Passing Through Improvisation Workshop with David Zambrano


Center, Gravity, Rhythm: Global Forces in Dancemaking

International dance artists David Zambrano, Nora Chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi will visit Swarthmore College as part of a three-week program that includes a presentation of Zambrano’s performance work Soul Project: a series of technique and repertory classes in various dance vocabularies and improvisation meth- odologies; an informal presentation of performance ideas from the three featured artists; and informal campus community discussions concerning new notions of contemporary performance. All events are open to the public. Workshops, classes, and informal presentations occur in the Troy and Boyer dance stu- dios of Lang Performing Arts Center.

Flying Low Technique with David Zambrano


Center, Gravity, Rhythm: Global Forces in Dancemaking

International dance artists David Zambrano, Nora Chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi will visit Swarthmore College as part of a three-week program that includes a presentation of Zambrano’s performance work Soul Project: a series of technique and repertory classes in various dance vocabularies and improvisation meth- odologies; an informal presentation of performance ideas from the three featured artists; and informal campus community discussions concerning new notions of contemporary performance. All events are open to the public. Workshops, classes, and informal presentations occur in the Troy and Boyer dance stu- dios of Lang Performing Arts Center.

Nora Chipaumire: Creative Workshop In Choreography

Center, Gravity, Rhythm: Global Forces in Dancemaking

International dance artists David Zambrano, Nora Chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi will visit Swarthmore College as part of a three-week program that includes a presentation of Zambrano’s performance work Soul Project: a series of technique and repertory classes in various dance vocabularies and improvisation meth- odologies; an informal presentation of performance ideas from the three featured artists; and informal campus community discussions concerning new notions of contemporary performance. All events are open to the public. Workshops, classes, and informal presentations occur in the Troy and Boyer dance studios of Lang Performing Arts Center.

Soul Project: Evening open rehearsal with David Zambrano Company


Center, Gravity, Rhythm: Global Forces in Dancemaking

International dance artists David Zambrano, Nora Chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi will visit Swarthmore College as part of a three-week program that includes a presentation of Zambrano’s performance work Soul Project: a series of technique and repertory classes in various dance vocabularies and improvisation methodologies; an informal presentation of performance ideas from the three featured artists; and informal campus community discussions concerning new notions of contemporary performance. All events are open to the public. Workshops, classes, and informal presentations occur in the Troy and Boyer dance studios of Lang Performing Arts Center.

Soul Project: Performance and postshow discussion

Followed by a post-show conversation with performers, led by Charmian Wells

As part of the 3 week series CENTER, GRAVITY, RHYTHM, taking place from September 12 – October 4, 2015, Swarthmore is excited to bring SOUL PROJECT to campus. The show begins…spontaneously…an extraordinary, unpredictable presentation and experience of being continuously alive. On, like a candle. The music starts and dancers emerge from the audience, moving to a sublime live recording of a “vintage” soul singer – Aretha Franklin, Ike & Tina Turner, Bettye Lavette, Gladys Knight & The Pips – following their own movement quest to embody the dance as deeply and powerfully as the singer reveals the song.

SOUL PROJECT conceived and directed by the legendary David Zambrano, in collaboration with a cast of six remarkable performers from Mozambique, Slovenia, Slovakia, South Korea and Venezuela, simultaneously creates a sense of heightened perception and grounded physicality. Designed to be performed in an open space-a gallery, black box, gymnasium, ballroom, church, large stage, or even outdoors - SOUL PROJECT is a series of virtuosic solos, each lasting the length of a song; but the order of the solos and their location in the space is a function of chance, making each night’s performance unique.

Along with this performance, the college will host a unique series of technique and repertory classes in various dance vocabularies and improvisation methodologies, an informal presentation of performance ideas from the three featured artists, and informal discussions with the campus community around new notions of contemporary performance. All events happening at Swarthmore College are free and open to the public. More details are available online: http://www.jumatatu.org/center-gravity-rhythm

Sponsored by the William J. Cooper Foundation, Philadelphia’s FringeArts and Mascher Space Co-Op. Additional classes hosted by Mascher Space Co-Op. Additional performances of SOUL PROJECT will be in the Philadelphia FringeArts program.

Center, Gravity, Rhythm: Global Forces in Dancemaking

International dance artists David Zambrano, Nora Chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi will visit Swarthmore College as part of a three-week program that includes a presentation of Zambrano’s performance work Soul Project: a series of technique and repertory classes in various dance vocabularies and improvisation methodologies; an informal presentation of performance ideas from the three featured artists; and informal campus community discussions concerning new notions of contemporary performance. All events are open to the public. Workshops, classes, and informal presentations occur in the Troy and Boyer dance studios of Lang Performing Arts Center.

Studio Conversation With David Zambrano, Nora Chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi

Preceded by an artist conversation in Troy Studio with David Zambrano, nora chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi at 6pm, led by Charmian Wells

As part of the 3 week series CENTER, GRAVITY, RHYTHM, taking place from September 12 – October 4, 2015, Swarthmore is excited to bring SOUL PROJECT to campus. The show begins…spontaneously…an extraordinary, unpredictable presentation and experience of being continuously alive. On, like a candle. The music starts and dancers emerge from the audience, moving to a sublime live recording of a “vintage” soul singer – Aretha Franklin, Ike & Tina Turner, Bettye Lavette, Gladys Knight & The Pips – following their own movement quest to embody the dance as deeply and powerfully as the singer reveals the song.

SOUL PROJECT conceived and directed by the legendary David Zambrano, in collaboration with a cast of six remarkable performers from Mozambique, Slovenia, Slovakia, South Korea and Venezuela, simultaneously creates a sense of heightened perception and grounded physicality. Designed to be performed in an open space-a gallery, black box, gymnasium, ballroom, church, large stage, or even outdoors - SOUL PROJECT is a series of virtuosic solos, each lasting the length of a song; but the order of the solos and their location in the space is a function of chance, making each night’s performance unique.

Along with this performance, the college will host a unique series of technique and repertory classes in various dance vocabularies and improvisation methodologies, an informal presentation of performance ideas from the three featured artists, and informal discussions with the campus community around new notions of contemporary performance. All events happening at Swarthmore College are free and open to the public. More details are available online: http://www.jumatatu.org/center-gravity-rhythm

Sponsored by the William J. Cooper Foundation, Philadelphia’s FringeArts and Mascher Space Co-Op. Additional classes hosted by Mascher Space Co-Op. Additional performances of SOUL PROJECT will be in the Philadelphia FringeArts program.

Center, Gravity, Rhythm: Global Forces in Dancemaking

International dance artists David Zambrano, Nora Chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi will visit Swarthmore College as part of a three-week program that includes a presentation of Zambrano’s performance work Soul Project: a series of technique and repertory classes in various dance vocabularies and improvisation methodologies; an informal presentation of performance ideas from the three featured artists; and informal campus community discussions concerning new notions of contemporary performance. All events are open to the public. Workshops, classes, and informal presentations occur in the Troy and Boyer dance studios of Lang Performing Arts Center.

Soul Project Performance


Center, Gravity, Rhythm: Global Forces in Dancemaking

International dance artists David Zambrano, Nora Chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi will visit Swarthmore College as part of a three-week program that includes a presentation of Zambrano’s performance work Soul Project: a series of technique and repertory classes in various dance vocabularies and improvisation methodologies; an informal presentation of performance ideas from the three featured artists; and informal campus community discussions concerning new notions of contemporary performance. All events are open to the public. Workshops, classes, and informal presentations occur in the Troy and Boyer dance studios of Lang Performing Arts Center.

Studio Informance: (Information on Process & Informal Performance) featuring David Zambrano, Nora Chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi.


Center, Gravity, Rhythm: Global Forces in Dancemaking

International dance artists David Zambrano, Nora Chipaumire, and Ziya Azazi will visit Swarthmore College as part of a three-week program that includes a presentation of Zambrano’s performance work Soul Project: a series of technique and repertory classes in various dance vocabularies and improvisation methodologies; an informal presentation of performance ideas from the three featured artists; and informal campus community discussions concerning new notions of contemporary performance. All events are open to the public. Workshops, classes, and informal presentations occur in the Troy and Boyer dance studios of Lang Performing Arts Center.

Michał Zadara ’99 and Barbara Wysocka will lead a series of workshops with interested theater students on a schedule to be announced in October. Bassem Akiki, with Zadara and Wysocka, will lead a master class and discussion with the Swarthmore College Orchestra Thursday, Oct. 22.

Chopin without Piano

Michal Zadara ’99 and Barbara Wysocka are among the pre-eminent Polish theater artists of their gen- eration and are active internationally in theater and opera. Zadara, who first studied theater and directing at Swarthmore, has emerged as Poland’s most signifi- cant and innovative director of the Polish classical and contemporary repertory. Wysocka’s accomplished acting and directing career was preceded by eight years of classical violin training in Germany. They founded CENTRALA to create works that cross tradi- tional lines of performance and artistic practice.

Chopin Without Piano is a large-scale performance piece in which the piano parts for Fryderyk Chopin’s two piano concertos (Opus 11 in E minor and Opus 21 in F minor) are replaced by Wysocka performing a virtuosic monologue in Polish with English subti- tles. Wysocka captures Chopin as a dynamic, living presence, using fragments of the composer’s letters, biographies, and commentaries on his work. The orchestral scores will be performed by the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, led by Bassem Akiki, a lead- ing Polish conductor affiliated with Warsaw’s National Opera, who is making his American debut. Chopin Without Piano presents new possibilities for theater and music to intersect in performance and reveals how classical composers and music remain alive and relevant for us today.

Considered a contemporary classic in Poland, Chopin Without Piano has been successfully per- formed in both concert venues and theaters. The per- formances of Chopin Without Piano in Swarthmore and Philadelphia mark the first international tour of the work, and will be followed by an engagement at Arts Emerson in Boston.

CHOPIN WITHOUT PIANO
Created by CENTRALA (Warsaw)
Directed by Michał Zadara ‘99
Text by Barbara Wysocka and Michał Zadara
Performed with the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia
Conducted by Bassem Akiki
Performances in Polish with English supertitles

Saturday, October 24, 2015, 8:00 pm
Lang Concert Hall, Swarthmore College

Michał Zadara and Barbara Wysocka are among the pre-eminent Polish theater artists of their generation, and are active internationally in both theater and opera.  Zadara, who first studied theater and directing at Swarthmore, has emerged as Poland’s most significant and innovative director of the Polish classical and contemporary repertory.  Wysocka’s accomplished acting and directing career was preceded by eight years of classical violin training in Germany.  Together they founded CENTRALA to create works that cross traditional lines of performance and artistic practice.

Chopin Without Piano is a large-scale performance piece in which the piano parts for Fryderyk Chopin’s two piano concertos (Opus 11 in E minor and Opus 21 in F minor) are replaced by Wysocka performing a virtuosic monologue in Polish with English supertitles.  Wysocka captures Chopin as a dynamic living presence, using fragments of the composer’s letters, biographies, and commentaries on his work.  The orchestral scores will be performed by the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, led by Bassem Akiki, a leading Polish conductor affiliated with Warsaw’s National Opera, who is making his American debut.  Chopin Without Piano presents new possibilities for theater and music to intersect in performance, and reveals how classical composers and music remain alive and relevant for us today.

Considered a contemporary classic in Poland, Chopin Without Piano has been successfully performed in both concert venues and theaters.  The performances of Chopin Without Piano in Swarthmore and Philadelphia mark the first international tour of the work, and will be followed by an engagement at Arts Emerson in Boston. 

[Following the Swarthmore performance, there are four additional performances at FringeArts in Philadelphia:

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Oct. 28-30, 8 pm nightly
Saturday, Oct. 31, 2 pm (with roundtable discussion afterwards)
FringeArts, 140 N. Columbus Blvd, Philadelphia
$25 general admission/$15 Student and 25-and-under
For tickets: FringeArts.com/215-413-1318]

Participants: Michał Zadara ’99,
Barbara Wysocka, Bassem Akiki, Jeffrey Kallberg (University of Pennsylvania), David Kasunic (Occidental College) Moderator: Barbara Milewski (Swarthmore College)

Chopin without Piano

Michal Zadara ’99 and Barbara Wysocka are among the pre-eminent Polish theater artists of their gen- eration and are active internationally in theater and opera. Zadara, who first studied theater and directing at Swarthmore, has emerged as Poland’s most signifi- cant and innovative director of the Polish classical and contemporary repertory. Wysocka’s accomplished acting and directing career was preceded by eight years of classical violin training in Germany. They founded CENTRALA to create works that cross tradi- tional lines of performance and artistic practice.

Chopin Without Piano is a large-scale performance piece in which the piano parts for Fryderyk Chopin’s two piano concertos (Opus 11 in E minor and Opus 21 in F minor) are replaced by Wysocka performing a virtuosic monologue in Polish with English subti- tles. Wysocka captures Chopin as a dynamic, living presence, using fragments of the composer’s letters, biographies, and commentaries on his work. The orchestral scores will be performed by the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, led by Bassem Akiki, a lead- ing Polish conductor affiliated with Warsaw’s National Opera, who is making his American debut. Chopin Without Piano presents new possibilities for theater and music to intersect in performance and reveals how classical composers and music remain alive and relevant for us today.

Considered a contemporary classic in Poland, Chopin Without Piano has been successfully per- formed in both concert venues and theaters. The per- formances of Chopin Without Piano in Swarthmore and Philadelphia mark the first international tour of the work, and will be followed by an engagement at Arts Emerson in Boston.

Participants: Michał Zadara ’99, Barbara Wysocka, Bassem Akiki, Tamara Trojanowska (University of Toronto), Tom Sellar (Yale School of Drama) Moderator: Allen Kuharski (Swarthmore College)

FringeArts, 140 N. Columbus Blvd., Philadelphia

Chopin without Piano

Michal Zadara ’99 and Barbara Wysocka are among the pre-eminent Polish theater artists of their gen- eration and are active internationally in theater and opera. Zadara, who first studied theater and directing at Swarthmore, has emerged as Poland’s most signifi- cant and innovative director of the Polish classical and contemporary repertory. Wysocka’s accomplished acting and directing career was preceded by eight years of classical violin training in Germany. They founded CENTRALA to create works that cross tradi- tional lines of performance and artistic practice.

Chopin Without Piano is a large-scale performance piece in which the piano parts for Fryderyk Chopin’s two piano concertos (Opus 11 in E minor and Opus 21 in F minor) are replaced by Wysocka performing a virtuosic monologue in Polish with English subti- tles. Wysocka captures Chopin as a dynamic, living presence, using fragments of the composer’s letters, biographies, and commentaries on his work. The orchestral scores will be performed by the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, led by Bassem Akiki, a lead- ing Polish conductor affiliated with Warsaw’s National Opera, who is making his American debut. Chopin Without Piano presents new possibilities for theater and music to intersect in performance and reveals how classical composers and music remain alive and relevant for us today.

Considered a contemporary classic in Poland, Chopin Without Piano has been successfully per- formed in both concert venues and theaters. The per- formances of Chopin Without Piano in Swarthmore and Philadelphia mark the first international tour of the work, and will be followed by an engagement at Arts Emerson in Boston.

Eve Spangler's important story as a daughter of Jewish Holocaust survivors (most of her family were killed in Europe) who became a scholar in solidarity with the Palestinian struggle will be quite powerful to hear.

Eve Spangler, associate professor of Sociology at Boston College, serves as a Human and Civil Rights Organizations of America board member, and is a founding board member of American Jews for a Just Peace. Spangler's new book, Understanding Israel/Palestine: Race, Nation, and Human Rights in the Conflict (New York, Sense Publishers 2015).

Class led by Tara Keating, Assoc. Artistic Director BalletX

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The students will learn choreography from the company's active repertoire of works. For intermediate students.

 

Tara Keating
Associate Artistic Director, BalletX

TaraKeating began her training at the age of seven at the Pioneer ValleyBallet in Northampton, Massachusetts. She then attended the JuilliardSchool, under the direction of Benjamin Harkarvy, where she received aBFA in dance. While there, she was awarded the Jerome L. GreeneFellowship and the Most Outstanding Dance Major award from the NationalDance Association. She has danced professionally with American RepertoryBallet, "Tharp!" and as a soloist with the Pennsylvania Ballet.Throughout her career she has originated roles in world premieres bysuch renowned choreographers as Jorma Elo, Jodie Gates, Annabelle LopezOchoa, Trey McIntyre, Matthew Neenan, Helen Pickett, Septime Webre, andChristopher Wheeldon, among others.

In 2005, she became a foundingmember of BalletX, and danced in nearly every performance until herretirement in 2012. She has staged numerous ballets on BalletX, and hasset Neenan's work on Pennsylvania Ballet, Milwaukee Ballet, OregonBallet Theatre, Nevada Ballet Theatre, SUNY at Purchase College andBucknell University. Tara was the Producing Director in 2006 and 2007for Shut Up and Dance, an annual benefit for MANNA, created bythe Dancers of Pennsylvania Ballet. She was also the recipient of a 2002City Paper Choice Award. She is on faculty at The University of theArts, Philadelphia Dance Academy and is a guest teacher at variousschools in the region. Tara served as BalletX's Artistic Coordinator andBallet Mistress from 2011 to 2013, and was named Associate ArtisticDirector in February 2014.

BalletX, Philadelphia’s internationallyacclaimed contemporary ballet company and resident dance company of TheWilma Theater, will present an evening of four works on January 29 in the LPAC Pearson-Hall Theatre at 8PM. An additional lecture with BalletX's collaborator, Rosie Langabeer, will take place on January 28. For more information, go towww.swarthmore.edu/dance-program or check out our Facebookpage:https://www.facebook.com/pages/Swarthmore-College-Dance-Program/20084006....

Come sing with Dr. Yasye M. Barnwell, former member of Sweet Honey in The Rock, musician, composer, educator, and scholar. Dr. Barnwell will lead a two-hour workshop focused on learning through hearing and feeling music, rather than reading it. All are welcome, whether you consider yourself a singer or not!

