Facilities
Department of Art
Kamerick Art Building
The Kamerick Art Building, which houses the Department of Art and the UNI Gallery of Art, was completed in 1985. The design of the building is based on an elegant modular plan and has won several architectural awards. The 67,000 square foot interior is divided into studios, classrooms, a lecture hall, art store, visual resource center and offices. There is a state of the art computer lab and each studio area is well equipped with specialized tools for almost every artistic medium. The building has a beautiful courtyard adjacent to a striking glass atrium and serves as an anchor to the main east-west campus promenade. Designed in consultation with the foremost experts on health safety in the arts, Kamerick Art Building provides spaces that are beautiful, functional, and safe.
UNI Art Gallery and UNI Permanent Art Collection
http://www.uni.edu/artdept/gallery/
The UNI Gallery of Art is an important component of the UNI Department of Art and a cultural resource for the campus and the Cedar Valley. Each year the UNI Gallery of Art brings innovative artists, exciting lectures and the most outstanding and challenging works of art to campus.
With a season of nine major exhibitions and numerous other cultural events, the UNI Gallery of Art presents the most engaging issues and most innovative techniques in contemporary art. Groundbreaking interdisciplinary programming is enhanced through strong links to community arts organizations and academic departments across campus.
The UNI Gallery of Art also provides educational opportunities for students interested in careers in arts administration. Through the university's Work Study and Career Scholars Program, as well as volunteer opportunities, students gain valuable experience in museum and gallery management.
The Gallery houses the majority of works in the UNI Permanent Art Collection. Among the nearly 3,000 objects in the Collection are pieces by prominent artists such as Josef Albers, Romare Bearden, Phyllis Bramson, George Grosz, Philip Guston, Pablo Picasso, Jaune Quick-To-See Smith and Jerry Uelsmann.
The UNI Permanent Art Collection is complemented by numerous pieces of public art across campus. Among the projects funded by the Iowa Art in Public Buildings Program are works by Dennis Oppenheim, Fletcher Benton, Gary Kelly and Walter Dusenbery.
Computer Lab
The Computer Lab is located on the second floor of Kamerick Art Building, adjacent to the graphic design studios. Students and faculty in the Department of Art have access to an impressive array of state of the art equipment and software for working with typography and layout, digital photography, animation and video editing.
Art Store
The Department of Art has a supply store on the first floor of the Kamerick Art building. Students can easily and conveniently purchase most of the supplies they will need for studio classes.
Department of Communication Studies
http://www.chfa.uni.edu/comstudy
Lang Hall
UNI Interpreters Theatre serves as both a teaching studio for performance studies classes and as a performance/rehearsal space for public performances. The 100-seat flexible black-box style studio is equipped with full light and sound support.
School of Health, Physical Education and Leisure Services http://www.uni.edu/coe/hpels/About_HPELS/facilities_locations.shtml
The nationally award winning Wellness/Recreation Center houses the School of Health, Physical Education & Leisure Services and is the home of the dance program. Opened in 1997 the building includes the dance studio, additional movement spaces, seminar rooms and classrooms, research labs and faculty and administrative offices necessary for dance classes, dance rehearsals and the dance curricula. Additional facilities used for performances include Lang Hall, Russell Hall, Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center on campus and the Oster-Regent Theatre in downtown Cedar Falls.
School of Music
Russell Hall
Russell Hall has been the home of the School of Music since 1962. The building contains a 400-seat auditorium, jazz and chamber music rehearsal halls, recording facilities, a music technology lab, a music education classroom, office space for music faculty and staff, and over 35 practice rooms. In spring of 2000, the School of Music expanded into the Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center, creating additional space for School of Music students, faculty, ensembles, and concert events. For more information go to http://www.uni.edu/music.
Department of Theatre
The Strayer-Wood Theatre
Constructed in 1978, the Strayer-Wood Theatre was the first theatre built in Iowa with public funds, acknowledging the state's responsibility to serve the campus and the community through the arts. The building features two fully-equipped theatre spaces: a 500-seat convertible thrust/proscenium theatre and a black box (see The Bertha Martin Theatre below) as well as support spaces, an alternative performance space, classrooms, and offices for the Department of Theatre and Theatre UNI. The university's student-performed plays, musicals, and operas occur in the Strayer-Wood.
