The PAC on a sunny day.

The Department of Fine Arts and the University Artist Series sponsor a wide variety of performances that are open to the public, usually free or at a minimal charge. Those held in the downtown Performing Arts Center venues are typically ticketed, Box Office: 843-661-4444 between 12:00 and 5:00 pm. Other than University Theatre performances, events held in venues on the main campus are typically general admission with no advance reservation system.

Dr. Paolo André Gualdi, piano

FMU Faculty Recital Series
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 6, 2022

Italian pianist Paolo André Gualdi has played recitals in Italy, France, Brazil and the United States for music organizations such as A.Gi.Mus., Accademia Ori, and Accademia Amadeus (Italy); Universidade Federal do Rio Grande so Sul and Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (Brazil); Musée Würth (France); International Piano Series of Charleston, American Liszt Society, Cincinnati Conservatory, and the Piccolo Spoleto Festival (U.S.A.). He has also appeared with many orchestras including the Georgia Philharmonic, Wilmington Symphony, Atlanta Philharmonic, Florence Symphony, DeKalb Symphony, and the Universidade de Caxias do Sul Symphony Orchestra.

Paolo has recorded for Mark Records and IFO Classics, and his performances have been broadcast by radios such as NPR and Radio Vaticana.

Having previously served on the faculties of Elon University, Emmanuel College and Oxford College of Emory University, he is currently Associate Professor of Music at Francis Marion University and founder and artistic director of the South Carolina Chamber Music Festival.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Enrico Elisi, piano

FMU Artist Series
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, September 14, 2022

Enrico Elisi was born and raised in Italy, where he performed in historical settings (La Fenice Theatre, Venice; Palazzo Vecchio, Florence; Bibiena Theatre, Mantua; and Pavarotti Opera House, Modena). A laureate of the Oporto International Competition and the Venice Competition, he also garnered many first prizes and successes in Italian competitions. Elisi gave recitals internationally, in Europe, the Americas, South Korea, China, Taiwan, and Singapore, with recent engagements at the Banff Centre for the Arts, Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall, the New York Public Library, New York’s Morgan Library, Washington’s National Gallery of Art and the Italian Embassy, and the Centro Cultural de España in Lima, Peru. Several orchestras in the US and Europe featured him as a soloist, and as an avid chamber musician, he performed at the Taos and Ravinia Festivals.

A champion of new music, Elisi commissioned works from composers of many nationalities, premiered Paul Chihara’s Two Images at Weill Hall (available on Albany Records) and performed for Sciarrino’s residence at the University of Toronto, New Music Festival. Elisi frequently serves on the jury of several competitions and is a frequent guest at festivals in the USA, China, Spain, Switzerland, and Italy, as well as major universities worldwide, where he presented myriad masterclasses in conjunction with his performing and workshop engagements. A recipient of the distinguished Faculty of Music Teaching Award at the University of Toronto, where he teaches, Elisi is a Steinway Artist and became a citizen of the United States of America in 2012.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Daniel Clarke, multi-instrumentalist

FMU Artist Series
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, September 28, 2022

Daniel Clarke is a multi-instrumentalist/songwriter/producer/teacher born and raised in Richmond, VA.  A graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Jazz Studies program, Daniel has anchored Richmond-based groups such as Modern Groove Syndicate, the Devil’s Workshop Big Band and Neighborliness, and has gone on to perform and record all over the world.  His playing has been heard everywhere from the White House to the Opening Ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Daniel’s eclectic and prodigious musicianship can’t be contained by one specific genre.  His ear for quality has made him a sought after collaborator by artists such as k.d. lang, Ryan Adams, The War on Drugs, Mandy Moore, Jason Mraz, René Marie, and countless others spanning all genres.  He released the 7” single “Diamonds” on Ryan Adams’ Pax Am label in 2015.  Daniel has also served as the Music Director for SPARC’s Live Art, a program at the leading edge of arts education, integrating performing arts curriculum with special education to create a unique and powerful program for students of all abilities.

