![The Sunshine Bear](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/1712342330089-6SF2I5HID6QZTD9376DD/Sunshine+Bear+web.png)
The Sunshine Bear
Join us on Wednesday, May 15!
Come to the Silent Auction before the show—6 pm in the Missoula Children Theatre Foyer. Refreshments will be served.
Admission is free and donations are much appreciated.
Thank you to The Max and Betty Swanson Foundation!
Synopsis
Kody the Kodiak Bear feels sad as the seasons change and the long nights of winter descend upon his arctic home. Fortunately, he meets Bobbi the Blue Footed Boobie who has been blown off course from the Galapagos Islands. She tells Kody about her home at the equator where the days never get shorter. They decide to take a journey. Rather than go on foot as their friends the caribou suggest, they find a school bus and gather up more friends to come along. When pulled over by the police, they are informed that they cannot drive to an island. But they don’t despair, they are introduced to Sergeant Marge and her large garbage barge. Sadly they get stuck in their bus on the barge in the great garbage patch. But Don Basura, a dealer of detritus, for a small fee offers them a way to escape. With the help of Pat the whale and the pirate crabs they inflate a crashed spy balloon and float up into the clouds. An in-flight meal delivered by Pelican Pizza is served before they arrive at their destination. After many weeks of enjoying sunshine every day and playing on the beach everyday and the sun setting at the same time every day, Kody becomes restless with equatorial equanimity. He glimpses the north star on the far horizon and a longing for his home in the north awakens within him.
Director’s notes
The Sunshine Bear is based on the fascinations and fixations of Dick Swanson who has been part of the group since its founding in 1998. Alayne Dolson and I sat with Dick in June of 2023 and took some notes on the things that he thinks about and the things that make him happy. Sunshine makes him happy. He’s fixated on the length of days, he’s fascinated by minor keys and how they express sadness, his favorite thing to wear is a swimsuit, and his favorite food is pizza. He’s never had - but always wanted - a driver’s license. He’s always dreamed of driving a school bus and he loves policemen. With those anchor points I began to write a show.
It is both rewarding and challenging to write for the specific abilities and limitations of the members of our crew. It must be fun and inclusive for the singers, but we must tell a story that can be understood by the audience. The songs are repetitive both for ease of memorization and to give a few passes at intelligibility. A single voice often introduces the lyric echoed by the choir. Mobility issues limit how much staging we can achieve, and limited rehearsal time means complex dialog is unachievable. For The Sunshine Bear I have chosen to have a narrator advance the story for the audience. We have tried to give everyone who wants it some sort of solo or feature.
We have worked hard to create a safe space where we all check our ego at the door. We celebrate the fundamental why of making art: it feels good and it unites us to express feelings together. We can do things, say things, write things, express ourselves just for the love of it without the notion that critics will be evaluating it. If we do it right, the audience experiences an expression inexplicably greater than the sum of its parts.
![Spring into joy!](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/0b206bd1-a7b6-4978-9993-4241dc2ec6a0/MCCSpringConcert_Web.jpg)
![I Choose Love](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/1708905183989-LR0RI3J6HWCO0F6WPJWA/Carnegie2024.png)
![I will just say this](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/62e4593e-9372-4df6-ab11-83ade76801be/i+will+just+say+this+concert+poster+version+2+FB+event+%28Landscape%29+11+in+x+8.5+in%29+%281920+x+1080+px%29.png)
![MPower Voices Holiday Concert](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/1699288215000-K1U2S9N4B223TY6PZQT5/MPower+December+2023.jpg)
MPower Voices Holiday Concert
Join us for an evening of joy and song.
Admission is free. Donations are appreciated!
![Joy. Here. Now.](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/1700438942707-G4CS7O8U7IX7903MTXLZ/MCCWinterConcert_Web.jpg)
Joy. Here. Now.
Missoula Community Chorus proudly presents “Joy. Here. Now.”—an afternoon of song performed by the Missoula Forte Children's Choirs under the direction of Renie Gibson Hall and the Missoula Community Chorus under the direction of Dr. Coreen Duffy.
