Media Contact: Robby Piazzaroli, rpiazzaroli@fairfield.edu, 203-254-4000 x2597

Fairfield University’s Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts is thrilled to welcome the public back to campus for a spring 2022 season of live performances, lectures, screenings, and more.

The new season kicks off with a buzz and a bang on Sunday, Jan. 30 at 3 p.m. when Quick Center favorite, the John Pizzarelli Big Band, takes the stage for a gala musical bash. A robust and diverse schedule follows with 20+ live and 40+ virtual programs. High-profile artists include rock star organist Cameron Carpenter; world-class performances feature Circa, Ballet Folklórico de México, and the Russian National Ballet; thought leaders include Isabel Wilkerson, Michael Eric Dyson, John McWhorter, and David Brooks.

With disciplines of art, music, dance, theater, and literature represented, there is truly a way for everyone to return home to the Quick in 2022, and relive the joy of sharing creative and intellectual experiences.

“We are so excited to welcome everyone back in person to the Quick,” said Executive Director Peter Van Heerden. “And now we have offerings both live and virtual, making our season even more robust and engaging than ever before.”

As part of the Quick’s campaign to return to in-person programming, “Let the Real Show Begin – Your Seat is Waiting,” the Quick is offering the best ticket prices in town to make all events accessible. Live performances and lecture tickets are only $30, or $15 for Quick Members. 

In addition to the opening gala with guitarist Pizzarelli, highlights of the live and in-person season, include, but are not limited to: 

• SHARED SENTENCES presented by Cheryl Wiesenfeld (February 3): Tony Award-winning Broadway producer Cheryl Wiesenfeld, curator of the Quick’s Global Theatre: Performance Series brings to life this newly developed, original play by Houses on the Moon Theater Company that illuminates the toll of incarceration on families and loved ones, confronting the stigma and shame they encounter, and building connections between the audience members and their stories.
• Ballet Folklórico de México (February 26): One of the most popular and requested dance companies in the world returns to the Quick Center to celebrate its milestone 70th anniversary season. This 60-member, one-of-a-kind ballet company brings to life the vibrant dance, electrifying music, and elaborate costumes of Mexican folklore, from pre-Colombian civilizations through the modern era.
• Frédérick Gravel (April 7 – 9): Montreal-based dancer, choreographer, guitarist, singer, and lighting designer, Frédérick Gravel brings his enthralling, raw energy and mesmerizing interpretation of emotion and sensuality to the U.S. premiere of his newest work: This Duet That We’ve Already Done (so many times), in which the choreographer and performer further investigates what it means, simply and harshly, to be human.
• Work-in-Progress by Artists in Residence, Emily Coates and Emmanuèle Phoun (May 6): Spend an evening exploring the ways these two internationally touring dance artists and long-time colleagues weave together science and choreography in one of the Quick’s iconic work-in-progress events.

The acclaimed Open VISIONS Forum returns to the Kelley Theatre stage with thought-provoking speakers including the Women and Leadership Series presented with Bank of America, featuring acclaimed author Isabel Wilkerson (April 28), and a partnership with the Common Ground Series presented by the College of Arts & Sciences, which will feature Michael Eric Dyson, PhD, and John H. McWhorter, PhD, (March 8) in a head-to-head conversation around “Race, Liberty & Justice: Diverging Perspectives With Eyes on the Prize,” and commentator and author David Brooks (March 23).

In addition to the robust live and in-person performances and lectures, the Quick will continue to present programs on the virtual platform, The Quick Live, to engage with the community in live programs that encourage conversations between presenter and audience. Many of the virtual programs are free of charge, including all six new Open MINDS Institute seminars and the new Literary Salons presented in partnership with Meryl Moss Media, the Inspired Writers Series, programs with the Fairfield University Art Museum, and fascinating lectures from the Frederickson Family Innovation Lab.

Live performances, lectures, The Met: Live in HD, and National Theatre Live screenings will go on sale to the general public on Monday, December 13 with advanced sales options available to Quick Members starting November 29. 

Find details about dozens more live and virtual performances and lectures to which to look forward to on the Quick Center’s website at quickcenter.com including information on how to become a Quick Member.

Posted On: November 16, 2021

Volume: 53 Number: 36

Fairfield University is a modern Jesuit Catholic university rooted in one of the world’s oldest intellectual and spiritual traditions. More than 5,000 undergraduate and graduate students from the U.S. and across the globe are pursuing degrees in the University’s five schools. Fairfield embraces a liberal humanistic approach to education, encouraging critical thinking, cultivating free and open inquiry, and fostering ethical and religious values. The University is located on a stunning 200-acre campus on the scenic Connecticut coast just an hour from New York City.