Lawrence University News

Lawrence hosting state-wide bicycling summit

Lawrence University’s Warch Campus Center will host the 2016 Wisconsin Bike Summit Friday, Nov. 6.

This is the first time in its history, the Wisconsin Bike Federation is holding its annual summit outside of Madison.bikesummit_newsblog_1

The theme for this year’s summit, which beings at 9 a.m., is “Shifting Gears.” Conference presentations will cover topics ranging from advocacy and planning to equity and community.

Keynote speakers for the summit include Charlie Cooper of PeopleForBikes, who will discuss the current state of bicycling in the United States, and Kelsey Regan, who holds the UltraMarathon Cycling record for the fastest point-to-point ride across Wisconsin.

Summit sessions will include:

• How to Start a Trips for Kids Mountain Bike Ride Chapter for Underserved Youth

• A Non-Traditional Approach to Bike-to-Work Day

• An In-Depth Study of Wisconsin Pedestrian and Bicycle Crashes

• Women in Cycling – the Ladies Revolution!

• Slow Roll Chicago: The Transformative Power of Bicycles

• HealthTIDE – the New Wave; Weight of the Fox Valley – To Win, We Need to Lose

A complete summit schedule, including registration information, can be found here.

Lawrence collaborated with the Fox Cities Cycling Association, the History Museum at the Castle, the Fox Cities Convention and Visitors Bureau, the city of Appleton and others in luring the summit to Appleton.

Concluding the summit will be an exclusive tour and reception at the History Museum at the Castle featuring its current exhibit “Shifting Gears: A Cyclical History of Badger Cycling.”

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

 

 

35 and counting: Annual jazz festival welcomes guest artists Cyrille Aimée and Rufus Reid

The name has changed — slightly— but the mission remains the same.

Lawrence University’s annual salute to all things jazz celebrates its 35th year with a new name— Fred Sturm Jazz Celebration Weekend —  in honor of its founder and mentor who passed away in 2014.

This year’s weekend celebration welcomes vocalist Cyrille Aimée Friday, Nov. 6 and bass legend Rufus Reid, Saturday, Nov. 7. Both concerts begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel. Tickets, ranging from $18 to $30, are available through the Lawrence Box Office, 920-832-6749.

Cyrille-Aimee_newsblogIn addition to the two evening concerts, Lawrence will host more than 350 students from 23 high schools on Saturday, Nov. 7 who will participate a series of educational clinics and performances. The schedule includes free performances by the Lawrence jazz faculty and the Lawrence Jazz Band.

French-born Aimée has established herself as one of the most promising jazz singers of her generation. Raised in the village of Samois sur Seine, Aimée’s culturally rich background — her mother is Dominican, her father French — has provided her with a distinctive vocal combination: the driving force of Dominican rhythm and the incredible swing of the French Gypsies.

Accomplished jazz singer Janet Planet, who teaches vocal technique and jazz history at Lawrence, says Aimée clearly “enjoys making music” and describes her style as “infectious.”

“She is the ‘hot ticket’ in the world of jazz today and brings her youth and obvious hunger for the music to her performances,” said Planet. “She also shows a respect for singers that have come before her, such as Ella Fitzgerald.

“Cyrille brings her joy to stage as she unveils each moment of each song.  She emotes a certain fearlessness, a requisite characteristic for improvisation,” Planet added. “Along with the ability to improvise in the scat format, she utilizes technology by incorporating looping devices in her concerts, stacking her vocals as she builds live tracks.”

“She is the ‘hot ticket’ in the world of jazz today and brings her youth and obvious hunger for the music to her performances.”
— Janet Planet

Inspired by the musical legacy of renowned guitarist Django Reinhardt, Aimée is a past winner of both the Montreux Jazz Festival’s Vocal Competition and the Sarah Vaughan International Vocal Competition. Her 2014 major label debut, “It’s a Good Day,” showcases Aimée’s incredible range of musical styles, eras, continents and moods.

Reid, a Grammy Award-nominated bass player whose career spans five decades, and his quartet, will be joined on stage by the Lawrence Jazz Ensemble during the direction of Patty Darling.  Nearly the entire program will feature works composed or arranged by Reid.Rufus Reid_newsblog

As a leader or co-leader, Reid has recorded more than 20 albums, including 2014’s “Quiet Pride – The Elizabeth Catlett Project,” which was inspired by the legendary sculptor and civil rights activist.

