Fesler-Lampert Performing Arts Series
The Fesler-Lampert and Acoustic Roots Performing Arts Series
feature an exciting array of musicians and entertainers.
Events are open to the public.
Tickets for the 2022-23 season on sale soon!
All performances take place on campus in historic Newhall Auditorium and begin at 7:30 p.m. (unless noted). For additional assistance, please call the SSM box office at 507-333-1620 or email feslerlampert@s-sm.org.
katha dance theatre
Thursday, September 15, 2022
Katha Dance Theatre (KDT) is a Minnesota-based professional Kathak dance company. As Minnesota’s first Asian Indian dance company and the only organization of its kind, scale, and scope in the Midwest, KDT’s cultural and artistic impact within the local dance landscape are profound. KDT’s company roster includes some of Kathak’s greatest living dancers and its unparalleled repertory is solely conceptualized and choreographed by its artistic director, Rita Mitra Mustaphi, who founded the company in 1987. KDT’s performances and collaborations reflect multicultural experiences and artistic influences, expanding and diversifying the form while preserving its authenticity and cultural integrity. In addition to performing, KDT’s company members instruct at KDT’s school of Kathak dance and engage in regular community outreach activities in order to ensure that Kathak is both accessible and relevant throughout Minnesota.
j2b2
Thursday, November 17, 2022
J2B2 is an all-star bluegrass supergroup featuring four legendary, award-winning musicians – John Jorgenson on acoustic guitar, mandolin and vocals; Herb Pedersen on banjo, acoustic guitar, and vocals; Mark Fain on bass; and Patrick Sauber on acoustic guitar and vocals – delivering bluegrass like no one has ever heard it before. The band’s undeniable live shows have received stellar reviews and have the bluegrass world buzzing. The four combine forces to form a spot-on union of impeccable musicianship, incomparable songwriting, incredible harmony vocals (a fresh twist combining bluegrass with elements of West Coast folk rock) and seasoned showmanship. This is the “high lonesome sound” of American roots music at its finest.
good morning bedlam
Thursday, February 16, 2023
Good Morning Bedlam has become a staying force in the folk genre with a 200 plus show tour in 2019 before the COVID-19 shutdown, claiming the first-place title at the John Hartford Memorial Festival Band Competition, and being finalists at the NWSS Band Competition. Their shows are known for their wild energy and stunning harmonies. GMB has played at festivals alongside artists such as Shakey Graves, Sam Bush, Jason Isabell, The Infamous Stringdusters, Trampled By Turtles, and others. In 2021, GMB ran a successful Kickstarter in July of 2021 for their much anticipated third full-length record ‘Lulu’ where fans from around the world pledged a total of $34,000. GMB has been featured on Bluegrass Today, Relix Magazine, Glide Magazine, and Paste Magazine.
Ames quartet
Thursday, March 23, 2023
In various iterations, the Ames Piano Quartet has been the ensemble-in-residence at Iowa State University since its inception in 1976. One of the few regularly constituted piano quartets in the world, the Ames Quartet briefly became the Amara Quartet in 2012, upon the retirement of two of its long-term members. Wishing to reconnect with more than thirty years of tradition, the Quartet has now returned to its original name of Ames. The Ames Quartet has appeared in concert throughout the United States and Canada, as well as in France, Austria, Taiwan, South Africa, and Russia. One of its most notable concert tours occurred in 2003 when it traveled to Cuba, the first American chamber ensemble to be invited to perform there since the country’s 1959 revolution. Radio appearances by the Quartet include “St. Paul Sunday,” “Music at First Hearing,” “The Listening Room,” and “Performance Today.”
dessa
Friday, March 31, 2023
Singer, rapper, and writer Dessa has made a career of bucking genres and defying expectations—her résumé as a musician includes performances at Lollapalooza and Glastonbury, co-compositions for 100-voice choir, performances with the Minnesota Orchestra, and top-200 entries on the Billboard charts. She contributed to the #1 album The Hamilton Mixtape and the RBG documentary; her track, “Congratulations,” has notched over 20 million streams. As a writer, she’s been published by The New York Times and National Geographic Traveler, broadcast by Minnesota Public Radio, and published a memoir-in-essays (My Own Devices, 2018) in addition to two literary collections. As a speaker, Dessa has delivered keynote speeches and presentations on art, science, and entrepreneurship; guest lectures at universities and colleges across the US; and a TED Talk about her science experiment on how to fall out of love. She’s also the host of Deeply Human, a podcast created by the BBC and American Public Media. Dessa has been covered by Pitchfork, Forbes, and The Wall Street Journal amongst others. The LA Times says she “sounds like no one else.” NPR’s All Songs Considered calls her “a national treasure.” On the stage and on the page, Dessa’s style is defined by ferocity, wit, tenderness, and candor.