August 2012
Step Afrika!
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
8:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
This Step Afrika! is the first professional dance company in the world dedicated to the tradition of stepping. Founded in 1994, the company is critically acclaimed for its efforts to promote an understanding of and appreciation for stepping, and for its use of the dance tradition as an educational tool for young people worldwide. Step Afrika! reaches tens of thousands of Americans each year and has performed on many stages in North and South America, Europe, and Africa. The company has been featured on CNN, BET, PBS, and NPR, as well as in numerous books, documentaries, and articles that explore the tradition of stepping. Step Afrika! serves as a cultural ambassador for the United States, representing the nation at events around the world through special invitations from American embassies.
September 2012
The Great Election Debate: How the Media Can Sway Votes and Win Elections
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Before voters go to the polls, media outlets have shaped public opinion of the candidates. Are these media outlets obstacles to serious discussion of the issues? Two top media critics debate the media’s crucial role in the 2012 campaign. Peter Hart (pictured right) is the Activism Director at Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR). He writes for FAIR’s magazine Extra; co-hosts and produces FAIR’s syndicated radio show CounterSpin; and is the author of The Oh Really? Factor: Unspinning Fox News Channel’s Bill O’Reilly. Cliff Kincaid is the Director of the Accuracy in Media Center for Investigative Journalism, an organization sponsored by the conservative media watchdog organization, AIM. He co-hosted CNN’s Crossfire and worked for Oliver North, has written several books, and has made numerous television appearances.
Freyberger Gallery presents One Million Bones
September 6-30, 2012
Reception: September 6, 2012, 6:00 p.m.
Freyberger Gallery
One Million Bones is a collaborative art installation designed to be a visible petition to remember the victims and recognize the survivors who have been killed or displaced by ongoing genocides and humanitarian crises in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia, and Burma; to bring awareness to the issue of genocide; and to call upon our government to take much needed action. Through this project, artists, activists, and students across the country are creating “bones” from clay or other materials. In the spring of 2013, one million bones will be installed on the National Mall in Washington D.C. In conjunction with the installation, the Freyberger Gallery will hold bone-making workshops and genocide awareness programs throughout the month of September. For more information, visit the Freyberger Gallery website.
The Asia Project
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Multipurpose Room
As an aspiring astronaut/brain surgeon/ninja, Asia Samson never thought spoken-word poetry would be his calling. But destiny had other plans, and today he is an award-winning, spoken-word artist who has captured the hearts of audiences throughout the country with his uncanny ability to combine humor and inspiration. His show has been described as an honest and genuine testimony of his life––at times inspiring and gut-wrenching and at other times hilarious. Samson has been featured on HBO’s Def Poetry and BET’s J Lyric Café. Always seeking to elevate his craft, he now tours with his guitarist brother-in-law Jollan Aurelio, and together they elevate The Asia Project to new heights.
Theatre at Berks presents Savages in Limbo
Playwright: John Patrick Shanley
Director: Dashanyua "Day Day" Robinson, Senior Theatre major
September 20-21, 2012
8:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Savages in Limbo explores the dreams of a group of “regulars” in a seedy Bronx bar, all of whom are thirty-two-years old, who congregate hoping to find respite from their drab lives. Denise Savage is determined to break free from her sheltered existence. Linda, a promiscuous acquaintance from high school, is trying to cling to her boyfriend, Tony, who has decided he wants to start dating “ugly girls.” April, another former classmate whose original career aspirations were to become a nun and go to India, has instead become a slightly unbalanced alcoholic, making her a suitable companion for the bartender, Murk. This is a timeless play about the human condition and whether we can commit to making meaningful changes or just remain in limbo.
Carl Wilkens: The World Outside My Shoes
Monday, September 24, 2012
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Carl Wilkens is the former head of the Adventist Development and Relie Agency International in Rwanda. In 1994, he was the only American who chose to remain in the country after the genocide began. His decision to stay prevented the massacre of hundreds of children over the course of the genocide. Wilkens was featured in Frontline’s “Ghosts of Rwanda” and “The Few Who Stayed: Defying Genocide,” an American Radio Works documentary, which aired on National Public Radio. In this presentation, he arms us with new insights into the fight against genocide, along with tools and inspiration for re-evaluating our relationships. He also reminds us of the profound connection between history and the moral choices we face each day.