Of all the venues in which Daniel has had the opportunity to perform, his favorite place to make music is at home with his wife Alice and their two little girls.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

The Rocky Horror Show by Richard O’Brien

Francis Marion University Theatre
Directed by D. Keith Best
Musical Direction by Dr. Brandon Goff
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 pm, October 20-22 & 26-29, 2022

As an out-of-work actor in London in the early 1970s, Richard O’Brien wrote The Rocky Horror Show to keep himself busy on winter evenings. Since his youth, he had developed a passion for science fiction and B horror movies; he wanted to combine elements of the unintentional humor of B horror movies, portentous dialogue of schlock-horror, Steve Reeves muscle films, and fifties rock and roll into The Rocky Horror Show.  A major theme running throughout the musical is transvestism, which according to O’Brien was not originally meant to be as prominent as it ended up being. He conceived and wrote the play set against the backdrop of the glam era that had manifested itself throughout British popular culture in the early 1970s; he has stated “glam rock allowed me to be myself more,” allowing his concept to come into being.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.University Theatre Rocky Horror Cast Fall2022

FMU Concert Band
Dr. Terry Roberts, conductor

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Mainstage Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 25, 2022

The Francis Marion University Concert Band will be performing its fall concert at the FMU Performing Arts Center in downtown Florence.

The Francis Marion University Concert Band is composed of FMU students as well as community members from the Pee Dee region. Community members include professional area music educators, band directors, choir directors, ministers of music, and FMU music faculty members.  Membership is open to all FMU students and area residents who are experienced concert band instrumentalists. Performances include traditional concert band music as well as popular and show music. The program began as a way to give students of FMU a chance to perform music, earn academic credit for performance in the ensemble, and to become involved with other students in campus life.

Beginning in the spring of 2002, the FMU Concert Band rehearsals were scheduled on Tuesday evenings and adult musicians from the region were invited to participate. The band continues to rehearse every Tuesday evening.

We are always seeking additional participants; if you play a band instrument or know someone looking for a place to play, please contact us. Information can be found at Music – Instrumental Program or email Dr. Terry Roberts at troberts@fmarion.edu

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

FMU String Ensemble
Dr. Terry Roberts, director

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, November 2, 2022

Open to all university students and faculty interested in learning and performing chamber music, the University String Ensemble members meet for weekly rehearsals during Fall and Spring academic semesters, giving public recitals and accompanying other campus ensembles.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Jon Conley, guitar

FMU Artist Series
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Thursday, November 10, 2022

Jon Conley is a mainstay of the Nashville music industry. Jon began playing guitar at seven (wanting to play like Roy Clark) and has branched out to include mandolin, fiddle, banjo, vocals and songwriting in his portfolio. Perhaps best known as the lead guitarist for the Kenny Chesney band, he has credits on recordings by a number of artists and attributes his success to practicing and taking every opportunity to perform seriously.

This informal performance is taking place while Jon is in Florence to work with music industry students at Francis Marion University.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Seraph Brass

FMU Fine Arts Recital Series
Artist Series, REAL Grant and Gender Studies Program
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Thursday, November 15, 2022

Seraph Brass was founded by trumpet soloist Mary Elizabeth Bowden with the mission of elevating and showcasing the excellence of female brass players and highlighting musicians from marginalized groups both in personnel and in programming. Winners of the American Prize in Chamber Music, the group has been praised for their “beautiful sounds” (American Record Guide), “fine playing” (Gramophone), and “staggeringly high caliber of performance” (Textura). Now in its ninth touring season, Seraph primarily performs as a quintet, with a dynamic roster drawing from America’s top brass musicians. The group is currently in residency at the Walton Art Center’s Artosphere Festival, alongside the Dover Quartet. Seraph Brass is a Yamaha Performing Group and performs exclusively on Yamaha instruments.

Members of Seraph Brass are passionate about music education, and hold teaching positions at the University of North Texas, Shenandoah Conservatory, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In each of their tours, the group works to provide educational outreach to local schools, and they also offer a variety of entrepreneurship and career development workshops, in addition to traditional brass pedagogy and technique master classes.

In addition to this performance, Seraph Brass will perform with the Florence Symphony Orchestra on November 14th and work with FMU students in the Music Industry and Gender Studies program. Funding for the Seraph Brass residency has been provided through a grant from the Francis Marion University REAL program to encourage experiential or nontraditional learning, with assistance from FMU’s Gender Studies Program and the Florence Symphony Orchestra.

The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

FMU Music Industry Ensemble
Dr. Brandon Goff, director

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Chapman Auditorium, McNair Science  Building
7:30 p.m. Thursday, November 17, 2022

The Music Industry Ensemble is a chamber ensemble devoted to the development of individual performance and improvisation skills through the staging of music for small groups representing a variety of classic and modern jazz, pop, rock and soul styles. The M.I.E. provides a workshop in which students also learn arranging, microphone technique and scheduling, sound reinforcement and lighting design.

