Recent Sculpture and Ceramic Work

Closing February 8, this exhibition features recent sculpture and ceramic work by students who were enrolled in fall Visual Arts courses at the Lewis Center for the Arts. The work will be on display through Friday in the lobby at 701 Carnegie Center, which is open weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. For information on the Tiger Transit shuttle to 701 Carnegie Center click here.

Exhibition and Screening of New Student Work

Students who took fall courses in the Program in Visual Arts are currently displaying their sculptures, ceramics, drawings, paintings, photographs and installations in an exhibition on view now through February 8 in the Lucas Gallery, open weekdays from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. A reception will be held in conjunction with the exhibition on Tuesday, February 5 from 4:30-5:30 p.m. In addition, a screening of new student videos and films will take place on Tuesday, February 5 at 5:00 p.m. in the James M. Stewart '32 Theater. Both the gallery and theater are located at 185 Nassau Street. The exhibition, reception and screening are free and open to the public.

I, Vincent by Robert Fagles

Susan Wheeler, Associate Professor in the Program for Creative Writing, will read from Robert Fagles's book of poems inspired by the work of Vincent van Gogh. Fagles, the Arthur Marks '19 Professor of Comparative Literature Emeritus at Princeton University, was widely acclaimed for his translations of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. The reading will begin at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, February 7 at the Princeton University Art Museum and is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. This program is cosponsored by the Art Museum and People & Stories/Gente y Cuentos.

Shakespeare's The Tempest

Shakespeare's epic tale of magic, intrigue and romance on a faraway island will be performed with actors and marionettes. Directed by faculty member Tracy Bersley, The Tempest is a senior thesis project of theater student Lily Akerman with marionettes created by senior visual arts student Samantha Ritter. The show opens Friday and Saturday, February 8-9 at 8:00 p.m. and will continue February 14-16 in the Marie and Edward Matthews '53 Acting Studio at 185 Nassau Street. Tickets are $12 general admission, $10 students and seniors.

Reading by Alicia Ostriker and A.S. Byatt

On Wednesday, February 13, National Book Award finalist and poet Alicia Ostriker and Booker Prize-winning fiction writer A.S. Byatt will read from their works as part of the Althea Ward Clark W'21 Reading Series of the Program in Creative Writing at the Lewis Center for the Arts. Princeton student Audrey H. Hall will also read from her recent translation work. The reading, beginning at 4:30 p.m. at the Berlind Theatre at the McCarter Theatre Center, is free and open to the public.

Spheres of Influence: Merce Cunningham and Robert Rauschenberg

The Princeton University Art Museum and the Program in Dance at the Lewis Center for the Arts will collaborate on an evening of dance and discussion, inspired by the artistic collaboration between Robert Rauschenberg and Merce Cunningham. The program will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Marquand Mather gallery of the Princeton University Art Museum, with an opportunity to view a selection of Rauschenberg's works from the 1960-70s. At 7:00 p.m. students will perform a MinEvent composed of choreography by Merce Cunningham, staged by alumnus and former Merce Cunningham Dance Company member Silas Riener '06. Live music will be composed and performed by Jeff Snyder and Cenk Ergün. A panel discussion will take place at 7:30 p.m. led by The New York Times contributor Claudia La Rocco, followed by a reception in Sterling Morton gallery. The program is free and open to the public. View the trailer here.

Photo: XOVER, 2007. Choreography Merce Cunningham, music John Cage, decor and costumes Robert Rauschenberg, lighting Josh Johnson. Rehearsal on the night before the first performance, October 5, 2007, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH. Andrea Weber and Daniel Squire. Photo: © Anna Finke; courtesy of the Merce Cunningham Trust / Backdrop © Robert Rauschenberg Foundation / Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY

Author John Kelly Lectures on "How the Irish Famine Invented the Modern World"

Author John Kelly will present a lecture entitled, "How the Irish Famine Invented the Modern World" on Friday, February 15 at 4:30 p.m. at the Lewis Center for the Arts' James M. Stewart Theater at 185 Nassau Street. The lecture is part of a series presented by Princeton University's Fund for Irish Studies. The event is free and open to the public.

Spring Dance Festival: February 22-24, 2013

Students in the Program in Dance will perform works by internationally recognized choreographers Karole Armitage, Zvi Gotheiner, and Mark Morris, and two new works by Raja Kelly and Laura Peterson created with dance students. Princeton alumnus Silas Riener '06, a former member of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, returns to campus to stage a special MinEvent for Princeton, a curated compilation of Cunningham choreography with new music created and performed by PLOrk (Princeton Laptop Orchestra). Performances will take place on Friday, February 22 at 8:00 p.m., Saturday, February 23 at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and Sunday, February 24 at 1:00 p.m. in the Berlind Theatre at McCarter Theatre Center. Tickets are $15 reserved seating; $10 students and seniors. View the trailer here.

Conversation with Pulitzer Prize-winning Poets: February 28, 2013

U.S. Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey and Princeton's Tracy K. Smith, Assistant Professor in Creative Writing, will hold a public conversation at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, February 28, in the Chancellor Green Rotunda. A book signing and reception will follow the conversation. This event, co-sponsored by the Lewis Center and the Center for African American Studies, is free and open to the public.

Princeton Poetry Festival: March 15-16, 2013

Princeton's biennial Poetry Festival is back! The Festival features an international line-up of poets including Gabeba Baderoon (South Africa), Bei Dao (China), Stephen Dunn (U.S.), Sheriff Ghale (Ghana), Jorie Graham (U.S.), Lizzie Hutton '95 (U.S.), Amit Majmudar (U.S.), Bejan Matur (Turkey), Don Paterson (Scotland), Gary Whitehead (U.S.), Xi Chuan (China), and Monica Youn '93 (U.S.). The New Jersey State Finals of the national Poetry Out Loud program will kick-off the Festival on Friday, March 15. Watch for more details to come in future newsletters.

Office of the Dean for Research spotlights the Lewis Center for the Arts

The Office of the Dean for Research at Princeton has featured the Lewis Center in its on-line Spotlight. Read how the fruits of research in the arts can take many forms: a new collection of poems, a new play, a new piece of choreography, a new take on a classic theatrical work, artwork that combines new media and technologies in innovative ways, and discoveries about how work from the past was created and how we might interpret it today.

Princeton Fellowships in the Creative and Performing Arts Offered

Deadline February 15, 2013

Princeton University invites applications for the inaugural Princeton Fellowships in the Creative and Performing Arts, funded in part by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Fellowships will be awarded to artists whose achievements have been recognized as demonstrating extraordinary promise in any area of artistic practice and teaching. Applicants should be early career artists who would find it beneficial to spend two years working in an artistically vibrant university community. Fellows will be in residence for academic years 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 at Princeton, interacting with students, faculty and staff as part of the Lewis Center for the Arts and the Department of Music. Fellows will teach a course or may be asked to take on an artistic assignment, such as directing a play, conducting a student music ensemble, or creating a dance with students. Fellows will be full and active members of our community, committed to frequent and engaged interactions with students during the academic year. An annual stipend will be provided. Applications are due to be submitted by February 15, 2013.

The Lewis Center for the Arts encompasses Princeton University's academic programs in creative writing, dance, theater, and visual arts, as well as the interdisciplinary Princeton Atelier. The Center represents a major initiative of President Shirley M. Tilghman to fully embrace the arts as an essential part of the educational experience for all who study and teach at Princeton. Over 100 diverse public performances, exhibitions, readings, and lectures are offered each year, most of them free. For more information about the Lewis Center for the Arts visit princeton.edu/arts.