School of Humanities and Social Sciences

Events

Events Search and Views Navigation

Event Views Navigation

Suggest an Event
Today

  • Dancing at Lughnasa

    Lauren K. Woods Theatre

    Dancing at Lughnasa is by Brian Friel, one of Ireland’s finest playwrights. Set in the summer of 1936, during the Celtic harvest festival Lughnasa, the play is told through the memories of Michael, recalling those days of growing up in the northwest county of Donegal with his mother, her three sisters, and an uncle priest recently returned from his missionary days in Africa.

    $20 (adults); $15 (seniors); free for MU Students

  • Another Night of Acapella Harmony: Doo Wop Explosion II

    Pollak Theatre

    Our celebration of doo wop acappella harmony at the Pollak Theatre is back by popular demand. Born on the street corners of urban America, rhythm & blues and doo wop singing reached its peak in the 1950’s, but still has a strong following today. While doo wop singing began as an African American art form, by the late 1950’s it was enjoyed by singers of all races. Doo wop harmony in its purist form is acappella (without instruments or musical tracks).

    We’ve again assembled some of the top acappella doo wop vocal groups from NYC to Washington DC. Headlining the concert will be R&B and Doo Wop favorites, Pookie Hudson’s Spaniels along with Vito & the Salutations. The Spaniels are known for the 1956 million seller, “Goodnight Sweetheart Goodnight,” a song that defined the whole doo wop era. The current group backed lead singer Pookie Hudson before his passing in 2006 and continues the Spaniels’ tradition of superb doo wop harmony. Originating on the streets of Brooklyn, Vito & the Salutations scored regional hits in the early 1960’s with their recordings of “Gloria,” “Unchained Melody” and “Your Way”. Rick Anthony has been handling most of the group’s leads for the past 15 years, as the original Vito is no longer with them. The group also contains long time member, Shelly Buchansky, who sang on “Unchained Melody” and many of their other hits. While both Pookie Hudson’s Spaniels and Vito & the Salutations almost always sing with bands, we’ve persuaded both to do this concert acappella, harking back to their early days singing on the street corners. Returning from our last acappella concert are two of the groups that excel every time they perform. The Philadelphia acappella group Quiet Storm remains one of the areas’ top vocal groups. Re-MemberThen did a fabulous job last time, on their own set and backing Larry Chance. New to the concert this year are A Perfect Blend and the Copians. A Perfect Blend is a great acappella group from Philadelphia who have been singing since 1990, and had previously won the talent contest on the nationally syndicated “Showtime At The Apollo” TV show. The Copians are made up of former members of other standout Philly acappella groups. Enjoy another night of Doo Wop Acappella Harmony. A “Meet & Greet” Reception will be held prior to the concert for those holding Golden Seat Tickets.

    $25; $40; $55 (Gold Circle)
  • Liz Moore

    Visiting Writers: Liz Moore

    The Great Hall Auditorium

    Liz Moore is a writer of fiction and creative nonfiction.
Her first novel, The Words of Every Song (Broadway Books, 2007), centers on a fictional record company in New York City just after the turn of the millennium. It draws partly on Liz’s own experiences as a musician. It was selected for Borders’ Original Voices program and was given a starred review by Kirkus.Roddy Doyle wrote of it, “This is a remarkable novel, elegant, wise, and beautifully constructed. I loved the book.”

After the publication of her debut novel, Liz obtained her MFA in Fiction from Hunter College. In 2009, she was awarded the University of Pennsylvania’s ArtsEdge residency and moved to Philadelphia, where she still lives.

  • The Mitzvah

    The Mitzvah

    The Great Hall Auditorium

    The Mitzvah (“The Good Deed”) is a one-person play that dramatically explores one of the most shocking stories of the Second World War. More than a hundred thousand German men — classified as “mischlinge” (the derogatory term the Nazis used to describe those descended from one or two Jewish grandparents) — fought in the German armed forces.
    The story of one such mischling is at the center of The Mitzvah and actor (and child of survivor) Roger Grunwald seamlessly transforms himself into an array of characters to tell that story. In addition to Christoph (the “mischling”), other characters include Schmuel, a Polish Jew from Bialystok and the play’s Chorus who offers edgy commentary that probes the boundary between the absurd and the horrific. The Mitzvah is a touching and tragic tale told in a powerful one-act solo performance created by Grunwald and Broadway veteran Annie McGreevey.

