Community Calendar

The winner of six Tony Awards, including Best Original Score, this lush romance unfolds with what The New York Times calls “the most intensely romantic score of any musical since West Side Story.” Mother-daughter duo Margaret and Clara tour Florence in search of the city’s wonders. A fateful moment sparks an intense romance between Clara and a handsome local, Fabrizio. Audiences are swept along a winding road filled with love and longing, where paths twist and diverge to discover new opportunities and a secret kept in the shadows for far too long. Features students from JMU’s School of Theatre and Dance. THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals. www.concordtheatricals.com. Produced by arrangement with Turner Entertainment Co. Owner of the original motion picture “Light In The Piazza.” Based on the Novel by Elizabeth Spencer. Contains adult content, adult language, and sexual content. Recommended for ages 13 and up.

Béatrice et Bénédict
Music and libretto by Hector Berlioz
Featuring the JMU Opera Theatre

Join JMU Opera Theatre for the operatic adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. When a military regiment returns from war, Hero will marry Claudio! However, Hero’s cousin, Béatrice, is annoyed that this also means her nemesis, Bénédict, is back. As Béatrice and Bénédict bicker, everyone can see their banter is a symptom of love. What will it take for Béatrice and Bénédict to recognize it, too? Premiering in 1862 as an opéra comique, this musical gem was French composer Hector Berlioz’s love letter to the Bard. Written at the very end of his life, Béatrice et Bénédict defiantly celebrates love, hope, and the people who really get under our skin. Sung in French with English surtitles and dialogue.

The winner of six Tony Awards, including Best Original Score, this lush romance unfolds with what The New York Times calls “the most intensely romantic score of any musical since West Side Story.” Mother-daughter duo Margaret and Clara tour Florence in search of the city’s wonders. A fateful moment sparks an intense romance between Clara and a handsome local, Fabrizio. Audiences are swept along a winding road filled with love and longing, where paths twist and diverge to discover new opportunities and a secret kept in the shadows for far too long. Features students from JMU’s School of Theatre and Dance. THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals. www.concordtheatricals.com. Produced by arrangement with Turner Entertainment Co. Owner of the original motion picture “Light In The Piazza.” Based on the Novel by Elizabeth Spencer. Contains adult content, adult language, and sexual content. Recommended for ages 13 and up.

Béatrice et Bénédict
Music and libretto by Hector Berlioz
Featuring the JMU Opera Theatre

Join JMU Opera Theatre for the operatic adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. When a military regiment returns from war, Hero will marry Claudio! However, Hero’s cousin, Béatrice, is annoyed that this also means her nemesis, Bénédict, is back. As Béatrice and Bénédict bicker, everyone can see their banter is a symptom of love. What will it take for Béatrice and Bénédict to recognize it, too? Premiering in 1862 as an opéra comique, this musical gem was French composer Hector Berlioz’s love letter to the Bard. Written at the very end of his life, Béatrice et Bénédict defiantly celebrates love, hope, and the people who really get under our skin. Sung in French with English surtitles and dialogue.

It’s Jekyll and Hyde with a twist! The internationally renowned PUSH Physical Theatre presents an innovative and harrowing retelling of the iconic classic Jekyll and Hyde with their own adaptation. This “perennial powerhouse” (City News) stretches the boundaries of conventional theatre, presenting work that blends humor with intense athleticism, gravity-defying acrobatics, and soulful artistry. Experiencing PUSH’s unique blend of theatre is “a rare treat.” (New York Theatre Guide). Meet Edward Hyde. He has rented a theatre, put on his fanciest suit, and hired a couple of actors to tell his side of the story. His lofty ambitions to be a superstar careen off the rails when his special guest is late and his actors go off script. Can he keep his emotions in check and pull off the greatest event of the century? Come and experience this incredible night of theatre and find out! HYDE won the coveted Critics Choice: Best Play-Drama Award at the Orlando Fringe Festival. Recommended for ages 13 and above. Adult content and adult language.

Arts Council of the Valley invites you to join in the arts-focused fun on the First Friday* of EVERY month! Throughout Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, 38 venues offer a variety of new art exhibitions, live performances, poetry, comedy, music, artmaking activities, food, and so much more. You can find a list of venues, online map, and details for all First Fridays of the Valley events – all updated monthly – at valleyarts.org/first-fridays-of-the-valley/! Thanks to Kathy Moran Wealth Group, Exclusive Sponsor for 2025 First Fridays of the Valley.

*In 2025, July's "First Friday" arts programming will be held on THURSDAY, July 3 (NOT JULY 4)

Sell Me: I Am From North Korea
Written and performed by Sora Baek

Sora Baek is an award-winning actor, writer and producer from South Korea whose masterful one-woman show is inspired by the true stories of North Korean defectors and survivors who risk everything to escape one of the world’s most repressive regimes. This acclaimed show was a sell-out sensation at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Baek delivers a brutally honest performance filled with vulnerability, humor, and boundless energy as she explores questions about women’s rights, social justice and empowerment. Playbill called Baek’s vivid play “breathtaking” whose impoverished lead character 15-year-old Jisun makes the heart-wrenching decision to sell herself to buy medications for her dying mother. A second-generation North Korean refugee herself, Baek’s grandparents fled the North during the Korean War with her father when he was only four years old. Featuring historical photos, real-life footage and public testimony, this startling multimedia play is a “powerful, riveting experience. A must see!” (William Patterson University).

Dialogues of the Carmelites
Music and libretto by Francis Poulenc
Featuring the JMU Opera Theatre

In 1794, during the final days of the French Revolution, a group of Carmelite nuns joyously went to the guillotine singing psalms and hymns of praise. This defiant display of love and generosity in the face of certain death helped turn the tide of the Reign of Terror and has inspired countless individuals in times of crisis and turmoil. This fascinating moment in history became the subject of French composer Francis Poulenc’s 1956 opera. Written in the wake of World War II, Dialogues of the Carmelites is a profound meditation unlike any other work in the repertoire. Through beautiful choruses and intricate scenes, the opera explores how we live, how we die, how we fall apart, how we come together, and why we must keep singing to the very end. Sung in English with English surtitles.

Dialogues of the Carmelites
Music and libretto by Francis Poulenc
Featuring the JMU Opera Theatre

In 1794, during the final days of the French Revolution, a group of Carmelite nuns joyously went to the guillotine singing psalms and hymns of praise. This defiant display of love and generosity in the face of certain death helped turn the tide of the Reign of Terror and has inspired countless individuals in times of crisis and turmoil. This fascinating moment in history became the subject of French composer Francis Poulenc’s 1956 opera. Written in the wake of World War II, Dialogues of the Carmelites is a profound meditation unlike any other work in the repertoire. Through beautiful choruses and intricate scenes, the opera explores how we live, how we die, how we fall apart, how we come together, and why we must keep singing to the very end. Sung in English with English surtitles.

Suni and Mae are dreamers. As young girls, they dreamt about journeying far beyond our solar system, singing among the stars and discovering all that was unknown to them - the secrets of space. Using magical illusions and a state-of-the-art digital LED wall, the sisters and the audience embark on an interactive journey across the galaxy. The wonders of outer space are explored with dazzling imagery and key ideas and inventions in science, technology, and engineering. Brought to you by Cahoots NI, the award-winning team behind Danny Carmo’s Mathematical Mysteries, Secrets of Space has been developed with leading space industry experts. Recommended for audiences ages 7 and up.