Graves Hall
7 p.m. – 9 p.m.: Banquet Hall of Honor

Thursday, March 29:
9 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.: Chinese Consul General Address Trojan Center Theater
9:45 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.: Tent reception New Quad/Bibb Graves Hall
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. CI dedication ceremony Bibb Graves
10:30 a.m. Signing of ASDE agreement Bibb Graves
Dr. Tom Bice, State Superintendent
Shuliang Guo, Deputy Director, Hebei Province
11:45 a.m.: MEDIA AVAILABILITY WITH PRIMARY PLAYERS
Chinese deputies of education, economy and culture will be here, in addition to Chancellor Hawkins, and Consul-General Xu, and others
11:45 a.m.: Tours of the Confucius Institute
2 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.: Alabama-China Symposium Hawkins Hall
3:35 p.m. – 5 p.m: Visit to Johnson Cultural Arts Center Downtown Troy
7:30 p.m.: Delegation attends "Band Geeks" Crosby Theater

Friday, March 30:
10:30 a.m.: Alabama-China Education Symposium CI in Bibb Graves
Highland Middle School children performance
Plaque unveilings
Presentation by Highland Principal Kathryn Barr
Presentation by LAMP instructor Steven Frost
10:55 a.m.: Cake cutting ceremony

This event is open for coverage at any point, but the principle actors will be available for interview as indicated. Contact Clif Lusk via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  or cell at 334-268-9982 to confirm your organization's attendance.

March 23, 2012

March 23, 2012

Kennedy Center honors John M. Long with Sondheim Award

TROY—The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has named Dr. John M. Long, director of bands emeritus at Troy University, as one of 10 winners of the Kennedy Center/Stephen Sondheim Inspirational Teacher Awards.

The awards were announced on Thursday, March 22—Sondheim's birthday. Teachers were selected for their exceptional influence on students and only former students can nominate candidates for the award. Seventeen of Dr. Long's former students from Robert E. Lee High School in Montgomery and Troy University submitted letters of nomination. Each recipient receives a $10,000 cash award.

"It was a real honor to get this award," Dr. Long said. "I was excited to hear about it. All I ever wanted to be was a teacher and I am humbled to receive this recognition.

The Sondheim Award marks the second major honor for Long this month. Earlier in March, he was named an Honorary Life Member of the American Bandmasters Association, one of only two living bandmasters to hold this distinction.

Dr. Long, a native of Guntersville who served as director of bands at TROY from 1965-1996, is a past president of the American Bandmasters Association and is a member of the National Band Association's Hall of Fame of Distinguished Band Conductors and the Alabama Bandmasters Hall of Fame. In 2010, Dr. Long was named as honorary president of the National Band Association, and last July was the subject of a feature piece for CBS Evening News on his continued involvement as conductor of the Southeast Alabama Community Band.

The annual Kennedy Center/Stephen Sondheim Inspirational Teacher Awards publicly recognize specific teachers by spotlighting their extraordinary impact on the lives of students, according to the Center's website. The Awards celebrate the teaching profession, the important role of teachers in society, and seek to inspire others to pursue this noble profession.

Sondheim has received more Tony Awards than any other composer and he also won a Pulitzer Prize for the music and lyrics for "Sunday in the Park With George." He wrote the scores fro some of the best-known works in American music theater, including "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," "A Little Night Music" and "Sweeny Todd."