What’s happening at Penn State? Here’s a look at some of the cultural events — both in-person and virtual — taking place across the University:
Performances
“A Thousand Ways” — Nov. 8-10, Eisenhower Auditorium, University Park campus. The unmoderated performance will encourage attendees to explore the lines between strangeness and kinship, distance and proximity, and how the most intimate assemblage can constitute a radical act.
“Bad Auditions by Bad Actors” — Nov. 8-9, York campus. This comedy by Ian McWethy is the fall production of the Penn Players, the theater group at Penn State York.
Bach’s Lunch — 12:10 p.m., Nov. 9, Eisenhower Chapel, Pasquerilla Spiritual Center, University Park campus. “Bach’s Lunch” is a weekly concert series during the school year. Concerts are brief in order to make it possible for the University community to attend during the lunch hour. Free.
Ivyside Dance Ensemble — 7:30 p.m., Nov. 9-10, Wolf Kuhn Theatre, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. Choreographers and dance faculty KT Huckabee and Jay Mackinson have featured pieces focused on traditional dance forms such as tap, ballet and jazz. In addition, guest choreographer Juhanna Rogers will present a dance created about and for the Ivyside Dance Ensemble.
“Circle Mirror Transformation” — 7:30 p.m., Nov. 14-15, Wolf Kuhn Theatre, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. This play by Annie Baker explores how the people we meet can impact our journey through life, what things can happen when we open ourselves up to opportunity, and what we have to gain from being fearless.
“Bonnets: How Ladies of Good Breeding are Induced to Murder” — Nov. 14-Dec. 2, Pavilion Theatre, University Park campus. Penn State Centre Stage will produce Jen Silverman’s “Bonnets: How Ladies of Good Breeding are Induced to Murder,” directed by Jenny Lamb, assistant teaching professor of movement. Weaving between the 17th and 19th centuries, this absurdist, comic and highly physical exploration of love and violence shows how easily “ladies of good breeding are induced to murder.”
STOMP — 7:30 p.m., Nov. 15, Eisenhower Auditorium, University Park campus. STOMP, an international percussion sensation, has garnered an armful of awards and rave reviews and has appeared on numerous national television shows. The eight-member troupe uses everything but conventional percussion instruments —matchboxes, wooden poles, brooms, garbage cans, Zippo lighters, hubcaps — to fill the stage with magnificent rhythms.
Violins of Hope — 7:30 p.m., Nov. 16, Recital Hall, University Park campus. A concert featuring music of reflection, contrition, hope, and unity performed by the Penn State Chamber Orchestra and Concert Choir.Penn State violinists will have the honor of playing beautifully restored instruments, which serve as a reminder of the musicians who played them during the Holocaust.
“A House Full of Letters” — 8 p.m., Nov. 16-18, 111 Forum, University Park campus. A performance from No Refund Theatre, directed by Ella Bradner.
Events
Penn State Military Appreciation Week — Through Nov. 11, Various campuses. Penn State will honor military service members, veterans and their families with a series of military appreciation events through Nov. 11.
Military Appreciation Breakfast — 9-11 a.m., Nov. 10, Heritage Hall, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park campus and Zoom. Penn State will host its annual breakfast and ceremony to honor the service and sacrifice of veterans of the U.S. armed forces. An additional annual Veterans Day ceremony will take place from 11:11 a.m. to noon in front of the Old Main steps.
Café Laura Theme Dinner: The Steaks are High: Night at the Casino — Nov. 9, Café Laura, Mateer Building, University Park campus. Students in HM 430 Advanced Food Production and Service Management prepare a series of themed dinners throughout the semester to be served in the student-run Café Laura restaurant. Reservations required.
Body Percussion Workshop — 4 p.m., Nov. 12, Room 302, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park center. Join performer, actor, dancer, and former STOMP cast member Riley Korrell for a 90-minute body percussion dance workshop. Korrell spent the past three years traveling all over the world and United States performing with STOMP. He was also a member of the American Tap Company at the IDO World Tap Dance Championships.
“(Dis)Place: From tent camps to the future of urbanism – The architecture of migration” — Nov. 13-14, Stuckeman Family Jury Space, University Park campus and Zoom. The College of Arts and Architecture’s Stuckeman School will host a research symposium to examine the relationship between refugee displacement, climate and architecture. The event is presented by the Stuckeman School’s three research centers: Ecology plus Design, Hamer Center for Community Design, and the Stuckeman Center for Design Computing.
Winter Biking 101 — 6-7 p.m., Nov. 15, The Bike Den, University Park campus. This workshop will teach participants the rules of the road and winter bike safety tips. As this is an indoor, classroom-style workshop, a bicycle is not required for participation.
“Altoona in Photos 1968-1971 Part II: AHS and Railroad Areas before Urban Development” — 7 p.m., Nov. 15, 134 Hawthorn Building, Altoona campus. A presentation by Michael Farrow of the Blair County Historical Society on Altoona’s history and the impact of railroads.
Café Laura Theme Dinner: Bon Appetit: From France With Love — Nov. 15, Café Laura, Mateer Building, University Park campus. Students in HM 430 Advanced Food Production and Service Management prepare a series of themed dinners throughout the semester to be served in the student-run Café Laura restaurant. Reservations required.
Café Laura Theme Dinner: Discover South America: A Whirlwind of Flavors — Nov. 16, Café Laura, Mateer Building, University Park campus. Students in HM 430 Advanced Food Production and Service Management prepare a series of themed dinners throughout the semester to be served in the student-run Café Laura restaurant. Reservations required.
Lectures
Russell E. Marker Lectures in Evolutionary Biology — 3 p.m., Nov. 8-9, Foster Auditorium, Paterno Library, University Park campus. Stephen Stearns, Edward P. Bass Professor Emeritus of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Yale University, will present lectures on evolution, aging and medicine. The series includes a lecture intended for a general audience as well as a more specialized lecture. Free.