Rosie Langabeer: Discussion on Music and Dance Collaboration
 

On Thursday, January 28, internationally-recognized composer Rosie Langabeer will lead a discussion of music and dance collaborations from 4:30-6 PM in Room 407 of the Lang Music Building.  Langabeer is an award-winning composer and experimental musician who creates music for dance, theater, and musical ensembles and splits time between the States and New Zealand.  Langabeer collaborated for over a year with BalletX Founder Matthew Neenan in the creation of “Sunset, o639”, an evening-length work created for BalletX and premiered in 2014.  Her score and musical performance garnered rave reviews from The New York Times Dance Critic, Alastair Macaulay. 

Additional workshops with BalletX will take place on January 27 and the company will perform on January 29 in the LPAC Pearson-Hall Theater. For more information, go to www.swarthmore.edu/dance-program or check out our Facebook page:https://www.facebook.com/pages/Swarthmore-College-Dance-Program/20084006....
 

The Department of Music and Dance and the William J. Cooper Foundation at Swarthmore College present BalletX: The Future of Contemporary Ballet on Friday, January 29^th, 2016 at 8 PM in the Lang Performing Arts Center’s Pearson-Hall Theatre.   The performance of four works will be free and open to the public without reservations.

BalletX, Philadelphia’s premier contemporary ballet company, unites distinguished choreographers with an outstanding company of world-class dancers to forge new works of athleticism, emotion, and grace. Founded in 2005 by Christine Cox and Matthew Neenan, and now under the direction of Cox as Artistic and Executive Director, BalletX challenges the boundaries of classical ballet by encouraging formal experimentation while preserving rigorous technique. Currently celebrating its tenth year, BalletX has expanded its repertoire with over 50 world premieres by internationally renowned artists. 

BalletX is the Resident Dance Company of The Wilma Theater and offers three annual performance series in Philadelphia. Now recognized worldwide for its unique repertoire, the company participates in growing numbers of national and international tours, including performances at prestigious venues and festivals such as The Joyce Theater in New York City, Vail International Dance Festival in Colorado, Laguna Dance Festival in California, Festival de Ballet in Colombia, Ballet EXPO in South Korea, Sweet Pea Festival in Montana, Spring to Dance Festival in St. Louis, and DANCECleveland, among others.

In addition to the Friday evening performance, BalletX Artistic and Executive Director Christine Cox will teach the Ballet III class from 11:30-1 PM on Wednesday, January 27th, 2016 in the Boyer Dance Studio in LPAC.  Associate Artistic Director Tara Keating will offer a BalletX Repertory Workshop and discussion from 4:30-6:30 PM in the Boyer studio for interested intermediate and advanced dance students.  The students will learn choreography from the company’s active repertoire of works.

On Thursday, January 28, internationally-recognized composer Rosie Langabeer will lead a discussion of music and dance collaborations from 4:30-6 PM in Room 407 of the Lang Music Building.  Langabeer is an award-winning composer and experimental musician who creates music for dance, theater, and musical ensembles and splits time between the States and New Zealand.  Langabeer collaborated for over a year with BalletX Founder Matthew Neenan in the creation of “Sunset, o639”, an evening-length work created for BalletX and premiered in 2014.  Her score and musical performance garnered rave reviews from The New York Times Dance Critic, Alastair Macaulay. 

Come hear Dr. Ysaye M. Barnwell speak about the African American oral singing tradition, the history of song as protest, and the importance of understanding these things in the context of our time. Dr. Barnwell's firsthand experience as a musician, composer, educator, and scholar gives her a unique and captivating perspective on this subject. After a dinner break, come sing with her too at 7:00pm.

Lecture: 4:00-5:00:   Community Sing: 7:00-9:00  
Come sing, listen, and learn with Dr. Ysaye M. Barnwell, an accomplished musician, educator, scholar and former member of Sweet Honey in the Rock. Dr. Barnwell's work focuses on the African American oral singing tradition, and her workshops are deeply engaging. You don't want to miss this!

Lang Performing Arts Center Cinema List Gallery reception to follow: 5:30 –7 p.m.
A color catalogue will accompany the exhibitions.

April Saul: Our American Family

April Saul has spent the last 35 years chronicling the suffering, fortitude, and compassion of American families as they confront varied experiences, from celebrating life’s milestones to confront- ing illness, gun violence, teen pregnancy, incarceration, and gender reassignment. In 1980, she became the first female staff photographer for The Baltimore Sun. She was a photographer and journalist for The Philadelphia Inquirer 1991–2014, and her work has been published in other major periodicals including Time, Newsweek, and National Geographic. In 1997 she was co-win-ner of the Pulitzer Prize in explanatory journalism. Her other honors include a Nikon/NPPA Documentary Sabbatical Grant for her work on Hmong refugees, the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award, the World Press Photo Budapest Award for Humanistic Photography, the Atlanta Photojournalism Award, and Pictures of the Year International Award of Excellence. She has been named Photographer of the Year by many organizations including the Northern Short Course, the Pennsylvania Press Photographers Association, and the New Jersey Press Photographers Association.

Swarthmore College Libraries and The List Gallery are pleased to announce that they will host concurrent exhibitions of photographs by the preeminent documentary photographer, April Saul. Curated by Andrea Packard and Ron Tarver, the exhibitions will take place March 2 - April 3, 2016 and are accompanied by a 60-page exhibition catalog. The List Gallery will feature Camden, NJ: A Spirit Invincible, which features approximately 50 images from Sauls ongoing body of work documenting life in Camden, New Jersey. McCabe Libraries atrium gallery space will feature more than 25 photographs selected from Our American Family, a body of work that combines numerous series made possible through the artists ongoing connection to diverse individuals and families over years and even decades. Check McCabe Library hours for more information.

An Artists lecture will take place on Wednesday, March 2, 4:30 p.m. in the Lang Performing Arts Center Cinema. A List Gallery reception will immediately follow, 5:30-7:00 p.m. All events are free and open to the public. A book signing and closing reception will take place in the List Gallery on Sunday, April 3, 35 p.m. Free copies of the exhibition catalog will be given to the first 100 visitors.  These exhibitions, accompanying catalog, and related events have been funded through a generous grant from the William J. Cooper Foundation. Additional support was provided by Swarthmore College Libraries, the Department of Art, Swarthmore College, and the Kaori Kitao Endowment for the List Gallery.

For more than 35 years, April Saul has photographed American families as they confronted hardships such as poverty, HIV/AIDS, gun violence, addiction, and incarceration. Since 1980, when she became the first female staff photojournalist at The Baltimore Sun, she has provided new perspectives in a field that has not generally encouraged in-depth coverage of family relationships. Already acclaimed as a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, her Swarthmore exhibitions and this accompanying catalog mark the first major presentation of her work in a fine art context. Through interweaving documentary, fine art, and social media practices, Saul advocates for underserved families and communities while creating images that are both moving and transcendent. 

McCabe Librarys atrium gallery provides the opportunity to view several extended photo essays. The centerpiece of Sauls McCabe Library exhibition, Our American Family, consists of selections from Sauls many long-term photo-essays chronicling the trials and challenges faced by diverse families. Kids, Guns and Violence: a Deadly Toll consists of Sauls written and photographic profiles commemorating each of the 24 children killed in the Philadelphia region by gun violence during a single year. Another series, Between Genders, portrays the experiences of Renee Ramsey, a Navy Veteran who was born anatomically male and pursued gender reassignment surgery at the age of 77. 

Sauls List Gallery presentation, Camden, NJ: A Spirit Invincible, offers selections from her ongoing series of photographs chronicling life in that troubled city. Her images are alternately heartbreaking or uplifting: an anguished firefighter turning in her badge, a panoramic shot of a boxing tournament in the middle of a city street, an image of a girl playing in front of boarded-up homes. Striving to avoid voyeurism and objectification, she has developed relationships with individuals, families, and communities over time. Some photographs on display in the List Gallery were selected from the hundreds of images Saul has taken since 2014, when she became an embedded photographer at Camden High School. 

As a participant-observer, Saul is careful to portray the successes that are often overlooked in the community. Saul publishes such affirming images, as well as sobering ones, on her Instagram feed and Facebook page, Camden, NJ: A Spirit Invincible. Online, community members not only view, download, and share Sauls images but also provide their own commentary. Her Facebook page exceeded 95,000 views in one week. Thus, the photographs on display at Swarthmore College are part of an interactive and ongoing community dialogue. 

Artists Biography

A Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist, April Saul made Camden, New Jersey her unofficial beat while working at The Philadelphia Inquirer, and has continued to document that community with the help of an Alicia Patterson Foundation Fellowship and a National Press Photographers Association Short Grant. A graduate of Tufts University with an Masters Degree from the University of Minnesota, Saul became the first female staff photographer at The Baltimore Sun in 1980. She joined The Philadelphia Inquirer photo staff the following year. A single mother of two, Saul has won numerous honors for both her writing and photography including the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award, the World Press Photo Budapest Award for Humanistic Photography, two Casey Medals for Meritorious Journalism, and many awards in the Pictures of the Year International contest. 

In 1997, Saulalong with Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Michael Vitez and photographer Ron Corteswas awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Explanatory Journalism for a series of articles on end-of-life care. She was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography in both 1994 and 1987. In 1985, she was the first recipient of the Nikon/ NPPA Documentary Sabbatical Grant for her work on Hmong refugees, and over the course of her career, has been named Photographer of the Year by the NPPA Northern Short Course, the Pennsylvania Press Photographers Association, and the New Jersey Press Photographers Association. 

William J. Cooper Foundation Sponsors Concurrent Exhibitions  by April Saul  
March 2 - April 3, 2016
The List Gallery 
Swarthmore College
Camden, NJ: A Spirit Invincible
McCabe Library Atrium 
Our American Family

Workshop will focus on Afro-Brazilian drum and dance traditions of northeast Brazil, such as samba, samba-reggae, and orixá-based movement.

Participants should wear movement-appropriate clothing.

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Consciência Negra: A Legacy of Black Consciousness in Brazil
3-day Symposium and Workshop Series at Swarthmore College
March 16-18, 2016

This 3-day symposium will commemorate Dia da Consciência Negra (Brazilian Day of Black Consciousness) and will focus on themes of race, identity, and black consciousness in Brazil and the African Diaspora. Through interdisciplinary panel discussions, film screenings, lecture, Afro-Brazilian drum/dance & capoeira workshops, and an evening-length musical performance, the Swarthmore community will have various opportunities to engage with invited scholars, artists, and cultural workers from both Brazil and the U.S. who have a vested interest in promoting racial equity, social justice, and cultural resistance. The symposium will culminate with a captivating live musical and interdisciplinary performance, The Mandinga Experiment, conceived and led by Alex Shaw ’00.

Synopsis: The Summer of Gods (Drama, 2014, 21’)
The Summer of Gods is a short film about a young girl named Lili who unites with her Afro-Brazilian religious ancestry on a summer visit with family to their ancestral village in rural Brazil. During her stay, she encounters Orishas (African gods) who help her find peace with a gift that has previously vexed her. The film is set in the Northeast of Brazil where Afro-Brazilian religious traditions remain strong. Lili's Grandma upholds Orisha traditions as an admired local priestess, but to ensure these traditions carry on after she passes, the gifted Lili is led on a mystical adventure of initiation through a nearby forest. http://www.thesummerofgods.com/

Synopsis: Rhythmic Uprising (Documentary, 2009, 58’)
Rhythmic Uprising is a documentary film that shows how cultural leaders in Bahia, Brazil use vibrant Afro-Brazilian traditions to fight racism, social exclusion, and poverty. The film outlines the transformative powers of a large movement of grassroots cultural youth projects that make up the latest chapter in a creative struggle for racial equality that began four centuries ago with Brazil's first communities of freed slaves called "Quilombos". Traditions featured in the film include capoeira, candomblé, blocos afros, theater, and circus. http://www.rhythmicuprising.org/

Screening will be followed by a talk back with Eliciana Nascimento, writer/director of The Summer of Gods, and co-producer of Rhythmic Uprising

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Consciência Negra: A Legacy of Black Consciousness in Brazil
3-day Symposium and Workshop Series at Swarthmore College
March 16-18, 2016

This 3-day symposium will commemorate Dia da Consciência Negra (Brazilian Day of Black Consciousness) and will focus on themes of race, identity, and black consciousness in Brazil and the African Diaspora. Through interdisciplinary panel discussions, film screenings, lecture, Afro-Brazilian drum/dance & capoeira workshops, and an evening-length musical performance, the Swarthmore community will have various opportunities to engage with invited scholars, artists, and cultural workers from both Brazil and the U.S. who have a vested interest in promoting racial equity, social justice, and cultural resistance. The symposium will culminate with a captivating live musical and interdisciplinary performance, The Mandinga Experiment, conceived and led by Alex Shaw ’00.

Capoeira Angola is an Afro-Brazilian martial art rooted in Bantu culture, developed by enslaved Africans struggling for liberation in colonial Brazil. Integrating the elements of movement, percussion, and song/oral history, Capoeira Angola serves as a social tool for cultural resistance, empowerment, and community building.

Participants should wear athletic pants and sneakers.

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Consciência Negra: A Legacy of Black Consciousness in Brazil
3-day Symposium and Workshop Series at Swarthmore College
March 16-18, 2016

This 3-day symposium will commemorate Dia da Consciência Negra (Brazilian Day of Black Consciousness) and will focus on themes of race, identity, and black consciousness in Brazil and the African Diaspora. Through interdisciplinary panel discussions, film screenings, lecture, Afro-Brazilian drum/dance & capoeira workshops, and an evening-length musical performance, the Swarthmore community will have various opportunities to engage with invited scholars, artists, and cultural workers from both Brazil and the U.S. who have a vested interest in promoting racial equity, social justice, and cultural resistance. The symposium will culminate with a captivating live musical and interdisciplinary performance, The Mandinga Experiment, conceived and led by Alex Shaw ’00.

This panel discussion will consider multiple perspectives on how traditional and contemporary diasporic arts and cultural practices have been utilized as a means of cultural resistance, with a specific focus on the African-Brazilian contribution to Black Consciousness.

Moderator: Lela Aisha Jones
Panelists: Dr. Paula Barreto, Dr. Kenneth Dossar, Eliciana Nascimento, Dandha da Hora

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Consciência Negra: A Legacy of Black Consciousness in Brazil
3-day Symposium and Workshop Series at Swarthmore College
March 16-18, 2016

This 3-day symposium will commemorate Dia da Consciência Negra (Brazilian Day of Black Consciousness) and will focus on themes of race, identity, and black consciousness in Brazil and the African Diaspora. Through interdisciplinary panel discussions, film screenings, lecture, Afro-Brazilian drum/dance & capoeira workshops, and an evening-length musical performance, the Swarthmore community will have various opportunities to engage with invited scholars, artists, and cultural workers from both Brazil and the U.S. who have a vested interest in promoting racial equity, social justice, and cultural resistance. The symposium will culminate with a captivating live musical and interdisciplinary performance, The Mandinga Experiment, conceived and led by Alex Shaw ’00.

Synopsis: Of Slaves and Saints (Documentary, 2014, 27’)
In the confines of the outback of Bahia, every 12th of October, men and women gather to celebrate the Langa of Our Lady Aparecida. To the fervent sounds of prayers and traditional music, they dance and sing throughout the night, expressing their devotion to the Black saint. But this mystical scenario conceals sad stories. These are stories of pain and suffering. Stories of enslaved men and women, told by the Black people of the region, the way they heard from their grandparents and great-grandparents. http://escravosesantos.com.br/

Synopsis: Who We Really Are (Documentary, 2015, 76’)
African Brazilian Master Roxinho comes to Australia in 2006 and starts teaching the art form of Capoeira Angola to a group of troubled young African refugees who go to Cabramatta High School. The school is uncertain of what to make of this program. Some fiercely resist it, arguing it is not helping students improve their behavior and literacy. Others defend it, arguing the program will help African refugees with no prior education to better integrate into Australia. The filmmaker becomes deeply involved with participants as he follows, in a participatory filmmaking style, the unfolding stories of migration and African diaspora that emerge from in between the walls of a multicultural school in the outskirts of Sydney, Australia. http://www.pauloalberton.com/

*Screening will be followed by a talkback session with Marcio de Abreu, director/producer of "Of Slaves and Saints," and Paulo Alberton, director of "Who We Really Are."

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Consciência Negra: A Legacy of Black Consciousness in Brazil
3-day Symposium and Workshop Series at Swarthmore College
March 16-18, 2016

This 3-day symposium will commemorate Dia da Consciência Negra (Brazilian Day of Black Consciousness) and will focus on themes of race, identity, and black consciousness in Brazil and the African Diaspora. Through interdisciplinary panel discussions, film screenings, lecture, Afro-Brazilian drum/dance & capoeira workshops, and an evening-length musical performance, the Swarthmore community will have various opportunities to engage with invited scholars, artists, and cultural workers from both Brazil and the U.S. who have a vested interest in promoting racial equity, social justice, and cultural resistance. The symposium will culminate with a captivating live musical and interdisciplinary performance, The Mandinga Experiment, conceived and led by Alex Shaw ’00.

The talk will focus on the formation of Brazilian national identity through the use of African cultural models such as Candomblé and Capoeira. It will also look at the important different African traditions, e.g. Yoruba and Congo traditions, and their struggle for cultural authenticity and contemporary viability.

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Consciência Negra: A Legacy of Black Consciousness in Brazil
3-day Symposium and Workshop Series at Swarthmore College
March 16-18, 2016

This 3-day symposium will commemorate Dia da Consciência Negra (Brazilian Day of Black Consciousness) and will focus on themes of race, identity, and black consciousness in Brazil and the African Diaspora. Through interdisciplinary panel discussions, film screenings, lecture, Afro-Brazilian drum/dance & capoeira workshops, and an evening-length musical performance, the Swarthmore community will have various opportunities to engage with invited scholars, artists, and cultural workers from both Brazil and the U.S. who have a vested interest in promoting racial equity, social justice, and cultural resistance. The symposium will culminate with a captivating live musical and interdisciplinary performance, The Mandinga Experiment, conceived and led by Alex Shaw ’00.

This panel discussion will consider the legacy of Black Consciousness in the context of systematic racism, racial politics, and Black identity in both Brazil and the U.S.