  • SONGWRITERS BY THE SEA

    Lauren K. Woods Theatre

    Distinguished NJ Songwriters Joe Rapolla and Joe D’Urso are back this year hosting the celebrated Songwriters by the Sea series at the Lauren K. Woods Theatre. What once started in a small coffee shop as an area for local songwriters has now grown into a series that features some of the top songwriters in the country. This year, the show features James Maddock, a fixture on the Folk and Americana scene and expatriate Irish writer and musician Larry Kirwan.

    An April 2014 review in Relix Magazine puts it this way: “James Maddock possesses the kind of lived-in craggy voice that would sound authoritative if he were singing the sports pages. Fortunately, he doesn’t need to do that because his compositional skills are a match for his delivery.” After fronting the Columbia Records band Wood, whose debut Songs From Stamford Hill was featured prominently on TV shows such as “Dawson’s Creek,” Maddock moved from England to New York City in 2003. His 2009 album Sunrise On Avenue C won a New York Music Award for Best Americana Album, while follow-up Wake Up And Dream ranked among the top albums of 2011 in WFUV’s (NYC) Listener Poll. He has performed with Bruce Springsteen, Willie Nile, Aaron Comess (Spin Doctors) and David Immergluck (Counting Crows).

    Larry Kirwan (born in Wexford, Ireland) is an expatriate Irish writer and musician, most noted as the lead singer for the New York-based Irish rock band, Black 47 Kirwan has also written and produced eleven plays and musicals, some of which have been performed in the United States and Europe. The plays deal mainly with Irish history and politics. Monmouth University Blue Hawk Records’ artists Julia Whary, Nicole Govel, and guest Isabella Rose, will open the show.Sponsored by the Leon Hess Business School and Business Council

    $30
  • First Senior Show: Graphic Design

    First Senior Show: Graphic Design

    Joan and Robert Rechnitz Hall

    Featuring the work of Monmouth University graduating seniors who will receive their degrees in Graphic Design. Opening Reception: Fri. Mar. 24, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.

  • BLACK MARIA FILM FESTIVAL

    Pollak Theatre

    The Black Maria Film Festival was founded in 1981 as a tribute to Thomas Edison’s development of the motion picture at his laboratory, dubbed the “Black Maria” film studio, the first in the world, in West Orange, NJ. Now in its 36th year, the festival attracts and showcases the work of independent filmmakers internationally. The festival is a project of the Thomas A. Edison Media Arts Consortium, an independent non-profit organization in residence at New Jersey City University’s Department of Media Arts. Unlike other major film festivals, the Black Maria Festival is not presented in only one location. Instead, the winning films are presented at universities, museums, libraries and cultural centers across the country all year.

  • Colm Toibin

    Visiting Writers: Colm Toibin

    The Great Hall Auditorium

    Colm Toibin is the author of eight novels, including ‘The Master’ and ‘Brooklyn’, and two collections of stories. His play ‘The Testament of Mary’ was nominated for a Tony Award for best play in 2013. He is Irene and Sidney B. Silverman Professor of the Humanities at Columbia University.

  • Jack Ford

    Monmouth University Lecture Series: Jack Ford

    Anacon Hall, 2nd Floor, Student Center

    Presented by The Wayne D. McMurray School of Humanities & Social Sciences and Monmouth Athletics Wednesday, April 05, 2017 The Politics of College Athletics: Is It All About the Money? Jack Ford Award-winning Journalist, Documentary Producer, Prominent Trial Attorney, Author, and Teacher Rebecca Stafford Student Center, Anacon Hall Discussion: 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. Reception: […]