Author E.M. Liddick — 6:30 p.m., Nov. 9, Edith Davis Eve Chapel, Altoona campus. Author E.M. Liddick will speak about his experiences and address topics such as grief, PTSD, anxiety, veteran’s issues and awareness, and Alzheimer’s. Liddick is a Penn State alumnus and the author of the memoir “All the Memories That Remain: War, Alzheimer’s, and the Search for a Way Home.” Free.
“Algorithms and Social Justice” — 12:15-1:15 p.m., Nov. 10, Room 121, Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building, Berks campus. Lehigh University professors Suzanne Edwards and Larry Snyder will discuss interdisciplinary pedagogical approaches, using examples from their course that cross-lists industrial and systems engineering and women, gender and sexuality studies. They will also discuss how combining the two subjects builds students’ skills at interpreting feminist philosophy and Python code benefits the future of interdisciplinary fields. Reservation required. Free.
Drawing for Mental Wellness — 12-1 p.m., Nov. 14, Zoom. William Doan has lived much of his life with anxiety and depression. He found that drawing made it easier to share that experience with others. Doan will talk about his work with “The Anxiety Project,” as well as an exciting research partnership with colleagues in the Department of Psychology that aims to bring a foundation of science to the concept of drawing as a tool to promote mental wellness.
Lesa Cline-Ransome — 4:30-5:30 p.m., Nov. 14, Perkins Student Center Auditorium, Berks campus. Lesa Cline-Ransome, an award-winning author of children’s and young adult literature, will give a presentation on the process of creating books for young people, and the role of literature and research in writing. Cline-Ransome, author of picture books and middle-grade novels, is best known for her NAACP Image Award-nominated picture book biography of Harriet Tubman, “Before She Was Harriet” and her middle-grade novel “Finding Langston.” Free.
“Staying Real: The War on Truth and How to Win It” — 5 p.m., Nov. 14, 110 Business Building, University Park campus. Jonathan Rauch, the author of “The Constitution of Knowledge: A Defense of Truth,” will explain the goals and tactics of the war on truth. Rauch will reveal the inner workings and hidden strengths of our precious Constitution of Knowledge — and how to capitalize on them to fight back.
In-person exhibits
“Black Feminist Embodiments of Self-Love and Self-Recovery” — Through Nov. 20, Outside of Paterno Reading Room, Pattee Library, University Park campus. Inspired by a scene in Toni Morrison’s novel “Beloved,” set in Ohio prior to Emancipation, the exhibition displays sources of self-love and self-recovery found in a variety of literature by and about Black women. Free.
“Andrea Doria: Dive to An Era” — Through Nov. 30, Friedman Art Gallery, Wilkes-Barre campus. The Friedman Art Gallery will feature a collection of items recovered on more than 200 dives to the shipwreck of the Andrea Doria. Diver and author Gary Gentile has recovered dishes, cups, glasses, plates, jewelry and ceramic panels created by the internationally known artist Romano Rui and more.
“Eudaimonia” — Through Dec. 5, Ronald K. DeLong Gallery, Lehigh Valley campus. Featuring works from artists Sasha Meret and Michelle Neifert, “Eudaimonia” explores themes related to mindfulness, acceptance, purpose, skill mastery and positive relationships.
“Unplucked Gems” — Through Dec. 9, McLanahan Gallery of the Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. The exhibit by Juried Art Exhibition winner Taylor Pilote reveals ties to notable aspects of car culture, both personal and industrial, using physically distorted recognizable vehicle features. Free.
“I Sang You A Song Though I Didn’t Know the Words” — Through Dec. 9, Sheetz Gallery of the Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. Juried Art Exhibition winner Boryana Rusenova-Ina utilizes experiences of learning English in post-communist Bulgaria to influence this exhibition. Free.
“High Strung” — Through December, Woksob Family Gallery, University Park campus. Sculptures by local artist and educator Melissa Forkner Lesher transform commonplace materials into delicate works of art. Lesher weaves her creations with precision and efficiency by carefully assembling small hand-built pieces into larger, meticulously crafted configurations.
“Sad Purple and Mauve: A History of Dye-Making” — Through Jan. 15, 2024, Special Collections exhibition space, 104 Paterno Library, University Park campus. The science, art and history and textile and paper dyes and their uses in books and manuscripts will be the focus of this exhibit.
“Invisible Bodies” — Through Feb. 8, 2024, Art Alley, HUB-Robeson Galleries, University Park campus. The HUB-Robeson Galleries present “Invisible Bodies,” an exploration of migrant labor through an artistic lens, curated by the Border Gallery and Emireth Herrera Valdés.
“Magnificare” — Through Feb. 22, 2024, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park campus. The HUB-Robeson Galleries present “Magnificare,” an exhibition of ceramic sculptures by Marguerita Hagan.
“I Am a Penn Stater: Nittany Lions in World War II” — Through June 2025, Penn State All-Sports Museum, Beaver Stadium, University Park campus. Timed to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the conflict, “I Am a Penn Stater” chronicles the contributions of Nittany Lion varsity lettermen and Women’s Recreation Association athletes during the conflict and follows their service from training in the United States, to fighting on battlefields around the globe, to their postwar occupations. Free.
Virtual exhibits
In addition to in-person events, a number of virtual exhibits are available through University departments. The Palmer Museum of Art and University Libraries offer a rotating selection of historical and artistic collections to view online.
Current exhibitions include an examination of women’s athletics at Penn State and Title IX, editorial cartoons from The Jerry Doyle Papers, and an exploration of the impact of the 1918 influenza pandemic.