Editor's Note: This is the final edition of "Things to Do at Penn State" for the fall 2022 semester. "Things to Do" will return with the start of spring 2023 classes.
What's happening at Penn State? Here's a look at some of the cultural events — both in-person and virtual — taking place across the University:
Performances
"Rent" — Nov. 15-18, 29-30, Dec. 1-3; Pavilion Theatre, University Park campus. Penn State Centre Stage presents the famed rock musical.
Get the Led Out — Dec. 2-3, Pullo Center, Penn State York. Philadelphia-based band Get the Led Out performs songs from the legendary group Led Zeppelin.
"Beautiful World" — Dec. 2-3, Misciagna Family Center, Penn State Altoona. The Ivyside Pride choral group will present its fall performance. Free.
Symphonic band concert — 7:30 p.m., Dec. 7, Eisenhower Auditorium, University Park campus. The School of Music's concert band and symphonic band will perform.
Essence of Joy: Our Gift of Song — 7:30 p.m., Dec. 9, Recital Hall, Music Building, University Park campus. The group Essence of Joy will perform. Free.
Penn State Altoona University Jazz Band — 2:30 p.m., Dec. 10, Misciagna Family Center, Penn State Altoona. The campus jazz band will play a variety of big band styles. Free.
EMC Presents: Holiday Celebration 2022 — 4 p.m., Dec. 11, Pullo Center, Penn State York. Dance, music and acrobatic performances mark this festive holiday performance.
"Christmas in Brass" — 7:30 p.m., Dec. 11, Recital Hall, Music Building, University Park campus. The School of Music presents its "Christmas in Brass" performance. Free.
Nutcracker Sweets — 2 p.m., Dec. 18, Pullo Center, Penn State York. The Pennsylvania Ballet Academy presents selections and special choreography inspired by Tchaikovsky's "The Nutcracker."
Lectures
Department of Geography Coffee Hour lecture series: Srinivas Chokkakula — 3:30 p.m., Dec. 2, 112 Walker Building, University Park campus, and via Zoom. Srinivas Chokkakula, Ministry of Jal Shakti Research Chair with the Centre for Policy Research in New Delhi, will present “Conflicts and Complicit Climate Change: Transboundary Water Governance in South Asia.” Free.
"Empowering Native Communities with Renewable Energy" — 4 p.m., Dec. 5, 112 Walker Building, University Park campus, and via Zoom. Cody Two Bears, a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and founder and executive director of Indigenized Energy, will discuss his work and his focus on youth empowerment. Free.
Events
"Water, Water, Everywhere!" — 10 a.m., Dec. 3, Pasto Agricultural Museum, Rock Springs. The Pasto Agricultural Museum will host an educational event about assessing and managing stormwater and drinking water. The event features two sessions and free well water screenings. Free.
Emirates National Day Celebration — 4 p.m., Dec. 3, Bryce Jordan Center, University Park campus. Special performances, folklore shows and cultural booths help celebrate the United Arab Emirates 51st National Day.
Winter display — Dec. 9 through early January, Arboretum at Penn State, University Park campus. The Arboretum at Penn State presents winter planters and seasonal displays. Free.
Taste of the Town — 6 p.m., Dec. 15, Bryce Jordan Center, University Park campus. A fundraising event for Centre County United Way, Taste of the Town offers visitors signature samples from local restaurants, wineries, distilleries and breweries.
Virtual exhibits
"African Brilliance and the Purpose of Art" — This interactive virtual tour accompanied the Palmer Museum of Art’s spring 2020 special exhibition "African Brilliance: A Diplomat’s Sixty Years of Collecting" and will remain available throughout the current academic year. Explore the exhibition installation, images of selected works, videos for guided viewing and related art-making activity suggestions. Free.
"Celebrating the ADA: The Legacy and Evolution of Disability Rights and Lived Experiences at Penn State" — The University Libraries virtual exhibit explores the first 100 years of national disability rights legislation and the movement's impact on the Penn State community. Free.
