The Colorado Springs arts community is mourning Sam Knopp, a senior studying music at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs who was shot to death in his dorm Feb. 16.

“We are all reeling with the news of the death of our supremely talented student, friend and colleague,” said Dr. Glen Whitehead, chair of the UCCS Department of Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA). “My heart is broken for his wonderful family, his close friends, peers and everyone who knew him. Sam was a dynamic, talented musician who had a delightful spirit with an infectious laugh, and who cared deeply about his friends and family.”

Police believe Knopp, 24, and Celie Rain Montgomery, 26, were shot by Knopp’s roommate, Nicholas Jordan, who has been charged with two counts of murder. Knopp graduated from Estes Park High School. Montgomery was from Pueblo.

“The fear we experienced while we waited to hear who died, and then the grief we experienced when we learned who knew him, are going to leave a mark on all students, especially VAPA students, for the rest of our lives,” fellow UCCS music student Ellie Myers wrote in a guest column for The Gazette.

Because the campus was necessarily closed after the shooting, all weekend events were canceled, including the final three performances of “Dream Hou$e,” a play staged by TheatreWorks, a professional theater company affiliated with the university. It’s an intimate play about two Latina sisters who turn to an HGTV-style home renovation show to help sell their childhood home after the death of their mother.

But a few days later, the company announced that the production will have its rescheduled final three performances after all – at 7:30 p.m. Friday, and 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday (Feb. 23-24).

“As part of the UCCS campus, the entire Theatreworks team is grateful to our community of friends and supporters for the outpouring of compassion in light of recent events,” TheatreWorks posted on social media on behalf of Artistic Director Caitlin Lowans. “All of us at Theatreworks mourn the loss of this vibrant UCCS student and artist alongside our communities at the Ent Center and the wider campus.”

For Lowans, the decision to restore a final weekend of performances was a way both to call some attention to Knopp’s life, talents and love for music, as well as to honor the artists who brought “Dream Hou$e to life.”

The healing has only just begun, but at a time of otherwise utter emotional paralysis, art can be nothing if not a positive response to violence. These certainly will not be three ordinary performances.

“It is important for us to honor the artists who created something beautiful in ‘Dream Hou$e’ and the audiences looking to gather together for shared stories in the hope that our inspiring story of two sisters navigating loss, legacy, and their path forward can bring joy and connection to our community,” said Lowans.

Meanwhile, Knopp’s family has released the full video of Knopp’s junior recital last March 13 in the very same Ent Center building.

“You can see his sheer versatility – and Sam the shredder comes out at around 22 minutes,” Whitehead said.