COMING UP: October 9-16
Dancing at Lughnasa Opens TODAY in Person Theatre
A kitchen radio called Marconi is a vital character in Brian Friel's wistful drama "Dancing at Lughnasa," as five unmarried sisters in rural Ireland struggle to survive and take care of each other while the world around them changes swiftly and ominously in the year 1936.
Dancing at Lughnasa premiers in the Person Theatre on Fri., Oct. 9 at 7:30 p.m., and runs through Sat., Oct. 17.
The play evokes a tension between Christianity and paganism and is conveyed through the eyes of seven-year old Michael, who observes his family simultaneously liberated and corrupted by the radio in the family kitchen.
The play also explores the duality between technological progress and personal tragedy, and the conflict between the sacred in religion and the sacred within the self.
On Thurs., Oct. 15 at 7 p.m., director Stephanie Hunt will lead a pre-show discussion about playwright Brian Friel, the religious and social themes of Dancing at Lughnasa, and the role of dance, memory and language in the play. That evening's show is FREE to faculty and staff, and admission for their guests is only $5 for this special evening.
Tickets are $15 for general admission, $8 for students and seniors, $12 for SSU faculty, alumni and staff, and free to SSU students. For Parent and Family Weekend (Oct. 9-11), family members who come with students pay only $8 admission. For a full list of performances, visit the CPA website. For more information, contact Jenny Parkinson at 4-2325 or email jenny.parkinson@sonoma.edu.
Good Eats and Music at SSU Slow Food Event
The SSU Slow Food chapter is hosting a public event featuring speakers, a locally sourced
lunch and live music on Sun., Oct. 11 from noon to 4 p.m. by the University Lakes. 
Distinguished guest speakers include:
• Josh Viertel, President of Slow Food USA
• SSU President
Ruben Armiñana
• Mark Arax, author of
“West of the West: Dreamers, Believers, Builders, and Killers in the Golden State”.
The lunch menu is a collaboration between Slow Food and SSU Dining
Services. It is locally sourced, and will feature sustainably-raised
chicken from Solano County, Sonoma County baby potatoes, a babygreen
lettuce salad and apple crisp made from the orchards of Western Sonoma County.
A pre-lunch wine and artisan cheese mixer is planned, during which chapter-sponsored projects to preserve locally endangered foods will be on display. Three bands — The Easy Leaves, Open Market and Blue Shift — are scheduled to play.
The event is open to the public. Admission for SSU students is $25, and general admission is $38. For more information about the SSU Slow Food chapter or this event, view the event flyer (.pdf) or visit the SSU Slow Food website.
Distinguished Alumni Shirlee Zane Lectures on Women in Politics
On Thurs., Oct. 15 from noon-12:50 p.m., Sonoma County's Third District Supervisor Shirlee Zane will speak in Carson Hall 20. Zane, a 2009 Distinguished Alumni Recipient, speaks on the topic of “Women in Politics: Sculpting Society's Future."
Only 30% of high elected offices in the United States are currently held by women, yet women have a critical voice as caregivers in the community, and are pivotal to changing the way society approaches social justice and environmental stewardship. This lecture will explore strategies for balancing the gender scale in government.
Zane represents the Third District on the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors. Since receiving her Masters in Counseling from Sonoma State University, she has also worked as a bilingual therapist, hospital chaplain and Chief Executive Officer for the Council on Aging.
Michael Ezra Discusses the Iconic Muhammad Ali
Michael Ezra, American Multicultural Studies, discusses his recently completed book, "Muhammad Ali: The Making of an Icon" as part of the Arts and Human ties Research & Creative Works Forum. "I recently completed a book about Muhammad Ali that explored how someone who was once reviled by large portions of the American public has been transformed into an almost universally loved symbol of racial reconciliation, moral authority, and the very best qualities humankind has to offer," says Ezra. "In this presentation to the A&H Forum, I'd like to share my findings." His presentation takes place in Schulz 3001 from 12:05 p.m.-12:55 p.m., and is free and open to the public.
Tony White: Reception and Book-Signing
The University Art Gallery is hosting an art exhibition, reception, and book-signing honoring Tony White on the occasion of his donation of Mexican prints to the Gallery’s permanent collection.
White, an emeritus professor of history at SSU, has donated his collection of Mexican prints, in which artists such as Alberto Beltran, Angel Bracho, Arturo Garcia Bustos, Francisco Dosamantes, Pablo O’Higgins, Fanny Rabel, Martinez Riadiago, and David Alfaro Siqueiros are represented. Copies of Dr. White’s newly published biography of David Alfaro Siqueiros Siqueiros: Biography of a Revolutionary Artist, will be available at the reception.
In addition, Dr. White will make a slide presentation and discuss the Taller de Grafica Popular (Popular Graphic Workshop), an important artist collective founded in Mexico in 1936 to create “public art” for popular causes. Though overshadowed by the work of the muralists, it included many of Mexico’s finest artists who illustrated and commented on national and international issues through their wood block prints, linoleum block prints and lithographs.
The event takes place Thurs., Oct. 15 from 3 p.m.-6 p.m. in the University Art Gallery. For more information, call 4-2295.
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