Moderator: Dr. Brenda Gottschild-Dixon
Panelists: Dr. Paula Barreto, Prof. C Daniel Dawson, Márcio de Abreu

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Consciência Negra: A Legacy of Black Consciousness in Brazil
3-day Symposium and Workshop Series at Swarthmore College
March 16-18, 2016

This 3-day symposium will commemorate Dia da Consciência Negra (Brazilian Day of Black Consciousness) and will focus on themes of race, identity, and black consciousness in Brazil and the African Diaspora. Through interdisciplinary panel discussions, film screenings, lecture, Afro-Brazilian drum/dance & capoeira workshops, and an evening-length musical performance, the Swarthmore community will have various opportunities to engage with invited scholars, artists, and cultural workers from both Brazil and the U.S. who have a vested interest in promoting racial equity, social justice, and cultural resistance. The symposium will culminate with a captivating live musical and interdisciplinary performance, The Mandinga Experiment, conceived and led by Alex Shaw ’00.

Accompanied by live vintage visuals and featuring guest musicians, dancers, and capoeiristas from Brazil and the U.S., The Mandinga Experiment is an amalgamation of Shaw’s original compositions and contemporary interpretations of traditional Afro-Brazilian rhythms and songs, paying special tribute to the rich legacy of Capoeira Angola.

 

Consciência Negra: A Legacy of Black Consciousness in Brazil
3-day Symposium and Workshop Series at Swarthmore College
March 16-18, 2016

This 3-day symposium will commemorate Dia da Consciência Negra (Brazilian Day of Black Consciousness) and will focus on themes of race, identity, and black consciousness in Brazil and the African Diaspora. Through interdisciplinary panel discussions, film screenings, lecture, Afro-Brazilian drum/dance & capoeira workshops, and an evening-length musical performance, the Swarthmore community will have various opportunities to engage with invited scholars, artists, and cultural workers from both Brazil and the U.S. who have a vested interest in promoting racial equity, social justice, and cultural resistance. The symposium will culminate with a captivating live musical and interdisciplinary performance, The Mandinga Experiment, conceived and led by Alex Shaw ’00.

A talk by Afro-Cuban visual artist Elio Rodríguez

 

March 24, 2016

7:00 pm

Kohlberg 116

 

Sponsored by:

The Spanish Section of the Modern Languages and Literatures Department

The William J. Cooper Foundation

The Latin American and Latino Studies Program

Elio Rodríguez is one of the most recognized names in the new generation of Afro-Cuban artists. His work deals with the question of identity and self-representation in the face of preconceptions, stereotypes, and judgments about a particular culture, race, gender or social circumstance. In his art, this issue is generally framed in the context of Caribbean popular culture. Through the use of humor, parody and intertextuality, Elio’s work displays and critiques common clichés, labels and preconceptions associated with Caribbean culture, particularly in terms of racial and sexual representations. The ambivalence of genres also poses the question if these images, produced from inside the culture, reinforce or resist archetypical representations. In his talk, he will reflect on these issues, particularly on the commodification and labeling of race, sex, and masculinity.

 

Elio Rodríguez’s work is currently featured in the exhibit “Drapetomanía: Grupo Antillano and the Art of Afro-Cuba,” in the African American Museum of Philadelphia. (www.aampmuseum.org/exhibitions.html) He is also one of the curators and founders of the project “Queloides: Race and Racism in Cuban Contemporary Art”, a collective exhibition that has been seen at the Du Bois Institute for African and Afro-American Research at Harvard University (Boston); 8th Floor Gallery (New York); the Mattress Factory Art Museum (Pittsburgh) and the Wifredo Lam Center (Havana), among other important venues.

For more information on Elio Rodríguez’s projects and art visit:  www.machoenterprise.com

The Legacy and Impact of Brown v. Board of Education

Keynote address by Lani Guinier and Kenneth Mack, professors at Harvard Law School

The year 2014 marks both the 60th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in the case of Brown v. Board of Education and the 50th anniversary of the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. On May 17, 1954, Chief Justice Earl Warren read the Court’s decision rejecting the “separate but equal” principle that had governed the Court’s treatment of race matters since the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896. Although the Brown decision applied specifically to education, its promise was to undermine the legal foundation upon which systems of segregation and racial inequality rested. Brown struck down the legitimacy of laws that segregated and differentially treated citizens based on race, and this measure opened doors to many previously excluded groups, including women and the differently abled. Our commemoration of this landmark decision is twofold. Through a symposium and following panel discussions, we hope to highlight both the positive social changes resulting from the passage of civil rights legislation and the limitations of judicial solutions to redress inequalities in our social system.

Our second day of panel discussions featuring prominent Black Studies scholars and practitioners in the region will continue the conversation exploring critical issues and questions for contemporary black populations in the following topic areas:1. Inequality and Schooling 9 amModerator: Cheryl Jones WalkerPanelists: Vivian Gadsden (Penn), James Davis (Temple), Germaine Ingram (PFP)2. Race and Representation in Media and Culture 10:30 amModerator: Anthony FoyPanelists: Salamishah Tillet (Penn), Louis Massiah (Scribe), Herman Beavers (Penn)Noon Lunch and Open House, Black Cultural Center3. Persistent Segregation and its Impact on Housing and Health Outcomes 2:00 pmModerator: Ezekiel Dixon Roman (Penn)Panelists: Liz Derickson, Sarah Edelman (CAP), Robert Fairbanks (Penn),4. Black Politics in the Post-Civil Rights Era 3:30 pmModerator: Niambi Carter (Temple)Panelists: Imani Perry (Princeton), Heath Fogg Davis (Temple), Christina Greer (Fordham)2014 marks both the 60th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in the case of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Kansas and the 50th anniversary of the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. On May 17, 1954 Chief Justice Earl Warren read the Court’s decision rejecting the “separate but equal” principle that had governed the Court’s treatment of race matters since the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896. Although the Brown decision applied specifically to the arena of education, its promise was to undermine the legal foundation upon which systems of segregation and racial inequality rested. Brown struck down the legitimacy of laws that segregated and differentially treated citizens based on race and this measure opened doors to many previously excluded groups, including women and the differently abled. Our commemoration of this landmark decision is two-fold in its aim. We hope to highlight both the positive social changes resulting from the passage of civil rights legislation, and what it seems are the limitations of judicial solutions to redress inequalities in our social system.

Lenape language workshop with Shelley DePaul - 3:30 p.m.

Lecture by Ann Dapice - 4:30 p.m.

Ann Dapice, Ph.D., is a member of both Lenape and Cherokee tribes and is director of education and research for T.K. Wolf Inc., a 501(c)(3) American Indian organization. Her research focuses on the challenges of Type II diabetes, alcoholism, and violence in Native American communities.

In 2008, Dapice attended a conference at the University of Pennsylvania titled Endangered Languages: Exploring the Interface between Academia and Native American Communities. This conference brought the only college-level Lenape language course in the world to Swarthmore’s campus. In this lecture, Dapice will discuss the sociocultural implications of Native American language extinction and the importance of revitalizing these languages. Preceding the talk, Shelley DePaul, instructor of Swarthmore’s Lenape language course, will conduct a language workshop.

Lecture by Edward Glaeser, professor of Economics at Harvard University

With more than half the world’s population living in urbanized areas, it’s becoming ever more crucial to understand the role of cities as centers of information, capital, and cultural exchange. Glaeser, an urban economist and author of the best-seller Triumph of the City, discusses issues such as urban agglomeration, housing policy, quality of life, and innovation. He has devised new ways to answer the question: How does geographical space shape activities, opportunities, and social interactions? A primary thread in his work is the claim that population density spurs creativity and innovation, benefits the environment, and helps raise workers out of poverty in rapidly growing, so-called “developing” urban centers like Mumbai, Lagos, and Dhaka.

Lunchtime discussion with Prof. Glaeser at Sharples

Omar Offendum is a Syrian American hip-hop artist, designer, poet and peace activist. He was born in Saudi Arabia, raised in Washington, DC, and now lives in Los Angeles, California. He tours the world performing at international music festivals, lecturing at major academic institutions, and fundraising for humanitarian relief organizations. Most recently, Offendum has been involved in creating several critically acclaimed songs about the popular democratic uprisings throughout the Middle East & North Africa. He is also working on several new collaborative projects while touring to promote his solo work.

Omar will be coming to Swarthmore on Thursday, November 20th to give a hybrid performance/lecture.  In addition to performing some of his songs, he will speak about connections between the artistic community and the Arab uprisings, with a special focus on hip hop.  Omar will also discuss his efforts to use art and music to raise humanitarian relief funds for Syrian refugees. Opening performance by OASiS.

This event is sponsored by the Arabic Section (MLL), the Intercultural Center, the William Cooper Foundation, the Islamic Studies Program, the Peace and Conflict Studies Program, the Department of Music and Dance, and the Muslim Students Association.

Through a Lens Darkly: Black Photographers and the Emergence of a People
Film by Thomas Allen Harris

Panel Discussion: Deborah Willis,NYU Tisch School of the Arts, and Ron Tarver, Swarthmore College

Renowned violinist Cho-Liang Lin (Musical America’s Instrumentalist of the Year in 2000) joins Orchestra 2001 in a program of new music by Asian composers, featuring the premiere of Taiwanese May-Tchi Chen’s Violin Concert as well as recent works from China by Tan Dun and Ye Xiaogang and from Japan by Toru Takemitsu and Shin’Ichiro Ikebe. Cho-Liang Lin will also lead a master class for string players.

A pre-concert talk will be at 7:30 p.m.

Teya Sepinuck's presentation is the kickoff for the three-week residency, RADICAL DEMOCRACY AND HUMANISM: INTERSECTIONS BETWEEN PERFORMANCE AND ACTION.  From www.theatreofwitness.org: "Theater of Witness is a form of performance developed by founder andartistic director Teya Sepinuck in which the true life stories of thosewhose voices haven’t been heard in society are performed by thestorytellers themselves as a way for audiences to bear witness tosignificant social issues. The theater productions are scripted fromindividual and group interviews as well as a variety of creative processtechniques and consist of scripted text, music, movement, imagery andfilm projection.'

Teya Sepinuck has been creating Theater of Witness productions in theUnited States, Poland and Northern Ireland since 1986. Performers haveincluded: refugees and immigrants, survivors and perpetrators ofviolence, prisoners and their families, ex-combatants, members of thesecurity forces and victims of war and conflict, former perpetrators andthose healing from abuse, elders, runaway girls, and those livingwithout homes. This work often brings former enemies together onstagewho explore conflict from a multiplicity of perspectives, always withthe purpose of shining a light on the possibility of deep connection andreconciliation.

Presenter: Kate Speer ’08, University of Colorado ’14 (MFA in dance)

Speer’s overarching research question is how to create active citizens, a term that combines a sense of presence that is engaged (active) with a sense of responsibility to reciprocity within the community (citizen). This question, and the resulting theories, ideas, and solutions that spring from it, feed into her pedagogic, choreographic, and scholarly practices.

An hourlong movement class in the style of David Dorfman followed by a 30-minute discussion of his pedagogy practices will reveal Dorfman’s beliefs and values with their inherent practices of radical democracy and humanism and the political implications behind his pedagogical choices.

Roundtable discussion: Developing a Context for Action

Presenter: Teya Sepinuck, Founder and Director of Theatre of Witness

In this three-hour experiential workshop, participants will become familiar with the 12 foundational guiding principles of Theatre of Witness while exploring both autobiographical and partnered storytelling. Using creative imagery, writing, movement, and script, participants will have a variety of opportunities to delve into issues central to their lives. A safe environment, from which these stories will be mined and performed, will offer a firsthand taste of the power of Theatre of Witness.

Prophets of Funk is a concert in celebration of everyday people and their struggles, as illuminated through Sly and the Family Stone’s groundbreaking, visceral, and powerful music. Dorfman and Sly and the Family Stone find common purpose in the prophetic possibilities of music and dance that invite everyday people to find passion in the muck and mess––the funk––of life. Prophets of Funk seeks with its music to raise the spirit of Sly, invoking, in the face of this funk, the hopes and aspirations residing in all of us.

Ferguson, Staten Island/NYC, Paris. Philadelphia. In this time of intensifying and proliferating tensions regarding how the law and the police state engage human differences of race, religion, gender, sexuality, and class (amongst many others), the need to find language and spaces of dialogue have become more urgent. For this event, David
Kyuman Kim (Connecticut College scholar of race, religion, and public life) will lead a teach-in with the Swarthmore community taking up these issues, especially as they effect the stakeholders of Swarthmore. A successful teach-in will take the temperature of the constituents of Swarthmore (students, staff, faculty, and local
community) in regard to these tensions around race and the like, and build-up an organic dialogue that will serve as a catalyst for on-going conversations at Swarthmore and beyond.

David Kyuman Kim is Associate Professor of Religious Studies and a member of the Associated Faculty in the Program in American Studies at Connecticut College, where he was also serves as Chair of the Department of Religious Studies. From 2006-2009, Kim served as the Inaugural Director of the College’s Center for the Comparative Study of Race and Ethnicity. From 2009-2012, Kim was named as Senior Advisor at the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) where he continues to work as Editor-at-Large of The Immanent Frame, the SSRC’s blog on secularism, religion, and the public sphere. In spring 2009, he was the Inaugural Visiting Professor in the Humanities at Brown University, as well as the Acting Program Director of the SSRC’s Program in the Religion and the Public Sphere.

Prophets of Funk is a concert in celebration of everyday people and their struggles, as illuminated through Sly and the Family Stone’s groundbreaking, visceral, and powerful music. Dorfman and Sly and the Family Stone find common purpose in the prophetic possibilities of music and dance that invite everyday people to find passion in the muck and mess––the funk––of life. Prophets of Funk seeks with its music to raise the spirit of Sly, invoking, in the face of this funk, the hopes and aspirations residing in all of us.

Following up to David Dorfman's PROPHETS OF FUNK concert on 2/20 in the LPAC Pearson-Hall Theater, Kate Speer '08 will lecture about the work of David Dorfman and the music of Sly and the Family Stone.

A PERsentation that presents an inside reading of David Dorfman'sPROPHETS OF FUNK, revealing how the work positions Funk composer andmusician Sly Stewart as a charismatic prophet and transfers thatcharisma to the audience. By using the rhythms of Funk, Dorfman and thecast draw upon Pentecostal practices of testifying and transcendence,which are modes of receiving God on a personal level. Additionally, thework suggests that if charisma can be caught, like catching the spiritin Pentecostal worship, then there is the possibility for the audienceto leave the theatre with their own charisma. Thus, this dance serves asan example for activists and artists alike that charisma is a potentand palatable method to shift their audience’s perspective so that it isin line with their message and to potentially ignite social change.

Kate Speer '08 says of herself:

"I am a dance artist who relishes a good beat that sends my sweaty,exhausted body into motion, who choreographs huge landscapes thatcrescendo into mountains and dissolve into streams, and who writes inorder to open my mind to the body's subtle, hidden meanings.
Withinthe discipline of dance, I identify as a scholartist, a term that evokesa synthesis of choreography, performance, and scholarship. As achoreographer, I live at the intersection of social activism andartistic production by merging theatrical storytelling with athletic,momentum-based movement in order to engage the audience’s visceral andemotional capacities."

Part of the RADICAL DEMOCRACY AND HUMANISM series.
LANG MUSIC 204
10:30AM

Since its formation in 1985, David Dorfman Dance has become one of theleading American modern dance companies known for politically relevantand community based works. By analyzing the choreographies of Disavowal(2008) and underground (2006) through the lens of activist art andprotest theories, Dorfman’s work reveals a set of beliefs that aredistinctly American, including democracy, individualism, and activism.Additionally, his works strive to encourage the audience to begindialoguing, effectively employing democracy within the concert stageenvironment. Consequently, David Dorfman’s work aims to create activeAmerican citizens who are more critical of their actions in the world,perhaps even inspired to act after leaving the theater.

Kate Speer says of herself:

"I am a dance artist who relishes a good beat that sends my sweaty,exhausted body into motion, who choreographs huge landscapes thatcrescendo into mountains and dissolve into streams, and who writes inorder to open my mind to the body's subtle, hidden meanings.

Within the discipline of dance, I identify as a scholartist,a term that evokes a synthesis of choreography, performance, andscholarship. As a choreographer, I live at the intersection of socialactivism and artistic production by merging theatrical storytelling withathletic, momentum-based movement in order to engage the audience’svisceral and emotional capacities."  http://www.katespeerdance.org/about.html

George Lakey's workshop is the final event in the RADICAL DEMOCRACYAND HUMANISM residency sponsored by the William J. Cooper Foundation. The workshop will offer attendees some modelsfor organizing and information regarding preparation for peacefulprotest. What questions is it important to answer, individually and as agroup, regarding purpose and practice? What tools for action areuseful to groups in differing situations? What models from past andcurrent movements can be adapted to a variety of purposes? In this session, George Lakey will show that you *can* go beyond the boring limits of choosing between a march or a rally by coming to this workshop and learning about:

- action logic
- edgy actions
- using actions leadership development
- maximizing the empowerment potential of the actions you design
- one-offs vs. campaigns.

The workshop includes question time on the use of nonviolent direct action compared with other techniques for social change.

George Lakey's first arrest was in the ‘sixties for a civil rights sit-in; in 2013 he was arrested in a protest against mountaintop removal coal mining in Appalachia. He co-founded a number of social change groups including Movement for a New Society, the Pennsylvania Jobs with Peace Campaign, Men Against Patriarchy, Training for Change, and Earth Quaker Action Team. He has led over 1500 social change workshops on five continents, for a wide variety of groups including homeless people, prisoners, Russian lesbians and gays, Sri Lankan monks, Burmese guerrilla soldiers, striking steel workers, South African activists, Canadian academics, and leaders of indigenous peoples brought together by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research in Geneva.