October 2012
Wes Moore: The Other Wes Moore
Monday, October 1, 2012
7:30 p.m.
Beaver Community Center Gymnasium
In 2000, The Baltimore Sun ran an article about how Wes Moore, despite his troubled childhood, had received the Rhodes Scholarship. At the same time, The Sun ran an article about four African American men who were arrested for the murder of a Baltimore police officer during an armed robbery. One of the suspects was two years older than Moore, lived in the same neighborhood––and was also named Wes Moore. The two men shared many parallels in their childhoods; yet at each stage of their lives, they took different paths. Moore realized that within their two stories was a much larger tale about the consequences of personal responsibility and the imperativeness of education and community. The Other Wes Moore is the subject of the college’s common reading program.
Jason Connell: Changing the World 101
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Jason Connell, who has volunteered in some of the world’s poorest regions, paints an authentic and compelling portrait of life beyond the typical American experience and provides a road map for creating a better global reality. He shares realistic strategies for traveling and volunteering internationally, with a special focus on fundraising and corporate sponsorships. Perhaps most importantly, he spends time teaching audiences how to overcome the mental roadblocks that can prevent them from taking action in the first place––issues such as fear, confusion, and lack of resources. Ultimately, audience members become encouraged, empowered, and equipped to do that one thing that could, truly, change the world.
Freyberger Gallery presents The Life Atomic
October 11-November 15, 2012
Reception: October 11, 2012, 6:00 p.m.
Freyberger Gallery
The Life Atomic examines the impact of the atomic bomb on popular culture in the 1950s and 1960s. Intended as a vehicle for intergenerational discussion about the threats faced by Americans in the early atomic age and the threats that face our nation today, the exhibition illustrates the impact of the atomic bomb on everyday life through photographs, film, and objects. From the classic film Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, to the re-creation of part of a family fallout shelter, this exhibition sheds light on the culture shortly after the United States first used the atomic bomb in warfare. The Life Atomic was developed and is traveled by the Rogers Historical Museum, Rogers, Arkansas. This project was made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services.
The Dancing Wheels Company
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
8:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Audiences have been inspired and amazed by the Dancing Wheels Company, a professional, physically integrated dance company uniting the talents of dancers both with and without disabilities. The Dancing Wheels Company has been featured on CNN and Good Morning America. Mary Verdi-Fletcher, the first professional wheelchair dancer in the United States, founded the dance company to offer individuals with disabilities full and equal access into the world of dance. Recognized today as one of the premier arts and disabilities organizations in the country, the Dancing Wheels Company travels the globe, advocating disability awareness through messages of inclusion and accessibility, and expanding the reach of artistic possibilities while celebrating the universal spirit of dance.
November 2012
Theatre at Berks presents Black Ice
Playwright: Cleo House, Jr., Assoc. Professor of Theatre Arts
Director: Radhica Ganapathy, Asst. Professor of Theatre
November 1-3, 8-10, 2012, 8:00 p.m.
November 4 & 11, 2012, 2:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Black Ice, an original play written by Assoc. Professor of Theatre Arts Cleo House Jr., takes place during the “blizzard of the decade” in a small Texas town. A stranger named Jacob knocks on the door of a worn trailer home owned by Alice, an elderly woman. He pleads for her to give him shelter from the freezing weather. Jacob is in town on a mission to find his missing father, and Alice has every intention of helping the tattooed stranger. But as they get to know each other, Alice realizes that Jacob’s past appears to be connected with her own. The audience unravels the mystery as the characters solve the puzzle, and it becomes clear that Jacob’s arrival was no accident. This psychological thriller proves that you can’t always judge a book by its cover.
Piscataway Indian Nation
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
8:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Recognized internationally for their living history programs, the Piscataway Indian Nation performs authentic American Indian dance and song. The Piscataway Indian Nation is a state-recognized tribe in Maryland that is related to the historic Piscataway tribe. At the time of European encounter, the Piscataway tribe was one of the most populous and powerful tribes of the Chesapeake Bay region. The Piscataway Indian Nation organized out of a twentieth-century revival of its people and culture. They have appeared in the Kevin Costner film Dances with Wolves, and have been featured in documentaries on both the History Channel and Discovery Channel. In addition, they perform regularly at the Smithsonian’s Museum of the American Indian, national pow wows, major festivals, and theatres across the country.