Please contact Dr. Brandon Goff bgoff@fmarion.edu for additional information about participating in the M.I. Ensemble.

RESERVATIONS: Free admission, no advance reservations.

FMU Concert Choir and Voice Collective
Dr. Fran Coleman

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Mainstage Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Monday, November 21, 2022

Open to all university students, the University Concert Choir has an average enrollment of between 35 and 45 students. This group has sung in numerous area churches and has also performed with the Florence Symphony Orchestra. They have performed such major choral works as the “Polovetzian Dance and Chorus” of Alexander Borodin, the “Schicksalslied” of Johannes Brahms, and the Ninth Symphony of Ludwig van Beethoven. Recently their concerts have included selections accompanied by the newly formed Francis Marion string ensemble.

Francis Marion’s Voice Collective is a small, audition-only vocal group. This group performs throughout the region for schools and service organizations. They have also performed in Orlando, Florida, in Baltimore, Maryland, in Washington, D.C., in Vienna, Austria, and on a performance cruise to the Bahamas.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

FMU Jazz Combo
Dr. Paolo André Gualdi, director

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 pm Tuesday, November 22, 2022

The FMU Jazz Combo allows students in a small group setting to learn and hone improvisational skills within the the jazz idiom. Works have been selected from music by Corea, Glasper, Shorter, and more.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Studio Voice Recital – Students of Dr. Fran Coleman

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Adele Kassab Recital Hall, Hyman Fine Arts Center
7:30 pm Monday, December 5, 2022

Come celebrate the accomplishments of voice students in Dr. Coleman’s studio as they perform classical as well as contemporary songs.

RESERVATIONS: This performance is free and open to the public. No reservations, general admission.

Craig Hultgren, cello

FMU Artist Series
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, January 25, 2023

Craig Hultgren, an American cellist and improvisor, has been an activist for new music. More than 200 works have been composed for him by contemporary composers, including works for the electric cello and multi-media works.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Small Box with a Revolver by Dustin Hageland

Francis Marion University Theatre
Directed by Dr. L. Dawn Larsen
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 pm Tuesday-Friday, February 14-17, 2023
2:00 & 7:30 pm Saturday, February 18, 2023

This is a two-person, absurdist play, Waiting for Godot-Style, that is a comedy about how people blindly follow authority, even to the point of self-harm.

Caution: this dark comedy deals with adult themes.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Andy Timmons, guitar

FMU Artist Series
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Monday, February 20, 2023

As guitarist for pop-metal band Danger Danger, Andy Timmons toured the world opening for Kiss and Alice Cooper, sold over a million records worldwide, and had two #1 videos on MTV, plus amassing a discography that includes 7 solo releases that range from blazing guitar instrumentals, to blues, and even a Beatles/Elvis Costello-inspired collection of pop tunes.

As a session player, he’s been highly featured on CDs by drumming legend Simon Phillips, a live CD with Olivia Newton-John (Andy has been her music director/guitarist for several U.S. tours), two internationally acclaimed CDs by Kip Winger, recording sessions for Paula Abdul, Paul Stanley, and countless radio and television jingles. He has also played alongside many of his heroes such as Steve Vai and Joe Satriani (as a regular guest on their G3 tours in Dallas), Eric Johnson, Steve Morse, Mike Stern, Ace Frehley, Ted Nugent, and Pierre Bensusan, as well as some of his fave ’60’s singing stars such as the Beach Boys, Lesley Gore, and Gordon Waller (of Peter and Gordon fame!)

Andy has been consistently voted a “Top 20 Favorite Guitarist” in most of Japan’s rock music magazine’s reader polls, as well as being voted “Musician of the Year” four years in a row in the acclaimed Dallas Observer Music Awards. He also has become one of the most respected and sought after clinicians representing Ibanez Guitars, touring the world on their behalf.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Hye-Jin Kim, violin
Paolo André Gualdi, piano

South Carolina Chamber Music Festival
Dr. Paolo André Gualdi, artistic director

FMU Department of Fine Arts, Artist and Lecture Series
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, February 28, 2023

Known for her musical sensitivity and deeply engaging performances that transport audiences beyond mere technical virtuosity, violinist Hye-Jin Kim leads a versatile career as soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician since her First Prize win at the Yehudi Menuhin International Violin Competition at the age of nineteen and a subsequent win at the Concert Artists Guild International Competition.