This is the first session of workshops associated with Sound Breaks, the Cooper Fund symposium on improvisation and the liberal arts. More details, including a full schedule can be found at http://rhythmofstudy.com/soundbreaks

Open to Tri-Co students, faculty, and staff

1. “Making Theatrical Jazz: Black Theatre for the 21st Century,” Omi Osun Joni L. Jones (University of Texas at Austin), LMB rm. 407

2. “Five Issues in the Aesthetics of Jazz Improvisation,” Garry Hagberg (Philosophy, Bard College), LMB rm. 415

3. “Emergent Understanding and Performance Ethnography,” Jumatatu Poe (Dance, Swarthmore College) and Mark Lomanno (Music, Swarthmore College), Lang Concert Hall

This is the second session of workshops associated with Sound Breaks, the Cooper Fund symposium on improvisation and the liberal arts. More details, including a full schedule can be found at http://rhythmofstudy.com/soundbreaks

open to Tri-Co students, faculty, and staff

1. “Music as an Analogy for Modern Physics,” Stephon Alexander (Dartmouth College), LMB rm. 407

2. “Breaking the Sound Barrier: Improvising Visual and Verbal Poetics,” Meta DuEwa Jones (Howard University), LMB rm. 415

3. “Breaking Barriers: Gender Roles, Performance Conventions, and How Musicians and Dancers Improvise Together,” Rachel Carrico (UC Riverside, Dance Studies) and Kelly Powers (NYC-based pianist and composer), Lang Concert Hall

4. “Improv or Die: Organismal Development as Evolutionary Performance,” Scott Gilbert (Biology, Swarthmore College), location TBD

Panel discussion on improvisation and the liberal arts moderated by Mark Lomanno. Panelists include Vijay Iyer, Swarthmore faculty, and invited visiting scholars.

The Sound Breaks symposium highlights the intersections of art, culture, and social advocacy with a focus on improvisation as a practical and pedagogical imperative to liberal arts education. Through a daylong series of workshops, classroom visits, and an interdisciplinary panel discussion, students will be encouraged to explore the possibilities that improvisation and improvised music can be beneficial to their academic studies, advocacy work, career opportunities, and postbaccalaureate life. Sound Breaks culminates in a concert by pianist Vijay Iyer, a 2013 MacArthur fellow, professor of the arts at Harvard, and leading scholar in the field of critical improvisation studies. Iyer will perform with Tirtha—a collaborative trio that fuses jazz and Indian music; and with his piano trio in a Philadelphia-area premiere of their new recording.

Double concert by Tirtha and the Vijay Iyer Trio

The Sound Breaks symposium highlights the intersections of art, culture, and social advocacy with a focus on improvisation as a practical and pedagogical imperative to liberal arts education. Through a daylong series of workshops, classroom visits, and an interdisciplinary panel discussion, students will be encouraged to explore the possibilities that improvisation and improvised music can be beneficial to their academic studies, advocacy work, career opportunities, and postbaccalaureate life. Sound Breaks culminates in a concert by pianist Vijay Iyer, a 2013 MacArthur fellow, professor of the arts at Harvard, and leading scholar in the field of critical improvisation studies. Iyer will perform with Tirtha—a collaborative trio that fuses jazz and Indian music; and with his piano trio in a Philadelphia-area premiere of their new recording.

List Gallery reception to follow: 5:30-7:00 p.m.
Perrone's List Gallery exhibition runs through Oct. 27.

Serena Perrone’s art explores the intersection of narrative, history, psychology, and semiotics. Her works on paper and prints prompt us to reflect on the way we blend fact and fiction, the experienced and the imagined. She has won national recognition with solo exhibitions at the University of Wyoming; Ningyo Editions, Boston; Rhode Island School of Design/Sol Koffler Gallery; and the Contemporary Art Museum, Saint Louis. Perrone’s work can be found in notable collections including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Library of Congress, Smith College Museum of Art, Yale University, the Cleveland Museum of Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. She has received awards from institutions including the Vermont Studio Center; the Santo Foundation; the Print Center, Philadelphia; and the Pollock-Krasner Foundation.

Perrone's work will be on display in the List Gallery from Sept. 5 - Oct. 27. The List Gallery hours are from 12pm to 5pm Tuesday through Sunday. The List Gallery is closed on Mondays.

Serena Perrone’s art explores the intersection of narrative, history, psychology, and semiotics. Her works on paper and prints prompt us to reflect on the way we blend fact and fiction, the experienced and the imagined. She has won national recognition with solo exhibitions at the University of Wyoming; Ningyo Editions, Boston; Rhode Island School of Design/Sol Koffler Gallery; and the Contemporary Art Museum, Saint Louis. Perrone’s work can be found in notable collections including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Library of Congress, Smith College Museum of Art, Yale University, the Cleveland Museum of Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. She has received awards from institutions including the Vermont Studio Center; the Santo Foundation; the Print Center, Philadelphia; and the Pollock-Krasner Foundation.

This November, installation will begin on a site-specific sculpture by artist Stacy Levy. Evoking the variable flow of water across our landscape, the 300-foot serpentine form of Crum Creek Meanderwill be illuminated at night and animated by changing wind patterns.Stacy will illustrate in this discussion the scope and inspirationbehind the work to come. This exciting landscape art installation hasbeen made possible by the William J. Cooper Foundation. The work will remain on view late Fall 2013 into early 2015.

Edwidge Danticat is a 2009 MacArthur "genius grant" fellow and award-winning author of eight books including Breath, Eyes, Memory, Krik? Krak!, The Farming of Bones, and Brother, I'm Dying. Her most recent work, Create Dangerously: The Immigrant Artist at Work, is an eloquent and moving expression of Danticat's belief that immigrant artists have an obligation to bear witness when their native countries suffer from violence, oppression, poverty, and tragedy. Her moving and insightful depictions of her native Haiti's complex history, compiled throughout her career, deeply enrich our understanding of the Haitian immigrant experience. In these and other works, she provides a nuanced portrait of the intersection between nation and diaspora, home and exile, and reminds us of the power of human resistance, renewal, and endurance against great obstacles. Join us for a conversation with Danticat featuring novelist and Swarthmore honorary degree recipient Lorene Cary, founder of Art Sanctuary and senior lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania, and Swarthmore faculty members.

SKINS & SONGS & STEPS creates multitextured contemporary compositions that link the past and present, the ceremonial and the secular. This percussion, vocal, and dance event brings together Philadelphia's Spoken Hand Percussion Orchestra and Philip Hamilton's Voices with dance forms from all over the globe including South Indian Bharatanatyam, West African dance, hip-hop, and hoofing (tap dancing).

Skins:
Spoken Hand is a 16-piece percussion orchestra that unifies the drumming traditions of Afro-Cuban bata, North Indian tabla, Afro-Brazilian samba, and West African djembe. Drummers are Joe Bryant, Ron Howerton, Tom Lowery, Josh Robinson, Alex Shaw (Brazilian Samba); Kenneth Fauntleroy, Ishmael Jackson, John Wilkie (Cuban Bata); Mike Nevin, Dan Scholnick, Lenny Seidman (North Indian Tabla); Daryl Burgee, Chuckie Joseph, Omar Harrison, Steve Jackson Jr, Steve Jackson Sr. (West African Djembe).

&
Songs:
Led by Philip Hamilton, Voices is an a cappella choir that combines the influences of global vocal tones and techniques such as Tuvan throat singing, Congolese mouth clicking, Balinese monkey chant, and hip-hop's beatbox with the singing styles of doo-wop, Bulgarian choirs, gospel, barbershop quartet, South African miners' songs, and Gregorian chant. Vocalists include Patricia Antunes, Harry Bayron, Alexander Elisa, Philip Hamilton, Gio Moretti, Giovana Robinson, Patricia Silveira, and Elisabete da Veiga.

&
Steps:
Dancers include Viji Rao's Three Aksha Dance Company (Vijay Rao, Director & Choreographer with Kristy Ghose, Rochitha Nathan, Sitara Soundararajan, Vidya Sukumar), a West African/hip-hop duo from Kulu Mele African Dance and Drum Ensemble (James Ali Wilkie & Eddie Smallwood), and rumba tap dancer, Max Pollak.

 

SKINS & SONGS & STEPS is hosting a Master Class centered around hip-hop dance and drum rhythms in the LPAC Troy Dance Studio (LPAC 002) on Thursday, October 24^th, 2013 from 4:30 - 6:00PM.  This is event is free and open to interested students, but please contact Professor Kim Arrow (karrow1@swarthmore.edu) at x8670 or email our administrative office at dance@swarthmore.edu if you would like more information. 

 

Skins & Songs & Steps creates multitextured contemporary compositions that link the past and present, the ceremonial and the secular. This percussion, vocal, and dance event brings together Philadelphia’s Spoken Hand Percussion Orchestra and Philip Hamilton’s Voices with dance forms including South Indian Bharatanatyam, West African, hip-hop, and hoofing (tap dancing). Voices is an a cappella choir that combines the influences of global vocal tones and techniques such as Tuvan throat singing, Congolese mouth clicking, Balinese monkey chant, and hip-hop’s beatbox with the singing styles of doo-wop, Bulgarian choirs, gospel, barbershop quartet, South African miners’ songs, and Gregorian chant. Spoken Hand is a 16-piece percussion orchestra that unifies the drumming traditions of Afro-Cuban bata, North Indian tabla, Afro-Brazilian samba, and West African djembe. The Steps component includes Viji Rao’s Three Aksha Dance Co., a West African/hip-hop duo from Kulu Mele African Dance and Drum Ensemble, and some hoofing.

A Palestinian writer and translator of Arabic, Hebrew, and English, Anton Shammas has taught Arabic and comparative literature at the University of Michigan since 1997. He is the author of three books of poetry (in Hebrew and Arabic); two plays; many essays in English, Hebrew, and Arabic; and a novel, Arabesques. His essays, on the current cultural and political scene in the Middle East, and on his linguistic autobiography, have been published in Harper's Magazine, The New York Review of Books, and The New York Times Magazine. In this lecture's first section, Shammas examines the testimonies of Palestinian detainees who were tortured by Israeli interrogators in the early '90s, during the first Intifada, as gathered by the Israeli human-rights organization "B'Tselm." The testimonies were given in Arabic and then translated into Hebrew, then English, and ended up being structured by the strict conventions of the legal genre-the affidavit.

SUSAN MARSHALL & COMPANY will host a Master Class in theLPAC Troy Dance Studio as part of this year's Cooper Series. 

SUSAN MARSHALL & COMPANY’S repertory is an innovative body of work that blends virtuosic athleticism, ordinary movement, and gesture. The Company has a long history of multidisciplinary collaboration, with over 40 works made in collaboration with musicians, visual artists, and designers. Now celebrating its 26th anniversary, the company presents regular seasons in New York City, including many as part of the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Next Wave Festival and at Dance Theater Workshop. Other notable engagements include presentations at Jacob’s Pillow, the Edinburgh International Festival, Spoleto Festival, Vienna Tanz, Springdance Festival (The Netherlands), and The Los Angeles Festival. The company was honored to perform selections from its BESSIE Award-winning work Cloudless at Pina Bausch’s Internationales Tanzfestival Gala Concert in November 2008. Other critically acclaimed works by Marshall include Arms, Fields of View, Kiss, The Most Dangerous Room in the House, Sawdust Palace, and Spectators at an Event. Marshall, her artistic partners, and her company members have received 10 New York Dance and Performance Awards (BESSIES) for their work together. A recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship in 2000, Marshall has also received a Dance Magazine Award, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and was one of the first artists to receive an American Choreographer Award.

Susan Marshall & Company will also present PLAY/PAUSE on February 14,2014 In an electric guitar-fueled evening of postmodern dance-theater,Susan Marshall couples her intimate, structured choreography with theseductiveness of pop culture to explore our complex relationship to themedia we consume. This evening-length piece for six dancers features acommissioned score by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang,performed live by members of electric guitar quartet Dither and MantraPercussion. Play/Pause premiered in Chicago in September 2013. Pleasesee the events calendar for more info.

The presentation of Susan Marshall & Company was made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts 'National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Play/Pause is an evening-length work for six dancers set to an original score by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang performed live by members of the groundbreaking electric-guitar quartet Dither.

In Play/Pause, Marshall ignores the distinction between high art and pop culture and embraces their collisions. Popular dance forms and indie rock music are the undercurrent for an exploration of the distance and intimacy inherent in our consumption of pop culture. Marshall builds on the vocabulary of popular video dance by introducing complex structures and unfamiliar contexts, exploring questions about our obsession with celebrity and creating a world in which movement, touch, and breath speak as loudly as the hyperreal and the larger than life. Cut across by a vocabulary of rock-guitar riffs and popular dance moves, this work is the ultimate mash-up: Postmodern dance-theater meets rock ’n’ roll on both real and virtual stages.

Free and open to the public.

Pig Iron Theater Co.’s  production of Twelfth Night was a popular and critical hit when it first opened in Philadelphia in 2011, winning four Barrymore Awards. Using an ensemble of live musicians on stage along with a cast of 12 actors, Pig Iron turns one of Shakespeare’s most popular comedies into a boisterous and joyous new piece of musical theater. The production features the work of  Dito van Reigersberg ’94 (as Count Orsino) and Dan Rothenberg ’95 (director). The 2014 revival of the show occurs during the College’s sesquicentennial year and Pig Iron’s 20th year as a company, founded and led by graduates of Swarthmore’s Department of Theater.

Free and open to the public.

This event is one of several planned during the 2014 calendar year to celebrate Swarthmore's Sesquicentennial. Explore the full list at: http://swat150.swarthmore.edu/sesqui-events-1-.html

Join Director, Dan Rothenberg '95, Professor Allen Kuharski, andmembers of the TWELFTH NIGHT cast for a post show discussion abouttackling Shakespeare and Pig Iron's techniques.

From Director Dan Rothenberg ‘95: "After 15 years of making originalperformance experiments, the next hurdle was to see if [Pig Iron] couldapply our physical ensemble approach to a classic script and leteverything we care about live within a very set form. Experimentaltheater is about opening up new ways of seeing; could we sneak this intoa Shakespeare play without deconstructing the thing? All ourexperiments with clown theater, with cabaret, and with dance theaterinform the way people speak and move in this production, resulting in arough, wholly American Twelfth Night."

In addition to perfromances of TWELFTH NIGHT on March 1st and 2nd, Pig Iron will be joining us for some other events.  Check it out!

JoinAlumni Sarah Sanford '99, Dito van Reigersberg '94, and Asst. ProfessorAlex Torra for Workshops on Pig Iron's performance technique: Tuesday through Thursday, March 4th - 6th, 7:30-10:30PM. 

Crum Creek Meander

A site-specific sculpture by Stacy Levy

Swarthmore College, Parrish South Lawn

On view March 5, 2014 through early 2015

Evoking the variable flow of water across our landscape, the 300-foot serpentine form of Crum Creek Meander will be illuminated at night and animated by changing wind patterns.
Evoking the variable flow of water across our landscape, the 300-foot serpentine form of Crum Creek Meander will be illuminated at night and animated by changing wind patterns.

Stacy Levy's art reveals the beauty of unseen patterns in nature and the presence of natural forces in our built environments. Many of her recent projects redirect storm water runoff to reduce erosion and pollution. Her works invite viewers to become more aware of water quality and flow in diverse environments ranging from acid mine drainage to urban streams and suburban watersheds. Levy graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in Sculpture and a minor in Forestry. She earned an M.F.A. from Tyler School of Art, Temple University. She is the recipient of numerous awards including the Excellence in Estuary Award and the Public Art Year in Review Award as well as grants from the Pew Fellowship in the Arts, the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, and a New Forms Regional Grant. Her dozens of public art commissions have transformed diverse sites from Niigata, Japan to the Delaware River, Philadelphia and Hudson River Park, New York. Stacy Levy, design concept for Crum Creek Meander, a site specific installation planned for Parrish South Lawn, Swarthmore College

“Constructing Nature: What Art Reveals” March 5, 4:30 p.m.
Lang Performing Arts Center Cinema

Reception to follow: 5:30–7 p.m.

Stacy Levy’s art reveals the beauty of unseen patterns in nature and the presence of natural forces in our built environments. Many of her recent projects redirect storm water runoff to reduce erosion and pollution. Her works invite viewers to become more aware of water quality and flow in diverse environments ranging from acid-mine drainage to urban streams and suburban watersheds. Levy graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in sculpture and a minor in forestry. She earned an M.F.A. from Tyler School of Art, Temple University. She is the recipient of many awards including the Excellence in Estuary Award and the Public Art Year in Review Award as well as grants from the Pew Fellowship in the Arts, the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, and a New Forms Regional Grant. Her many public-art commissions have transformed diverse sites from Niigata, Japan, to the Delaware River, Philadelphia, and Hudson River Park in Manhattan. 

From "The Bluest Eye" through "Home," Nobel laureate Toni Morrison’s novels have shaped and defined American fiction. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in fiction for "Beloved" and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, among many other honors, Morrison holds the Robert F. Goheen Chair in the Council of Humanities at Princeton University. As Morrison wrote in her Nobel Prize acceptance speech, “Word-work is sublime … because it is generative; it makes meaning that secures our difference, our human difference—the way in which we are like no other life.” Morrison’s work has transformed both the stylistic range of American letters and its understanding of history and community.

Free and open to the public.

This event is one of several planned during the 2014 calendar year to celebrate Swarthmore's Sesquicentennial. Explore the full list at: http://swat150.swarthmore.edu/sesqui-events-1-.html

Sinan Antoon’s lecture will give a bird’s-eye view of Iraqi culture today. If some of the destructive effects of the United States invasion on Iraq’s politics, society, and economy have been addressed by now, the same cannot be said of its effects on contemporary cultural production. This lecture asks: What has become of Iraqi cultural production since the invasion and occupation? What are the major dynamics or cultural institutions, if any, regulating or influencing cultural production? What sort of cultural hegemonies are in place? Have the cultural practices of the previous era disappeared or re-emerged under a new guise? 

Sinan Antoon, associate professor at the Gallatin School of New York University and fellow of the university’s Hagob Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies, has authored The Poetics of the Obscene: Ibn al-Hajjaj and Sukhf  and many essays on the poetry of Mahmoud Darwish. Antoon is also a poet and a novelist. His essays and creative writing have appeared in major Arab and international journals and publications, including The New York Times, Aljazeera.net, The Nation, Middle East Report, Journal of Palestine Studies, Journal of Arabic Literature, The Massachusetts Review, World Literature Today, Ploughshares, and the Washington Square Journal. He has published two collections of poetry in Arabic and one collection in English titled The Baghdad Blues. His novels include I`jaam: An Iraqi Rhapsody, and The Pomegranate Alone.

