River Campus continues to evolve as 10th year approaches

When Jerry Ford asked how many people had attended an event at Southeast Missouri State University’s River Campus, just about every hand went up at the First Friday Coffee at Isle Casino Cape Girardeau.

Ford, with Rhonda Weller-Stilson, associate dean and director of the Holland School of Visual and Performing Arts, gave a presentation that focused on the history and effect the River Campus has had since its founding a decade ago.

“It has flown by,” Weller-Stilson said of the last 10 years.

In that time, she said, the River Campus has hosted more than 1,000 performances, ranging from theater to dance to music and visual arts.

The River Campus enjoys national accreditation in music and theater, and it aspires to add accreditations in dance and art, Weller-Stilson said.

The River Campus dance department recently hosted an official adjudication visit, and another for art is scheduled for later this year.

“It’s a process. It takes years to get [accreditation],” she said. “But if we do get it, we’d be the only school in Missouri to have all four.”

Also on the River Campus to-do list is consolidating the three arts departments squirreled away in places other than the River Campus.

Elements of the sculpture and painting departments are housed in the same building as the university’s NPR affiliate, KRCU, while the ceramics students work in a facility housed behind Howard’s Sporting Goods on Broadway.

At this point, Weller-Stilson said there aren’t solid plans to do so, but they’re working on fundraising.

She said the River Campus has served as a hub for arts in the area. The Clark Terry Jazz Festival has brought nationally recognized musicians to the area, shows at the Bedell Theatre have included traveling Broadway productions, and the Crisp Museum has hosted everything from Andy Warhol to local high-schoolers’ artwork.

But in their 10th year, each discipline, from the symphony to the theater to the Crisp Museum, are pulling out all the stops, she said.

In the theater, they will perform “Big River,” which was the River Campus’ inaugural show. Several people involved in the performance and production of that first show are returning for the anniversary show.

Ford also spoke about an upcoming concert being held this year to celebrate the history of the Vincentians who established the grounds where the River Campus stands as a place of higher learning.

Once the anniversary festivities are done, the River Campus will continue to host performances that will wow the area, Weller-Stilson said.

She announced for the 2017-2018 season, the university is planning to put on the musical “Mary Poppins,” as well as an original show written by people at the River Campus.

“And please know how grateful we are for the support of the community,” she said.

Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce president and CEO John Mehner said the ongoing efforts of the River Campus have made Cape Girardeau a destination for art lovers around the area.

“The addition of the River Campus in our area has been ... a tremendous addition,” he said.

tgraef@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3627

Pertinent address:

518 S. Fountain St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.

777 N. Main St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.