Arts and Entertainment

Things to Do at Penn State: April 1-8

A selection of virtual and in-person cultural events happening at the University this weekend and next week

A performance by vocal ensemble Cantus will be available for free live-streaming from March 31 through April 7. Credit: Nate RyanAll Rights Reserved.

What's happening at Penn State? Here's a look at some of the cultural events — both in-person and virtual — taking place at the University this weekend and next week:

Performances

Cantus  7:30 p.m., March 31-April 7, via livestream. Vocal ensemble Cantus will give the virtual performance "One Giant Leap." Free.

Events

Shaver's Creek Book ClubApril 8-29, via Zoom. Shaver's Creek Environmental Center will host a weekly book club featuring "Black Faces, White Spaces" by Carolyn Finney. Free, but registration required.

Lectures

Penn State Behrend Smith Creative Writers Reading Series: Behrend Reads — 6 p.m., April 1, via Zoom. Faculty and staff from across Penn State Behrend will read selections from their poetry, fiction and nonfiction work. Free.

2021 Colloquium on the Environment: Robert Bullard  7 p.m., April 1, via livestream. Robert Bullard, known as the "father of environmental justice," will present "The Quest for Environmental and Climate Justice in the U.S." Free, but registration required.

John M. Anderson Endowed Lecture Series: Sonya Clark11:30 a.m., April 5, via Zoom. Amherst College professor Sonya Clark will present "These Days. This Country. This History." Free, but registration required.

Penn State Alumni Association Virtual Speaker Session: Boaz Dvir Noon, April 6, via livestream. In the late 1940s, World War II aviators — mostly Americans, Jews and non-Jews — carried out a secret, illegal operation to prevent what they viewed as an imminent second Holocaust. Bellisario College faculty member Boaz Dvir, who has written the definitive account of this mission, secured exclusive interviews with its leaders, including mastermind Al Schwimmer. The former U.S. Air Transport Command flight engineer had a plan to save the newborn Jewish state: create a factitious airline, buy and fix decommissioned cargo planes, and smuggle in surplus Nazi weapons from behind the Iron Curtain. Free.

"9to5: The Story of a Movement" 7 p.m., April 6, via livestream. An online screening of the film "9to5: The Story of a Movement" with a post-film discussion with Oscar-winning filmmakers Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar, as well as leaders from the 9to5 labor movement. Free, but registration required.

2021 Expanding Empathy series: Jim A.C. Everett 4 p.m., April 7, via Zoom. Jim A.C. Everett, lecturer (assistant professor) at the University of Kent, will present "A Two-Dimensional Model of Utilitarian Psychology." Free, but registration required.

23rd annual Stanley P. Mayers Endowed Lecture: Elena Hung 5 p.m., April 7, via Zoom. Elena Hung, co-founder and executive director of Little Lobbyists, will present "Empowering Families and Improving Outcomes for Children with Complex Medical Needs and Disabilities." Free.

"Once I Was You: A Memoir of Love & Hate in a Torn America"12:15 p.m., April 8, via Zoom. Emmy Award-winning journalist Maria Hinojosa will discuss her latest book about immigration in America. Free.

Penn State Behrend Smith Creative Writers Reading Series: George Looney — 6 p.m., April 8, via Zoom. George Looney, distinguished professor of English and creative writing at Penn State Behrend will be featured. Free.

Exhibits

"Field Language: The Painting and Poetry of Warren and Jane Rohrer" — Through June 6, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. This major loan exhibition examines the art of Warren Rohrer as it evolved in conversation with poet Jane Turner Rohrer, his partner of nearly 50 years. Free.

"The Wit and Whimsy of Lucille Corcos" — Through May 9, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. A prolific painter and illustrator, Lucille Corcos depicted American life with an incomparable verve during the mid-20th century. Free.

THON logo exhibition — Online. The THON website is featuring a virtual gallery showcasing logos from previous events, as well as profiles of each student designer. Free.

"Celebrating the ADA: The Legacy and Evolution of Disability Rights and Lived Experience at Penn State" — Online. The University Libraries virtual exhibit explores the first 100 years of national disability rights legislation and the movement's impact on the Penn State community. Free.

"African Brilliance: A Diplomat's Sixty Years of Collecting" Online Catalog — Online. A digital catalog of African works collected by retired U.S. ambassador Allen C. Davis, including text entries, high-resolution 360-degree images and contextual videos at the Palmer Museum of Art. Free.

"African Brilliance" Virtual Tour — Online. Explore an interactive tour created with teachers, students and families in mind. The tour includes installation images, pictures of selected works, videos for guided viewing and related art-making activity suggestions. Free.

"Drawing on a Legacy: Highlights from the John Driscoll American Drawings Collection" Online. High-resolution images, text selections and a photo gallery of works on paper donated by Penn State alumnus John P. Driscoll, including early landscape views and botanical sketches, animal scenes and still lives, and portraits and preparatory figure studies. The works include a number of well-known 19th-century American artists. Free.

"Photography=Abstraction" — Online. The Palmer Museum of Art's virtual pop-up exhibition is an interactive gallery with images, text and informational videos for selected works. Free, Google Chrome browser recommended.

Snowiss Gallery of American Art — Online. Tour the Palmer Museum of Art's first-floor Snowiss Gallery. Free.

"Women in Art: Activism and Resistance" virtual tour  Online. This self-directed, interactive online tour features a selection of objects by female artists in the Palmer Museum of Art's collection. In celebration of the centennial of the 19th Amendment, this tour highlights artists working in a variety of media during the 20th and 21st centuries who have contributed to political, social and cultural change. Free.

"Human Expectations II" — Through June 20, Display Cases, HUB-Robeson Galleries, University Park campus, and online. The work of five artists embody a search for expression and experience through material. Free.

"When the Bough Breaks" — Through April 30, Art Alley, HUB-Robeson Galleries, University Park campus. Nine different artists address the issue of climate change through a unique representation of trees. Free.

"Something Means Something Else" — Center for Sexuality and Gender Diversity, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park campus. This three-part mural by artist Tamara Gayer focuses on the intricacies of the current moment in sexual and gender identity. Free.

"Small Planet" — Through January 2022, HUB-Robeson Galleries, University Park campus. The HUB-Robeson Center has commissioned a site-specific wall painting located in the first-floor eateries by artist Katherine Tzu-Lan Mann titled "Small Planet." Free.

Last Updated March 31, 2021