Uttech, born in 1942, has mounted more than 35 one-person exhibitions ofhis work since it was included in the 1975 Whitney Biennial. His workhas been collected by major museums, including the Crystal BridgesMuseum of American Art in Bentonville, Ark., and he has won awards fromthe National Endowment for the Arts and the Academy of Arts and Letters,New York.

Artist's Lecture: Nov. 1, 4:30 p.m.
Reception to follow, 5:30–7 p.m.
Exhibition Runs: Nov. 1–Dec. 15

Tom Uttech's vibrant paintings portray woodlands teeming with the wildlife he observes in northern Wisconsin and Quetico Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Blending close observation and memory with visionary invention, he evokes liminal states—moments infused with heightened awareness, drama, and imminent transformation. Building on the transcendental landscape tradition of painters such as Arthur Dove, Marsden Hartley, and Charles Burchfield, Uttech's work is especially poignant in the context of contemporary ecological crises.

Uttech, born in 1942, has mounted more than 35 one-person exhibitions of his work since it was included in the 1975 Whitney Biennial. His work has been collected by major museums, including the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Ark., and he has won awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Academy of Arts and Letters, New York.

A selection of his photos will be on display concurrently in McCabe Library.

Born into hip-hop culture in the late 1970s and grounded in Abraham's artistic upbringing in classical cello, piano, and visual arts, Kyle Abraham/Abraham.In.Motion's goal is to delve into identity in relation to personal histories. Abraham’s choreography intertwines a sensual and provocative vocabulary with a strong emphasis on sound, human behavior, and all things visual to create an avenue for personal investigation. The work is interdisciplinary, with dance at its helm, and frequently addresses themes related to race relations, queerness, and Americana. Abraham’s dance training ranges from ballet to hip-hop; he layers his work in cultural multiplicity. Dance Magazine named him one of the "25 to watch" in 2009.

Born into hip-hop culture in the late 1970s and grounded in Abraham's artistic upbringing in classical cello, piano, and visual arts, Kyle Abraham/Abraham.In.Motion's goal is to delve into identity in relation to personal histories. Abraham’s choreography intertwines a sensual and provocative vocabulary with a strong emphasis on sound, human behavior, and all things visual to create an avenue for personal investigation. The work is interdisciplinary, with dance at its helm, and frequently addresses themes related to race relations, queerness, and Americana. Abraham’s dance training ranges from ballet to hip-hop; he layers his work in cultural multiplicity. Dance Magazine named him one of the "25 to watch" in 2009.

Born into hip-hop culture in the late 1970s and grounded in Abraham's artistic upbringing in classical cello, piano, and visual arts, Kyle Abraham/Abraham.In.Motion's goal is to delve into identity in relation to personal histories. Abraham’s choreography intertwines a sensual and provocative vocabulary with a strong emphasis on sound, human behavior, and all things visual to create an avenue for personal investigation. The work is interdisciplinary, with dance at its helm, and frequently addresses themes related to race relations, queerness, and Americana. Abraham’s dance training ranges from ballet to hip-hop; he layers his work in cultural multiplicity. Dance Magazine named him one of the "25 to watch" in 2009.

Born into hip-hop culture in the late 1970s and grounded in Abraham's artistic upbringing in classical cello, piano, and visual arts, Kyle Abraham/Abraham.In.Motion's goal is to delve into identity in relation to personal histories. Abraham’s choreography intertwines a sensual and provocative vocabulary with a strong emphasis on sound, human behavior, and all things visual to create an avenue for personal investigation. The work is interdisciplinary, with dance at its helm, and frequently addresses themes related to race relations, queerness, and Americana. Abraham’s dance training ranges from ballet to hip-hop; he layers his work in cultural multiplicity. Dance Magazine named him one of the "25 to watch" in 2009.

Born into hip-hop culture in the late 1970s and grounded in Abraham's artistic upbringing in classical cello, piano, and visual arts, Kyle Abraham/Abraham.In.Motion's goal is to delve into identity in relation to personal histories. Abraham’s choreography intertwines a sensual and provocative vocabulary with a strong emphasis on sound, human behavior, and all things visual to create an avenue for personal investigation. The work is interdisciplinary, with dance at its helm, and frequently addresses themes related to race relations, queerness, and Americana. Abraham’s dance training ranges from ballet to hip-hop; he layers his work in cultural multiplicity. Dance Magazine named him one of the "25 to watch" in 2009.

Game designer Jane McGonigal is harnessing the power of Internet games in new ways to help solve some of the biggest challenges facing our world. Based on her book Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make us Better and How They Can Change the World, her talk features visuals about game theory. She asks her audience to imagine a world in which every great challenge we face is a quest; where the harder a task is, the more people want to do it; where people take pleasure in failing and come back invigorated; and where they communicate spontaneously with their collaborators to pool their knowledge toward shared solutions. It turns out that world already exists—in games.

In a follow-up to her public lecture the night before, Jane McGonigal will meet with students who are interested in further discussing games and their potential as a tool in supporting social change.

In a follow-up to her public lecture the previous day, game designer Jane McGonigal will talk informally and answer questions from faculty. In particular, she will discuss how games and game thinking inform issues of teaching and learning. Lunch will be provided.

Ahmed Benchemsi is a journalist of international caliber and an authority on and strong proponent of democracy. In Morocco he founded the two popular and respected news-oriented publications TelQuel (in French, 2001) and Nishan (in Arabic, 2006), which, among other topics, analyze political issues and advocate cases for democracy and secularism. They have become a frequent source and reference for major news organizations reporting agencies such as BBC, CNN, and al-Jazeera. Benchemsi explores why the activists who sparked the Arab Spring backed off after regime change, and the odds that secular movements will take root and prosper as an effective opposition in the Arab world.

An exhibition of Tom Uttech's woodland paintings at the List Gallery.Uttech, born in 1942, has mounted more than 35 one-person exhibitions of his work since it was included in the 1975 Whitney Biennial. His work has been collected by major museums, including the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Ark., and he has won awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Academy of Arts and Letters, New York.Contact Information:Phone: 610-328-7811

Join the List Gallery staff and celebrate Tom Uttech's inspiring woodland paintings. Light refreshments will be served. Andrea Packard, List Gallery Director, will give a brief talk about Uttech's paintings at 12:15pm. This event is free and open to the public. Visitors can receive a color catalog with an essay by Robert Cozzolino, Senior Curator and Curator of Modern Art at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.

For the last 25 years, Jane Comfort has created critically acclaimed, socially conscious dance. She has been on the front lines of dissent against the loss of gains for social justice since the Reagan revolution. She presents two shows: "Beauty" is a provocative dance/theater work that explores the American notion of female beauty through the lens of Barbie. The work includes a Barbie beauty contest and an intimate encounter between Barbie and Ken. "Underground River," described as a "risk-taking and profound theatrical tour de force," is an exploration of the rich fantasy life of a girl who appears to be unconscious. Singing a cappella songs by Toshi Reagon and interacting with the magical visual creations of master puppeteer Basil Twist, the dancers dwell in a world of magic realism and eccentric beauty unseen by those who wish to make her "well."

Jonathan Franzen’s award-winning novels have made him a household name in American letters, the epitome of literary and intellectual excellence, the face on the cover of Time. The great strength of Franzen’s books derives equally from their precisely detailed evocations of daily life and from their nuanced and sympathetic portrayal of complicated—indeed flawed—personalities in wrenchingly difficult—indeed dysfunctional—relationships. Franzen’s work is at once brilliantly satiric and deeply moving, both challenging and compelling.

Jonathan Franzen—who graduated from Swarthmore in 1981—is the author of The Twenty-Seventh City, Strong Motion, The Corrections, and Freedom.  He has also authored two collections of essays, How to Be Alone and Farther Away, and the memoir The Discomfort Zone. He recently published a new English translation of the play Spring Awakening by Frank Wedekind.

Performance: "Beauty" and "Underground River"

For the last 25 years, Jane Comfort has created critically acclaimed, socially conscious dance. She has been on the front lines of dissent against the loss of gains for social justice since the Reagan revolution. She presents two shows: "Beauty" is a provocative dance/theater work that explores the American notion of female beauty through the lens of Barbie. The work includes a Barbie beauty contest and an intimate encounter between Barbie and Ken. "Underground River," described as a "risk-taking and profound theatrical tour de force," is an exploration of the rich fantasy life of a girl who appears to be unconscious. Singing a cappella songs by Toshi Reagon and interacting with the magical visual creations of master puppeteer Basil Twist, the dancers dwell in a world of magic realism and eccentric beauty unseen by those who wish to make her "well."

For the last 25 years, Jane Comfort has created critically acclaimed, socially conscious dance. She has been on the front lines of dissent against the loss of gains for social justice since the Reagan revolution. She presents two shows: "Beauty" is a provocative dance/theater work that explores the American notion of female beauty through the lens of Barbie. The work includes a Barbie beauty contest and an intimate encounter between Barbie and Ken. "Underground River," described as a "risk-taking and profound theatrical tour de force," is an exploration of the rich fantasy life of a girl who appears to be unconscious. Singing a cappella songs by Toshi Reagon and interacting with the magical visual creations of master puppeteer Basil Twist, the dancers dwell in a world of magic realism and eccentric beauty unseen by those who wish to make her "well."

Please join us for a talk by Moishe Postone, the Thomas E. Donnelley Professor of History at the University of Chicago, on the Holocaust and anti-Semitism.On the basis of a reading of Marx's social epistemology, Dr. Postone will seek to differentiate anti-Semitism from other racisms in ways that both explain the ideological frame necessary for the Holocaust and indicates why anti-Semitism poses a particular challenge for the Left.This talk should be of special interest to students of European and intellectual history; social theory; and Jewish studies.

Thursday, February 28 in the Scheuer Room.The event will begin at 4:30 p.m. with an introduction by President Chopp.

Sponsored by the President's Office, the Deans Office, the Cooper Fund, Forum for Free Speech, the Interfaith Center, and the Departments of Religion, History, Political Science, and Sociology & Anthropology

With support from the Cooper Foundation , the Arabic Section is co-sponsoring a talk entitled "No Culture without Freedom" to be presented by Marcel Khalife, a renowned Lebanese composer, singer,human rights and peace activist. The Talk will be held today, Friday April 19, at 7:00 p.m. in the Scheuer Room, Kohlberg Hall. Hope to see many of you there.

Orit Hofshi's monumental and profoundly moving woodcuts, mixed media works, and installations explore the relation of humanity to landscape—places that have been contested, destroyed, or reclaimed.

The daughter of Holocaust survivors, Orit Hofshi's art speaks to universal experiences of loss, dislocation, and resilience. Since the mid 90's, Orit has focused on works on paper, installations and woodcutting as her primary mediator, exploring the relationship between the artist, topographical patterns and her perception of the environment and man.

Massey Burke '00 returns to Swarthmore with Vertical Clay, a sustainable building group. Massey will supervise a building design project with art and engineering students and other interested members of the campus community, using materials recycled from the Scott Arboretum. A structure both beautifully designed and resourcefully constructed will result in a sculptural installation in the garden adjacent to Beardsley Hall.

Lin-Manuel Miranda is the composer-lyricist of the Broadway play In The Heights, which received four 2008 Tony Awards, including Best Musical. In the Heights tells the universal story of a vibrant community in Manhattan's Washington Heights—a neighborhood on the brink of change and manifesting the tensions that arise from gentrification, social mobility, conflicting loyalties, and family expectations. Join us for a conversation with Miranda featuring Ana Rosado '12; Luciano Martinez, assistant professor of Spanish literature; and Rafael Angel Zapata, assistant dean and director of the Intercultural Center. Miranda will also give a reading of his lyrics/poetry from the play.

Massey Burke '00 followed up her successful career as an Honors student in classics and English literature at Swarthmore with a professional life in natural building. She began with the Ecoshanty, a humble but well-loved earthen getaway at the Solar Living Institute and then went on to study integrated natural building with Darryl Berlin and Michael Smith. She is currently an independent designer and teacher.

The Palm Beach Daily News says "Aszure's teaching, like her choreography and her dancing, is fearless. She's a risk taker and a speaker of truths." Take advantage of this opportunity to experience this firsthand in a master class.

Aszure Barton has earned the distinguished reputation of producing striking choreography for stage and film, and together with her intimate ensemble, she continues to develop critically acclaimed productions around the globe. The planned repertory for Swarthmore is Busk and Blue Soup. Busk questions the source of self-worth. Drawn from Barton's notable past creations, Blue Soup celebrates the power and connection of sound and movement.

Nicholas Kristof is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, public intellectual, and committed human rights advocate. During his talk, he will offer words of wisdom to all who want to make a powerful difference in the world by "leaping into a cause" they care about. He will share advice on finding and following our passions and discuss how engaging with the world puts meaning into one's own life. Drawing from his experiences as a foreign affairs reporter that have taken him to 140 countries, he will talk about covering such historic events as the democracy movement in Tiananmen Square, the genocide in Darfur, and the protests in Egypt that led to the resignation of Hosni Mubarak. A question and answer period with the audience will follow.

Lionheart is a world-renowned vocal ensemble of six a cappella singers, best known for their medieval music sung in Latin and Middle English. Their music has been called "a smoothly blended and impeccably balanced sound that is mystical and resonant with haunting beauty" and "a heavenly alchemy of voices" (The New York Times). From Gregorian chant to gothic motets, the group recreates the world of the medieval village cloister at Christmastide.

Rennie Harris, a North Philadelphia native, founded RHPM based on the belief that hip-hop is the most important original expression of a new generation, with the unique ability to express universal themes that extend beyond racial, religious, and economic boundaries.

The Rennie Harris Puremovement (RHPM) dance company is a hip-hop dance company dedicated to preserving and disseminating hip-hop culture through workshops, classes, hip-hop history lecture demonstrations, long-term residencies, mentoring programs, and public performances. The company is guided by an artistic moral philosophy that every individual is a creative reservoir waiting to be tapped. Founder Lorenzo "Rennie" Harris celebrates hip-hop culture on his own terms, by using some of the world's most influential forms of movement, music, and storytelling to revolutionize contemporary concert dance. Their goal is to provide audiences with a sincere view of the essence and spirit of hip-hop, rather than the commercially exploited stereotypes.

"In all of my sculptural work, whether based in objects, installation, language, or performance, I am en-gaging with site and space as materials," says artist artist Patrick "Pato" Hebert.

"My work also queries how an audience becomes a community and whether shared social engagement might become more animated, channeled, and wielded through art. I want to hone a praxis of strategic interconnectedness. I study the spatial dimensions of light, the personal and cultural meaning embodied in materials and place, the political challenge of indeterminacy, and the spiritual value of uncertainty. I hope that this work constitutes critical yet visceral sculpture and photography that is intimately compelling."

"[My work] queries how an audience becomes a community and whether shared social engagement might become more animated, channeled, and wielded through art, says artist Patrick "Pato" Hebert.

"I want to hone a praxis of strategic interconnectedness. I study the spatial dimensions of light, the personal and cultural meaning embodied in materials and place, the political challenge of indeterminacy, and the spiritual value of uncertainty. I hope that this work constitutes critical yet visceral sculpture and photography that is intimately compelling."

"My conceptual sculptures and installations are concerned with interpersonal ethics, the dynamics that operate in social sites, and a greater awareness of our spatial, temporal, and emotional realities says artist artist Patrick "Pato" Hebert.

"Formally, I am often drawn to simple, vernacular materials while seeking to deploy them in surprising and poetic ways. In all of my sculptural work, whether based in objects, installation, language, or performance, I am engaging with site and space as materials. My work also queries how an audience becomes a community and whether shared social engagement might become more animated, channeled, and wielded through art. I want to hone a praxis of strategic interconnectedness. I study the spatial dimensions of light, the personal and cultural meaning embodied in materials and place, the political challenge of indeterminacy, and the spiritual value of uncertainty. I hope that this work constitutes critical yet visceral sculpture and photography that is intimately compelling."

Marina Sirtis (Deanna Troi), one of the stars of the long-running TV series Star Trek: The Next Generation, joins Orchestra 2001's artistic director and pianist James Freeman to narrate Richard Strauss's monodrama Enoch Arden, based on a long narrative poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson.

Completing the program are two tango-inspired works by the Argentine-American composer Osvaldo Golijov.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice. 

Through actions of tactical media, The Yes Men raise awareness about problematic social issues; most frequently, attention is brought to situations in which a person or group-notably corporations and government organizations-benefits to the detriment of others.

To date, the duo (Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno) has produced the two films The Yes Men (2003) and The Yes Men Fix the World (2009), in which they practice a concept they call "identity correction," impersonating entities they dislike and sometimes using elaborate props. Their mission statement is to tell the truth and expose lies. From their offices in Milwaukee, they create and maintain fake websites similar to ones they intend to spoof, which have resulted in numerous interviews, conferences, and TV talk-show invitations. The Yes Men have collaborated with other groups of similar interest, including Improv Everywhere and Steve Lambert.

The mission statement of The Yes Men is to tell the truth and expose lies, which they do through actions of tactical media. The Yes Men raise awareness about problematic social issues; most frequently, attention is brought to situations in which a person or group—notably corporations and government organizations—benefits to the detriment of others.

To date, the duo (Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno) has produced the two films The Yes Men (2003) and The Yes Men Fix the World (2009), in which they practice a concept they call "identity correction," impersonating entities they dislike and sometimes using elaborate props. From their offices in Milwaukee, they create and maintain fake websites similar to ones they intend to spoof, which have resulted in numerous interviews, conferences, and TV talk-show invitations. The Yes Men have collaborated with other groups of similar interest, including Improv Everywhere and Steve Lambert.

Bak's paintings express the impact of the Holocaust on the once-vibrant Jewish culture of Eastern Europe, bearing witness to genocide while demonstrating the human capacity for persistence, transcendence, and healing.

Born in 1933 in Vilna, Poland, Samuel Bak was recognized from an early age as possessing extraordinary artistic talent. When Vilna came under German occupation in 1940, Bak and his family moved into the Vilna ghetto and later to a labor camp, from which he was smuggled and given refuge in a monastery. At the war's end, he and his mother were the only members of his large family still alive.

