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  • Writing Memoir (Advanced) – SOLD OUT

    This class is SOLD OUT

    Class Schedule: Thursdays – Feb. 9, Feb. 16 and Feb. 23 | 7:30 – 9:00 PM

    This three-session virtual course taught by Mike Farragher (88) builds on the wildly popular Intro to Memoir Writing workshops with an emphasis on character development, dialogue, and scene setting that will make any story a page turner. Practical lessons are interspersed with writing prompts to get the creativity going during this 3 week course. No prior writing experience needed and all levels welcome!

    Zoom Link will be provided upon registration.

  • Roots of Rock ’n’ Roll, Part III

    Class Schedule: Thursdays – Jan. 12, Jan. 19 & Jan. 26 | 7:30 – 9:00 PM

    This three-session virtual course taught by Kit O’Toole explores the question – just what is rock?
    The Beatles remain one of rock’s greatest bands, but their roots go beyond Elvis Presley or Buddy Holly. They stretch even further, spanning cultures and genres. This course examines lesser-known inspirations for some of their most well-known songs as well as rock and roll itself. British Music Hall, Blue Beat (predecessor to ska and reggae), swamp pop, the avant garde, and more will be explored In addition to multimedia presentations, class discussion and activities will enable attendees to identify elements of these genres in the Beatles’ music.

    Zoom Link will be provided upon registration.

  • Roots of Rock ’n’ Roll, Part III

    Class Schedule: Thursdays – Jan. 12, Jan. 19 & Jan. 26 | 7:30 – 9:00 PM

    This three-session virtual course taught by Kit O’Toole explores the question – just what is rock?
    The Beatles remain one of rock’s greatest bands, but their roots go beyond Elvis Presley or Buddy Holly. They stretch even further, spanning cultures and genres. This course examines lesser-known inspirations for some of their most well-known songs as well as rock and roll itself. British Music Hall, Blue Beat (predecessor to ska and reggae), swamp pop, the avant garde, and more will be explored In addition to multimedia presentations, class discussion and activities will enable attendees to identify elements of these genres in the Beatles’ music.

    Zoom Link will be provided upon registration.

  • Roots of Rock ’n’ Roll, Part III

    Class Schedule: Thursdays – Jan. 12, Jan. 19 & Jan. 26 | 7:30 – 9:00 PM

    This three-session virtual course taught by Kit O’Toole explores the question – just what is rock?
    The Beatles remain one of rock’s greatest bands, but their roots go beyond Elvis Presley or Buddy Holly. They stretch even further, spanning cultures and genres. This course examines lesser-known inspirations for some of their most well-known songs as well as rock and roll itself. British Music Hall, Blue Beat (predecessor to ska and reggae), swamp pop, the avant garde, and more will be explored In addition to multimedia presentations, class discussion and activities will enable attendees to identify elements of these genres in the Beatles’ music.

    Zoom Link will be provided upon registration.

  • Bruce Springsteen’s Greetings from Asbury Park

    It’s just like book club but with albums! With new advances in technology, the way we consume music through our devices, apps and on demand streaming services like Pandora, Spotify and iTunes is making the idea of the “album” as an art form extinct. Get together with other music enthusiasts on Tuesday nights to discuss some of the greatest records of all-time! Listen to the album beforehand and then come prepared to discuss. This event will feature Bruce Springsteen’s Greetings from Asbury Park.

    This event will be held in person at the Great Hall Auditorium and will also be available remotely via Zoom. When you register you will be provided the ZOOM meeting link to join the conversation.

    Free and open to the public, but registration is required.

  • Arlo Guthrie – What’s Left Of Me – A Conversation With Bob Santelli

    Arlo Guthrie is returning to the stage for a series of appearances after his retirement from musical performances. As the oldest son of Woody Guthrie and Marjorie Guthrie, Arlo made his first appearance onstage at age 13 and built a renowned career touring North American for six decades. In October 2020, Guthrie announced his retirement from the road amid the onslaught of the Coronavirus pandemic. Two years later, he’s had enough of retirement and launched a new company Gut3 Productions with his wife Marti Ladd to present the new “In Conversation with Arlo Guthrie” four-part series.

    “These engagements won’t be musical events,” said Guthrie. “We’ll be setting this as an interview with talking, joking, telling stories…as well as answering questions from the audience. We’ll have some fun, and we’ll talk about serious subjects, as well”.

