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
"Brainstorm" — 8 p.m., Nov. 1-4, Perkins Student Center Auditorium, Berks campus. The Penn State Berks theater program will present “Brainstorm” by Ned Glasier, Emily Lim, and Company Three. “Brainstorm” is a play about how teenagers' brains work, and why they're designed by evolution to be the way they are, with input from neuroscientists.
Bach's Lunch: Acting for Singers — 12:10 p.m., Nov. 2, Eisenhower Chapel, Pasquerilla Spiritual Center, University Park campus. "Bach's Lunch" is a weekly concert series during the school year. Concerts are brief in order to make it possible for the University community to attend during the lunch hour. Free.
Guest Artist Recital: Jonathan Bass — 7:30-9 p.m., Nov. 2, 130 Recital Hall, Music Building, University Park campus. Garcia Festival guest artist Jonathan Bass, professor of piano at the Boston Conservatory, performs a recital featuring music by Beethoven, Barber, Debussy, Chopin and Liszt.
"The Alibis" — 8 p.m., Nov. 2-4, 111 Forum Building, University Park campus. A performance by No Refund Theatre. Free.
"Come From Away" — 7:30 p.m., Nov. 7, Eisenhower Auditorium, University Park campus. The Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State will host one performance of the national tour of this Broadway musical about the true story of the small town that welcomed the world.
"A Thousand Ways" — Nov. 8-10, Eisenhower Auditorium, University Park campus. The unmoderated performance will encourage attendees to explore the lines between strangeness and kinship, distance and proximity, and how the most intimate assemblage can constitute a radical act.
"Bad Auditions by Bad Actors" — Nov. 8-9, York campus. This comedy by Ian McWethy is the fall production of the Penn Players, the theater group at Penn State York.
Ivyside Dance Ensemble — 7:30 p.m., Nov. 9-10, Wolf Kuhn Theatre, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. Choreographers and dance faculty KT Huckabee and Jay Mackinson have featured pieces focused on traditional dance forms such as tap, ballet and jazz. In addition, guest choreographer Juhanna Rogers will present a dance created about and for the Ivyside Dance Ensemble.
Events
Penn State Military Appreciation Week — Through Nov. 11, Various campuses. Penn State will honor military service members, veterans and their families with a series of military appreciation events through Nov. 11.
Centre Film Festival — Through Nov. 5, State Theatre, University Park campus, and Rowland Theatre, Philipsburg. The Centre Film Festival returns for seven days with "something for everyone." Films in the festival were selected from more than 600 submissions from across the world. The festival includes 30 Pennsylvania premieres, two U.S. premieres and a variety of theme nights.
Planetarium Shows — 7:30-8:30 p.m., Nov. 2-3, Room 115, Allied Health Building White Box, Mont Alto campus. Kim Herrmann, associate professor of physics and astronomy, will offer two evening planetarium shows. Registration is required. Free.
Café Laura Theme Dinner: Jazz'n The Night: A Taste of the Bayou — Nov. 2, Café Laura, Mateer Building, University Park campus. Students in HM 430 Advanced Food Production and Service Management prepare a series of themed dinners throughout the semester to be served in the student-run Café Laura restaurant. Reservations required.
"Top Gun: Maverick" — 8 p.m., Nov. 3, The State Theatre, Downtown State College. Join the Penn State Military Appreciation Committee to kick off the 2023 Military Appreciation Week with a special showing of "Top Gun: Maverick". A social will begin at 7 p.m. and the movie will start at 8 p.m.
Hayfield Homespun Holidays Craft Show — 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Nov. 5, Student Commons Building and Athletic and Recreation Building, Wilkes-Barre campus. The event will feature more than 100 crafters who will display and market artwork, jewelry and more.
"Close" — 6:15 p.m., Nov. 7, Luerssen Science Building, Berks campus. “Close,” a Belgian film directed by Lukas Dhont, follows the story of two teenage boys whose seemingly unbreakable friendship is suddenly, tragically torn apart after their classmates question the nature of their relationship. Part of the "Global Oscars Comes to Berks" series. Free.
"Ask a Veteran" Panel — 5:30-7 p.m., Nov. 7, Flex Theater, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park campus. The Pennsylvania State University Veterans Organization will host a panel discussion for the community. The panel will be livestreamed.
Café Laura Theme Dinner: A Speakeasy - Savor the Secrets — Nov. 8, Café Laura, Mateer Building, University Park campus. Students in HM 430 Advanced Food Production and Service Management prepare a series of themed dinners throughout the semester to be served in the student-run Café Laura restaurant. Reservations required.
Café Laura Theme Dinner: The Steaks are High: Night at the Casino — Nov. 8, Café Laura, Mateer Building, University Park campus. Students in HM 430 Advanced Food Production and Service Management prepare a series of themed dinners throughout the semester to be served in the student-run Café Laura restaurant. Reservations required.
Lectures
Mary E. Rolling Reading Series: Chika Unigwe — 6 p.m., Nov. 2, Foster Auditorium, Paterno Library, University Park campus. Nigerian-born writer Chika Unigwe will offer a reading. Unigwe has published four novels, including “On Black Sisters’ Street," “De Zwarte Messias,” and a short story collection, “Better Never than Late." Her latest novel, “The Middle Daughter,” was published in April. Free.