Samuel Bak, artist and Lawrence Langer, emeritus professor of English at Simmons College, will give a joint lecture before the Oct. 21 gallery opening reception of The Paintings of Samuel Bak: Holocaust History and Memory.

Professor of History Robert Weinberg will moderate a symposium featuring artist Samuel Bak; Theodore Weeks, associate professor of history at Southern Illinois University Carbondale; and Jeffrey Veidlinger, professor of history at Indiana University‚Bloomingdale.

This event is planned in conjunction with the List Gallery show The Paintings of Samuel Bak: Holocaust History and Memory, which is on display Oct. 21-Dec. 12, 2010 in the Lang Performing Arts Center.

Soledad Barrio and Noche Flamenca brings to the stage the essence, purity, and integrity of one of the world's most complex and mysterious art forms.

All aspects of flamenco (dance, song, and music) are integrated and given equal weight in the presentations of Noche Flamenca, creating a true communal spirit within the company—the very heart and soul of flamenco. Soledad Barrio and Noche Flamenca are recognized as the most authentic flamenco touring company in the field today. Artistic Director Martin Santangelo

Representatives from Detroit and Philadelphia will participate in this panel discussion about the challenges faced by each city's green movement.

Both cities face similar problems: a dearth of healthy food and an abundance of abandoned land. The five activists and entrepreneurs will explain the complex issues surrounding land reclamation and food access as well as the solutions that their organizations offer.

The panel will include Malik Yakini, chairman of the Detroit Black Community Food Security Network; Mike Score, president of Hantz Farms; Randall Fogelman, special project manager, Eastern Market Co.; and Lisa Mosca '94, garden coordinator of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. Pat James, director of education at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, will serve as moderator.

Soledad Barrio and Noche Flamenca are recognized as the most authentic flamenco touring company in the field today.

Artistic Director Martin Santangelo brings to the stage the essence, purity, and integrity of one of the world's most complex and mysterious art forms. All aspects of flamenco (dance, song, and music) are integrated and given equal weight in the presentations of Noche Flamenca, creating a true communal spirit within the company—the very heart and soul of flamenco.

All aspects of flamenco (dance, song, and music) are integrated and given equal weight in the presentations of Noche Flamenca, creating a true communal spirit within the company—the very heart and soul of flamenco.

Soledad Barrio and Noche Flamenca are recognized as the most authentic flamenco touring company in the field today. Artistic Director Martin Santangelo brings to the stage the essence, purity, and integrity of one of the world's most complex and mysterious art forms.

More than two dozen scholars will participate in this conference, which aims to examine the history, literature, and culture of the Quaker relationship with slavery, from the Society of Friends' origins in the English Civil War to the end of the American Civil War.

In 1657, George Fox wrote to "Friends beyond sea, that have Blacks and Indian Slaves" to remind them that Quakers who owned slaves should be merciful and should remember that God "hath made all Nations of one Blood." His argument may seem far from radical today, but it initiated more than two centuries of Quaker debate and activism over the problem of slavery that would ultimately see Friends taking key roles in abolition and emancipation movements on both sides of the Atlantic and beyond.

It was, however, by no means inevitable that Quakers would embrace antislavery. In the 17th century and most of the 18th century, Quakers were divided on the issue—particularly in the British American colonies—with some denouncing slavery and others owning slaves. In the 19th century, Quakers were more unified in their opposition to slavery but encountered a range of spiritual, political, and personal challenges while taking their antislavery message to a wider world.

Keynote Speakers: Gary B. Nash, University of California—Los Angeles, J. William Frost, Swarthmore College James Walvin, University of York. Conference Details: www.quakersandslavery.org

World-renowned performer of medieval music Benjamin Bagby, founder of the group Sequentia, will chant portions of the Old English poem Beowulf, while accompanying himself on a replica of the six-string Anglo-Saxon harp or lyre found at Sutton Hoo, an Anglo-Saxon burial site in Suffolk, England.

The performance is as close as anyone can come to actually being in an Anglo-Saxon hall and hearing the poem chanted in its original language. Modern translations are projected onto a screen beside or above the singer so that the audience can follow the meanings of the Old English poetry.

One reviewer says, "When Benjamin Bagby speaks, it is as if a thousand years have disappeared." Another says, "He is a captivating storyteller who molds each word like a carefully carved stone."

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

The celebrated pipa (Chinese lute) virtuoso Wu Man joins Orchestra 2001 as soloist in two works by Tan Dun — the Academy Award-winning composer of the score for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; the opera Tea; and The Map — as well as a new piece written for the occasion by May T'Chi Chen. Music inspired by Scottish and Peruvian traditions completes this international program.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice. 

Critically acclaimed Soulfège (pronounced 'sOl-fezh) is a Afropolitan fusion band has electrified and inspired audiences with driving rhythms, tight harmonies, powerful lyrics, and an inspiring message of political engagement. The group embodies a vivid new voice in the increasingly monotone world of urban music.

Founded by Derrick N Ashong (aka DNA) and Jonathan M Gramling, musicians and social entrepreneurs who met in a Harvard University choir, Soulfège represents a unique blend of hip hop, reggae, funk, and West African highlife.

The band's founders also created "Take Back the Mic®" a movement to put meaning back into today's music and challenge a new generation to assume the mantle of responsible leadership.

Ashong and Gramling are joined in their musical mission by hip hop drumming phenomenon Stix Bones, Berklee grad and funk/rock bassist Alex Staley, Ghanaian percussion prodigy Atta Addo, and keyboard wizard Micah Hulscher.

With a fiery repertoire ranging from South American to classical to brand-new commissioned music, the Alturas Duo delivers high-energy concerts and is recognized as one of the most entertaining ensembles in the chamber music world today.

The Alturas Duo are Scott Hill (guitar) and Carlos Boltes (viola/charango). Derived from the poem "Alturas de Macchu Picchu" by Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, the name "Alturas" is Spanish for heights. The only group of its kind, the duo regularly premieres new commissions, arrangements, and transcriptions, and has received the ASCAP-Chamber Music America Award for Adventurous Programming.

Langston Hughes' Ask Your Mama: Twelve Moods for Jazz featuring the Ron McCurdy Quartet.Written but never performed by Hughes, Ask Your Mama: Twelve Moods for Jazz includes live music, poetry performed through spoken-word performances and imagery video.

In celebration of Black History Month, Swarthmore will host three preeminent African American scientists in a symposium on the future of their fields.

Associate Professor of Astronomy at the University of Wisconsin Dr. Eric Wilcots, former NASA Astronaut Dr. Mae Jemison, and Chief and Planetarium Director for the Franklin Institute Dr. Derrick Pitts will enlighten and entertain as they discuss the future and science of space and space exploration in a post-Avatar world as well as the specifics of their own paths to success.

This event is sponsored by the William J. Cooper Foundation and organized by the Black Studies Program and the Physics and Astronomy Departments.

Over the course of three days, sign language poets from the United Kingdom and the United States will come together and work with Swarthmore students and faculty and members of the Philadelphia deaf community to explore and celebrate the beautiful and rich art form that is sign language poetry. The event will be organized as part of the work of Rachel Sutton-Spence, Cornell visiting professor to Swarthmore for 2011�2012. Sutton-Spence has worked on creative sign language for several years, especially researching and promoting British sign language poetry (www.bristol.ac.uk/bslpoetryanthology). The festival will include a "public conversation" between the British and American poets identifying national, cultural, linguistic, and personal differences in their work, to which members of the College will be invited; poetry workshops for signers and nonsigners to compose signed poetry and discuss its features; and an open performance of poems in British sign language and American sign language. Hands Across the Water will give College members a unique opportunity to discover sign language poetry from the United States and also from another deaf community where traditions, language, and culture are different.

Over the course of three days, sign language poets from the United Kingdom and the United States will come together and work with Swarthmore students and faculty and members of the Philadelphia deaf community to explore and celebrate the beautiful and rich art form that is sign language poetry. The event will be organized as part of the work of Rachel Sutton-Spence, Cornell visiting professor to Swarthmore for 2011�2012. Sutton-Spence has worked on creative sign language for several years, especially researching and promoting British sign language poetry (www.bristol.ac.uk/bslpoetryanthology). The festival will include a "public conversation" between the British and American poets identifying national, cultural, linguistic, and personal differences in their work, to which members of the College will be invited; poetry workshops for signers and nonsigners to compose signed poetry and discuss its features; and an open performance of poems in British sign language and American sign language. Hands Across the Water will give College members a unique opportunity to discover sign language poetry from the United States and also from another deaf community where traditions, language, and culture are different.

Bill Daley is internationally acclaimed for his massive and visually complex slab-built vessels. His architectonic forms explore varied relationships between interior and exterior geometries. Synthesizing ancient spiritual symbols and elements of sacred architecture—especially the vesica pisces form of overlapping arcs—Daley’s vessels are both iconic and inventive. As the artist states: "I'm part of a continuing ritual that’s very, very old.

Past, present, and future flow through it in a single act of communal union." Daley's numerous honors include the American Craft Council Aileen Osborne Webb Award for Consummate Craftsmanship, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, and election to the Smithsonian Institution’s Archives of American Art.
Daley’s work can be found in distinguished collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art; the Renwick Gallery of the National Museum of American Art; the Philadelphia Museum of Art; the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England; and the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea.

A revered art educator, Daley taught for more than 30 years at Philadelphia’s University of the Arts and has received the James Renwick Alliance Distinguished Educator Award.

An artist's lecture by Bill Daley will take place on Sept. 10 at  4:30 p.m. in the LPAC Cinema.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

The William J. Cooper Foundation and the Department of Theater present a panel introducing the work of Witold Gombrowicz as a playwright and Michal Zadara as a director featuring:

• Michal Zadara '99, director of Operetta
• Rita Gombrowicz, widow and literary executor of Witold Gombrowicz
• Thomas Sellar, critic, editor of THEATER, faculty of the Yale School of Drama
• Allen Kuharski, chair of the Department of Theater, Swarthmore College

OPERETTA was Gombrowicz’s last completed play, first produced in Italy and France just after his death in 1969. A unique and controversial piece of political musical theater, the play’s prophetic qualities have been revealed in new ways since the end of communist rule in Eastern Europe in 1989 and the global economic crisis of the last year. This production features an original score by the Polish jazz musician and composer Leszek Mozdzer. 

A reception will follow.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Bill Daley is internationally acclaimed for his massive and visually complex slab-built vessels. His architectonic forms explore varied relationships between interior and exterior geometries.

Synthesizing ancient spiritual symbols and elements of sacred architecture—especially the vesica pisces form of overlapping arcs—Daley’s vessels are both iconic and inventive. As the artist states: “I’m part of a continuing ritual that’s very, very old. Past, present, and future flow through it in a single act of communal union.”

Daley’s numerous honors include the American Craft Council Aileen Osborne Webb Award for Consummate Craftsmanship, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, and election to the Smithsonian Institution’s Archives of American Art.

Daley’s work can be found in distinguished collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art; the Renwick Gallery of the National Museum of American Art; the Philadelphia Museum of Art; the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England; and the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea.

A revered art educator, Daley taught for more than 30 years at Philadelphia’s University of the Arts and has received the James Renwick Alliance Distinguished Educator Award.

This lecture is offered in conjunction with the List Gallery Exhibit of Vesica Explorations on display from Sept. 4–Oct. 31, 2009.

The William J. Cooper Foundation and the Department of Theater present an intensive weekend of acting workshops with Michal Zadara '99 and Barbara Wysocka, on Saturday and Sunday, September 12 & 13 from 10 a.m. -1 p.m. & 2:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. on both days.

Michal Zadara ’99 is a graduate of the Department of Theater at Swarthmore and the State Drama School in Cracow, where he studied with the renowned director Krystian Lupa. He has directed over two-dozen professional productions to date in Poland, Germany, and Israel. He works with theater students in Swarthmore’s Semester Abroad in Poland.

Barbara Wysocka is an actor and director and a graduate of the Cracow State Drama School. As an actress, she is a regular collaborator with Michal Zadara, and she has directed a series of critically-acclaimed productions in Cracow and Wroclaw. She works with theater students in Swarthmore’s Semester Abroad in Poland.

Priority for registration will be given to students who have taken at least one class in the Department of Theater. Sign up sheet outside of Allen Kuharski's office (LPAC 15).

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Ezequiel Zaidenwerg is an up-and-coming poet and translator from Buenos Aires. Precocious, prolific, and multilingual, he has published one book of poetry, Doxa, and his poems and his translations have been internationally anthologized.

In Argentina, he has directed workshops on the tools and practice of poetic translation.

Zaidenwerg will lecture on the task of translation itself as well as his own work.

Mr. Zaidenwerg will also give a bilingual poetry reading on Oct. 1, at 8 p.m. in Bond Hall.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Ezequiel Zaidenwerg is an up-and-coming poet and translator from Buenos Aires. Precocious, prolific, and multilingual, he has published one book of poetry, Doxa, and his poems and his translations have been internationally anthologized.

In Argentina, he has directed workshops on the tools and practice of poetic translation.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

The Intercultural Center at Swarthmore College and the William J CopperFoundation in collaboration with Swarthmore Womyn of Color Collectivepresents a multidisciplinary event highlighting the voices of women ofcolor from across the United States.

This artist's panel will feature the performers: Kelly Zen-Yie Tsai,D’Lo, Mayda del Valle, Ursula Rucker, and LizaGarza, whose creative voices empower and uplift young women of color, as well as Maori Holmes, Executive Director of the Black Lily Film and Music Festival.

The event will also feature an artists’ panel on race, class, gender,and sexuality, moderated by Imani Perry, a professor at the Center for African American Studies at Princeton University. A related performance will take place on Oct.3 at 8 p.m. in the Pearson Hall Theater of the Lang Performing ArtsCenter. Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there isno reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change withoutnotice.

The Intercultural Center at Swarthmore College and the William J Copper Foundation in collaboration with Swarthmore Womyn of Color Collective, presents a multidisciplinary event highlighting the voices of women of color from across the United States.

In honor of the legacy of women-of-color scholar activists of previous generations, the all-star lineup—featuring Kelly Zen-Yie Tsai, D’Lo, Mayda del Valle, Ursula Rucker, Maori Karmael Holmes, and DJ Ultraviolet, whose creative voices empower and uplift young women of color—taps into a worldwide celebratory energy of what it means to be a woman and a woman of color.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

San Francisco-based ensemble Melody of China holds a unique position in the world of Chinese music. Since its conception, the group has drawn together enthusiastic professional musicians from some of the most prestigious conservatories in China for a common goal: advancing the Chinese musical tradition within the context of the dynamic American music world.

Melody of China has continued to impress diverse audiences with their expansive repertoire, which, alongside folk music from the different ethnic groups of China, includes classical, contemporary, and jazz. They have commissioned and premiered 40 new works by 20 composers and remain dedicated to their mission of blurring boundaries between East and West, ancient and contemporary.

The lecture and demonstration will be followed by a performance by Melody of China

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

San Francisco-based ensemble Melody of China holds a unique position in the world of Chinese music. Since its conception, the group has drawn together enthusiastic professional musicians from some of the most prestigious conservatories in China for a common goal: advancing the Chinese musical tradition within the context of the dynamic American music world.

Melody of China has continued to impress diverse audiences with their expansive repertoire, which, alongside folk music from the different ethnic groups of China, includes classical, contemporary, and jazz. They have commissioned and premiered 40 new works by 20 composers and remain dedicated to their mission of blurring boundaries between East and West, ancient and contemporary.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

2009 Grammy Award winner Hila Plitmann joins James Freeman and O2001 for concerts of music on texts by two remarkable poets: Sappho and Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Schreker's rarely performed masterwork of 1916 completes this exciting program.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

This lecture will examine new and old philosophies of science and how they relate science to society and religion.

Drawing upon scientific examples of complexity and emergence, Stuart Kauffman has argued in his recent book Reinventing the Sacred, for a new understanding of what we consider sacred.

Kauffman’s reimaging of science and religion may unsettle members of those communities, but it is sure to provoke challenging and productive conversations.

Stuart Kauffman is a MacArthur Fellow and prominent member of the Santa Fe Institute.

A panel discussion concerning emergence theory will take place on Feb. 5 at 5:00 p.m. in Cunniff Hall.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Stuart Kauffman, a MacArthur Fellow and prominent member of the Santa Fe Institute, draws upon scientific examples of complexity and emergence in making a case for a new understanding of what we consider sacred.

This panel discussion will examine new and old philosophies of science and how they relate science to society and religion.

Kauffman’s reimaging of science and religion may unsettle members of those communities, but it is sure to provoke challenging and productive conversations.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Leveraging both the documentary and diaristic aspects of printmaking and bookmaking, the featured artists critique institutionalized violence and reassert imaginative space for compassionate endeavors.

The exhibition includes works by Daniel Heyman in collaboration with Nick Flynn, Damian Cote, Ehren Tool, Eric Avery, and Michael Reed.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

For the past four years, Daniel Heyman has traveled to Jordan and Turkey to meet with former detainees, paint their portraits, and record their testimony.

Numerous institutions have acquired portfolios of this work including the Library of Congress, New York Public Library, Yale University Art Gallery, Baltimore Museum of Art, and Princeton University Art Museum.

Heyman is a 2009 Pew Fellowship recipient.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

For the past four years, Daniel Heyman has traveled to Jordan and Turkey to meet with former detainees, paint their portraits, and record their testimony.

Numerous institutions have acquired portfolios of this work including the Library of Congress, New York Public Library, Yale University Art Gallery, Baltimore Museum of Art, and Princeton University Art Museum.

Heyman is a 2009 Pew Fellowship recipient.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

This symposium will explore the role of contemporary artists who address the effects of war and institutionalized violence and catalyze civic engagement. Organized in concert with a poetry reading by Nick Flynn as well as concurrent art exhibitions in the List Gallery and McCabe Library, these events are funded by the William J. Cooper Foundation.

The discussion will be moderated by Janine Mileaf, participants will include Daniel Heyman, visiting artist; Damian Cote, artist; Melissa Ho, artist and art historian; AndrewLichtenstein, documentary photographer.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Works by Daniel Heyman in collaboration with Nick Flynn, Damian Cote, Ehren Tool, Eric Avery, and Michael Reed. Curated by Daniel Heyman.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Leveraging both the documentary and diaristic aspects of printmaking and bookmaking, the featured artists critique institutionalized violence and reassert imaginative space for compassionate endeavors.

