Baldwin Wallace University’s annual PRISM concert, which will take place this May, highlights the diverse areas of study offered by BW’s Music Conservatory in one unique concert.
The PRISM Concert is a 100 percent student-run event that was started two years ago by BW graduate Kristen Klehr.
Klehr wanted students from all across campus to have the opportunity to collaborate with each other creatively.
The main goal of PRISM is to allow students in the conservatory and the university to come together and bring arts outside the walls of the conservatory.
PRISM Concerts are not original to Baldwin Wallace. They are actually performed nationwide at institutions of higher education all over the country. Western Kentucky University, Florida State University, and California Lutheran University are just a few of the other schools that hold an annual PRISM concert.
Current PRISM producer junior Megan Anderson says the best part of the concert is “seeing the passion for collaboration outside of the conservatory.”
The name “PRISM” is not an acronym; it is a metaphor for the spectrum of collaborations and performances that the concert showcases.
This year’s program is shaping up to be the most diverse yet. Scheduled is a sign language presentation, interpretive dancing, various music ensembles and steel drum music, mixed with a dance performed by BW dancers adapted from the work of the popular dance company “Stomp.”
The concert is a fluid and continuous rotation of performances with no breaks in between for transition.
In past years, PRISM has had a set theme, but Anderson says this year’s PRISM Executive Board decided to take a different direction.
There are more than 20 different acts of varying topics scheduled this year.
“With the more relaxed format, people are allowed to express what they are passionate about without having to conform to a pre-designated format,” Anderson said.
The PRISM Concert is more than just a collaboration of students. The concert also allows students outside the conservatory to see what it has to offer.
“I know students who hadn’t even been in the conservatory before going to a PRISM Concert. Now, they make an effort to attend more conservatory-sponsored events because they have seen how much they were missing out on before,” Anderson said.
Anderson and the rest of the PRISM Executive Board hope that the PRISM concert will help to bridge the gap between conservatory students and other university students by bringing them together with fine arts.
This year’s PRISM Concert will be held on May 4 at 8 p.m. in Gamble Auditorium in the Kulas Musical Arts Building.
Admission to the concert is free and open to the public.