The Bertha Martin Theatre
A part of the Strayer-Wood complex, the Bertha Martin Theatre is a 125-seat flexible black-box style theatre with full light and sound support. Used primarily for public performances of plays and musicals, the theatre is also in heavy use as a rehearsal and training space for theatre classes. It was equipped and partially funded with a bequest from the students of Bertha Martin, the founder of the theatre program at the university.
Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center
The $23 million, 100,000 square foot complex, containing three state-of-the-art concert halls, seating 1600, 300, and 125 respectively, opened in April 2000 and is home to UNI School of Music, the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony, and visiting artist series.
Programs
Department of Art
Visiting Lecturers Series. Each year the Department of Art hosts a number of prominent artists, designers, art educators, art historians, and critics who present public lectures and teach studio workshops. Students have the opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with many art world luminaries as they learn about career opportunities, contemporary trends, and critical issues within the fields of art, design and art education.
Student Exhibition Opportunities. Art students are encouraged to exhibit their work in a variety of gallery spaces. The UNI Gallery of Art hosts the Annual Juried Student Art Exhibition each spring as well as Vertigo A-Go-Go, a yearly evening of student performance art. Students also mount exhibitions in the Dean's Triangle, located in the Communication Arts Center and the student-run In-Use Gallery on the second floor of the Kamerick Art Building.
Department of Communication Studies
http://www.chfa.uni.edu/comstudy
UNI Interpreters Theatre is a co-curricular program in the Department of Communication Studies that involves students from across campus. In this performance group, small-scale productions based on social and cultural issues, oral histories, and traditional performances of literature are created and performed. Some of the subjects covered in the past include eating disorders, children=s literature, rural farm families, and romance readers. Students do not need to have prior performance experience to participate. For further information, contact Dr. Karen Mitchell in the Department of Communication Studies at 319-273-2640.
School of Health, Physical Education and Leisure Services
A Dance Education emphasis in the Movement and Exercise Science major (39 credits) and a Dance Minor (23 credits) are offered through the School of Health, Physical Education and Leisure Services. Course work includes dance theory and dance technique classes, movement theory classes and university-wide liberal arts core classes.
School of Music
Undergraduate Programs. The School of Music at UNI enrolls approximately 300 students in various degree programs. These students participate in a wide array of course offerings including music education, music theory, music history, performing ensembles, and applied lessons. Undergraduate course programs include the core curriculum (Liberal Arts Core) plus courses specific to the selected major in music. These degree programs range from 121-149 credit hours for completion. Majors in Music: Bachelor of Arts; Bachelor of Music in Performance; Bachelor of Music in Composition-Theory; Bachelor of Music in Music Education (Choral/General Emphasis); Bachelor of Music in Music Education (Instrumental Emphasis); Bachelor of Music in Music Education (Jazz Emphasis). Minors in Music: Music; Jazz Studies.
Graduate Programs. The UNI School of Music awards graduate degrees (Master of Arts and Master of Music) with seven areas of concentration. Each degree requires a minimum of 30 semester hours in graduate-level courses for degree completion. Majors in Music: Master of Arts; Master of Music in Performance; Master of Music in Composition-Theory; Master of Music in Music Education (on-campus program); Master of Music in Music Education (off-campus program); Master of Music in Music History; Master of Music in Conducting; Master of Music in Jazz Pedagogy; Master of Music in Piano Performance and Pedagogy; and Artist Diploma I and II program certificates.
Department of Theatre
In addition to a full curriculum of theatre classes, the Department of Theatre offers a full range of productions throughout the year. It normally produces drama, musicals, opera, theatre for young audiences, and original or experimental work.
Theatre UNI. The production arm of the Department of Theatre, Theatre UNI produces a fully mounted 4-6 show season of work featuring student performers and technicians in the Strayer-Wood Theatre.
UNI Lyric Theatre. A collaborative endeavor of the Department of Theatre and School of Music, UNI Lyric Theatre presents an opera or major musical production performed and built by students each year in the Strayer-Wood Theatre.
Sturgis Youth Theatre. This program seeks to provide theatre education classes to and in the community and produce high quality theatre by and for young audiences off-campus.
Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center
Artists Series. Over 30 internationally-acclaimed artists are presented each season in UNI=s Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center. From Broadway to baroque to the blues, the center hosts performances as well as educational residencies, allowing UNI students to interact with world stars.
