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Academics may be a serious pursuit, but San Jose State University proves that a well-rounded education isn't all about hitting the books, at least judging from the full event calendar offered by the College of Humanities and the Arts. SJSU is hosting its usual wide variety of discussions and performances by famous names, top professionals and students meant to inform and inspire students of the university and members of the community alike.
This weekend, new San Jose dance company sjDANCEco teams up with university troupe DanceWorks SJSU for "Inspired by... ", a concert of dance and music by South Bay choreographers and composers. The performance, which will be held Oct. 2425 at San Jose State's Dance Studio Theatre, features dances choreographed by Maria Basile, Heather Cooper, Carlos Gonzales, Richard Kear, Gary Masters, Jeannine Vogt and Mara Williams, who will all also perform their works. The concert also includes live music composed by Paulette Davis and Rob Williams. Basile and Masters are also directors and founding members of sjDANCEco; Masters is an associate professor for SJSU's dance program and is the former director of the Limón West Dance Project, where Basile was also a member. Gonzales is a former director of Los Lupeños de San Jose Mexican folkloric dance group. "Inspired by... " will also feature a work by SJSU Dance Director Fred Matthews and two pieces by noted choreographer José Limón. Performances are held each night at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10$15. For more information, call 408.924.5046.
Literature lovers not enrolled at San Jose State may need to call in sick to work Oct. 30 because the Center for Literary Arts at San Jose State University has that day booked up for with events featuring two very different writers.
Studs Terkel
Legendary author and broadcast journalism pioneer Studs Terkel appears in conversation with Center for Literary Arts director Mitch Berman on Oct. 30 at 12:30 p.m. at Morris Dailey Hall at SJSU (registration is at noon). The Commonwealth Club Silicon Valley sponsors this special conversation with the Pulitzer-winning Terkel, who got his start in broadcasting in the 1930s performing a variety of duties for a Chicago-area radio station, reading for soap operas and other radio shows, including a news program. His career in radio eventually blossomed into his own music show, which from there slowly grew into a program of interviews with people both famous and unknown, as well as a series of bestselling books, among them Hard Times and The Good War. Terkel's talent for candid interviews and for chronicling the hopes, dreams and sorrows of everyday people has made him a beloved--and very influential--American writer. Tickets are $15 general admission. For reservations, call the Commonwealth Club at 800.847.7300.
Stuart Dischell
Also on Oct. 30, the Center for Literary Arts brings acclaimed poet Stuart Dischell to town. Dischell, who teaches poetry writing and contemporary poetry in the MFA Creative Writing Program at the University of North CarolinaGreensboro, will read from his works, sign books and take part in a public question-and-answer session at the university. His poetry, which is known for dark humor, passion and poignancy, has been published in three collections, including this year's Dig Safe, as well as in many literary anthologies and in journals such as The New Republic and Slate. The event will begin at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call 408.924.4600 or see www.litarts.org.
Scholarship concert
November brings a chance to both support arts education and reap the rewards of it with the 28th annual SJSU Scholarship Concert, which will be held Nov. 78 at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph in downtown San Jose. The San Jose State Concert Choir and the San Jose State Chorale will be joined by the Mission Chamber Orchestra for a program titled "Grand and Glorious" that highlights favorite opera choruses, including selections from Carmen, La Traviata and Lohengrin. Also featured will be works by Verdi, Bizet, Rossini, Mascagni and Wagner, as well as Johannes Brahms' choral masterwork Nänie. Noted conductor Elena Sharkova leads the choirs and the orchestra. Tickets are $10$15 general ($25 preferred/$50 benefactor). For more information, call 408.924.4332.
Li-Young Lee
November also brings another treat for poetry fans, with an appearance by poet Li-Young Lee on Nov. 1213. The Indonesian-born Lee, who is of Chinese parentage, created a book of autobiographical prose based on research gleaned from his travels in Indonesia and China. Lee has taught at numerous universities, including Northwestern and the University of Iowa, which has a prestigious writing program, and garnered awards for both of his books of poetry, Rose and The City in Which I Love You. Lee will appear at a reading, booksigning and Q&A session on Nov. 12, 7:30 p.m., at the new Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library. The next day, Lee will also participate in a conversation with Mitch Berman (director of SJSU's Center for the Literary Arts), in addition to holding a second question-and-answer session and booksigning, Nov. 13, noon, also at the King Library. For more information, call 408.924.4600 or see www.litarts.org.
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