The exhibition includes works by Daniel Heyman in collaboration with Nick Flynn, Damian Cote, Eric Avery, and Michael Reed. Poetry reading with Nick Flynn, celebrating the culmination of a book project with Daniel Heyman.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Nick Flynn has published his works in The New Yorker, The Nation, Fence, The New York Times Book Review, The Paris Review, and NPR's This American Life.

Author of Another Bullshit Night in Suck City, (2004), and The Ticking is the Bomb (2010), his awards include "Discovery"/The Nation Award, the PEN/Joyce Osterweil Award, the Amy Lowell Poetry Traveling Scholarship, and fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the Library of Congress.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Kevin Young, who stands high among the most celebrated and respected of younger African American writers, has authored five books of poems, including the book-length sequences To Repel Ghosts, based on the life and work of the artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Black Maria, which Young describes as “film noir in verse”; and, more recently, the ironically titled For the Confederate Dead and Dear Darkness, books of elegies that often come at the bereavement indirectly, as in his poems extolling Southern food—crawfish, grits, okra, cat fish, fig preserves—written in the wake of his father’s passing.

A compelling reader, witty and sharp, Young has also edited significant anthologies, including collections of blues and jazz poems for Everyman Library editions.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Information about the U.N. Intellectual History Project can be found here.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Since its release in November 2007, the Amazon Kindle has emerged as a—and perhaps the—leading portable electronic reading device.

Widely touted for its unique screen, capacious storage, and wireless content delivery, Kindle has prompted both enthusiasts and critics to wonder if it will eventually “outbook the [printed] book” (to quote Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos).

This presentation will not settle the matter, nor will it try to. Instead, it will focus on two key Kindle features: its two-way communications capability; and the “read to me” text-to-speech feature, new to Kindle 2.

The purpose of this presentation will be to show how these features have empowered Amazon.com and the Authors Guild to assert extraordinary rights over, respectively, the content and form of reading.

In doing so, these entities render “the right to read,” which Richard Stallman identified more than a decade ago, as increasingly alien and, indeed, alienable.

Ted Striphas is assistant professor and director of film and media studies in the department of communication and culture, Indiana University.

His book, The Late Age of Print: Everyday Book Culture from Consumerism to Control, was published in 2009 by Columbia University Press. He is the co-editor of the book Communication as…Perspectives on Theory and of a special issue on intellectual property published by the journal Cultural Studies.

Visit his Web site www.thelateageofprint.org.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

Trio Kavkasia —three Americans who perform the traditional vocal music of the former Soviet Republic of Georgia— bring to the College the exquisite, ethereal beauty of ancient liturgical music and the striking, earthy exuberance of everyday work songs as well as the fascinating cultural and historical context of Georgian folk traditions. In three CDs, these accomplished musicians and musical scholars have traveled ever further into the heart of Georgian tuning mysteries, with vigorous improvisation. Ted Levin of BBC Music Magazine called Kavkasia’s latest release The Fox and the Lion “lush and resonant,” and The New York Times described its “exotic, beautifully modulated style ... [and] haunting beauty.”

Trio Kavkasia —three Americans who perform the traditional vocal music of the former Soviet Republic of Georgia— bring to the College the exquisite, ethereal beauty of ancient liturgical music and the striking, earthy exuberance of everyday work songs as well as the fascinating cultural and historical context of Georgian folk traditions. In three CDs, these accomplished musicians and musical scholars have traveled ever further into the heart of Georgian tuning mysteries, with vigorous improvisation. Ted Levin of BBC Music Magazine called Kavkasia’s latest release The Fox and the Lion “lush and resonant,” and The New York Times described its “exotic, beautifully modulated style ... [and] haunting beauty.”

Recent Paintings onMylar and Panel

Nationally and internationally recognized for both his draftsmanship and inventive imagery, Paone's portraits of poets and musicians explore traditional themes with an experimental sensibility. Drawing lessons from the unexpected juxtapositions and textures of collage aesthetics, hisfigures have a hybrid and visionary quality.
Whether responding to the Katrinadisaster, or portraying the lyricism of a musical trio, the artist investigates the way varied arts—poetry, music, dance, theater, and painting—find theircreative wellsprings in the human condition.
Paone has received numerous grants and awards including two Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Grants and a Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship.
His work has been exhibited internationally and is in distinguished collections including The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C.

Artist’s Lecture:Thursday, Oct. 2, 4:30 p.m., Lang Performing Arts Center, Cinema

Gallery reception tofollow, 5:30-7:00 p.m.

 

Bernard Woma is a true cultural treasure from Ghana who has toured the world as xylophonist and lead drummer of the National Dance Company of Ghana. He was honored to perform for U.S. President Bill Clinton and Ghanaian President Jerry Rawlings in Accra.His recent American appearances include a performance with the New YorkPhilharmonic, a residency with the Ethos Percussion Group, and teachingat New York’s African Xylophone Festival. Womais artistic director of Saakumu Dance Troupe and founder and director of the Dagara Music and ArtsCenterin Accra.

Oct. 2, 2 – 5 p.m., workshop on African music and dance, Lang Concert Hall

Oct. 3, 2 – 5 p.m., workshop on gyil maintenance and repair, Lang Concert Hall

Oct. 3, 8 p.m., concert: The Music and Dance of Ghana, Lang Concert Hall

Oct. 4, 10 a.m.– 4 p.m., master class on gyil performance, Lang Concert Hall

Nationally and internationally recognized for both hisdraftsmanship and inventive imagery, Paone's portraits of poets and musiciansexplore traditional themes with an experimental sensibility. Drawing lessonsfrom the unexpected juxtapositions and textures of collage aesthetics, hisfigures have a hybrid and visionary quality.
Whether responding to the Katrinadisaster, or portraying the lyricism of a musical trio, the artist investigatesthe way varied arts—poetry, music, dance, theater, and painting—find theircreative wellsprings in the human condition. Paone has received numerous grants and awards including two LouisComfort Tiffany Foundation Grants and a Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship.
Hiswork has been exhibited internationally and is in distinguished collectionsincluding The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Victoria and Albert Museumin London, and the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C.

Gallery reception tofollow, 5:30-7:00 p.m.

Bernard Woma is a true cultural treasure from Ghana who has toured the world as xylophonist and lead drummer of the National Dance Company of Ghana. He was honored to perform for U.S. President Bill Clinton and Ghanaian President Jerry Rawlings in Accra. His recent American appearances include a performance with the New York Philharmonic, a residency with the Ethos Percussion Group, and teaching at New York’s African Xylophone Festival. Womais artistic director of Saakumu Dance Troupe and founder and director of the Dagara Music and ArtsCenterin Accra.

Oct. 2, 2 – 5 p.m., workshop on African music and dance, Lang Concert Hall

Oct. 3, 2 – 5 p.m., workshop on gyil maintenance and repair, Lang Concert Hall

Oct. 3, 8 p.m., concert: The Music and Dance of Ghana, Lang Concert Hall

Oct. 4, 10 a.m.– 4 p.m., master class on gyil performance, Lang Concert Hall

 

The William J. Cooper Foundation and the Department of Music and Dance present a masterclass taught by Shen Wei and members of his dance company on Thursday, October 23 from 4:30-6 pm in Troy Dance Lab, Lang Performing Arts Center.  This class augments the performance by Shen Wei Dance Arts on Friday, October 24 at 8 pm in Pearson-Hall Theater, LPAC. 

Hailed by the New York Times as "startlingly imaginative", Shen Wei Dance Arts invests in interdisciplinary, cross-cultural performance for forward-looking audiences.  Each work by Artistic Director Shen Wei develops an original dance vocabulary incorporating visual and storytelling elements from the theater, Chinese opera, Eastern philosophy, traditional and contemporary visual art, and sculpture.  The result, at turns figurative and abstract, combines performance with strong scenic elements to create a "fascinating fantasy in movement" (Sydney Herald Sun).

Hailed by The New York Times as “startlingly imaginative,” Shen Wei Dance Arts invests in interdisciplinary, cross-cultural performance for forwardlooking audiences. Each work by Artistic Director Shen Wei develops an original dance vocabulary incorporating visual and storytelling elements from the theater, Chinese opera, Eastern philosophy, traditional and contemporary visual art, and sculpture. The result, which is at turns figurative and abstract, combines performance with strong scenic elements to create a “fascinating fantasy in movement” (Herald Sun).

Katsura Kan, a master teacher and Butoh dancer, will visit campus to give a special lecture on "The Origin of Butoh in post-WWII Japan" on Thursday, Oct. 30, 7-9 pm.  The lecture will include video examples, as well as anecdotes from Kan's 29 years of Butoh performance and teaching.  A question & answer period will follow the lecture.  Watch excerpts from a recent performance by Kan at Naropa College here. 

Based in Kyoto, Japan since 1979, Master Butoh artist, choreographer and teacher Katsura Kan
(b. 1948) is a Butoh artist among the ranks of Japan’s first generation of Butoh. He performed with the seminal Butoh troupe Byakkosha (1979-1981). For the past 29 years, Kan has worked with dancers in remote locations throughout Africa, Europe, and South East Asia, in addition to performing his creative works in cosmopolitan cultures. Katsura Kan seeks to spread knowledge of the art and practice of Butoh globally, while educating students, artists and audiences about the links between Butoh and classical Japanese Noh theatre.
 

Katsura Kan, a master teacher and Butoh dancer, will give a special Introduction to Butoh workshop on Sat & Sun, Nov. 1 & 2, from 1-4 pm in Troy Dance Lab, LPAC.  Possible areas to be introduced in the workshop include: Noh walk, rhythm composition, mask training and Butoh notation.
Students are asked to attend both days of the workshop.  To register, email lclark1@swarthmore.edu.  Watch excerpts from a recent performance by Kan at Naropa College here. 

Based in Kyoto, Japan since 1979, Master Butoh artist, choreographer and teacher Katsura Kan (b. 1948) is a Butoh artist among the ranks of Japan’s first generationof Butoh. He performed with the seminal Butoh troupe Byakkosha(1979-1981). For the past 29 years, Kan has worked with dancers inremote locations throughout Africa, Europe, and South East Asia, inaddition to performing his creative works in cosmopolitan cultures.Katsura Kan seeks to spread knowledge of the art and practice of Butohglobally, while educating students, artists and audiences about thelinks between Butoh and classical Japanese Noh theatre.

Junot Díaz’s fiction has appeared in The New Yorker, The Paris Review, and The Best American Short Stories. His first novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (2007), was greeted with rapturous reviews, including Michiko Kakutani of The New York Times who called it “a book that decisively establishes him as one of contemporary fiction’s most distinctive and irresistible new voices.” Oscar Wao was subsequently awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Critics Circle’s Best Novel. His debut story collection Drown (1996) was also met with unprecedented acclaim. Born in the Dominican Republic and raised in New Jersey, Díaz lives in New York City and is a professor of creative writing at MIT.

Orchestra 2001 celebrates the life and extraordinary importance of French pedagogue Nadia Boulanger as a teacher of young American composers with works by three of her most outstanding American students: Walter Piston, Aaron Copland, and Elliott Carter. Elliott Carter’s 100th birthday will be celebrated with two of his most recent and thorniest works featuring Europe’s most famous and vigorous champion of American music, pianist Emanuele Arciuli. Program includes works by Carter, Piston, and Copland.

Lecture and exhibition Michael Olszewski’s recent fiber constructions and paintings spring from deeply personal responses to issues ofintimacy, fate, and life’s passing.

Integrating influences as diverse as Pre-Columbian textiles and Russian Constructivism, his original works reveal an emotionally expressive range of materials and traditions including Japanese shibori resist dyeing, appliqué, embroidery, and crochet as well as traditional drawing and painting techniques.

Olszewski’s deeply moving works can be found in major collections including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the National Museum of American Art, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Jan. 22–Feb. 25, exhibition, List Gallery

Jan. 22, 4:30 p.m., artist’s lecture, Lang Performing ArtsCenter Cinema

Jan. 22, 5:30–7 p.m., reception, List Gallery

apackar1@swarthmore.edu

Lecture and exhibition Michael Olszewski’s recent fiberconstructions and paintings spring from deeply personal responses to issues ofintimacy, fate, and life’s passing.
Integrating influences as diverse asPre-Columbian textiles and Russian Constructivism, his original works reveal anemotionally expressive range of materials and traditions including Japaneseshibori resist dyeing, appliqué, embroidery, and crochet as well as traditionaldrawing and painting techniques.
Olszewski’s deeply moving works can be foundin major collections including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the NationalMuseum of American Art, and the Museumof Fine Arts, Boston.

Jan. 22–Feb. 25, exhibition, List Gallery

Jan. 22, 4:30 p.m., artist’s lecture, Lang Performing ArtsCenter Cinema

Jan. 22, 5:30–7 p.m., reception, List Gallery

apackar1@swarthmore.edu

 

With inventive choreography, original music compositions, and evocative metaphors, the Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company “offers [the] audience the dance equivalent of a cherished book of family photographs” (The New York Times). A child of Holocaust survivors, Dorfman feels an intense connection to her history and what it means to the future, both with regard to the Jewish diaspora and to the world community. The Legacy Project brings together Dorfman’s family stories, Jewish history, and a universal struggle for identity through dances that serve as metaphors for the greater truths of the human experience.

With inventive choreography, original music compositions, and evocative metaphors, the Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company “offers [the] audience the dance equivalent of a cherished book of family photographs” (The New York Times). A child of Holocaust survivors, Dorfman feels an intense connection to her history and what it means to the future, both with regard to the Jewish diaspora and to the world community. The Legacy Project brings together Dorfman’s family stories, Jewish history, and a universal struggle for identity through dances that serve as metaphors for the greater truths of the human experience.

With inventive choreography, original music compositions, and evocative metaphors, the Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company “offers [the] audience the dance equivalent of a cherished book of family photographs” (The New York Times). A child of Holocaust survivors, Dorfman feels an intense connection to her history and what it means to the future, both with regard to the Jewish diaspora and to the world community. The Legacy Project brings together Dorfman’s family stories, Jewish history, and a universal struggle for identity through dances that serve as metaphors for the greater truths of the human experience.

The Cavani String Quartet will celebrate their 25th anniversary with an exciting residency, combining a masterclass, presentations and a concert featuring Beethoven’s powerful quartet in a minor, Op. 132 and the quartet in f minor, Op. 95, along with the Philadelphia premiere of Geoffrey Peterson’s Seasons. As quartet-in-residence at the renowned Cleveland Institute of Music since 1988, and winner of  numerous accolades, including the prestigious Naumburg Award, the Cavani Quartet has been described by the Washington Post as “completely engrossing, powerful and elegant.” Hailed as dynamic and inspirational teachers as well as performers, the Cavani String Quartet succeeds like few others in communicating the sheer joy of music making.

The Cavani String Quartet will celebrate their 25th anniversary with an exciting residency, combining a masterclass, presentations and a concert featuring Beethoven’s powerful quartet in a minor, Op. 132 and the quartet in f minor, Op. 95, along with the Philadelphia premiere of Geoffrey Peterson’s Seasons. As quartet-in-residence at the renowned Cleveland Institute of Music since 1988, and winner of  numerous accolades, including the prestigious Naumburg Award, the Cavani Quartet has been described by the Washington Post as “completely engrossing, powerful and elegant.” Hailed as dynamic and inspirational teachers as well as performers, the Cavani String Quartet succeeds like few others in communicating the sheer joy of music making.

The Department of Music and Dance and the William J. Cooper Foundation invite you to attend a ballet masterclass with the Johannes Wieland on Thursday, February 26, 11:30 a.m. in the Lang Performing Arts Center, Boyer Dance Studio.
 
The event is free and open to the public. 

Wieland’s choreography employs an architecturally drivenunderstanding of bodies, movement and space probing deeply into the humanpsyche to create an abstract, metaphorically rich repertory for hiscompany. As part of its integrated approach to performance art, thecompany utilizes a rigorous developmental process to explore varioussituations of causality. This intense process motivates a closerelationship between dancers, composers, designers and a collaborating videographer, this performance reveals true happiness and its associated lies. As Stated most recently by Deutsche Bühne, "Joannes Wieland's world is neither simple nor ideal."

Please email, lclark1@swarthmore.edu  or call (610) 328-8260 for more information. @swarthmore.edu>

Johannes Wieland’s choreography employs an architecturally driven understanding of bodies, movement, and space, probing deeply into the human psyche to create an abstract, metaphorically rich approach to performance art.

Cited as one of “25 to Watch” by Dance Magazine, Wieland delves into the philosophical realm of lies and happiness with the evening-length work newyou.

Featuring five performers and a collaborating videographer, this performance reveals true happiness and its associated lies. As stated most recently by Deutsche Bühne, “Johannes Wieland’s world is neither simple nor ideal.”

Symposium and comedy performance

Humor research is a high-powered multidisciplinary field inwhich linguistics has played a leading role for more than a quarter century.
The dominant linguistic theory of humor treats it as a clever juxtaposition oftwo opposing and partially overlapping scripts. Groups that share the samescripts’ availability for humor bond by laughing together at everything andeverybody outside—and sometimes inside as well.
Victor Raskin, distinguishedprofessor of English and linguistics at PurdueUniversityand editor of the Humor: International Journal of Humor Research, will lectureon the bonding nature of humor, particularly for oppressed minorities.
Hislecture will be followed by a performance featuring four comediennes: LisaAlvarado, Robin Cee, Dawn Dumont, and Lynn Jacobowitz.
The following afternoon,Raskin will lead a discussion of the previous evening’s comedy, and thecomediennes will conduct comedy workshops for those who sign up in advancethrough the Linguistics Department.

