The Givens Performing Arts Center is a theatre located at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. It brings incredible shows from around the world both to the students at Pembroke and the surrounding communities. Every year the season is not only star studded, but incredibly varied. There is something here for everyone. This October the Givens Performing Arts Center will host two very different, but equally entertaining shows.

The first show of the month is The National Acrobats of The Peoples Republic of China. This show promises to be breathtaking. Hailing from Berlin, the traveling troupe is composed of the best 500 acrobatic students and 150 acrobatic resident performers from the Institution for Acrobatic Schooling, Training and Repertoire, which the company owns. The group was founded in 1951, and since then has developed a reputation for its dazzling costumes and daring acrobatics. They are the premier acrobatic troupe from China, and since their inception has continued to evolve in their performance. Some of their most notable acts include “Aerial Bungee Tumbling” and “Diving Through Moving Hoops.” The group has received awards both as a troupe and for individual members. Since it’s inception 200 of the company’s members have won either gold or silver awards from various acrobatic and circus festivals both nationally and internationally. The show will be held on Oct. 13, at 7:30 p.m. at the Givens Performing Arts Center. Tickets range from $16 to $36.

The second show of the month is the musical based on the classic Robert Louis novel, and is called Jekyll and Hyde. It begins in Victorian London. A doctor, Dr. Henry Jekyll, desperately struggles to find a way to cure the medical problems that plague mankind. He is passionate and romantic, but after testing his chemical concoctions on himself he releases something terrible. Mr. Hyde, the alter ego and embodiment of Jekyll’s inner demons, is released by these medical experiments. He is a vicious madman that wreaks havoc across London creating an epic battle between good and evil, all within one man. To further complicate things, two beautiful women both fall in love with this man and are unaware of the dark secret that he harbors, his alter ego. This epic struggle between the forces of good and evil is set to pop rock music from Grammy and Tony nominated composer Frank Wildhorn and two time Oscar and Grammy-winning artist Leslie Bricusse, including the ever popular hit “This Is The Moment.” The lively music serves to capture the passionate and enthralling nature of the classic story. Audiences all over the world have delighted in this evocative and ever relevant story exploring the duality of man. Tickets range from$16 to $41. The show will be held In the Givens Performing Arts Center on Oct. 20, at 7:30 p.m.

The Givens Performing Arts Center is located at 1 University Dr. in Pembroke. For more information visit http://www.uncp.edu/student-life/involvement-opportunities/givens-performing-arts-center/broadway-and-more-series or call 910-521-6287. For tickets, the box office is open from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. and for one hour prior to performance. The box office can be contacted at 910-521-6361.

Photo: The National Acrobats of The Peoples Republic of China is set to perform at Givens on Oct. 13.