“We are so fortunate to have Rufus Reid and his Quartet joining us for the Saturday evening concert,” said Darling. “Not only is Rufus one of today’s premiere bassists, he is also one of the world’s leaders in jazz education and jazz history, as well as an inspiring clinician and accomplished composer.  His passion for performance and jazz education make him the perfect choice as one of this year’s guest artists for our 35th festival.”

Reid is the author of “The Evolving Bassist,” the definitive bible for every jazz bassist and the industry standard since 1974. He has lent his signature sound to the music of a litany of jazz icons, including Thad Jones, Stan Getz, Benny Golson and Nancy Wilson, among others.

Sturm created jazz celebration weekend in 1981 as a way to bring renowned professional jazz artists to the Lawrence campus and the roster of guests reads like a Who’s Who of jazz greats: Dizzy Gillespie, Wynton Marsalis, Dianne Reeves, Slide Hampton, Bobby McFerrin, Diana Krall, Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea and others.

Beyond the concerts, Sturm established a completely non-competitive jazz educational festival featuring renowned clinicians for students as a way to provide an inspirational jump-start for school jazz groups and promote improvisation as a primary focus in school jazz ensembles.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Melissa Range wins National Poetry Series competition

Lawrence University Assistant Professor of English Melissa Range has been named one of five national winners in the annual Open Competition sponsored by the National Poetry Series.

Melissa-Range_newsblog2
Melissa Range

Range was selected for her second collection of poems entitled “Scriptorium,” which was selected for the award by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Tracy K. Smith. The award includes a $10,000 prize. “Scriptorium” will be published next fall by Beacon Press.

“Scriptorium,” which Range started in 2006 and completed earlier this year, takes its name from the medieval scriptorium, where monks would create illuminated manuscripts and other written works. Range’s “Scriptorium” explores the relationship between standardized, official languages and vernacular languages, particularly as they play out in religious settings. It features poems about medieval art, poetry and theology, as well as poems about the Appalachian slang of Range’s upbringing.

“It’s both humbling and incredibly affirming to be chosen for the National Poetry Series, particularly by judge Tracy Smith, a poet whose work I admire,” said Range, who joined the Lawrence faculty in 2014. “The journey from a jumble of poems to a book of poems is arduous and takes a great amount of time, from writing it, revising it, figuring out how it fits together, what its arc is, what it’s trying to say. Even when you’ve finished a book, there’s no guarantee it will be published. Publication is a gift and one for which I’m extremely grateful.”

This is the second major award Range has received in the past year. Last December, she was named one of 36 national recipients of a $25,000 National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship in Creative Writing.

“Melissa is an extraordinarily talented creative artist,” said David Burrows, provost and dean of the faculty. “She has helped make our writing and poetry program extremely strong. We are very proud of her achievement as the winner of this award.”

Range earned her Ph.D. in English and creative writing from the University of Missouri. She earned her bachelor’s degree in English and creative writing from the University of Tennessee, her master’s degree in creative writing from Old Dominion University and also holds a master of theological studies from the Candler School of Theology at Emory University.

She previously has been recognized for her creative writing for poetry with the 2011 Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Prize and the University of Missouri’s teaching award for creative writing in 2013.

Her first book of poetry, “Horse and Rider: Poems,” centers on violence and power in religion and the natural world.

Based in Princeton, N.J., the nonprofit National Poetry Series was founded in 1978 to promote “excellence in contemporary poetry” by publishing five poetry books annually through its Open Competition. Previous notable winners of the prize include Terrance Hayes, Adrian Matejka, Marie Howe and Eleni Sikelianos.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

 

Four November performances designated “Music for Food” concerts to benefit St. Joseph’s Food Program

For the third consecutive year, the Lawrence University Conservatory of Music will help combat hunger in the Fox Cities during the upcoming holiday season by dedicating four November concerts to benefit the St. Joseph Food Program.

The concerts, all in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel, are presented in partnership with Music for Food, a national program for local hunger relief.

Audience members are encouraged to make a charitable donation — monetary or a non-perishable food item. All monetary donations are tax deductible, with 100 percent of the proceeds going directly to St. Joseph Food Program.

wind-ensemble
The Lawrence Wind Ensemble’s Nov. 17 performance will be one of four Music for Food concerts the college is sponsoring this month.