Dr. Edwin Barnhart: 12.21.2012: An End of Days?
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Did ancient Maya prophecies predict an end of days in December 2012? Or are modern spiritualists correct that we are entering a new age of enlightenment? It is true that the Maya calendar comes to a cyclical end on December 21, 2012. The question remains: What did the ancient Maya actually predict about the future? The answer lies in a better understanding of Maya religion and hieroglyphic texts. Dr. Edwin Barnhart, Director of the Maya Exploration Center with two decades of experience in Mesoamerica as an archaeologist and explorer, will separate fact from fiction in this fascinating lecture. He earned a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Texas at Austin, and he teaches National Science Foundation classes for college professors on Maya astronomy and sacred geometry.
Freyberger Gallery presents Art Sparks
November 29-December 7, 2012
Reception: November 29, 2012, 6:00 p.m.
Freyberger Gallery
Art Sparks–A Community Engagement Event of Inspiration and Hope through Art, was initiated by Susan Rehhausser, Alvernia University. Rehhausser has conducted workshops throughout the City of Reading––recently named the poorest city in the nation by the U.S. Census––to create art work for the project, with the goal of inspiring an interest in the arts and lifelong learning. Pieces referred to as “art sparks,” which are created by assembling wooden triptychs with collages of positive images and messages of inspiration, will be distributed throughout the city this fall. The Freyberger Gallery will host a photographic exhibition of the art work created by students and citizens of Reading through this community project.
December 2012
Aerosmith's Joey Kramer: HIT HARD: A Story of Hitting Rock Bottom at the Top
*RESCHEDULED*
This event has been rescheduled for FOR MONDAY, MARCH 25 AT 9:00 P.M. in the Perkins Student Center Auditorium.
PLEASE SEE BELOW FOR DETAILS.
January 2013
Freyberger Gallery presents Art and Science
January 10-February 22, 2013
Reception: January 10, 2013, 6:00 p.m.
Freyberger Gallery
Art and Science explores the responses and reactions of artists, through their work, to the research and scholarly interests within the Penn State Berks science division. Artists interpret scientific information aesthetically, using the information as a point of departure for their creative endeavors. In this exhibition, art illuminates, defines, and interprets the data and information gathered by college science faculty members, making it more accessible for some, more intriguing for others. While our science faculty members’ research has provided important and useful information on such topics as mathematics, horticulture, biology, chemistry, and physics, just to name a few, the artists featured in this exhibition have used these discoveries to create exciting new realities through their work.
CSI Exposed: Behind the Scenes of the Hit TV Show with Actors David Berman and Jon Wellner
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
9:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Since its debut in 2000, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation has been one of the most popular television shows both nationally and internationally. Now, for the first time, the secrets of CSI are revealed as actors/researchers David Berman (pictured right) and Jon Wellner take you inside the hit forensic drama. In this presentation, Berman and Wellner will compare the fictional Universal Studios crime lab with a real Las Vegas crime lab, and discuss science versus entertainment in the so-called “CSI Effect.” You’ll learn how CSI is researched and view excerpts that illustrate how that information is incorporated into the show, as they detail the process of how each episode of procedural television is created, from the story’s conception in the writers’ room all the way through post-production.
Ron Pappalardo: Suicide Prevention & Anti-Bullying Tour
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
6:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
In 2003, after his 17-year-old son committed suicide, Ron Pappalardo began working in the field of suicide prevention. His book, Reconciled by the Light, recounts his experience and the lessons he learned regarding healing from grief, overcoming depression, and the power of forgiveness. His book has helped thousands and his presentations leave audiences feeling hopeful, uplifted, and enthusiastic to help others. Pappalardo discusses the warning signs of suicide, strategies for ending bullying, and simple tips for defeating the number one cause of suicidal thinking––depression. He has spent years working with students all over the world, promoting understanding and cooperation between young people of all nationalities, religions, and ethnicities.
*This lecture is part of the 2013 Mental Health Fair, Wed., Jan. 30, 11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m., Perkins Student Center Lion’s Den.
