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Arts NC State 
NC State LIVE

NC State LIVE 2022-23 Season

Celebrating 50 years.
A legacy of imagination, innovation and community activation.

NC State LIVE | MAinStage Performances

Collage of photos with Lisa Fischer sitting smiling in the light and Ranky Tanky smiling with their instruments on a porch. Photos by Djeneba Aduayom and Peter Frank Edwards.

Ranky Tanky with special guest Lisa Fischer
SEPT 29 at 7:30pm
Stewart Theatre

Hip Grammy-winning Gullah band Ranky Tanky pairs with “Twenty Feet from Stardom” soul-singing powerhouse Lisa Fischer to celebrate American roots music at its finest.

Learn more & get tickets. 
Band members from DakhaBrakha stand in wheat fields in traditional clothes next to stone ruins. Photo by Andriy Petryna

DakhaBrakha
OCT 21 at 8pm
Stewart Theatre

NC State LIVE fan favorite DakhaBrakha returns to Raleigh from war-torn Kyiv, Ukraine to offer their powerful blend of Ukrainian folk music, global rhythms, and utterly captivating harmonies and theatricality.

Learn more & get tickets. 
Kenny Barron smiling in a suit and tie; Regina Carter in orange jacket plays her violin. Photos by Philippe Lévy-Stab and Jeff Dunn.

Kenny Barron & Regina Carter Duo
OCT 29 at 8pm
Stewart Theatre

Jazz legends Regina Carter (violin) and Kenny Barron (piano) have each headlined concerts on our stage and now they’re coming together for a celebration of epic proportions.

Learn more & get tickets. 
A dancer from David Dorfman Dance holds another dancer upside down on his right hip. Photo by Maria Branova.

David Dorfman Dance
NOV 10 at 7:30pm
Stewart Theatre

David Dorfman has shaped the contemporary dance field with his “full throttle, big-hearted” works. His newest piece (A)Way Out of My Body – created in response to caring for his aging parents – is an offering of healing, a journey through life’s inevitable pain to find our capacity for joy.

Learn more & get tickets. 
Habib Koité plays his guitar in front of a mural of camels. Photo by Margot Canton.

Habib Koité & Bamada
NOV 19 at 8pm
Stewart Theatre

Habib Koité hails from the musically prolific West African nation of Mali, and the guitarist and composer has been named the biggest pop star of the region by Rolling Stone. This NC State LIVE fan favorite Habib Koité returns to our stage with his unparalleled artistry and magnetic personality.

Learn more & get tickets. 
John Pizzarelli sits casually with his arm around his guitar. Photo by Jacob Blickenstaff.

John Pizzarelli
JAN 21 at 8pm
Stewart Theatre

World-renowned guitarist and singer John Pizzarelli has charmed our audiences on multiple occasions, and we couldn’t imagine an anniversary celebration without him. Known as a prime contemporary interpreter of the Great American Songbook, John’s repertoire includes Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Tom Waits, Antônio Carlos Jobim, and The Beatles.

Learn more & get tickets. 
Cecile McLorin Salvant wearing a white lace shawl over a black shirt stands in front of a purple and red stained glass window. Photo by Michael Jones.

Cécile McLorin Salvant
FEB 2 at 7:30pm
Stewart Theatre

“Salvant, regularly and rightly, is considered one of the greatest jazz singers of her generation, but that label sells her short.” (Rolling Stone)

Join us to welcome Ms. Salvant’s prescient and fearless voice to our stage.

Learn more & get tickets. 
Sylvia Milo in The Other Mozart wearing a giant ruffled dress spread out in a huge circular pile around her. Photo by Charlotte Dobre.

Sylvia Milo
The Other Mozart
FEB 17 at 8pm
FEB 18 at 3pm & 8pm
Titmus Theatre

This “strikingly beautiful” (New York Times) one-woman play is the true, untold story of Nannerl Mozart, the sister of Amadeus – a prodigy, keyboard virtuoso and composer.

Learn more & get tickets. 
Band members of Red Barrat jump and play their instruments in green and purple light. Photo by Adam Kissick.

Red Baraat
Festival of Colors
MAR 3 at 8pm
Stewart Theatre

Red Baraat, the raucous band led by dhol player Sunny Jain, has brought our audiences to the brink of delirium on multiple occasions. Now they’re back with a Festival of Colors, an immersive celebration of the Indian holiday, Holi.

Learn more & get tickets. 