18 and under as well as UM Students are free.
120 of our Missoula singers will celebrate the joy of music and community, sharing a variety of songs including Hark! I Hear the Harps Eternal, Ima Koko Ni (Here now), Hanerot Halalu, Winter Solstice, Red Bird, Chante Waste Hoksila (My Kindhearted Boy) and more!
![Halloween Choral Spooktacular 2023](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/c3ef7c5e-85a2-4b5d-af06-f8c5ef83ee28/2023ChoralSpooktacular_Facebook.jpg)
Halloween Choral Spooktacular 2023
Join us for spooky music and trick-or-treating!
FREE admission (and candy!) for kids under 18, UM students, and the Undead.
![MPower Voices Presents Alice in Wonderland](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/e1c0667d-485d-4614-b5d1-58f8bd69f281/Alice+in+wonderland+8x11a.jpg)
MPower Voices Presents Alice in Wonderland
Come experience Alice in Wonderland! An all-abilities musical adaptation of a classic tale. Share Alice’s bewilderment as she and the White Rabbit encounter the cranky Queen of Hearts, the colorful Caterpillar, a Walrus, Gryphon, Mock Turtle and more. With the help of Missoula Children’s Theater, the touring show has been adapted with new songs and a script revised to highlight the abilities of the artists of MPower Voices. One night only. May 22nd at MCT. 6:00 silent auction, 7:00 curtain.
![Canto Esta Canción: I Sing This Song](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/1679824374418-R623ZTIK67XG0VWFIWLI/Screenshot+2023-03-26+035206.png)
Canto Esta Canción: I Sing This Song
Celebrate Cinco de Mayo and MissoulaGives with us on Friday May 5th at UM's Dennison Theater.
All three of our choirs in one magnificent performance!
Missoula Community Chorus, MPower Voices & Missoula Forte Childrens Choirs
ADULTS $14. STUDENTS (13 + older) $10.
Children 12 & Under: FREE entrance with parent or guardian.
FRIDAY May 5, 2023
U MT: Dennison Theater
7:30 PM
Many thanks to our sponsors:
The Good Food Store, Kaleva Law Office, and Allegiance Benefit Plan Management
![No Outcasts In Zooville](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/1671052397867-562DHM5E6K5OYSZ4WOIE/MPower_Christmas_poster_2022.png)
No Outcasts In Zooville
Monday, December 19 // Door at 6:30 PM // Show at 7 PM // Free & Open to All
Join MPower Voices at the ZACC for a free and festive holiday choir concert! MPower voices is a Missoula-based choir of adult individuals with disabilities. Formed in 1999 by Alayne Dolson and Malcolm Lowe, the choir was originally part of VSA Arts programming. It continues now under the umbrella of Missoula Community Chorus. MPower Voices serves the differently-abled community by offering an opportunity for social engagement and artistic expression. They serve Missoula with musical offerings that surprise and delight with their heartfelt, open manifestations of joy. MPower Voices is thrilled to be welcomed to the more focused performance setting of The Show Room at the ZACC.
For further information, accessibility, and inquiries please visit https://www.zootownarts.org/meet-the-zacc/about/
![SNOW ANGEL](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/1667801812715-NEIOJWVSQXCSC4KUW5Q9/Ribbet+Template2a.jpg)
SNOW ANGEL
Snow Angel is a unique mixture of music and spoken word. Written & composed by Sarah Quartel, this 5-movement piece features an achingly beautiful cello line, along with narration to tell a unique & timely winter tale. This concert will also feature our new FORTE Children’s Choirs with a set of seasonal songs.
![Dr. Duffy's Annual SPOOKTACULAR Concert featuring all her choirs!!](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/1666807210045-SJVXK7352N939SCEFQBR/Choral+Spooktacular+Facebook+ad.jpg)
Dr. Duffy's Annual SPOOKTACULAR Concert featuring all her choirs!!
For the first time ever, MCC's new Missoula FORTE Children's Choirs will be joining us on stage for their debut performance!