February 2013
Michael Fosberg: Incognito
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Imagine discovering that you are not the person you thought you were––that you have a family, a history, an ethnicity you never knew. How would this discovery impact your life, the lives of those around you, your vision of yourself and society? Michael Fosberg confronts these issues in Incognito, a one-hour, solo theatrical presentation relating his story of growing up believing he was “white,” only to discover at age 32 that he is actually “black.” Incognito unfolds as a mystery, as Fosberg searches for his biological father following the divorce of his mother and stepfather. In this often funny, deeply emotional play, the audience makes discoveries of self and is confronted by issues of race, diversity, divorce, and adoption.
Theatre at Berks presents N.O.W. (New Original Works)
5th Annual One-Act Student Play Festival
Producer: Radhica Ganapathy, Asst. Professor of Theatre
February 18-22, 2013
8:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
In order to encourage and celebrate original writing, the Theatre Program at Penn State Berks presents N.O.W. at Berks (New Original Works), an annual one-act play festival. N.O.W. is representative of our current students and promises to showcase amazing on-campus collaborations between student producers, stage managers, playwrights, directors, and actors. All students are encouraged to participate, regardless of their major. Past performances have dealt with serious themes such as love, war, and interpersonal relationships. Join us for our fifth annual production of N.O.W. at Berks and support student-written and performed plays at the college.
Dr. Terrence Roberts: Lessons from Little Rock
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
In 1957, Terrence Roberts was 15 years old when he joined eight other students to integrate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. For the “Little Rock Nine,” the days that followed were filled with fear and uncertainty. In the fall of 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower ordered federal troops to the school, and a soldier was assigned to protect each African American student, but Roberts recalls suffering daily physical and verbal abuse. Roberts went on to earn a master’s degree in social work from UCLA, and a Ph.D. in psychology from Southern Illinois University. Today, he is CEO of Terrence J. Roberts & Associates, a management consultant firm devoted to fair and equitable practices. In this lecture, he will continue the conversation about race and segregation in schools.
March 2013
Freyberger Gallery presents Architectural Conditions
March 7-April 7, 2013
Reception: March 7, 2013, 6:00 p.m.
Freyberger Gallery
In this collaboration of visual art by architect Larry Mitnick, Associate Professor at the University of the Arts, and poetry by Dr. Ken Fifer, Professor of English at Penn State Berks, visitors are asked to entertain the assumption that an identifier of the architectural conditions can be embodied within poetry, as well as in pictorial terms. Mitnick’s collages are not primarily intended to illustrate Fifer’s poetry, but to locate their architectural conditions. Likewise, Fifer’s poems do not seek to describe or illustrate Mitnick’s collages, but to locate and share their spatial relationships. The movement back and forth between different minds and mediums creates a process of reflection and discourse, and in the end, a working method. Their collaborations, large and small, began when the two men met as children growing up in the same Bronx housing project and have continued through the present day.
Dr. Oran Hesterman: FAIR FOOD: Growing a Healthy, Sustainable Food System for All
Monday, March 18, 2013
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Dr. Oran Hesterman, a national leader in sustainable agriculture and food systems, will discuss his book, FAIR FOOD: Growing a Healthy, Sustainable Food Sytem for All, which is a guide to changing not only what we eat, but how food is grown, packaged, delivered, and sold. Hesterman’s menu for change offers the audience questions to ask at farmers’ markets, tools for starting buy-fresh/buy-local campaigns, advice for forming buyer’s clubs that purchase food directly from farmers and fishermen, and guidance about which legislation to support at the local, state, and federal levels. Hesterman served as program director for Food Systems at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation for more than fifteen years, and he has made significant contributions to the funding of healthy food and farming through his leadership of the Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Funders group.
The Screaming Orphans
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
The Screaming Orphans is a pop-rock band comprised of four talented sisters who were raised in County Donegal, Ireland. As teenagers, they formed their own band and began playing at local pubs and festivals. Their big break came with an invitation to play at a St. Brigid’s Day concert in Kildare, along with great Irish artists such as Sinead O’Connor, who later asked them to be her back-up singers and the opening act for her show. The band then embarked on their first international tour with stops in Europe, Canada, and the United States, where they were featured on the Late Show with David Letterman. Their sound has been compared to the Bangles and the Cranberries, and their musical influences range from the Beatles to R.E.M. to traditional Irish music.