50th Anniversary coMmissionS

collage of photos of Arturo O'farrill smiling casually by Jen Rosenstein and Ana Maria Alvarez dancing happily in a blue flowing dress by Bobby Gordon

CONTRA-TIEMPO and Arturo O’Farrill
MAR 31 at 8pm
Stewart Theatre

Something truly special is in the works for our 50th anniversary! We’ve invited two of our most beloved artists to create a world-premiere together: Ana Maria Alvarez, choreographer and artistic director of CONTRA-TIEMPO, and Afro Latin jazz composer and pianist Arturo O’Farrill.

In advance of the world premiere in March 2023, Ana Maria and Arturo will be finishing the work in Raleigh in September 2022. We invite you to be a part of the creative process!

Learn more & get tickets. 
DBR wears a bright blue shirt and jams on his violin. Photo by Julieta Cervantes.

Daniel Bernard Roumain and Raleigh Civic Symphony
APR 15 at 8pm
Stewart Theatre

The finale to our mainstage 50th Anniversary Season is a triumph of past meets future. We’re pairing the prolific violinist and composer Daniel Bernard Romain (DBR) with the Department of Performing Arts and Technology’s Raleigh Civic Symphony.

DBR (who has been featured on our stage more than almost any other artist) will create a new work for the Raleigh Civic Symphony, under the direction of conductor Peter Askim, that will feature community musicians, local youth, NC State Students, a solo by DBR and guest artists to be announced.

Learn more. 
A photo collage with Murielle Elizéon in a mask and paper dress leaning against a wall. And Shana Tucker resting her chin on her cello. Photos by Sarah Marguier and Chris Charles for Creative Silence.

Murielle Elizéon and Shana Tucker
MAY 2023 (exact date & location TBD)

Cellist and educator, Shana Tucker, and the community activists and choreographers of Culture Mill, co-led by Murielle Elizéon were in residence with us for the 2020-21 season and during that time a new work began to emerge.

We’ve invited them back for 2022-23 to develop “When We were Queens…” which will explore Tucker and Elizéon’s relationships to ancestry, history, and generational resilience. We’ll have opportunities all spring long to go behind the scenes with these prolific artists.

Ariel photo of LIVE at Lake Raleigh concert

LIVE@Lake Raleigh returns in 2023!
April 6 & 20 | May 4 & 18

Learn more 

SPECIAL EVENT:
Emanuel Gat Dance
LOVETRAIN2020
DEC 7 at 8pm
Memorial Hall (UNC)

Together with our esteemed colleagues at American Dance Festival, Carolina Performing Arts, and Duke Arts we are thrilled to co-present Emanuel Gat Dance’s LOVETRAIN2020 set to the epic pop of Tears for Fears.

BONUS: Subscribe to 3 or more NC State LIVE performances and receive 15% off tickets to LOVETRAIN2020.

Learn more & get tickets 
A close up photo of dancers from Emanuel Gat Dance's LOVETRAIN2020. Photo by Julie Gat.

KIDSTUFF SERIES

Lightwire Theatre's electroluminescent tortoise puppets from Tortoise and Hare The Next Genpu

Lightwire Theater’s
The Adventures of Tortoise and Hare:
The Next Gen
OCT 16 at 3pm
Stewart Theatre

Lightwire Theater has thrilled the young and young-at-heart at NC State LIVE in 2019 and 2022. Now this innovative troupe of electroluminescent puppeteers (semi-finalists on NBC’s America’s Got Talent) is back with a new spin on a classic tale. Lightwire Theater begins with Aesop’s charming fable of The Tortoise and the Hare and continues the story which finds the characters 10 years down the road, now with children of their own.

Learn more & get tickets 
Band members of the Alphabet Rockers strike a pose.

Alphabet Rockers
“a more hopeful sound rising”
-Forbes
NEW DATE: FEB 8 at 7pm
Stewart Theatre

Alphabet Rockers make music that makes change. Founded by Kaitlin McGaw and Tommy Shepherd, this GRAMMY-nominated intergenerational group gained national acclaim on CBS This Morning. Their upbeat, catchy lyrics, often penned by children, aim to shape a more equitable world through hip hop.

Learn more & get tickets 

50th Anniversary Season Block Party | SEPT 18

Gather your family and friends and meet us on Stafford Commons to celebrate 50 years of innovation with NC State LIVE! The FREE event from 1-5pm will feature jaw-dropping performances by Squonk (think house sized puppets that you can control), interactive craft making, student performing groups, and who could forget the cake and ice cream? This is a celebration not to be missed.

Learn more about the block party. 
a performance of Squonk Opera's Hand to Hand with giant blue hand puppets framing the band

Get in on the action.

Plan an oh-so-special date night. Go behind the scenes with world-class artists as they create new work. Be the first to know about free outdoor concerts and more!

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