As students return to classes, Emory is getting back into the swing of things this September with a new season of exciting arts events for the campus community and the general public alike. From film screenings and dance performances to quartet concerts and guest artist lectures, there is something for everyone to enjoy.
Film
Emory Cinematheque returns for the fall semester with film series “Federico Fellini: A Centennial Celebration.” Weekly screenings of Fellini’s work begin Aug. 30 and take place every Wednesday evening at 7:30 p.m. in White Hall 208. September screenings include “La Strada/The Road” (1954) and “La Notti di Cabiria/Nights of Cabiria” (1957). One of the most widely acclaimed Italian filmmakers of the 20th century, Fellini worked as a writer and director across 40 years. Four of his films won the Best Foreign Film Award at the Academy Awards and Fellini himself won a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1993. If you are a film buff or have interest in cinema classics, you won’t want to miss this series. All screenings are free and open to the public. This series is co-sponsored by the Michael C. Carlos Museum.
Dance
Dance meets martial arts in “meta/physical,” an evening of dance featuring works choreographed by Emory Dance faculty member Julio Medina and guest artist Nadya Zeitlin. Medina’s work explores concepts of space, time and identity, using techniques from martial arts to counter and heal from attacks rooted in colonialism. Zeitlin’s work is inspired by the unique architecture of Atlanta's Central Library, which was designed in Brutalist style by Bauhaus architect Marcel Breuer. There will be two performances on Friday, Sept. 9, and Saturday, Sept. 10, both at 7:30 p.m. Performances take place at the Dance Studio in the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts and tickets are on sale now.
Michael C. Carlos Museum
Visits to the Carlos Museum are extra fun with family-friendly programming like Sunday FUNdays (Sept. 4) or afternoon tea and scones at AntiquiTEA (Tuesday, Sept. 6). On Friday, Sept. 9, Emory students are invited to Student Studio to create their own clay pot inspired by the African Galleries’ large, ceramic water vessel from the Makonde people of Mozambique. Admission is free and first come, first served, while supplies last.
In conjunction with “Making an Impression: The Art and Craft of Ancient Engraved Gemstones,” Jonathan Master, associate professor of classics, will lead readers through two evenings (Monday, Sept. 12, and Monday, Sept. 19, at 7:30 p.m.) of discussion around a series of short texts that situate gems within the broader Roman discourse of wealth and luxury. This Carlos Reads series will explore the corrosive effects of Rome’s tremendous wealth as well as the human cost of gems. Space is limited and registration is required by calling 404 727-6118. The two-part series costs $40 for Carlos Museum members and $60 for nonmembers.
On Thursday, Sept. 15, at 7:30 p.m., Chase Kahwinhut Earles discusses his decades-long effort to help revive, master and honor ancestral Caddo pottery traditions in order to establish a path forward as a contemporary artist and develop a modern narrative. This lecture, entitled “Caddo Ceramic Traditions and Trajectories,” is presented in collaboration with the Atlanta Beltline’s Art on the Beltline project.
Earles will also lead a ceramic workshop for adults on Sunday, Sept. 17, beginning at 10 a.m. Organized in collaboration with the Atlanta Beltline’s Art on the Beltline project, the workshop costs $120 for Carlos Museum members and $150 for nonmembers. Space is limited and registration is required.
In other family-friendly activities, children of all ages can engage with the art at the Carlos Museum on Saturday, Sept. 17, at 2 p.m. during Artful Stories (ages 3-6) and Sunday, Sept. 18, at the Children’s Workshop (ages 8-12). Artful Stories invites children with an accompanying adult to explore the Art of the America galleries after hearing the story of a young girl’s discovery of shapes all around her in the book “Round Is a Tortilla: A Book of Shapes” by Roseanne Thong. Atlanta quilter Zachary Francois leads the Kuba Patterns and Shapes Workshop, drawing inspiration from the work of Black artists from many different cultures and time periods. Registration is required for both of these events. They each cost $20 for Carlos Museum members and $30 for nonmembers.
Music
The Emory Chamber Music Society of Atlanta kicks off its John and Linda Cooke Noontime Series on Friday, Sept. 9, in the Emerson Hall of the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts. This free 12 p.m. concert features Emory’s string quartet-in-residence, the Vega Quartet, and pianist William Ransom performing Schumann’s Piano Quintet and Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue.
On Sunday Sept. 11, nationally renowned singer-pianist duo Bradley Howard (tenor and music faculty member) and Lee Thompson (piano) present “Desire & Delusion: A Recital.” This concert features works such as Robert Schumann’s “Dichterliebe,” John David Earnest’s “War Dreams” and Maurice Ravel’s “Don Quichotte à Dulcinée.” Admission is free.
Emory Chamber Music Society of Atlanta celebrates its 30th anniversary Saturday, Sept. 17, at 8 p.m. in the Emerson Concert Hall of the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts. The concert will feature Brahms’ “Variations on a Theme of Haydn for 2 Pianos;” Ravel’s “String Quartet;” Barber’s glorious “Adagio for Strings” and Mendelssohn’s irrepressible “Octet for Strings.”
The 20th anniversary of the Flora Glenn Candler Concert Series opens Friday, Sept, 23, with the Atlanta premiere of a collaboration between composer Richard Danielpour and former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove, “A Standing Witness.” Written for the Music from Copland House ensemble and world-renowned mezzo soprano Susan Graham, this epic song cycle comprises a sweeping retrospective of momentous events in American history over the last half-century. Tickets are on sale now.
Creative writing
Emory’s Creative Writing Department kicks off its reading series for the 2022-2023 academic year with renowned prose writer, Jamaica Kincaid. On Monday, Sept. 19, Kinkaid delivers the Phyllis Wheatley Reading at 6:30 p.m. (location to be announced). Earlier that day, at 1:30 p.m., there will be a colloquium in the Kemp Malone Library (N301 Callaway). The event is co-sponsored by the Department of African American Studies.