UCF Celebrates the Arts 2022

Tuesday, April 5, 2022, 6:00 p.m. • Online

Rescheduled: Honoring Indigenous Expression with Natalie Diaz

Due to the presenter’s illness, “Honoring Indigenous Expression with Natalie Diaz” has been postponed. Plans to reschedule the event are in motion; we will send an email once the new date has been determined. We apologize for the inconvenience and hope you will be able to join us at the new time.

Wednesday, April 6, 2022, 7:30 p.m. • Steinmetz Hall

UCF Percussion Ensemble featuring Escape Ten Duo

As a featured event of the Percussion Festival, this concert will feature performances by the UCF Percussion Ensemble and guest artist Escape Ten.

Friday, April 8, 2022, 7:30 p.m. • Steinmetz Hall

Jazz and the American Spirit featuring the Flying Horse Big Band

Join UCF’s chart-topping Flying Horse Big Band for an evening of music and celebration of the vibrant “American Spirit.”

April 8 – April 10, 2022 • Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater

UCF Opera presents 'Mozart First and Last!'

UCF Opera presents an adaptation of two works from early and late in Mozart's career.

Saturday, April 9, 2022, 12:00 p.m. • DeVos Family Room

Orlando REP presents 'Yo, Ho, Ho! Let's Go!': Theatre for the Very Young

"Yo, Ho, Ho! Let’s Go!" is a 30-minute adventure with a pirate on the high seas following a treasure map! Parrots, crabs, mermaids and more join the fun. 

Saturday, April 9, 2022, 3:00 p.m. • Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater

Character Animation & Animation/Visual Effects Premieres

FREE! Enjoy a series of award-winning short, animated films from students in the graduate and undergraduate programs in the School of Visual Arts and Design.

Saturday, April 9, 2022, 5:00 p.m. • Della Phillips Grand Lobby

UCF Celebrates the Arts Alumni Social

Join us for a special night of performances and immersive experiences in conjunction with UCF Celebrates the Arts 2022.

Saturday, April 9, 2022, 6:00 p.m. • DeVos Family Room

A Celebration of the Orlando Poet Laureate

FREE! Enjoy works read by some of UCF’s finest poets and spoken word artists.

Saturday, April 9, 2022, 7:30 p.m. • Steinmetz Hall

UCF Symphony Orchestra: An Exploration of Sea and Land

Explore our oceans and our lands with the UCF Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Chung Park.

Saturday, April 9, 2022, 8:00 p.m. • Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater

Boricua Soy Yo – History, Identity and Culture

'Boricua Soy Yo' by documentary filmmaker Rocco Anastasio explores Puerto Rican history, the island’s relationship and status with the United States, and the cultural identity of Puerto Ricans living on the mainland.

Sunday, April 10, 2022, 12:00 p.m. • DeVos Family Room

Earth Explorers: Choose Your Own Expedition

UCF Theatre for Young Audiences graduate students present a devised performance to explore and celebrate our earth, its resources and our relationship with our environment

Sunday, April 10, 2022, 12:00 p.m. • Steinmetz Hall

National Young Composers Challenge Composium

FREE! Hear music from the next generation of composers performed by professional musicians!

Monday, April 11, 2022, 6:00 p.m. • DeVos Family Room

Stage Combat Demonstration

FREE! Peek behind the curtain to see how fights and dramatic scenes are created on stage.

Monday, April 11, 2022, 7:00 p.m. • Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater

Orlando Shakes presents 'Fairview'

Orlando Shakes presents a staged reading of "Fairview" by Jackie Sibblies Drury, featuring professional actors and Theatre UCF students.

Monday, April 11, 2022, 7:30 p.m. • Steinmetz Hall

Knight to Shine 2022: A Musical Theatre Showcase

The spotlight is on our senior Musical Theatre students as they take the stage for an evening of cabaret style performances!

Tuesday, April 12, 2022, 6:00 p.m. • DeVos Family Room

Architecture Showcase & Awards

FREE! A talk with a guest architect and presentations of work from UCF, UF and Valencia architecture students.

Tuesday, April 12, 2022, 7:00 p.m. • Steinmetz Hall

UCF New Music Ensemble

The UCF New Music Ensemble presents "FREE | VERSE," an evening-length collaboration with the UCF composition studio that explores the boundaries between poetry, composition and improvisation.

Tuesday, April 12, 2022, 8:30 p.m. • Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater

Cellobration 2022

Join UCF Professor David Bjella and the UCF Cello Choir in a celebration of the cello, featuring works of Villa Lobos, Faure, Fitzenhagen, Beethoven, Michael Kamen and Michael Jackson!

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, 7:00 p.m. • DeVos Family Room

Lidia’s Kitchen: A Conversation with Lidia Bastianich

FREE! Celebrity chef and host of 'Lidia’s Kitchen' Lidia Bastianich will talk about her new cookbook, her inspiring personal story and the role that food has played in her life.

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, 7:30 p.m. • Steinmetz Hall

UCF Bands: Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band

The UCF Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band present an exciting evening of diverse and expressive music that explores various genres and styles. Included on the program will be two world premieres: “Echo Chamber,” by UCF composer Alex Burtzos and “Zodiac Concerto II,” composed by Jim Stephenson and featuring guest artists Demondrae Thurman from Indiana University and William Caballero, Principal Horn with the Pittsburgh Symphony.