Student Participation and Organizations in the Arts
Department of Art
There are many ways for students to be involved in the campus arts scene at UNI. Lectures and exhibitions in the UNI Gallery of Art are free and open to the public. Students can serve on university committees such as the Art & Architecture Committee which commissions and purchases public art work for the Iowa Art in State Buildings Program. Students are also a part of the Exhibitions & Permanent Collection Committee within the Department of Art. This committee reviews potential exhibitions for the UNI Gallery of Art and selects pieces to be added to the UNI Permanent Art Collection.
Art Official. All students are invited to join Art Official, the UNI student art organization. Each year, Art Official organizes a number of engaging activities that encourage participants to live creatively. Art Official plans trips to regional galleries and museums and sponsors other events such as the annual Halloween dance and costume contest.
SAEA. The Student Art Education Association allows Art Education majors in the Department of Art to interact with the Art Education faculty, the Iowa Art Education Association, and the National Art Education Association. SAEA sponsors numerous events related to art education and encourages networking between students and professional teachers working in the field.
Department of Communication Studies
http://www.chfa.uni.edu/comstudy
UNI Performance Studies Program. All university students and staff are invited to attend public performances in the UNI Interpreters Theatre, free of charge. Participation in productions is open to all UNI students and community members. Auditions are held at various times throughout the academic year. Those interested in non-performance participation are also needed for technical support. For further information, contact Dr. Karen Mitchell in the Department of Communication Studies at 319-273-2640.
School of Health, Physical Education and Leisure Services
Dance classes and the dance performing groups are housed in the School of Health, Physical Education and Leisure Services. Students receive academic credit for participating in the performing groups.
International Dance Theatre. This dance company is the student-based performing group of the UNI Folk and Ballroom Dancers. It performs a varied repertoire of multicultural and ballroom dances from around the world, including the United States. It is open to all interested UNI students, faculty and staff and is governed by elected student officers. The company presents two formal stage concerts a year. In addition, it presents numerous road shows and mini-concerts each year. The group is also available for school residencies which can include assembly performances as well as workshops for multicultural dance for all grade levels.
Orchesis Dance Company. This dance company is comprised of students interested in pursuing the choreography, performance, and production of ballet, jazz, modern, and tap styles of dance. Members are selected through auditions held toward the end of fall and spring semesters. It is governed by elected student officers. Orchesis presents two formal stage concerts a year. The company is also available for performances, clinics, and classes for the community.
Young Peoples Dance Theatre. This group is a before and after school dance program offered to second through fifth grade boys and girls in local schools. It provides a variety of dance forms with an emphasis on creative movement throughout the year plus international folk dance during the Fall session and an exposure to ballet, jazz and tap dance during the spring session. UNI students serve as instructors.
School of Music
Many music organizations and ensembles are open to all students by audition or application. Participation by non-music majors is encouraged. Credit is available to all who participate. Among the groups offered are: VOCAL - Chamber Choir, Concert Chorale, UNI Lyric Theatre, UNI Singers, Varsity Men=s Glee Club, and Women=s Chorus; INSTRUMENTAL - Chamber Orchestra, Jazz Bands I, II, III, Panther Marching Band, Symphonic Band, Symphony Orchestra, and Wind Symphony; SPECIALTY GROUPS - Chamber Winds, Horn Choir, Jazz Combos, Northern Iowa Flute Choir, Percussion Ensemble, String Chamber Music, UNITUBA Ensemble, and West African Drum Ensemble. For additional information visit http://www.uni.edu/music.
Department of Theatre
All university students and staff are invited to attend the productions in the Strayer-Wood and Bertha Martin Theatres. Tickets are free for UNI students. Theatre productions are often used in university classes as experiential learning opportunities.
All productions of Theatre UNI and UNI Lyric Theatre are open to participation by any enrolled UNI student. Auditions are held early in the semester or at times publicized on the theatre Web site (http://www.uni.edu/theatre) and in the campus press.
Students interested in non-performance participation can make a contribution in scenery and properties construction, costume and wardrobe, makeup and hair, lights and audio production, front of house, and stage management by contacting the theatre office 319-273-6386 or the production's director.
