GPAC anniversary ‘best we’ve had yet’

By Ariel Houchens
Senior Staff Writer

The Givens Performing Arts Center is not giving out pearls for its 30th anniversary. Instead, it is giving Air Supply.

The soft rocker duo, Air Supply, is drawing an audience from as far as Canada, said Patricia Fields, executive director at the GPAC.

Photo by Marty Anderson GPAC building.

Fields said the upcoming performance has already been a great ticket seller and the show is not until October.

Fields said she was a huge Air Supply fan around the time she graduated high school in 1984.

Hits. Air Supply’s biggest hits were released in the early 80s and Fields said she believes that the group is currently regaining popularity.

Fields and the rest of the staff at GPAC have worked to put together a season that features a broad variety of shows.

Audience compatibility, Fields said, is one of the main things that she and the GPAC staff look at when deciding what shows to bring to campus.

“We try to serve the region and interest the students too,” Fields said.

GPAC’s Nostalgia Concert Series is featuring both Air Supply and Lee Greenwood this fall.

The Nostalgia Series, Fields said, “might be the best series we’ve had yet.”

Buckley. The 2005-2006 season will open Sept. 16 with “An Evening With Betty Buckley.” Buckley is a Tony Award winner for her performance in “Cats” and has quite a resume of acting experience.

“She is a really diverse performer,” Fields said.

Buckley is part of the Broadway and More Series, which will also bring “Thoroughly Modern Millie” to the UNCP stage and the classic Christmas ballet “The Nutcracker.”

Crier and Sparks. The Distinguished Speaker Series is presented by the Office of Student Activities and will feature Catherine Crier and Nicholas Sparks. Sparks, the author of “The Notebook”, is scheduled to release his newest book the day after he visits UNCP.

The GPAC also has The On Stage For Youth Series, which are performances geared toward children. This semester, both “Pinocchio” and “Einstein: A Stage Portrait” will stop in for a visit.

Prices down. Students will be able to attend all of these events this semester and still have money in their pockets.

Fields said student ticket prices have dropped to $5 a ticket, which is half the price of last year’s tickets.

The GPAC also offers “rush tickets” which are $3 tickets that can be picked up the hour before the show. Another opportunity to save some money on a show is to pick up one of the 200 Nostalgia Series tickets from the University Center for free.

These free tickets are limited, so they might not last long.

Students who wish to attend the Distinguished Speaker Series can get one free ticket per speaker when they show a university ID.

Season tickets. For the theater enthusiast, the GPAC offers season subscriptions that cut down on the cost of attending the Broadway and More and Nostalgia Series.