Aerosmith's Joey Kramer: HIT HARD: A Story of Hitting Rock Bottom at the Top
Monday, March 25, 2013
9:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
In this Q&A presentation, Joey Kramer, drummer for the legendary rock band Aerosmith, will discuss his memoir, HIT HARD: A Story of Hitting Rock Bottom at the Top. In 1997, during Aerosmith’s world tour, Kramer revealed his ongoing struggle with depression. The response from fans battling those same internal demons was overwhelming. Now he tells the complete story: The early days of the band, glamorous drug-addled events leading up to their eventual sobriety, battles among band mates, and the explosive internal dynamics in Aerosmith that continue to unleash their endless creativity. His is the story of a rock star who, after years of insane wildness, became willing to accept help and finally kick a serious alcohol and drug addiction, only to find that the real terrors and hard work were still ahead.
*This program may contain explicit language and adult content.
**This program is a ticketed event. Tickets are free and will be available on a first-come first-serve basis.
Tickets will become available on March 19, 2013. For reservations, please call 610-396-6076. Reserved tickets will be held at a "will-call" table that will be located in front of the Auditorium in the main lobby of the Perkins Student Center beginning at 7:30 p.m.
Jennifer Pozner: Project Brainwash: Why Reality TV is Bad for Women
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
In Project Brainwash: Why Reality TV Is Bad for Women, Jennifer Pozner takes a fierce, funny, and in-depth look at how reality TV affects our beliefs, our behavior, and our culture. She discusses how reality TV has erased all signs that the women’s rights, civil rights, and gay and lesbian rights movements ever occurred. Pozner explains that the picture of America displayed through the lens of shows like The Bachelor and America’s Next Top Model is profoundly warped. The masterminds of reality TV have created a world in which women not only have no real choices––they don’t want any. Pozner, Executive Director of Women in Media and News, reveals who is creating this pop cultural backlash against women’s rights, who is profiting from it, and why.
April 2013
The Gay Marriage Debate
Featuring Zach Wahls and John H. Rogers
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
7:30 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
In 2004, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ruled that it was unconstitutional to allow only heterosexual couples to marry. Despite intense opposition, couples in other states sought the same rights, throwing the debate into the national and international arenas. The Gay Marriage Debate features advocate Zach Wahls (pictured left), the University of Iowa student and son of two lesbian mothers, who gained Internet fame in 2011 after video of his testimony before the Iowa House Judiciary Committee went viral, and opponent John H. Rogers, who is currently serving his ninth term in the Massachusetts House of Representatives. Rogers maintains that gay marriage should not be legalized; rather civil unions should be created for gay couples that incorporate the same rights afforded to married straight couples.
Theatre at Berks presents Treasure Island
Playwright: Ken Ludwig
Director: Cleo House, Jr., Assoc. Professor of Theatre Arts
April 11-13, 18-20, 2013, 8:00 p.m.
April 14 & 21, 2013, 2:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
Based on the adventure novel by Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island is a stunning yarn of piracy on the tropical seas. It begins at an inn on the Devon coast of England in 1775 and quickly becomes an unforgettable tale of treachery and mayhem, featuring a host of legendary swashbucklers. At the center of it all are Jim Hawkins, a 14-year-old boy who longs for adventure, and the infamous Long John Silver, a complex study of good and evil––perhaps the most famous hero-villain of all time. Silver is an unscrupulous buccaneer-rogue whose greedy quest for gold, coupled with young Hawkins’ rite of passage, combine to capture the heart of everyone who has ever longed for treasure and adventure in this spine-tingling tale.
Kenya Safari Acrobats
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
8:00 p.m.
Perkins Student Center Auditorium
This awe-inspiring and dynamic dance troupe takes acrobatics to exhilarating extremes. Its members learned their craft as children on the beaches of Kenya, as a means to break free from an impoverished country. Now they serve as artistic ambassadors for Kenya as they travel the globe, entertaining and inspiring audiences of all ages. The acrobatic show is both educational and entertaining, beginning with a brief history of Kenya. Then the Kenya Safari Acrobats take the audience on a nonstop thrill ride full of gravity-defying human pyramids, breathtaking contortions, limbo dancing, and hurling through hoops––all while clapping to a joyful Benga beat. Combining artistry with humor and playfulness, these gymnasts have designed a unique and eye-popping blend of traditional arts and circus skills in classic African style.