UNISTA. The UNI Student Theatre Association is housed within the Department of Theatre and is composed of any students involved in theatrical production on campus; they need not be theatre majors or minors. It functions as an independent production organization that produces several small budget plays or musicals each year in the Strayer-Wood Theatre or other venues around the campus on an application basis.
Theta Alpha Phi. A National Honorary Fraternity for students participating in theatre at UNI. This organization performs service projects around the community and hosts an annual awards and honors banquet commemorating the previous year's season.
Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center
The GBPAC hosts over 30 internationally-acclaimed artists each year, offering a culturally-diverse palette of dance, theatre, jazz, classical, world music - spanning from STOMP and Penn & Teller to the Moscow Ballet. Discounted tickets are available to UNI students. The center also provides experiential learning opportunities for UNI students in marketing, ticketing, stage production, and in-house management. For more information call 319-273-3660.
Community Participation and Organizations in the Arts
Department of Art
The Department of Art promotes the arts not only on the UNI campus but also in the greater Cedar Valley. The department sponsors joint exhibitions with local arts organizations such as the Hearst Center for the Arts in Cedar Falls and the Waterloo Center for the Arts. Faculty members within the Department of Art actively exhibit their work locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally. Many curate and organize exhibitions of works by other artists for galleries within the community. Faculty members are also active participants on boards, committees, and panels for local, state, and national arts organizations.
School of Health, Physical Education and Leisure Services
Participation in the dance performing groups is open to UNI faculty, staff and local community members as well as UNI students. The companies are available for performances, workshops and assembly programs for local and statewide groups.
They collaborate with the Artists Series program of the Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts to host visiting dance artists for master classes and informal gatherings.
The dance faculty members are actively engaged in state, regional, and national level professional organizations and art organizations. They regularly attend conferences and they encourage and assist students in attending these as well.
School of Music
UNI Suzuki Program. The UNI Suzuki School, founded in 1976, offers individual and group lessons in violin, viola, cello, and flute (based on the Suzuki philosophy) to approximately 200 northeast Iowa students, ranging from ages 3 to 18, to adults. In addition, the school includes several levels of theory classes, small ensemble sessions, and participation with visiting artists to the university community. The school provides annual individual/group recitals and outreach performance opportunities. It also sponsors an advanced violin performance group Fiddlesticks, the Northern Iowa Junior Orchestra (area string students in grades 6-8), and the Northern Iowa Youth Orchestra (area string students in grades 9-12). The school is also part of a collaborative effort with the Center City for the Arts in Waterloo to bring quality violin instruction to students in the urban neighborhood. This project is called Music Works and provides year-round scholarships and instruments to these youths. There are opportunities for UNI students to teach and observe.
UNI New Horizons Band. Started January of 1999, this group gives an opportunity for those 50 years of age or older to take group lessons and play in band. This includes beginners, those who may have previously played or those who currently play a band instrument. There are opportunities for UNI students to be involved in teaching group lessons to members.
Northern Iowa Children's Choir (NICC). The NICC was formed in January of 1997 in order to provide an additional choral experience for the students in the Cedar Valley area, to offer opportunities for the music education majors at UNI to work with children in a choral setting, and to serve as a model for teaching, conducting, and management for all UNI students. The members of NICC represent approximately 30 different schools and range in age from those entering grade four to those completing grade eight. These students have been accepted into the choir through audition.
For more information visit http://www.uni.edu/music.
The UNI Community Music School, founded in 2006, offers private lessons for beginning, intermediate, and advanced students, and outreach teaching opportunities for UNI School of Music students. Instruction is individually designed to meet each student's needs and is offered in cooperation with the public/private/parochial school programs. During each semester, students participate in an informal Performance Class/Recitals where they share their music with other students, family, and friends.
Department of Theatre
S.T.A.G.E., Inc. UNI's oldest community support organization and one of the nation's first community support organizations for an academic theatre program, was founded in 1978 as a way for the local community to recognize and support the contributions made by the theatre and its programs. It has supported visiting artists, scholarships, and theatre trips to London, Minneapolis, and Chicago. Over the years, it has provided volunteers, works of art for the theatres, and generous hospitality to the theatre's patrons.
Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center
Friends of the Gallagher-Bluedorn offers the opportunity to support programming and educational programs with membership in the organization.
GBPAC Advisory Board. The GBPAC is made up of an advisory board consisting of representatives from the community, UNI students, and faculty.