This year’s Music for Food concerts are:

• Saturday, Nov. 7, Fred Sturm Jazz Celebration Weekend: Rufus Reid with the Lawrence Jazz Ensemble, 7:30 p.m. 920-832-6749 for tickets.

• Friday, Nov. 13, Lawrence Concert Choir, Cantala women’s choir, Viking Chorale, 8 p.m. Free.

• Saturday, Nov. 14, Lawrence Symphony Orchestra, 8 p.m. Free.

• Tuesday, Nov. 17, Lawrence Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band, 8 p.m. Free.

“I’m so delighted and proud that Lawrence will be collecting once again for Music for Food at its November concerts,” said Lawrence Professor of Music Catherine Kautsky, one of the program’s organizers. “This is our third year working with this terrific national organization of musicians, and we, as well as the community, have benefitted enormously. We all believe that music lifts the spirit; how wonderful when it also can contribute materially to the community’s well-being.”

During the first two years of the program, Lawrence concerts have generated nearly 350 pounds of donated food to St. Joe’s.

Music for Food is a musician-led initiative founded in 2010 by violist Kim Kashkashian in collaboration with the New England Conservatory. Concerts raise funds and awareness to combat  hunger, empowering musicians who use their artistry to further social justice. Now in its sixth season, Music for Food has provided more than 200,000 meals through donations made at certs on behalf of more than a dozen hunger-relief organizations.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

 

Lawrence convocation series welcomes award-winning journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates

Author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates, one of the nation’s most important contemporary writers on the subject of race, examines the conflicted and hopeful state of black America in a Lawrence University convocation.

Ta-Nehisi Coates_newsblog
Ta-Nehisi Coates

Coates presents “Race in America: A Deeper Black” Thursday, Nov. 5 at 11:10 a.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel. He will conduct a question-and-answer session immediately following his remarks. The event is free and open to the public.

A correspondent for The Atlantic, Coates has written about subjects ranging from the call to remove Confederate flags from state capitol grounds to what constitutes a public intellectual. His June 2014 story on slavery reparations vaulted him to national prominence.

He earned national acclaim for his 2015 book “Between the World and Me,” an open letter to his son about his hopes, dreams and what it means to be black in America. The book was recently named a finalist for the National Book Awards’ nonfiction prize.

His first book, the memoir, “The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons, and an Unlikely Road to Manhood,” was published in 2008.

In September, Coates was named a recipient of a $625,000 MacArthur Fellows Program “genius” grant. In announcing its recipients, the foundation hailed Coates as “a highly distinctive voice [who is] emerging as a leading interpreter of American concerns to a new generation of media-savvy audiences and having a profound impact on the discussion of race and racism in this country.”

Born and raised in Baltimore, Md., Coates attended Howard University in Washington, D.C., but left before earning a degree to pursue writing and journalism. He began his journalism career working as a reporter for the Washington City Paper. He later wrote for The Village Voice and Time magazine and has contributed to numerous publications, among them the New York Times Magazine, O magazine and the Washington Post before joining The Atlantic.

He holds a journalist-in-residence position at the City University of New York.

As a follow-up to Coates’ convocation, Lawrence faculty will host a panel discussion Monday, Nov. 9 at 7 p.m. in the Wriston Art Center auditorium.

Participating in the panel will be Carla Daughtry, associate professor of anthropology; Karen Hoffman, associate professor of English, and Amy Ongiri, Jill Beck Director of Film Studies and associate professor of film studies

Each faculty panelist will share some observations about Coates’ address followed by questions and comments from the audience.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Expressions of Acceptance: Micro-opera event celebrates community unity

As part of his first production at Lawrence University last spring, Copeland Woodruff, the college’s new director of opera studies, surveyed his audience, asking them to share instances of feeling unwelcomed or as an outsider.

He was so moved by the outpouring of responses he received, he knew he had to do something to further address some of the experiences that were shared.

Micro-opera_newsblogThat “something” became the  collaborative project “Expressions of Acceptance” that will feature more than 40 Lawrence student singers, including 30 from the Improvisational Group of Lawrence University (IGLU), and instrumentalists simultaneously performing 13 “micro-operas” — each about 5-8 minutes in length — in the lobby of the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center in downtown Appleton. Every nook and cranny of the four-story lobby will be utilized for performances, including stairwells, seating areas, the bars and even the elevator.

