A unique variety of art exhibits, drama productions and music performances are scheduled this fall at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. The university’s Division of Arts and Humanities has scheduled a total of 20 public events.

The USAO art department has several shows scheduled this fall. Exhibits featured in the USAO Art Gallery start with art by Mary Nickel which is scheduled now through Oct. 12. Children’s Zoo, an exhibition for kindergarten through fifth grade, is scheduled Oct. 13-27. The fall exhibits conclude with Narciso Arguelles and Stuart Asprey featured Nov. 2-Dec. 12.

The Art Gallery was formed in 1997 to promote the visual arts of Central Oklahoma with a special concern for the expressions of the diverse cultures and the role that educators have played in forming those expressions.

Two exhibits will feature the art of USAO students this fall. The Bachelor’s of Fine Arts Exhibit is scheduled Nov. 3-21 with an opening reception scheduled Nov. 8 at 4 p.m. The Holiday Show is scheduled Nov. 24-Dec. 5. Both shows will are scheduled in the Davis Hall Third Floor Gallery.

To help celebrate USAO’s Centennial Year, the drama department will present William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Katie Davis, assistant professor of drama, researched plays performed at USAO during the last 100 years and Twelfth Night was the most performed. The play is scheduled Nov. 14-15 at 7:30 p.m. and Nov. 16 at 2 p.m. in the Davis Hall Little Theatre.

Included on this year’s Fine and Performing Arts Calendar is the continuation of the Five B’s Festival with the work of composer Bela Bartok. Beginning in 2007, USAO has sponsored a Festival of Music and Ideas centered on the life and times of five major composers – Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig Van Beethoven, Johannes Brahms, Bela Bartok and Leonard Bernstein. A week-long festival of lectures, movies and concerts are scheduled each trimester focusing on one composer.

The festivals explore the life and times of each composer through a liberal arts perspective, involving interactive and multimedia presentations giving insight into relevant and related topics in history, politics, science, philosophy and other disciplines. University faculty members from various disciplines present lectures along with music performances.

The festival this year is scheduled Oct. 20-21 and Oct. 23-24 at 7:30 p.m. Bartok in Hungry and Bartok and Europe will be featured Oct. 20-21 in the USAO Alumni Chapel. Bartok and Folk Music and Bartok in Concert are scheduled Oct. 23-24 in the USAO Ballroom.

The Davis-Waldorf Performing Arts Series helps kick off the holiday season with the Saint Petersburg Classic Ballet presentation of The Nutcracker. Audiences are invited to join the exciting journey through the Land of Snow and the Kingdom of Sweets for the most popular ballet of all time. Tickets for the general public are $10 each for each show, with discounts available for seniors 60 and above, students and children under 18 and USAO faculty and staff.

The Davis-Waldorf Performing Arts Series is presented with support from the Oklahoma Arts Council, the National Endowment for the Arts and KOOL 105.5 Radio with generous support from leading local sponsors: First National Bank, Alliance Oil and Gas, Chickasha Bank, Standley Systems and Chickasha Public School Foundation.

Other local sponsors include Mollett Hunter Companies, Arvest Bank, Mosley Insurance, IBC Bank, Dunn’s Food Center, Mid-First Bank, Crazy 8 Café, Chickasha Physical Therapy and Mike Day State Farm Agency. More information is available at www.usao.edu/dwpas.The music department at USAO will be featured in five student recitals and four fall concerts. Michael DeFord, a music major from Moore, is scheduled to present his senior recital Nov. 20 at 7:30 p.m. in the USAO Alumni Chapel. Other student recitals are scheduled Oct. 14, Oct. 28, Nov. 11 and Nov. 25. Each performance is held at noon in Davis Hall 124 on the USAO campus.

The first major music concert of the season is the Concert Choir Fall Concert scheduled Nov. 10 at 7:30 p.m. in the Alumni Chapel.

The Vocal Jazz Ensemble Fall Concert is scheduled Nov. 18 at 7:30 p.m. in the Alumni Chapel. The concert is a fundraising event with an admission price of $25. The USAO Showband is scheduled to take the stage Nov. 21 at 7:30 p.m. in Te Ata Memorial Auditorium.

The major fall concerts conclude with the Concert Band Fall Concert Nov. 24 at 7:30 p.m. in Te Ata Memorial Auditorium.

For more information about the Fine and Performing Arts Calendar and other events at USAO, visit www.usao.edu.