    What’s Left Of Me features Arlo in conversation with Bob Santelli, Executive Director of the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music and includes rarely seen video footage along with an audience Q&A. Unscripted, unrehearsed, and under no illusions but his own, Arlo Guthrie returns to venerable venues as a man who has seen it all, and lived to tell the story after 60 years on the road.

    Mr. Santelli, a contributor to Rolling Stone magazine, is co-author with Nora Guthrie of Woody Guthrie – Songs and Art, Words of Wisdom, which will be available for purchase.

    About Arlo Guthrie

    Arlo Guthrie was born on July 10, 1947, in Brooklyn, New York; the son of legendary folk artist Woody Guthrie and Marjorie Mazia Guthrie. Arlo grew up surrounded by renowned folk musicians: Pete Seeger, Leadbelly, Cisco Houston, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, and the Weavers. Since the age of 13, Arlo became absorbed in the music that was shaping the world. By the age of 20, he was touring overseas.

    A natural-born storyteller and accomplished musician, Arlo attracted and surprised audiences all over the world with his unique folk style. Arlo’s career soared with his debut of “The Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” at the Newport Folk Festival in 1967. Later that year, he was nominated for a GRAMMY Award in the “Best Folk Performance” category for the studio version of the song on his debut album, Alice’s Restaurant. The album went Gold (1969) and then Platinum (1986), and was adapted into a film by director Arthur Penn and released a few days after Arlo performed at the original Woodstock Festival in 1969.

    Arlo has released 32 acclaimed albums, has appeared in notable TV shows and movies throughout the decades, and led a lauded six-decade-long touring career performing on the world’s most distinguished stages.

    About Bob Santelli

    Bob Santelli is the author of more than a dozen books on American music, including, Woody Guthrie: Songs and Art, Words and Wisdom (w/co-author Nora Guthrie) and Greetings from E Street: The Story of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.  Santelli is currently the Executive Director of the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music at Monmouth University and the Director of Popular Music at Oregon State University. He also was the Founding Executive Director of the GRAMMY Museum in Los Angeles, the former CEO and Artistic Director of Experience Music Project in Seattle, and the Vice-President of Education and Public Programs at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland. A GRAMMY winner, Santelli co-produced with Smithsonian Folkways box sets and books on Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, and Pete Seeger.  He also was one of the executive producers of the public television series In Performance at the White House during the Obama administration and created music education programs with First Lady Michelle Obama.

     

  • Pilobolus Big Five-Oh!

    For this 50th anniversary celebration, Pilobolus questions its own “givens,” turns its traditions sideways, and brings its past into the future. As fresh and vibrant as ever, Pilobolus –that feisty arts organism– puts the “Oh!” in ​BIG FIVE OH!​, and continues to morph its way thrillingly into audiences’ hearts and minds. The celebration includes signature works from vintage classics to their trend setting innovative work in shadow.

  • Mothermotherland Created by Slovo. Theater Group

    Slovo. Theater Group is a group of Ukrainian and American actors and directors who have developed an original performance based on the work of Ukrainian author Mykola Khyvylovy.

    Mothermotherland, by Slovo. Theater Group, is an original devised theater performance developed over the last three months by Ukrainians artists-in-residence with playwright Audrey Rose Dégez. The performance is based on the artists’ personal experiences, the war in Ukraine, and takes inspiration from Mykoly Khyvylovy’s 1924 novella I am (a Romantic), where the head of the local Cheka, a communist law enforcement agency, must decide whether or not to sentence his mother to death in the name of the ideals of the Commune.

    Performance run time is approximately 60 minutes and will be followed by a talk-back with the artists.

    FEATURING: Audrey Rose Dégez, Lili Maritchka Dégez, Daria Holovchanska, Yuliia Linnik, Olesia Zakharova, and Veronika Shuster

    Monmouth University Sponsors:  School of Humanities & Social Sciences, The Department of Communication, The Center for the Arts, Dr. Johanna Foster (Helen Bennett McMurray Endowed Chair of Social Ethics), The Intercultural Center

  • The Woods – A mixed-reality, two-player cooperative game

    “The Woods” is a mixed-reality, two-player cooperative game that addresses the perils of social isolation by promoting connections between people and actively engaging them through play. Using  Augmented Reality (AR) and 4-channel audio spatialization panning, players choreograph their movement in real-world space while interacting with birds, clouds, and other objects in virtual space. In pursuit of a shared goal, players experience an immersive sonic narrative of rumbling storm clouds and disconnected voices that culminate in stories of hope and reconciliation. The design intent behind “The Woods” is to illuminate human connections to others and to celebrate this through collaborative play.