The performance, Monday, Nov. 2 at 7:30 p.m., will be preceded by a walk through downtown Appleton by organizers and community partners starting at 7 p.m. in front of the Lawrence Memorial Chapel and ending at the PAC. Anyone is welcome to participate in the walk, which is designed to embrace community and celebrate Appleton.

Following the performances, the audience will meet the cast and creative team and spend time together digesting the experience with community leaders in the Kimberly-Clark theatre.

“I was so excited and inspired by the audiences’ need to reach out and tell their stories last spring, that I knew that we had to continue the dialogue,” said Woodruff, director of opera studies and associate professor of music. “We are all strangers, even to ourselves sometimes. When we recognize that, it gives us courage to reach out to another soul, who is also a stranger.”

“Expressions of Acceptance” grew out of Woodruff’s production of Aaron Copland’s “The Tender Land” last February, an opera written during the Senator Joseph McCarthy trials that explores themes of “the stranger among us” as well as “the stranger within.”

“I hope through this event we can find ways to reach out and connect with others regardless
of any perceived difference, either in others or ourselves and be open
to the miraculous, healing qualities that each of us possesses.”
— Copeland Woodruff

A collaboration between Lawrence’s student organization GLOW and Celebrate Diversity Fox Cities (CDFC), Riverview Gardens and COTS, the campus and local organizations hosted pre-show and post-show events. Each audience member was asked to complete a four-question survey that asked them to describe a time in their life when they felt like an outsider, why it’s common for people to be wary of strangers or newcomers, what can be done to help people feel welcome and accepted and what obstacles do newcomers to Lawrence or the Fox Cities face that might prevent them from enjoying all that the community can offer.

“I would like for us not only to celebrate our differences, but to find the common threads we all share: we all want to love, be loved, be accepted for who we are, and be allowed to grow with regard to our varied experiences,” said Woodruff. “I hope through this event we can find ways to reach out and connect with others regardless of any perceived difference, either in others or ourselves and be open to the miraculous, healing qualities that each of us possesses. We are so much more than what appears at first glance, or second glance, or one-thousandth glance.”

Copeland-Woodruff_newsblog_2
Copeland Woodruff

While Copeland has produced and directed walk-through events before coming to Lawrence, “the level of integrated involvement with so many different community and university organizations is a first for me.”

The Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region is a co-sponsor of the “Expressions of Acceptance” project, supporting it with a $2,500 grant.

In addition to the partners who worked with Woodruff on “The Tender Land,” additional community collaborators assisting with the “Expressions of Acceptance” production are Kathy Flores, the diversity and inclusion coordinator for the city of Appleton, African Heritage, Inc., INCLUDE, Casa Hispana, E.S.T.H.E.R., Goodwill, and CODA.

“It has been a life-changing experience for me working together with Matt Turner, Margaret Paek and the IGLU students,” said Woodruff, who earned first-place honors in the prestigious National Opera Association’s Best Opera Production Competition, Division V last year for the  fifth time in the past eight years. “Many of the students didn’t know each other until this project and to see them learn from each other is mind-blowing. Watching them work together, reaching across many performance-practice boundaries to swim in the scary deep end of the improvisation and post-modern theatre pool has been a landmark in my career as an artist and an educator.”

“Getting out and working with the community has helped this outsider feel more a part of the conversation in Appleton and the surrounding area,” Woodruff added. “Finding similar and differing opinions and points of view, learning and growing from them, that’s what the human experience is for me.”

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Training your brain for a better you the focus of lecture series presentation

Would you like to “change your brain” to make yourself happier, more creative, more compassionate?

Richard-Davidson_newsblog
Richard Davidson

Renowned psychology researcher Richard Davidson says scientific evidence suggests you can do just that by cultivating positive habits of mind.

Davidson presents “Well-being is a Skill” Thursday, Oct. 29 at 11:10 a.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel in the second installment of Lawrence University’s Liberal Arts in the Century of the Brain lecture series. He also will conduct a question-and-answer session at 2 p.m. in the Warch Campus Center cinema. Both events are free and open to the public.

Research conducted by Davidson show a range of characteristics, including a person’s happiness, resilience, compassion and emotional balance, can all be shaped, modified and improved within one’s brain. Davidson will share how using mental training techniques to cultivate well-being can positively impact an individual’s happiness, creativity and productivity in the work place and at home.

