Arts and Culture

Award-winning Puerto Rican poet and author Mara Pastor will visit Northern Michigan University for two free events on Wednesday and Thursday, Sept. 17-18. 

Northern Michigan University Theatre and Dance will present "Into the Woods," a fantasy musical by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, Sept 25-27 and Oct 2-4. This “darkly enchanting” production blends familiar fairy tale characters with profound themes of desire, consequence and hope.

Northern Michigan University's student organization Platform Personalities will host An Evening with Rachel Dratch at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 16, in the Northern Center Grand Ballroom. She is best known for her seven-year run on Saturday Night Live from 1999–2006.

Northern Michigan University's DeVos Art Museum is hosting an exhibition titled "Murmurations" through Nov. 1, with related events throughout September. The exhibit features a diverse collection of works by 30 artists, who all participated in Nido (Italian for “nest”), an artist residency located in the small town of Monte Castello di Vibio, nestled within the central hills of Italy.

Northern Michigan University Theatre and Dance will host its annual Wildcat Theatre Follies Thursday-Saturday, Sept. 4-6, in the Panowski Black Box Theatre. The event will showcase a variety of creative performances by freshmen and sophomores in the program, including songs, scenes, monologues and dance pieces.

Editors: This has been revised to include an additional quote submitted by the co-director. Please use this version instead.Northern Michigan University Theatre and Dance will host its annual Wildcat Theatre Follies Thursday-Saturday, Sept. 4-6, in the Panowski Black Box Theatre. The event will showcase a variety of creative performances by freshmen and sophomores in the program, including songs, scenes, monologues and dance pieces.

Northern Michigan University will open the 2025-2026 Siril Concert Series with Deux Saisons (French for “two seasons”), a duo featuring soprano Keri Lee Pierson classical guitarist Christopher Schoelen and soprano Keri Lee Pierson, who perform a wide musical repertoire ranging from the Renaissance through the present day.

Anishinaabe Radio News, a program co-produced by Northern Michigan University's Center for Native American Studies and Public Radio 90, will soon mark its 200th episode. Since the first broadcast in 2016, host April Lindala has explored Native American history and culture and shared updates on Indigenous events planned across the Great Lakes region. 

The Beaumier U.P. Heritage Center at Northern Michigan University has brought back two of its most popular exhibitions for the months of July and August, “Remnants: Ghost Towns of the Upper Peninsula” and “The Polar Bears: U.P. Soldiers in the Northern Russian Expeditionary Force 1918-1919” are on display in the center's gallery in Gries Hall from noon to 4 p.m. Monday-Saturday through Aug. 30. Admission is free.

Northern Michigan University Theatre and Dance will host its Wildcat Performing Arts Academy Summer Dance Intensive for high school intermediate- to advanced-level dancers July 13-27. Participants will attend sessions led by prominent industry professionals from Giordano Dance Chicago, Ballet Project OC of California, a former Broadway touring company member and others. They will also perform alongside the two visiting ensembles and NMU CO/LAB Dance Company during the North Coast Dance Festival, which consists of a masterclass and two public performances.