    4pm – 5pm – Experience The Woods (Demo)
    Location: IDM (Interactive Digital Media) Research Lab, Plangere Room 135
    RSVP Required for the demo session ONLY.
    For more info or to RSVP, contact Wobbe F. Koning at wkoning@monmouth.edu

    6pm – 7pm – Artist Talk and Q&A     | Location: Pollak Theatre | Free and open to the public

    Bios:

    Kyoung Lee Swearingen is a visual storyteller with over a decade of experience as a Lighting Technical Director at Pixar Animation Studios and DNA Productions. Kyoung teaches computer animation at ACCAD/The Ohio State University and specializes in cinematography for games and animation. Her current research focuses on creating games and animation for collaborative play, using various emerging technology, and practicing transdisciplinary collaboration. Her award-winning projects have been shown (inter)nationally at ACM SIGGRAPH, IEEE-GEM, Unite Berlin, GDC, Montreal Independent Game Festival, and Bucheon International Animation Festival, and many more.

    Scott Swearingen is an Assistant Professor who teaches game design at ACCAD/The Ohio State University. With a research focus in designing game mechanics that enhance collaborative play, his work cultivates the human experience of connectivity across a variety of physical and social boundaries. His award-winning games and other works have been exhibited at (in)ternational conferences and shows including SIGGRAPH, SIGGRAPH-ASIA, CURRENTS New Media, GLS, IEEE-GEM, IFIP-ICEC, Montreal Independent Games Festival, and HASTAC. Prior to joining Ohio State, Scott worked in the video game industry for over ten years as a game designer, level designer, and environment artist at multiple video game studios including MAXIS, Electronic Arts, and Gearbox Software. There he worked on numerous award-winning games and franchises including Medal of Honor, Brothers in Arms, The Simpsons, Dead Space, The Godfather and The Sims.

    https://kyoungswearingen.com/the-woods

  • A Conversation with Robert Pinsky

    Join former three-term US Poet Laureate and Long Branch, NJ native Robert Pinsky for an evening of conversation in celebration of the release of his memoir Jersey Breaks.  The evening will be moderated by the Dean of The Wayne D. McMurray School of Humanities and Social Sciences, David Hamilton Golland, Ph.D.

    “Truly the voice of the Jersey Shore.” – Bruce Springsteen

    The acclaimed poet takes an affectionate look back. The U.S. poet laureate from 1997 to 2000 and “an expert at nothing except the sounds of sentences in the English language,” Pinsky (b. 1940) moves back and forth in time, narrating his life in crisp, self-deprecating prose. “If I have a story to tell,” he writes, “it’s how the failures and aspirations of a certain time and place led to poetry.” That place was Long Branch, New Jersey, where the author grew up in an Orthodox, lower-middle-class family in a neighborhood that was both poor and segregated. In the “sounds of Hebrew,” Pinsky heard Milton, Blake, and Whitman. He recalls reading stories and poems in the glossy magazines in his optician father’s waiting room as well as the “exact moment when I became a writer,” thanks to Through the Looking Glass. As an “ambitious, pseudointellectual freshman” at Rutgers University, he encountered and enjoyed Ulysses and the poetry of William Carlos Williams, T.S. Eliot, and Allen Ginsberg. Pinsky confesses that his way of writing a poem stems from getting a “tune in my head…like noodling at the piano,” and his approach fostered his popular Favorite Poem Project, which combined the “appeal of gossip with the appeal of art.”

    Though the author loved playing music, poetry came first in college, and he explains how his “habit of thinking about names was essential to my work as a poet.” He lavishes praise on two cantankerous college teachers—Paul Fussell and “relentless dictator” Yvor Winters—as well as his friend and mentor Thom Gunn. When teaching at Wellesley in 1970, Pinsky attended Robert Lowell’s “erratic writing workshop,” and Lowell gave him a blurb for his first collection, Sadness and Happiness. Throughout, the author sharply dissects a variety of poems, including his own, and he excitedly explains the welcome challenge of translating Dante’s Inferno.

    Fans of literature will relish Pinsky’s jocular recollections and infectious love of poetry.