“Dr. Davidson is a pioneer in the scientific study of emotion and has applied a neuroscientific lens to the study of ancient traditions for cultivating attention and compassion,” said Lori Hilt, assistant professor of psychology at Lawrence. “We are fortunate to have him speak on a topic sure to be broadly appealing.”

The William James and Vilas Research Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at UW-Madison, Davidson is one of the country’s leading experts in the field of neuroplasticity — the capacity of the brain to develop and change throughout life — as well as methods to promote human betterment, including meditation and related contemplative practices.

A member of the UW faculty since 1984, Davidson is the director of the Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior and the founder of the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds at the UW’s Waisman Center.

In 2006, Time magazine named Davidson one of the “100 most influential people in the world” and the following year Madison Magazine named him its Person of the Year. The American Psychological Association recognized him with its highest honor — the Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award — in 2000.

His scholarship has resulted in more than 320 articles, numerous book chapters and reviews. He is the author of the 2012 book “The Emotional Life of Your Brain” and has edited 14 other books.

The Liberal Arts in the Century of the Brain series will incorporate the interdisciplinary areas of neuroscience and cognitive science to create connections with other disciplines at Lawrence by examining questions ranging from whether the brain processes literary fiction differently than formula fiction to how perception, emotion and cognitive processing impact creative expression.

Other series speakers include:

• Darya Zabelina, post-doctoral fellow at Northwestern University, Feb. 17, 2016. Zabelina’s presentation will examine the neural aspects of creativity. Her research focuses on ways of enhancing and fostering the development of creative thinking and problem-solving ability.

• John Iverson, associate project scientist at University of California-San Diego’s Institute for Neural Computation. February 2016. A cognitive neuroscientist, Iverson will discuss his research on rhythm perception and production in music and language, work that spans behavioral and neuroscience approaches. He is currently overseeing a study of the effect of music training on children’s brain and cognitive development.

• Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, Chauncey Stillman Professor of Practical Ethics in the department of philosophy and the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University. April 12, 2016. The author of five books and more than 100 published articles, Sinnott-Armstrong is a scholar of moral psychology and brain science, which his presentation will focus on, as well as uses of neuroscience in the legal system.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Theatre Arts Dept. Opens 2015-16 Season with Pair of Classic French Comedies

The wit and wisdom of a pair of French playwrights open Lawrence University’s department of theatre arts 85th season.

Tim-Troy-color_newsblog
Associate Professor Timothy X. Troy is directing the opening production of Lawrence’s 2015-16 theatre arts dept. season.

Four performances of the two premondern one-act plays — “Sganarelle, or The Imaginary Cuckold” by Moliere and “The Test” by Pierre de Marivaux — will be staged Oct. 29-31 in Stansbury Theatre of the Music-Drama Center.

Performances are at 8 p.m. each night with an additional 3 p.m. matinee on Saturday, Oct. 31. Tickets, at $15 for adults and $8 for seniors/students, are available through the Lawrence Box Office, 920-832-6749.

Written in 1660, “Sganarelle,” a whirlwind of wrong-headed suspicions and imaginary betrayals, was the most produced play during Moliere’s lifetime. The plot centers around two couples who each mistakenly believe their spouse has been unfaithful to them. Where circumstantial evidence is viewed as conclusive proof, they plot and scheme to seek revenge, only to entangle themselves further in their own delusions.

“We’re going ‘old school’ this year by exploring the comic sensibilities of French and British playwrights, starting with two classic French comedies,” said director Timothy X. Troy, professor of theatre arts and J. Thomas and Julie Esch Hurvis Professor of Theatre and Drama.  “Sgranarelle features broad humor and outrageous characters who grasp tightly to a misunderstanding they won’t let go of. The dialogue features perfectly metered rhyming couplets that shows off Moliere’s, and translator Richard Wilbur’s, wit and control.”

Sganarelle_newsblog2
In order to defend his honor, Sganarelle (left, Jacob Dalton ’17) emerges donned with home-made armor cobbled together from kitchen utensils, while the young lovers Lelie (Eddie Hood ’19) and Celie (Ming Montgomery ’19) and wise neighbor, Lisette (Maddie Scanlan ’17), look upon Sganarelle with confusion. In the end we learn Lelie has always been true to Celie, and Lisette mediates the rift between Sganarelle and his wife, Martine.

