Denison University senior Steve Mokris, a graduate of Hilliard Davidson High School, will showcase his senior project - an interdisciplinary, multimedia opera titled, "Tuesday Afternoon at China Wong Buffet" at 3 p.m. Saturday (March 27) in the Burke Hall Theatre. Tickets are free but seating is limited, so reservations are advised and can be made by e-mailing names to info@ruori.org

"Tuesday Afternoon at China Wong Buffet" is an elaboration on a well-known fairy tale, retold using conventions established by 20th century performance artists and composers such as Laurie Anderson, Philip Glass, and Steve Reich. Mokris and Kristina Kemp, a student at Ripon College, are the authors of the opera's book. In the spirit of interdisciplinary collaboration established by Denison's new Mulberry Digital Media Lab, it combines the efforts of students and faculty in a number of departments, including music, art, cinema, theatre, dance, physics, computer science and media technology, to produce a single coherent and unified performance. Brian Shotzbarger, a junior from Lexington, Ky., has served as director of photography and Tariq Vasudeva, a sophomore from New Delhi, India, is taking a lead role.

Mokris' opera is a live performance with interactive video as part of the production. A double major in physics and music composition, Mokris initiated and directed his project with the help of faculty advisors Ching Chu Hu (music), Andrew Glendening (music), Kathleen Pierson (dance), Alexander Mouton (art) and Chris Faur (media technology).

A number of Denison students are involved in the opera either as musicians, actors, pre-production or stage crew members. They include seniors Mike Berlin (Erie, Pa.), Asaf Fulks (Bourbonnais, Ill.), Bob Hall (Virgie, Ky.), Andy Juechter (Croton on Hudson, N.Y.) and Seth Rogers (Cleveland); juniors Abigail Bacon (Dayton) and Matt Briggs (Erie, Pa.); sophomores Lindsay Bickel (Columbus, Ind.), Alex Green (St. Louis, Mo.), Emily Hickman (), Kate Hotler (Hilliard), Travis Moles (Cincinnati), Aaron Rosenthal (Heath) and Cat Ross (University Heights); and first-year student Brittany Bradley (Edina, Minn.).

Others taking part in bringing this opera to life are: John Bowditch, Ohio University, a classmate of Mokris at Hilliard Davidson High School; Melinda Kate Cross, another Hilliard student now studying at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Chris and Jen Kasson,residents; Justin Lange, Vassar; Ashley Mokris, a senior at Wasson High School, Colorado Springs; Robert W. Schultz, a certified public accountant from Wadsworth; and Chris Wright, another Hilliard Davidson High School graduate who is graduating from DeVry this year.

About Denison:

Denison University, founded in 1831, is an independent, residential liberal arts institution located in Granville, Ohio. A highly selective college enrolling 2,100 full-time undergraduate students from all 50 states and dozens of foreign countries, Denison is a place where innovative faculty and motivated students collaborate in rigorous scholarship, civic engagement and the cultivation of independent thinking.

For press inquiries:

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