The South Carolina Chamber Music Festival will host a series of chamber recitals to showcase the artists participating in workshops and masterclasses taking place throughout the week.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Stephen Anderson Jazz Quartet

South Carolina Chamber Music Festival

FMU Department of Fine Arts, Artist and Lecture Series
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 1, 2023

Described as “a true piano monster” (All About Jazz) and as “a bright star on the jazz horizon” (Musical Memoirs), STEPHEN ANDERSON is a critically acclaimed composer and pianist whose music has been published on nineteen compact discs through Summit, Albany, Nagel Heyer Records, and other labels. Many of Anderson’s recordings have appeared on the Grammy® Awards (53rd, 56th, 58th, 59th, 64th) and Latin Grammy® Awards (17th and 23rd) ballots representing Summit Records. For his work as composer, pianist, and band leader for the Dominican Jazz Project, his recordings have been praised as “vibrant, passionate music” (JAZZIZ) and “more sizzling than fried peppers and onions” (Jazz Weekly). Anderson’s composition, Un Cambio de Ritmo, was listed in All About Jazz’s top “Popular Songs: 2021,” and the Desde Lejos CD was listed on Root’s Music Report, “Top Jazz Album Chart 2021.”

The South Carolina Chamber Music Festival will host a series of chamber recitals to showcase the artists participating in workshops and masterclasses taking place throughout the week.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Singing the Legacy of Black Female Composers

FMU Music Industry, Gender Studies, and African and African American Studies Programs
Adele Kassab Recital Hall, Hyman Fine Arts Center
7:30 pm Thursday, March 2, 2023

A lecture recital celebrating Black Female Composers!

RESERVATIONS: This performance is free and open to the public. No reservations, general admission.

String Trio + Piano

South Carolina Chamber Music Festival

FMU Department of Fine Arts, Artist and Lecture Series
made possible with the kind support of Mrs. Amy Wood
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Friday, March 3, 2023

Sinisa Ciric, violin
Dean Anderson, viola
Martin Gueorguiev, cello
Paolo André Gualdi, piano
Music: Dohnányi – Serenade; Brahms – piano quartet in G minor

The South Carolina Chamber Music Festival will host a series of chamber recitals to showcase the artists participating in workshops and masterclasses taking place throughout the week.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

FMU Concert Band
Dr. Terry Roberts, conductor

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Mainstage Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 7, 2023

The Francis Marion University Concert Band will be performing its fall concert at the FMU Performing Arts Center in downtown Florence.

The Francis Marion University Concert Band is composed of FMU students as well as community members from the Pee Dee region. Community members include professional area music educators, band directors, choir directors, ministers of music, and FMU music faculty members.  Membership is open to all FMU students and area residents who are experienced concert band instrumentalists. Performances include traditional concert band music as well as popular and show music. The program began as a way to give students of FMU a chance to perform music, earn academic credit for performance in the ensemble, and to become involved with other students in campus life.

Beginning in the spring of 2002, the FMU Concert Band rehearsals were scheduled on Tuesday evenings and adult musicians from the region were invited to participate. The band continues to rehearse every Tuesday evening.

We are always seeking additional participants; if you play a band instrument or know someone looking for a place to play, please contact us. Information can be found at Music – Instrumental Program or email Dr. Terry Roberts at troberts@fmarion.edu

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

DJ Harrison, multi-instrumentalist/songwriter/producer

FMU Artist Series
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 9, 2023   Note change of date.

DJ Harrison is Richmond, VA-based multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter and producer Devonne Harris.  Grammy-nominated, he has releases out on Jellowstone, ThrashFlow, LiquidAmber, StreetCornerMusic, and Stones Throw.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

FMU String Ensemble
Dr. Terry Roberts, director

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
3:30 p.m. Sunday, March 26, 2023

Open to all university students and faculty interested in learning and performing chamber music, the University String Ensemble members meet for weekly rehearsals during Fall and Spring academic semesters, giving public recitals and accompanying other campus ensembles.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

MalletKat — Lee Ferguson, percussion
„Is this thing on?“

FMU Artist Series
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 4, 2023

An evening of concert pieces, etudes and improvisation with MalletKAT.

Lee Ferguson is a percussionist based in Freiburg, Germany who has begun commissioning ‘Etudes’ for midi-mallet instruments.

This project is focused towards young players (high school or early college) who are interested in learning more about how to use electronics whilst still playing with mallets in their hands. The etudes are sometimes short, utilize electronics and are fun to play/listen to.

Lee will perform and talk about a selection of works from the UK, Germany, Korea, USA and Zimbabwe that have been written for this project.