"Oil extraction and Kichwa indigenous futurities in the Amazon rainforest: The experience of the Sani community" — 3:30 p.m., Nov. 3, 112 Walker Building, University Park campus and Zoom. Geovanni Siquihua, a Kichwa indigenous leader from Sani, a community in Ecuador's Amazon rainforest currently resisting oil extraction, will present during the Department of Geography's Coffee Hour lecture series. Free.
Freddie J. Bitsoie, Diné (Navajo) chef — 12 p.m., Nov. 6, Foster Auditorium, Paterno Library, University Park campus. Chef Freddie J. Bitsoie, who is celebrated for his modernization of Native American cuisine while maintaining a deep reverence for its traditional roots, will give a talk titled "The New Native Kitchen, Rediscovering American Cuisine."
Autumn Rose Miskweminanocsqua Williams — 7 p.m., Nov. 6, Perkins Student Center Auditorium, Berks campus. Autumn Rose Miskweminanocsqua Williams, an advocate for Afro-Indigenous culture, social justice awareness, body positivity and mental health, will present a lecture on self-love and empowerment.
"A Century of Reform: Writing the Long Life of Thomas Wentworth Higginson" — 12:05 to 1:50 p.m., Nov. 7, Fireside Lounge, Slep Student Center, Altoona campus. Penn State Altoona’s Spotlight on Teaching and Research (STAR) lecture series continues with a presentation by Distinguished Professor of English and American Studies Sandra Petrulionis and student Emera Gregor. Free.
Russell E. Marker Lectures in Evolutionary Biology — 3 p.m., Nov. 8-9, Foster Auditorium, Paterno Library, University Park campus. Stephen Stearns, Edward P. Bass Professor Emeritus of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Yale University, will present lectures on evolution, aging and medicine. The series includes a lecture intended for a general audience as well as a more specialized lecture. Free.
Author E.M. Liddick — 6:30 p.m., Nov. 9, Edith Davis Eve Chapel, Altoona campus. Author E.M. Liddick will speak about his experiences and address topics such as grief, PTSD, anxiety, veteran's issues and awareness, and Alzheimer’s. Liddick is a Penn State alumnus and the author of the memoir “All the Memories That Remain: War, Alzheimer's, and the Search for a Way Home.” Free.
In-person exhibits
"Black Feminist Embodiments of Self-Love and Self-Recovery" — Through Nov. 20, Outside of Paterno Reading Room, Pattee Library, University Park campus. Inspired by a scene in Toni Morrison's novel "Beloved," set in Ohio prior to Emancipation, the exhibition displays sources of self-love and self-recovery found in a variety of literature by and about Black women. Free.
“Andrea Doria: Dive to An Era” — Through Nov. 30, Friedman Art Gallery, Wilkes-Barre campus. The Friedman Art Gallery will feature a collection of items recovered on more than 200 dives to the shipwreck of the Andrea Doria. Diver and author Gary Gentile has recovered dishes, cups, glasses, plates, jewelry and ceramic panels created by the internationally known artist Romano Rui and more.
"Eudaimonia" — Through Dec. 5, Ronald K. DeLong Gallery, Lehigh Valley campus. Featuring works from artists Sasha Meret and Michelle Neifert, "Eudaimonia" explores themes related to mindfulness, acceptance, purpose, skill mastery and positive relationships.
"Unplucked Gems" — Through Dec. 9, McLanahan Gallery of the Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. The exhibit by Juried Art Exhibition winner Taylor Pilote reveals ties to notable aspects of car culture, both personal and industrial, using physically distorted recognizable vehicle features. Free.
"I Sang You A Song Though I Didn't Know the Words" — Through Dec. 9, Sheetz Gallery of the Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. Juried Art Exhibition winner Boryana Rusenova-Ina utilizes experiences of learning English in post-communist Bulgaria to influence this exhibition. Free.
"High Strung" — Through December, Woksob Family Gallery, University Park campus. Sculptures by local artist and educator Melissa Forkner Lesher transform commonplace materials into delicate works of art. Lesher weaves her creations with precision and efficiency by carefully assembling small hand-built pieces into larger, meticulously crafted configurations.
"Sad Purple and Mauve: A History of Dye-Making" — Through Jan. 15, Special Collections exhibition space, 104 Paterno Library, University Park campus. The science, art and history and textile and paper dyes and their uses in books and manuscripts will be the focus of this exhibit.
“Invisible Bodies” — Through Feb. 8, 2024, Art Alley, HUB-Robeson Galleries, University Park campus. The HUB-Robeson Galleries present "Invisible Bodies," an exploration of migrant labor through an artistic lens, curated by the Border Gallery and Emireth Herrera Valdés.
“Magnificare” — Through Feb. 22, 2024, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park campus. The HUB-Robeson Galleries present "Magnificare," an exhibition of ceramic sculptures by Marguerita Hagan.
"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.
Virtual exhibits
In addition to in-person events, a number of virtual exhibits are available through University departments. The Palmer Museum of Art and University Libraries offer a rotating selection of historical and artistic collections to view online.
Current exhibitions include an examination of women’s athletics at Penn State and Title IX, editorial cartoons from The Jerry Doyle Papers, and an exploration of the impact of the 1918 influenza pandemic.