Arts Wrap: UI presents ‘You Can Unmute,’ offers free arboretum concert
UI presents ‘You Can Unmute’
The University of Idaho’s Department of Theatre Arts will present a virtual production of “You Can Unmute,” an original adult comedy drama written by Master of Fine Arts candidate Jessica Chipman. Intended for mature audiences, the show will be livestreamed at 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday.
“You Can Unmute” follows three former college roommates as they reconnect over the course of a boozy Zoom catch-up. Overflowing with gossip and nostalgia, the roommates gradually turn to more serious topics, revealing long-kept secrets and lingering traumas to one another.
Under the direction of guest artist Geralldy Nájera, the cast also features Kelly Quinnett, UI head of acting professor, and MFA theater candidate Jennifer Hughes.
Both 6 p.m. showings will be livestreamed at uidaho.edu/6pmunmute; the 2 p.m. performance at uidaho.edu/2pmunmute.
Evening show tickets are $10 for individual tickets and $20 for groups of two or more. The matinee performance is “pay what you can.” For more information, visit uidaho.edu/class/theatre.
UI to offer free concert
The University of Idaho will present “Summer Breezes and Sweet Sounds,” the annual outdoor concert featuring local artists. The free concert will begin at 7 p.m. Monday at the University of Idaho Arboretum and Botanical Garden located on the west side of the upper pond in the arboretum on Nez Perce Drive near the UI Golf Course.
Lionel Hampton School of Music professor Dan Bukvich has organized a lineup featuring local musicians as well as chamber music from UI faculty members, student soloists and composers, a chamber choir, the Palouse Brass and a percussion ensemble.
UI theater graduate David Billingsley will also narrate a piece by Bukvich adapted from a short story by Edgar Allen Poe, which will be accompanied by the Arboretum Chamber Players and Singers.
Organizers encourage attendees to bring blankets or lawn chairs and arrive before 6:45 p.m. to stake out a place to sit. Parking is available in the golf course lot. The event will be canceled in the event of rain.
For information, visit uidaho.edu/events and search for “Summer Breezes and Sweet Sounds.”
‘Little House on the Prairie’
After gaining approval from the Central Valley School District for the first time in more than a year, Spokane Valley Summer Theatre will perform inside for a live – that is, in-person – full-capacity audience at the theater at University High School, 12420 E. 32nd Ave., in Spokane Valley.
The production of “Little House on the Prairie: The Musical” will run from July 23 through Aug. 1. “We are beyond thrilled to be the first in our region to return to live theater at full capacity indoors,” organizers said in an email to patrons, also citing the added benefit of being able to keep patrons, staff, actors, musicians and production team cool as well as safe.
In accordance with CDC guidelines, fully vaccinated attendees will not be required to wear masks during the performance. Box office staff will assign new seats at University High to current ticketholders for “Little House on the Prairie.” For more information, email barb@svsummertheatre.com and call (509) 368-7897. For new tickets, contact the box office or visit svsummertheatre.com.