Lee is no stranger to diversity, having played Bossa Nova, Irish Trad, Rock, Heavy Metal, and Jazz Fusion, as well as Baroque and Classical chamber and symphonic music.

As a performer of new music, Lee works mostly in solo and chamber music genres, and plays with the Holst Sinfonietta, the New Music initiative, SUONO MOBILE, and is one half of duo Contour. A founding member of the Black Forest Percussion Group, he instigated in 2016 their performance of Steve Reichs Drumming.

Ferguson studied as a scholarship student at the University of Iowa under Thomas L. Davis (1991-1995). In 1995 he received a Bachelor of Music in percussion performance, and then was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study with Bernhard Wulff at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik in Freiburg, Germany (1996-1998). He is a percussion instructor at the Jugendmusikschule Südlicher Breisgau in Staufen and Musikschule Sfüdschwarzwald in Waldshut-Tiengen, Southwest Germany.

RESERVATIONS: Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

FMU Jazz Combo
Dr. Paolo André Gualdi, director

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Blackbox Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 pm Tuesday, April 11, 2023

The FMU Jazz Combo allows students in a small group setting to learn and hone improvisational skills within the the jazz idiom. Works have been selected from music by Corea, Glasper, Shorter, and more.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

FMU Music Industry Ensemble
Collective IV Album Release Concert
Dr. Brandon Goff, director

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Mainstage Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 13, 2023

The Music Industry Ensemble is a chamber ensemble devoted to the development of individual performance and improvisation skills through the staging of music for small groups representing a variety of classic and modern jazz, pop, rock and soul styles. The M.I.E. provides a workshop in which students also learn arranging, microphone technique and scheduling, sound reinforcement and lighting design.

Please contact Dr. Brandon Goff bgoff@fmarion.edu for additional information about participating in the M.I. Ensemble.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

2023 Senior Class Graphic Design Portfolio Presentations

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Kassab Recital Hall / Hyman Fine Arts Center
10:00 a.m. Saturday, April 15, 2023

The Department of Fine Arts mandates the public presentation of portfolios as a requirement prior to receiving a degree in Visual Arts / Graphic Design.  Much like the gallery show required of painting, photography and ceramics seniors, the portfolio presentation is designed to encourage evaluation and feedback by invited outside adjudicators as well as by the general public.

Admission is free and no reservations are required.

The Crying Tree by Peter Gunter CANCELLED

Francis Marion University Theatre
Fine Arts Theatre, Hyman Fine Arts Center

Sorry, due to unforeseen problems, this production has been cancelled.

A stunning drama with wonderful comic scenes, which received a special mention in the 2019 ScreenCraft Stage Play Competition. The story: in 2018, a black Congressman is caught up in a Trump impeachment battle and the alt right. Two hundred years earlier at the same plantation home, a slave is deciding whether to escape. Two parallel stories show how much has and hasn’t changed about race and politics in America.

General admission, no advance reservations. Thanks to Department of Fine Arts sponsorship, admission is free.

Francis Marion University Concert Choir and Voice Collective
Dr. Fran Coleman, director

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Mainstage Theatre, Performing Arts Center/Downtown Florence
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Open to all university students, the University Concert Choir has an average enrollment of between 35 and 45 students. This group has sung in numerous area churches and has also performed with the Florence Symphony Orchestra. They have performed such major choral works as the “Polovetzian Dance and Chorus” of Alexander Borodin, the “Schicksalslied” of Johannes Brahms, and the Ninth Symphony of Ludwig van Beethoven. Recently their concerts have included selections accompanied by the newly formed Francis Marion string ensemble.

Francis Marion’s Voice Collective is a small, audition-only vocal group. This group performs throughout the region for schools and service organizations. They have also performed in Orlando, Florida, in Baltimore, Maryland, in Washington, D.C., in Vienna, Austria, and on a performance cruise to the Bahamas.

Tickets are available to FMU students, faculty, and staff at no charge upon showing an FMU ID. Tickets to the general public are $10, as space allows. The FMU PAC Ticket Office at 201 South Dargan Street is open Monday through Friday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm, or by calling 843-661-4444.

Studio Voice Recital – Students of Dr. Fran Coleman

FMU Department of Fine Arts
Adele Kassab Recital Hall, Hyman Fine Arts Center
7:30 pm Monday, April 24, 2023

Come celebrate the accomplishments of voice students in Dr. Coleman’s studio as they perform classical as well as contemporary songs.

RESERVATIONS: This performance is free and open to the public. No reservations, general admission.