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ArtsFest
Join us on October 3, 2025, for a day of family-friendly celebrations utilizing our exciting new spaces! Including performances, workshops, and interactive activities across the arts. No RSVP necessary — check out the schedule of activities below and mark your calendar!
All-day activities: 1:00 – 5:00 p.m.
- Pick up a commemorative copy of the book Bob Crewe: Sight and Sound (while supplies last)
- Get swag from the University of Southern Maine, Osher School of Music, Maine Public Classical, and WMPG (while supplies last)
- Snag a picture with our mascot, Champ
- Enjoy the exhibit Janna Ahrndt Does Not Dream of Labor
Get parking details for October 3
Special activities scheduled throughout the afternoon
1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
Join exhibition artist Janna Ahrndt in conversation with fellow artist and collaborator Christine Bruening on memory’s digital trail, moderated by Gallery Director Kat Zagaria Buckley. Ahrndt and Bruening together consider how technology fosters recollections and encounters obstacles of its own design.
2:15 – 2:45 p.m.
Our dance program participants showcase upcoming work-in-progress selections for the Fall Dance Concert under the direction of Vanessa Beyland and Maria Tzianabos.
3:00 – 3:30 p.m.
Ed Reichert leads a rehearsal of the upcoming Curtain Up!, a cabaret-style performance of American Musical Theatre from the golden age to today.
3:45 – 4:15 p.m.
Our Opera Theatre rehearses for the upcoming production of Engelbert Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, directed by Malinda Haslett and accompanied by Scott Wheatley.
4:30 – 5:00 p.m.
Composer Dan Sonenberg showcases his use of digital looping technology, digital audio workstations, and acoustic instruments in advance of his faculty recital.
2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Observe open studio time as Book Arts students work on their pieces.
3:00 – 4:00 p.m. and 4:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Experience a hands-on workshop of bookbinding and printmaking activities led by the Kate Cheney Chappell ’83 Center for Book Arts Critique Group.
1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
Department of Theatre students perform excerpts from:
- The New England premiere of A Monster Calls, directed by Rachel Price Cooper
- Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind, directed by Sara Valentine
3:30 – 4:00 p.m.
A storybook comes to life as Michele Kaschub reads Linda Williams’ The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything. Participants will collaborate to create a live-performance soundscape to accompany the reading.
4:30 – 5:00 p.m.
Live your full diva fantasy and play dress up with costumes from our Opera Theatre collection. Don’t forget to snap lots of selfies!
1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
Get an up-close, on-stage look at the Steinway Spirio technology as M. Steinert and Sons’ Vice President Patrick Elisha demonstrates the instrument. Demos will be repeated multiple times throughout this timeslot.
3:00 – 3:30 p.m.
Osher School of Music students in Aaron Henry’s Jazz Combo perform.
3:45 – 4:15 p.m.
Enjoy a video of the Crewe Center construction from the groundbreaking to now, with interviews from the USM community. The video plays on a loop throughout this timeslot.
4:15 – 5:00 p.m.
Observe an open rehearsal of our Chamber Choir led by Osher School of Music Director and Head of Choral Activities Kyle Nielsen.
1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
Maine Public Classical broadcasts live from the Crewe Center with roaming reporters capturing the day’s events. (Tune in for the pre-show from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.!)
1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
WMPG will be broadcasting on-site; stop by to see DJs and hosts in action!
1:30 – 2:30 p.m.
Native American Waiver and Educational Program Coordinator, John Bear Mitchell, from the University of Maine System office, leads a discussion and demonstration about Wabanaki music.
2:45 – 3:15 p.m.
Music educator Casey Schmidt leads attendees in a free group improvisation. No musical experience is necessary to participate!
4:00 – 4:30 p.m.
Alan Kaschub demonstrates 21st-century practice techniques that utilize technology, including flex beat metronomes and multitracking.
1:30 – 2:00 p.m.
Casey Schmidt leads our Wind Ensemble on selections from the wind band repertoire.
2:15 – 2:45 p.m.
Our Jazz Ensemble, led by Chris Oberholtzer, performs standards and new pieces from a variety of jazz composers.
4:00 – 4:30 p.m.
Osher School of Music students in RJ Miller’s Jazz Combo perform.
Event parking
Park for free in the University of Southern Maine Parking Garage (88 Bedford St., Portland, ME 04101) by selecting “Crewe Center Ribbon Cutting Day” when you start a parking session.
Get full parking details for October 3
Additionally, the Portland METRO Husky Bus and the METRO #4 pickup/drop-off are about a five-minute walk from the Glickman Family Library. An updated bus schedule can be found on the METRO website, and bus fare is $2 each way.