Like “Sgranarella,” Marivaux’s “The Test” also involves two couples — a valet and a maid, and a master and his vain mistress. The play revolves around the theme of sincerity, or at least the air of sincerity, as his characters wear a mask of sincerity. They enjoy being sincere and expressing their feelings when speaking of others, but are less receptive when similar sincerity is directed at them.

“Marivaux is less well known in the English speaking world, but was greatly admired by important playwrights in the 19th-and 20th-centuries,” said Troy. “His humor is marked by witty dialogue and psychological insight. Though “The Test” was written in 1740, it still strikes as remarkably modern. Though the characters use heightened, often lofty language, Marivaux’s prose is less self-conscious and flows easily from his character’s hearts.”

Stansbury Theatre has been transformed into a classic French theatre, complete with chandeliers, footlights and painted scenery for the production, which also features period-inspired sets and costumes.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

 

 

Lawrence student pianist, flutist win state music competition

Lawrence University students captured a pair of first-place honors at the recent 2015 Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Wisconsin state competition conducted at UW-Eau Claire.

Anthony-Cardella_newsblog
Sophomore Anthony Cardella

Sophomore Anthony Cardella, Porterfield, and senior Leo Sussman, San Francisco, Calif., won the piano and flute divisions, respectively, in the MTNA’s Young Artist (19-26 years of age) competition. Cardella is 15th Lawrence piano student in the past 16 years to win the Wisconsin MTNA competition.

Cardella and Sussman advance to the MTNA’s five-state East Central Division regional competition, which will be held Jan. 15-16, 2016 at Indiana’s Goshen College. Regional winners will compete in the MTNA national finals April 2 in San Antonio, Texas.

A student in the studio of Associate Professor Michael Mizrahi, Cardella performed “Impromptu Op. 90 No. 4,” by Franz Schubert, “Un Sospiro” from “Three Concert Etudes S. 144 No. 3” by Franz Liszt, “Feux d’artifice” from “Preludes Book 2” by Claude Debussy and “Moment Musicaux Op. 16 No. 4” by Sergi Rachmaninoff.

Leo-Sussman_revised-newsblog
Senior Leo Sussman

Sussman, who studies in the flute studio of Assistant Professor Erin Lesser, performed “Chant de Linos” by Andre Jolivet, a flute concerto by Carl Nielsen, CPE Bach’s “Unaccompanied sonata in A minor” and Philippe Hurel’s “Loops I” for solo flute.

Other Lawrence musicians also were recognized. Senior Anne Daley and freshman Ming Hu were named first alternate in the flute and piano divisions, respectively. Senior Joey Arkfeld, sophomore Xiaoya Gao and sophomore Ethan Valentine were awarded honorable mention recognition in the Young Artist piano division.

The MTNA performance competitions recognize exceptionally talented young artists and their teachers in their pursuit of musical excellence.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Povolny series lecture examines China’s role in public health

China’s leadership role in public health and community health practices will be the focus of the second installment of Lawrence University’s 2015-16 Povolny Lecture Series in International Studies “Community Health: Local and Global.”

Suzanne Gottschang_newsblog
Medical anthropologist Suzanne Gottschang

Suzanne Gottschang, associate professor of anthropology at Smith College, presents “Community Health: What Can We Learn from China?” Tuesday, Nov. 3 at 7 p.m. in Lawrence’s Wriston Art Center auditorium. The presentation is free and open to the public.

A medical anthropologist, Gottschang will examine how historical and contemporary efforts in community health programs in China, such as  schistosomiasis eradication, development of the barefoot doctors program or the current campaign to address maternal mortality, can inform global health concerns and policy in other areas of the world.

Gottschang, whose research focuses on risk and health policy, mobile and e-medicine in China and traditional Chinese veterinary medicine, contributed a chapter on baby friendly Chinese hospitals obligated to promote breast-feeding by new mothers, offer promotional material and “educational” visits by sales representatives from companies that make infant formula to the 2000 book ”Feeding China’s Little Emperors: Food, Children and Social Change.”

The lecture series, named in honor of former Lawrence government professor Mojmir Povolny, promotes interest and discussion on issues of moral significance and ethical dimensions.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.