FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                    September 26, 2006

NORTHWEST OKLAHOMA CONCERT SERIES TO OFFER WIDE VARIETY OF ATTRACTIONS

The Shangri-La Chinese Acrobats provide an unusual and high energy kickoff to the 2006-2007 season of the Northwest Oklahoma Concert Series. The troupe, formerly known as the Chinese Magic Revue, will be performing at 8 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 17, in Herod Hall Auditorium on the campus of Northwestern Oklahoma State University in Alva.

            This season also will feature five attractions instead of the usual four. Other performers include a cappella group Toxic Audio on Nov. 14, Go for Baroque chamber group on Feb. 6, singer Karla Bonoff on Feb. 23 and the Artie Shaw Orchestra on April 4.

            The Shangri-La Chinese Acrobats receive rave reviews wherever they perform. Their multi-faceted and multi-cultural production features dazzling acrobatic displays, feats of daring and balance, explosive Kung Fu, brilliant costumes and a touch of Chinese comedy.

            Toxic Audio (members are known as the Toxins) formed in 1998 in Orlando and almost immediately was hired to perform at Disney/MGM Studios. The five-member troupe combines dazzling harmonies, vocal sound effects and their own brand of improvisational comedy.

            Go for Baroque (G4B) is an Oklahoman group recognized as the premiere chamber music ensemble in state.  G4B entertains, enlightens and engages the audience by sharing informal anecdotes about the music and the musicians.

            Songwriter and singer Bonoff has performed and recorded solo and with the group Bryndle, as well as writing a number of hit songs for Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt and Wynonna Judd. The soundtrack from the film Eight Seconds included her top-10 hit “Standing Right Next to Me.”

            Now directed by Dick Johnson, the Artie Shaw Orchestra continues the tradition of the great clarinetist and band leader of the 1930s and ‘40s. Shaw made a hit recording of Cole Porter’s “Begin the Beguine” which launched him as the “King of Swing.”

            Season tickets now are available at Holder Drug, Schuhmacher’s, Alva Chamber of Commerce and Northwestern Bookstore or by calling (580) 327-8590. Adult season tickets are $30 (a $50 value) and student season tickets are $15 (a $25 value). Tickets to individual performances will be sold on an “as available” basis at $10 for adults and $5 for students.

            Again this year, four different sponsorship packages are being offered that include season tickets, reserved seating and program advertisements.

            “Each year we strive to find high quality, exciting acts we think will appeal to our audiences, but quality performers are expensive. We are building the series annually, but to continue our growth, we need the community’s support,” said Dr. Mike Knedler, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences and coordinator of the series. “Money raised through sponsorships and ticket sales enables the series to bring the best possible entertainers to Alva.

            “The concert series cannot survive without the continued support of the community.

Whether or not a person is able to attend all or none of the events, buying season tickets or one

of our benefit packages is a tangible way to support a valuable asset to the community,” he added.

            The sponsorship packages are as follows:

            Producers Circle, $100 to $299 Contribution—Three season tickets, seating in reserved section, name recognition in concert program.

            Directors Circle, $300 to $599 Contribution—Six season tickets, seating in reserved section, name recognition in concert program, quarter-page ad in concert program.

Composers Circle, $600 to $999 Contribution—Twelve season tickets, seating in reserved section, name recognition in concert program, half-page ad in concert program.

            Impresarios Circle, $1,000 or more Contribution—Eighteen season tickets, seating in reserved section, name recognition in concert program, full-page ad in concert program.

            The reserved seating section at each concert will be held until five minutes prior to the performance.

            Anyone interested in buying a sponsorship package should call Dr. Knedler at (580) 327-8590.

            The Northwest Oklahoma Concert Series is made possible with the assistance of the Oklahoma Arts Council, the National Endowment for Fine Arts and the Share Trust of Alva.

-NW-

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