Georgia Tech’s 26th performance season begins Sept. 16 with the merry mayhem of Upright Citizens Brigade and ends in April 2018 with a concert by the school’s Women in Music Technology. In between, Arts@Tech offers a mix of live music, dance, theater and, of course, more science and technology.
Performances take place at the Ferst Center for the Arts on campus and at locations in Midtown. Ticket packages are on sale now at the Ferst box office (404.894.9600).
One thing to know before you go: All programs are subject to change. Here’s a month-by-month lineup:
September
Upright Citizens Brigade | SEPT. 16. Look for provocative sketch comedy and absurd improv by some of the best rising improv artists is the country. Amy Poehler (“Saturday Night Live,” “Parks and Recreation”) founded the company in 1990. Alumni include Rob Corddry (“The Daily Show”), Ellie Kemper (“Unbreakable Kimmie Schmidt”), Jack McBrayer (“30 Rock”) and Horatio Sans (“SNL”).
Spencer Ludwig | SEPT. 29. The Los Angeles-born trumpeter/singer and former Capital Cities member merges jazz and pop for a funky R&B sound.
October
Spanish Harlem Orchestra | OCT. 13. The 13 members of the two-time Grammy-winning salsa and Latin jazz band are led by renowned pianist, arranger and producer Oscar Hernández.
SIRO-A | OCT. 27. You may know this Japanese group from appearances on “America’s Got Talent.” Its performances combine visual effects, mime, dance, comedy, puppetry and high-energy music plus large projection screens that act as a backdrop for video-mapping, light animation, laser effects and 3-D video.
November
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy | NOV. 4. The neo-swing band, popular since the 1990s, puts its own spin on the classic American sounds of jazz, swing and Dixieland. The swing kings’ new album, Louie Louie Louie, celebrates jazz legends Louie Armstrong, Louie Jordan and Louie Prima.
Adam Ben Ezra | NOV. 16. The Israeli-born double-bassist has changed the status of his instrument from background note to dominant front presence. This concert is at Under the Couch, an intimate campus performance space.
RAIIN Dance Theater: in Human | NOV. 17. in Human celebrates and examines black culture through spoken word, contemporary trap music, jazz and hip-hop. RAIIN partners with Georgia Tech’s School of Industrial Design for an experience featuring an engineered set that transforms the stage.
Moscow Ballet: Great Russian Nutcracker | NOV. 26. This 25th anniversary tour blends whimsical storytelling with the richness of Russian classical dance.
January 2018
Miguel Zenón Quartet | JAN. 27. Miguel Zenón is a jazz and Latin saxophonist, a composer, a multi-Grammy Award nominee, and a Guggenheim and MacArthur fellow. The Puerto Rico-born musician fronts a quartet that plays his mix of Latin American folkloric music and jazz.
February
Kid Koala | FEB. 12-13. The Chinese-Canadian DJ, musician and graphic novelist presents Nufonia Must Fall, his graphic novel-turned-movie, a love story about a robot on the verge of obsolescence who’s infatuated with a winsome human. K.K. Barrett (an Oscar nominee for Her) directs this live performance that mixes puppet theater and video edited in real time to create a live silent film. Electronic instrumentation and a string quartet provide live music.
Rebirth Brass Band | FEB. 24. This Grammy-winning group, founded in 1983, is a New Orleans institution known for combining traditional Big Easy brass band music — including the second-line tradition — with funk, jazz, soul and hip-hop.
March
17 Border Crossings | MARCH 3. The history of passports, smuggling fried chicken into other countries, and the peculiarities of airline security are all topics covered in this one-man saga of how the mundane details of global travel combine on the actual journey. The one man — Thaddeus Phillips (Red-Eye to Havre de Grace) — floats big questions that surround modern migrations.
The Neck Is a Bridge to the Body | MARCH 10. This recent work by Golden Globe nominee Kaki King showcases the guitarist/composer’s deconstruction and redefinition of the solo instrumental’s role. King, the only woman on Rolling Stone’s 2006 list of New Guitar Gods, uses projection mapping to present the guitar in a creation myth.
Atlanta’s Dance Canvas | MARCH 23-24. Dance Canvas celebrates 10 years of world premieres in its annual performance series. Ten choreographers will return to the Ferst Center stage with a mix of dancers and dance styles, exploring the bridges between movement, technology, science and life. The performances will highlight the successes of more than 80 emerging choreographers who have premiered work with Dance Canvas, with “audience picks” and “fan favorite” competitions leading to the show.
April
An Evening of SEAD Projects | APRIL 21. A concert by Georgia Tech Women in Music Technology headlines this evening of creative collisions in science, engineering, art and design. The performance include works that integrate dance, music and the spoken word with interactive design and technology.