"Global Asias: Contemporary Asian and Asian American Art from the Collections of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundations" — This web-based, interactive program from the Palmer Museum of Art features guided video tours of selected exhibition artists in addition to an introductory overview by the curator. Learn about the “Global Asias” concept of personal and cultural identity in a contemporary world. Artists featured include: Jacob Hashimoto, Dinh Q. Lê, Hung Liu, Takashi Murakami, Roger Shimomura, Do Ho Suh and Rirkrit Tiranvanija. Free.
"Pandemic Spaces (1918 Edition)" — The University Libraries' virtual display explores architecture related to the devastating influenza epidemic of 1918. Free.
"Who Am I? Art and Identity" — This self-directed, interactive, online tour features a selection of objects from diverse areas of the Palmer Museum of Art’s collection, related through a common exploration of personal or cultural identity. Free.
"Women in Art: Activism + Resistance" — This self-directed, interactive, Palmer Museum of Art online tour is intended for college-level courses and features a selection of objects by female artists in the museum’s collection. In celebration of the centennial of the 19th Amendment, this tour highlights artists working in a variety of mediums during the 20th and 21st centuries who have contributed to political, social and cultural change. Free.
"The World According to Doyle: Editorial Cartoons from The Jerry Doyle Papers at Penn State" — This Penn State University Libraries digital exhibition examines Jerry Doyle, one of the preeminent editorial cartoonists of the 20th century. Free.
In-person exhibits
"Fluidity of Gender" — Through Dec. 3, Ronald K. De Long Gallery, Penn State Lehigh Valley. Linda Stein's multimedia "Fluidity of Gender" exhibition consists of sculpture, collage, prints and video that strive to broaden awareness and inspire empathy by presenting multiplicities and diversities to her work. Free.
"GEOmatrix: A Perfect Proof" — Through Dec. 10, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Penn State Altoona. “Geomatrix: A Perfect Proof” features a body of work by Ivyside Juried Art Exhibition winner Reni Gower that recognizes geometric perfection as the matrix of humanity and the blueprint of the cosmos. Free.
"Paper Planes" — Through Dec. 10, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Penn State Altoona. “Paper Planes,” a body of work by Ivyside Juried Art Exhibition winner Jennifer Seo features paper recreations of objects found in Seo’s old family photographs. Free.
"Haiti: Liberation of the First Black Republic" — Through Dec. 16, Paterno Family Reading Room, Pattee Library, University Park campus. The exhibit examines the history of Haiti, the first modern Black republic resulting from its successful fight for liberation from the French. Free.
"Looking at Who We Are: The Palmer at Fifty" — Through Dec. 18, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. This exhibition of 74 paintings, drawings, prints, photographs and sculptures from the Palmer's permanent collection explores how history, place and community shape our conception of museums and ourselves. Free.
"The Art of Remembering: A Selection of Gifts" — Through Dec. 18, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. The exhibit honors the gifts to the permanent collection of the Palmer Museum of Art and features works on paper by 19th- and 20th-century European and American artists. Free.
"ARC Studio's Premiere" — Through Jan. 29, Art Alley, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park campus. Photos and paintings by Andrew Castañeda mirror the structure of a day in TV programming. Free.
"Zombie Ant Experience" — Through August 2023, Perkins Student Center, Penn State Berks. This interactive art installation also serves as a teaching tool to illustrate spore trajectories and how ants are transformed into "zombies." Free.
"Evan Pugh: Student to Scientist" — Through October 2023, Earth and Mineral Sciences Museum and Art Gallery, Deike Building, University Park campus. The exhibit explores two distinct stages in the life of Evan Pugh, Penn State's first president. Free.
Gall wasps exhibit — Through October 2023, Frost Entomological Museum, University Park campus. This new exhibit is aimed at cultivating awareness about gall wasps and showcasing their beauty and diversity. Free.
"I Am a Penn Stater: Nittany Lions in World War II" — Through June 2025, Penn State All-Sports Museum, Beaver Stadium, University Park campus. Timed to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the conflict, "I Am a Penn Stater" chronicles the contributions of Nittany Lion varsity lettermen and Women’s Recreation Association athletes during the conflict and follows their service from training in the United States, to fighting on battlefields around the globe, to their postwar occupations. Free.