What's better than one day of Halloween? Haunting a day early at the Halloween Choral Spooktacular! We've got spooky music and trick-or-treating the day BEFORE Halloween! Songs of shipwrecks and ghosts, crews lost at sea, monsters, Autumn leaves, October love, and more will take your (last) breath away. This frighteningly beautiful choral sound will delight your spirits, giving way to trick-or-treating onstage with live music! Wear your costume- if you dare! Come for the choirs; stay for the candy!
FREE admission (and candy!) for kids under 18, UM students, and the Undead.
TICKETS HERE (through GrizTix) or available at the Door.
A livestream link will be available with each purchase. Access this link through your Email Confirmation you recieve after purchase. If you do not receive this email after 24 hours, please contact the Box Office at griztix@umontana.edu or at (406) 243-4051 to receive your link.
![Winter is Past - Spring Concert 2022](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/1649868749781-U5EOCUQIZHT38NZLP966/MCC_SPRG+2022_FaceBk.jpg)
Winter is Past - Spring Concert 2022
Artistic Director Dr. Coreen Duffy has chosen music that leads us from grief to courage and finally arrives at the triumph of the inevitable coming together following the pandemic, with the title piece, Winter is Past. Composed by medical doctor Jeremy Samuel Faust, the piece celebrates the re-emergence of life after a long winter. Additional inspiration provided by composer Randall Thompson's Last Words of David , Haydn"s Gloria from Mass in Time of War, the beauty of Barber's Sure on the Shining Night are programmed, along with Missoula composer Mike Rosbarsky's Hearts Shuttered and several other inspiring pieces.
Come fill your heart with the fresh renewal of spring!
The Way Through - a Program of Premieres!
It’s an ALL-PREMIERE Performance to kick off our 20th season!! When we couldn’t sing in person last year, we held a Composition Competition, and we have the winning pieces to share with you on December 10th.
All pieces were newly composed in the early days of the shutdown and range from the poignant 1st Place winning “How Shall We Sing” to the darkly humorous “Famous Last Words”.
Join us as we present “The Way Through” - every piece is a winner!
We are celebrating our 20th Anniversary season this year and having a complete concert full of brand new compositions, all written during the early days of the Pandemic, is an exciting way to begin presenting concerts again for the Missoula community.
Missoula Community Chorus Virtual Choir
We hope you enjoy this video from our virtual choir!
It was great to create music together to help out with Missoula Public Library's Memory Cafe.
From MCC, we wish you and yours a happy and healthy holiday season!
Thank you for your support!
Missoula Community Chorus Virtual Choir
We hope you enjoy this video from our virtual choir!
It was great to create music together to help out with Missoula Public Library's Memory Cafe.
From MCC, we wish you and yours a happy and healthy holiday season!
Thank you for your support!
Missoula Community Chorus Virtual Choir
We hope you enjoy this video from our virtual choir!
It was great to create music together to help out with Missoula Public Library's Memory Cafe.
From MCC, we wish you and yours a happy and healthy holiday season!
Thank you for your support!
![The Way Through, Composition Contest in the the time of Covid19](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ce74e11c17e1e0001bb2e95/1588998605483-052XC55DIJRKWA2H4BNR/Composition+Contest+2.jpg)
The Way Through, Composition Contest in the the time of Covid19
The concert theme for the Missoula Community Chorus’s now-truncated spring season was “The Way Through: Songs of Adversity and Resilience.” We had no idea that our world would be plunged into a new chapter of adversity in the midst of this season. Given the renewed resonance of this repertoire. Missoula Community Chorus plans to reprise this theme (as soon as it is safe to rehearse and perform again), and would like to complement the repertoire with new music, composed during our current global crisis. Next season will mark the 20th anniversary of the founding of the Missoula Community Chorus. At this time of uncertainty for artists worldwide, we would like to announce a composition contest, to support and uplift composers, and to celebrate our 20th anniversary,
If you are interested in submitting a piece or pieces, the link for information about this competition , please read about it on COMPOSITION INFORMATION LINK
To submit an application, please click on APPLICATION LINK