Mar. 2, 4:15 p.m., lecture, Lang Performing Arts Center Cinema

Mar. 2, 8 p.m., performance, Pearson Hall Theater, LangPerforming Arts Center

Mar. 3, 4:15 p.m., discussion/workshop, ScienceCenter101

dnapoli1@swarthmore.edu

Symposium and comedy performance

Humor research is a high-powered multidisciplinary field inwhich linguistics has played a leading role for more than a quarter century.The dominant linguistic theory of humor treats it as a clever juxtaposition oftwo opposing and partially overlapping scripts. Groups that share the samescripts’ availability for humor bond by laughing together at everything andeverybody outside—and sometimes inside as well.
Victor Raskin, distinguishedprofessor of English and linguistics at PurdueUniversityand editor of the Humor: International Journal of Humor Research, will lectureon the bonding nature of humor, particularly for oppressed minorities.
Hislecture will be followed by a performance featuring four comediennes: LisaAlvarado, Robin Cee, Dawn Dumont, and Lynn Jacobowitz.
The following afternoon,Raskin will lead a discussion of the previous evening’s comedy, and thecomediennes will conduct comedy workshops for those who sign up in advancethrough the Linguistics Department.

Mar. 2, 4:15 p.m., lecture, Lang Performing Arts Center Cinema

Mar. 2, 8 p.m., performance, Pearson Hall Theater, LangPerforming Arts Center

Mar. 3, 4:15 p.m., discussion/workshop, ScienceCenter101

dnapoli1@swarthmore.edu

 

This symposium will explore the role of contemporary artists who focus on a seemingly endless era of global warfare, related health issues, and other crises of politics.

It will take place while Bearing Witness, Recent Works by Daniel Heyman and Printmakers Go to War Exhibit are on display on the Swarthmore campus.

The discussion will be moderated by Janine Mileaf, participants will include Daniel Heyman, visiting artist; Damian Cote, artist; Eric Avery, artist; Laurel Reuter, director, North Dakota Museum of Art; and Juan Manuel Echavarria, artist.

Cooper Series events are free and open to the public; there is no reserved seating. Event details may be subject to change without notice.

 

Paul Muldoon, hailed by the Times Literary Supplement as “the most significant English-language poet born since the second World War,” is an Irish poet, opera librettist, lyricist, and guitarist for the rock band Rackett as well as current poetry editor of The New Yorker. Muldoon has published 10 collections of poetry, including most recently Moy Sand and Gravel, winner of the 2003 Pulitzer Prize, and Horse Latitudes, 2006.

This indigenous Californian women’s conference will addressrace, place, culture, and continuity for Californianatives.

Spanning past and present, 10 of California’s most prominent female Nativeactivists will reach out to the Swarthmore community as co-forgers of a newtomorrow.

The program includes a screening of the film In the Light ofReverence (http://www.bullfrogfilms.com/catalog/ilr.html)

For the schedule of events please go to:  http://www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/Linguistics/xling15native.html

Swarthmore is co-commissioning the world premiere of The Riot Group’s newest work, Hearts of Man, which will kick off a weeklong residency by Shaplin and company. Hearts of Man, which Shaplin calls “a New Jersey tragedy in blank verse,” is a three-act play about the capture, defense, and condemnation of a modern sexual predator.
American playwright Adriano Shaplin and The Riot Group have enjoyed critical and popular acclaim in both the United States and Great Britain where he is currently the international-playwright-in-residence at the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Adriano Shaplin and The Riot Group offer workshops with students as part of their week long residency.

The Riot Group’s residency will end with the Philadelphia premiere of their internationally-acclaimed 2003 piece Pugilist Specialist, which portrays a group of American soldiers assigned the task of eliminating a troublesome Middle Eastern leader.

Celebrated by Hilton Kramer and other critics as one of the leading figurative artists revitalizing the contemporary painting scene, John Dubrow distills lessons from tradition while offering a distinct contemporary perspective. He has won national acclaim for his large-scale oil paintings, which evoke the complex structures, spaces, and figures of the city. Ranging from delicate strokes to massive blocks of color, his virtuoso application of paint and expressive use of proportion unify his ambitious compositions. Curated by Andrea Packard, List Gallery director, this exhibition will also include a selection of his portraits of artists and literary luminaries. Born in 1958, Dubrow received a B.F.A. and M.F.A. from the San Francisco Art Institute. Currently represented by Lori Bookstein Fine Arts, N.Y., his work has been acquired by distinguished public collections such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Harvard University, and the National Academy of Design, New York City.

The exhibition John Dubrow: City Scenes and Portraits, 2000–2007 opens with a lecture by the artist. Reception to follow: 5:30-7:00 p.m.

Orchestra 2001 Messiaen’s masterpiece Oiseaux exotiques with Gilbert Kalish as soloist headlines this program. Kurt Weill’s stirring Violin Concerto will be performed by Geoffrey Michaels. Steve Mackey’s No Two Breaths for violin, marimba, and percussion quartet concludes this intriguing program.

David Orr chairs Oberlin’s Environmental Studies program and is the author of the books Ecological Literacy, Earth in Mind, The Nature of Design, and The Last Refuge. He spearheaded the construction of the Lewis Center for Environmental Studies, a remarkable green building that is one of 30 “milestone buildings” according to the U.S. Department of Energy. David Orr will speak on finding a path toward a sustainable future.

A moderated discussion about sustainability and the academy. Panelists include:
Donald Barber, associate professor of geology, Bryn Mawr College
Stephanie Boyd, manager of special projects, Williams College
Nan Jenks-Jay, dean of Environmental Affairs, Middlebury College
Karl Johnson ’83, associate professor of biology, Haverford College
David Orr,  chair of the Environmental Studies program, Oberlin College 
Matthew St. Clair ’97, sustainability manager, Univ. of California
E. Carr Everbach, professor of engineering, Swarthmore College, moderator

The question addresses the many who look at art with their ears, who un-see what is visible to comply with a script. Amazing how often we pretend to be seeing what just isn’t there, and how reliance on texts, or on approved hearsay, can make us miss out on the far greater rewards proposed to our eyes.
The lecture will cite some dozen examples from the reception of Ancient, Renaissance, and Modern art––cautionary tales intended as a friendly warning to the good folk of Swarthmore.

Muralist Tom Kelly will speak at Swarthmore College on October 24, 2007 at 4:15 pm in the Scheuer Room of Kohlberg Hall. Mr. Kelly is one of three muralists from Derry, known as The Bogside Artists, who have created eleven stunning murals depicting key events in the recent troubled history of their country. The group continues the Northern Irish tradition of murals as vehicles for social commentary, using their murals as tools to advance the peace and reconciliation process in Northern Ireland. Mr. Kelly’s visit is supported by the Serendipity Fund of the William J. Cooper Foundation and has been organized by faculty members Sharon Friedler, Stephen Lang Professor of Performing Arts and Director of the Dance Program and Randy Exon, Professor of Studio Art.

The sexy athleticism, exuberant personality, and joyous movement that is Parsons Dance Company comes from 10 full-time dancers who maintain a repertory of more than 60 works—20 with commissioned scores—choreographed by David Parsons. The company’s style is a fusion of the gesture and movement that make up the modern dance vocabulary, with the discipline and precise execution one expects from a classical company.
“[The] dancers are picked for their virtuosity, energy, and sexiness. They attack the audience and stage like gangbusters.”
—Clive Barnes, New York Post

Dr. Simon Carmel, a retired professor from the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, will present"Silent No More: Testimonies of Deaf Holocaust Survivors."  This event is funded by the Cooper Foundation and cosponsored by German Studies, History, Interpretation Theory, Modern Languages & Literatures, Religion, and Linguistics.
It is free and open to the public. ASL interpreters will be provided.
Following this presentation, at 9 pm, Dr. Carmel, who is also a comedian and magician, will do a workshop on comedy with anyone interested. If you would like to participate in the workshop, please contact Donna Jo Napoli at dnapoli1 @ swarthmore.edu
The workshop is free and open to the public.
The venue for the workshop will be sent to all those who sign up.

The sexy athleticism, exuberant personality, and joyous movement that is Parsons Dance Company comes from 10 full-time dancers who maintain a repertory of more than 60 works—20 with commissioned scores—choreographed by David Parsons. The company’s style is a fusion of the gesture and movement that make up the modern dance vocabulary, with the discipline and precise execution one expects from a classical company.
“[The] dancers are picked for their virtuosity, energy, and sexiness. They attack the audience and stage like gangbusters.”
—Clive Barnes, New York Post

Gamelan Çudamani, a troupe of 30 musicians and dancers from Indonesia, ranks among the leading performing arts organizations of Southeast Asia. It is famous for its exquisite artistry as well as for its unusual stylistic breadth, which ranges from 16th-century court genres through modern experimental music, dance, and theater. It is also well known for its commitment to education and outreach and has established an innovative training program in traditional music and dance for children in Pengosekan, Bali. Gamelan Çudamani has toured internationally to great critical and audience acclaim.

Orchestra 2001 Concert. Join the internationally known and Grammy-nominated wind quintet, Imani Winds, as they perform with Orchestra 2001. Works to be performed include Valerie Coleman’s Afro-Cuban Concerto, a Mozart Serenade, and Darius Milhaud’s masterpiece Creation du monde.

Want to bring a renowned speaker, artist, or performer to campus? Then come to the Cooper Committee Student Q & A for information on writing a successful proposal for a Cooper event next year.

Lecture
Sought-after speaker Geoffrey Canada is an advocate for and expert on issues concerning violence, children, education and community redevelopment. He is the acclaimed author of Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence in America as well as a recent recipient of the prestigious McGraw Prize for Education, in recognition of his passionate concern for children and selfless determination to make their lives safer and more sane. Canada, who grew up in the South Bronx, has dedicated his life to helping children who grew up in conditions similar to those of his own family, including assisting them in securing both educational and economic opportunities.

Jean-René Toussaint is a French-born director, actor, and voice teacher now living and working in the Netherlands. He is the creator of his own school of vocal training for actors and musicians called Stemwerk. His residency and performances at Swarthmore will mark his first visit to the Philadelphia area. Along with conducting intensive voice workshops for theater and music students, Toussaint will present a lecture-demonstration on the Stemwerk technique along with two performances of the world premiere of his latest one-man show, The Alchemical Theatre, which is freely inspired by the writings of the French actor and director Antonin Artaud. Toussaint’s workshops and lecture demonstrations will be conducted along with his partner Sanne Hoek.

Jean-René Toussaint is a French-born director, actor, and voice teacher now living and working in the Netherlands. He is the creator of his own school of vocal training for actors and musicians called Stemwerk. His residency and performances at Swarthmore will mark his first visit to the Philadelphia area. Along with conducting intensive voice workshops for theater and music students, Toussaint will present a lecture-demonstration on the Stemwerk technique along with two performances of the world premiere of his latest one-man show, The Alchemical Theatre, which is freely inspired by the writings of the French actor and director Antonin Artaud. Toussaint’s workshops and lecture demonstrations will be conducted along with his partner Sanne Hoek.

“Margaret is comedy's most fearless superhero” Mary Kaye-Schilling, Entertainment Weekly Magazine
Margaret Cho is a one-of-a-kind phenomenon, with a diverse and fervently loyal audience that includes gays and lesbians, Asian Americans, women, people of color, college students, comedy fans and basically anyone who has ever felt invisible. Great comics like Lenny Bruce, George Carlin, and Richard Pryor all paved her way, but she has a distinctive, outrageous, hilarious, individualistic, and ultimately empowering personal voice.
Cho was honored by The National Organization for Women with the organization's 2003 Intrepid Award. She has also received awards from GLAAD, Lambda Legal, the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force, and the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund for making a significant difference in promoting equal rights for all, regardless of race, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
Reservations required: reserve online or call (610) 328-8200.

Symposium
Top scholars and activists working with deaf communities around the world come together to present their findings. The symposium will include:
• a presentation about a nomadic Bedouin community in Israel—all of whose members can sign, whether hearing or deaf
• keynote address and panel on sign languages, touching upon sign used by deaf people in Brazil, Britain, Croatia, Germany, Japan, Nicaragua, and other places, and upon gesture and sign used by hearing people in Australia, Italy, New Guinea, and other places
• keynote address and panel on social issues of deaf people in Britain, China, Japan, Kenya, New Zealand, and other places, particularly Third World countries
• discussion of creativity in sign regarding poetry, storytelling, and humor
• performance by one of Britain’s foremost deaf poets

For details, visit: http://www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/dnapoli1/Aroundtheworld.html

Feb. 29, 8 p.m., opening keynote: Carol Padden; reception following
Mar. 1, 9 a.m., keynote: Gaurav Mathur; panel: Marie Coppola, Adam Kendon, Deborach Chen Pichler, Anne Senghas, Sandra Wood
Mar. 1, 1 p.m.; keynote: Nickson Kakiri and Amy Wilson; panel: Deborah Karp, Leila Monaghan, Karen Nakamura, Paul Scott, Jun Hui Yang
Mar. 1, 8 p.m.: keynote and poetry performance: Rachel Sutton-Spence and Paul Scott; reception following

Symposium
Top scholars and activists working with deaf communities around the world come together to present their findings. The symposium will include:
• a presentation about a nomadic Bedouin community in Israel—all of whose members can sign, whether hearing or deaf
• keynote address and panel on sign languages, touching upon sign used by deaf people in Brazil, Britain, Croatia, Germany, Japan, Nicaragua, and other places, and upon gesture and sign used by hearing people in Australia, Italy, New Guinea, and other places
• keynote address and panel on social issues of deaf people in Britain, China, Japan, Kenya, New Zealand, and other places, particularly Third World countries
• discussion of creativity in sign regarding poetry, storytelling, and humor
• performance by one of Britain’s foremost deaf poets

For details, visit: http//www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/Linguistics/home.html

Mar. 1, 9 a.m., keynote: Gaurav Mathur; panel: Marie Coppola, Adam Kendon, Deborach Chen Pichler, Anne Senghas, Sandra Wood
Mar. 1, 1 p.m.; keynote: Nickson Kakiri and Amy Wilson; panel: Deborah Karp, Leila Monaghan, Karen Nakamura, Paul Scott, Jun Hui Yang
Mar. 1, 8 p.m.: keynote and poetry performance: Rachel Sutton-Spence and Paul Scott; reception following

Works by Rackstraw Downes, Yvonne Jacquette, Sharon Horvath, Sarah McEneaney, Kevin Wixted, David Kapp, and Stanley Lewis
Curated by Andrea Packard, List Gallery director, Painting Structures brings together seven distinguished American artists for whom architecture is a primary inspiration. Each artist portrays arrangements of built structures in order to express his or her distinct synthesis of visual perception and subjective experience. From Sharon Horvath’s visionary portrayals of Shea Stadium to Kevin Wixted’s abstracted cityscapes based on Florentine architecture, each artist uses specific architectural forms to explore the expressive possibilities and analytical language of painting. Harmonizing specific observation and imagination, Painting Structures reveals the poetry of the spaces we inhabit in body and spirit.
Mar. 1 to 30, exhibit, List Gallery, Lang Performing Arts Center
 Mar. 4, 4:30 p.m., panel discussion: “The Poetry of Place,” with panelists Sharon Horvath, Kevin Wixted, and Sarah McEneaney, Lang Performing Arts Center, Cinema 

List Gallery hours: Tues. through Sun. Noon-5 p.m.
List Gallery: 610-328-7811 ~ Directions: 610-328-8001

A panel discussion titled "The Poetry of Place" will celebrate the opening of the List Gallery exhibition: Painting Structures: Specificity and Synthesis." Four of the 7 exhibitors will participate as panelists: Sarah McEneaney, Sharon Horvath, Kevin Wixted, and David Kapp.  These distinguished artists will discuss the importance of the specific places that inspire their painting and the distinct ways in which they synthesize their observations with their own conceptual and emotional frameworks. Andrea Packard, List Gallery director and exhibition curator will moderate the discussion.
Reception to follow in the List Gallery.

Please join us at the opening reception for Painting Structures: Specificity and Synthesis.
Nationally known painters Rackstraw Downes, Yvonne Jacquette, Sarah McEneaney, Stanley Lewis, David Kapp, Sharon Horvath, and Kevin Wixted, differ in style, but carefully portray architectural structures. Whether they depict grand skyscrapers or landfills, they return to specific sites or sources because they allow for a particular type of perceptual and compositional analysis.
Harmonizing specific observation and imagination, Painting Structures reveals the poetry of the spaces we inhabit in body and spirit.

Internationally known best-selling author T. Coraghessan Boyle will read and discuss his work. Boyle’s stories have appeared in most of the major American magazines, including The New Yorker, Harper’s Magazine, Esquire, The Atlantic Monthly, Playboy, The Paris Review, GQ, Antaeus, Granta, and McSweeney’s. He has won multiple O. Henry and PEN awards and has been a finalist for the National Book Award. His recent books of fiction include After the Plague (2001), Drop City (2003), The Inner Circle (2004), Tooth and Claw (2005), and Talk Talk (2006). He has been a member of the English Department at the University of Southern California since 1978.

The Department of Music and Dance and the William J. Cooper Foundation present a master class with Iyengar yoga teacher Genevieve Kapuler on Wednesday, March 26th from 11:30 am-1 pm in Troy Dance Lab.  This class is a prelude to "A Yoga Symposium: Practice in Body, Mind and Spirit" to be held on Sunday, March 30th from 10 am-4:15 pm. 

Genny Kapuler has studied yoga since 1976 and has been teaching since 1980. She has studied three times in India with the Iyengar family.  Her primary teacher in NYC is Mary Dunn.
Before the birth of her child and before she began teaching yoga, Genny performed as a modern dancer; for many years she had her own company. She is also trained as an Alexander-technique teacher and is a practitioner of Body-Mind Centering.
In addition to her yoga training, Genny has studied anatomy extensively.
She applies this knowledge to her understanding and teaching of yoga, directing her students toward a deeper awareness in asana and pranayama through precision of alignment. Genny also uses the poetics of language to guide her students, and to create "a mind-state in the room that is gentle and focused."

The symposium will bring together preeminent yoga teachers, scholars, and practitioners for the day-long event. It will be augmented by two yoga workshops—one in fall term and one in spring—offered by master teachers who will focus on alignment and spiritual anatomy in their presentations.
David Carpenter will speak on the role of the physical body in spiritual practice, and Irene Dowd will address the principle of gravity in action in yoga postures. Their talks will be followed by questions and comment periods and a break for lunch. Afternoon sessions will begin with a demonstration of yoga postures choreographed to form a seamless dance. The symposium will end with a roundtable panel including all presenters and moderated by Assistant Professor of Dance Pallabi Chakravorty.