Thursday, April 14, 2022, 6:00 p.m. • Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater

Brass Chamber Ensembles

This concert features UCF Brass student chamber ensembles, including the UCF trumpet ensemble, the UCF horn ensemble, the UCF trombone ensemble, the UCF tuba/euphonium ensemble, the Colbourn Brass Quintet and the Pegasus Brass Quintet.

April 14 – April 16, 2022 • Walt Disney Theater

Shrek The Musical

A grumpy green ogre and fairy-tale favorites thrown into a jam-packed hilarious musical adventure perfect for the entire family. 

Thursday, April 14, 2022, 7:30 p.m. • Steinmetz Hall

Pegasus String Quartet and Beethoven Septet

The Pegasus String Quartet, UCF’s graduate string quartet under the direction of Ayako Yonetani, makes its Steinmetz Hall debut.

Friday, April 15, 2022, 6:00 p.m. • DeVos Family Room

Cast in Bronze and Chiseled Out of Stone: The Story of the Caribbean as Told by Its Statues

FREE! UCF Pegasus Professor Luis Martínez-Fernández delivers a dynamic, informative and entertaining audiovisual presentation that offers a flash course in Caribbean history as told by the region’s statues.

Friday, April 15, 2022, 7:30 p.m. • Steinmetz Hall

UCF Choir Concert

The UCF Chamber Singers, SoAl and TeBa choruses, and the University Singers, along with the new UCF Community Choir and Children’s Choir, sing songs of unity, joy and friendship.

Friday, April 15, 2022, 8:00 p.m. • Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater

Woodwind Chamber Ensembles

This concert features UCF’s student chamber groups from the woodwind area, including the oboe trio, woodwind quintet, bassoon ensemble, flute choir, saxophone ensemble and clarinet choir.

Saturday, April 16, 2022, 5:00 p.m. • Seneff Arts Plaza

Creative Clash

FREE! Artists armed with black markers race against the clock to create large-format artwork.

Saturday, April 16, 2022, 7:30 p.m. • Steinmetz Hall

UCF National Choir Festival

Artistic journeys start with education!

Saturday, April 16, 2022, 7:30 p.m. • DeVos Family Room

Graphic Design & Experimental Animation Showcase 

FREE! A pop-up event showcasing the work from graduating seniors in the emerging media programs! 

Saturday, April 16, 2022, 8:00 p.m. • Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater

Project Spotlight presents 'As It's Written'

Project Spotlight is producing a new work by theatre student Caroline Hull.

Ongoing • Della Phillips Grand Lobby

Visual Tales

Can you guess the tale that inspired each of the 6-ft. sculptures in this visual storytelling exhibition?

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

Behind the Frames & The Beethoven Project (A New Light)

Experience phenomenal artworks presented by the undergraduate and graduate students in Animation and Visual Effects programs in the School of Visual Arts and Design at UCF.

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

Costume Display: Celebrating the Costumes of Dan Jones

Theatre UCF remembers costume shop manager Dan Jones with a display of his designs and constructions from over the years.

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

UCF AdLab & El Camino Guitar Collaboration

UCF’s Advanced Design Lab (AdLab) led by Professor Rob Reedy and El Camino School partnered to create original artistic concepts for guitars.

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

OUC Rain Barrels

Rain barrels designed by local students as part of OUC's Water Color Project, which teaches the importance of water conservation through art, will be on display throughout the center.

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

Orlando's 2+2+2 Architecture Experience

Showcase of work from the 2+2+2 architecture program featuring UCF, UF and Valencia architecture students.

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

Artful Moments

Explore a selection of curated clips, interviews, photos, exhibitions, events and more from the School of Visual Arts and Design.

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

Spectral Evidence

This exhibit demonstrates expressions by artists on the autism spectrum, who see life from a different perspective.

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

Emergence: Creative Clash 2021

View the pieces created at UCF Celebrates the Arts 2021, themed "Emergence," on display in the lobby all week! 

Ongoing • Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater

Character Animation Shorts

Select Character Animation Shorts will be shown before various events throughout the week!

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

UCF Coastal Vision – Resilient Coastal Communities & Ecologies

Experience the cutting-edge research being undertaken by UCF Coastal, a bold new research center comprising a stellar group of core interdisciplinary faculty.

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

Illuminating the Darkness: Our Carceral Landscape

This exhibition from the Florida Prison Education Project presents a selection of work from artists whose practice is informed by their experiences with the criminal justice system to shine a light on the ways in which mass incarceration affects us all.

Ongoing • Lobbies and public spaces throughout the center

Intensity: MFA Studio Art & Design Showcase

The current cohort of the MFA program is extremely diverse, and each offer a different skill set. Painting, drawing, printmaking, photography, and sculpture are represented in this showcase.

Ongoing • Seneff Arts Plaza

SNAP! CITY UNSEEN [AR]T Experience

Experience four extraordinary CITY UNSEEN immersive installations at the Seneff Arts Plaza.