Campus Stories - Posts
Latin American authors reshaping world literature, Stanford literary scholar says
In recent years, the late Chilean novelist Roberto Bolaño has become the most famous figure on the Latin American literary scene. No doubt, Bolaño’s groundbreaking novels, such as Los detectives salvajes (The Savage Detectives) and 2666, have moved legions of readers. “In many circles, Bolaño has come to represent the entirety of contemporary Latin American…
Burghers can’t get cell coverage in Memorial Court
Now we know why Rodin’s Burghers of Calais are really upset. They apparently can’t get a cell signal. That became clear Friday morning to passersby in Memorial Court, where Rodin’s impressive bronze work is on display. But something new had been added: The sculptures were holding white iPhones in their oversized hands. The work honors…
Eva Perón, icon and spirit, is reimagined on the Stanford stage
Stanford junior Sammi Cannold is a great admirer of fem-icon Eva Perón, Argentina’s first lady from 1946 until her death in 1952. It all started with Evita. After seeing the 2012 Broadway revival in New York several times during her senior year of high school (it was at the top of her gift wish list…
Stanford music scholar redefines the jazz and cabaret culture of 1920s Harlem
From 1926 to 1935, the Cotton Club was the hottest jazz hub in New York City’s vibrant Harlem neighborhood. Not only did the club launch the careers of Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway and Lena Horne, but it also attracted celebrity clientele like Jimmy Durante, Walter Winchell and even the Prince of Jordan. Owned and run…
Stanford Repertory Theater explores the ethics of science with Brecht’s Life of Galileo
German playwright Bertolt Brecht is considered to be one of the most influential figures in 20th-century theatre. Like so many of Brecht’s plays, the themes in Life of Galileo resonate decades after it was written. The story centers on the great Italian scientist and natural philosopher Galileo Galilei, during the period when the Roman Catholic…
Stanford students celebrate release of graphic novel American Heathen
At a recent book launch on campus, six young Stanford artists sat at a long table in the Terrace Room of Margaret Jacks Hall with copies of American Heathen, the graphic novel they had written and illustrated, propped up in front of them. The event marked the highly anticipated culmination of a two-quarter English course…
Stanford literary scholar: White whales and the ‘Melville Effect’
As the author of syllabus staples like Billy Budd, Herman Melville has been a fixture of American letters over the past century. But this hasn’t always been the case. During his lifetime, readers knew Melville for his adventure stories like Typee and Omoo, but the works we know him for today –especially Moby-Dick – sold…
Summer Plans
It’s June, which means the campus is preparing for Commencement: The fountains are being coaxed out of hibernation, student prizes are being awarded, and the now-annual Senior Arts Gala is taking place at Bing Concert Hall. This year’s gala promises a showcase of some of the most talented performing and visual artists of the Class…
Roble Gym makeover includes new arts gym
Roble Gym makeover includes new arts gym Project on schedule to open in fall 2016. In June 2014, Stanford trustees approved plans to renovate Roble Gym, which was built in 1931 as a women’s gym and health center. Roble Gym will house the Department of Theater & Performance Studies (TAPS) Division of Dance and the…
Unexpected intersections
Far-flung collaborations flourish at Stanford: Physicists create dance performances, biologists and musicians expand our understanding of epilepsy, and engineers speed environmental research. This interdisciplinary environment springs from having strong science and humanities departments adjacent to a thriving arts district and is aided by research institutes that cross school and department lines. These collaborations blur traditional…
Five-year digitization and inventory project at Cantor nears the finish line
It has been picture day at Stanford’s Cantor Arts Center five days a week for five years. Thousands of objects have posed for the camera in order to be included in an online database. The massive digitization and inventory project serves multiple purposes: access for students, faculty and other scholars; a clear assessment of what…
Emerging String Quartet Program musicians find an audience behind bars and beyond
The silver metal walls of the cavernous industrial gymnasium reflected orange-clad women, staff members and corrections officers who came together to hear the Cecilia String Quartet perform Mendelssohn’s Opus 44, No. 2. Any nervousness the musicians felt going through the security check transformed into energy, encouraged by more than 60 incarcerated women at the San…
Stanford Live expands its mission with 2015-16 season
“The Arts and Social Change” and “War: Return and Recovery” are the two key themes at the core of Stanford Live’s 2015-16 season. The program will offer a full spectrum of classical, contemporary and multimedia performances, as well as talks, panels and seminars that build on the intellectual depth and breadth of this past season’s…
Cantor wins prestigious media and technology award
Stanford, Calif., May 8, 2015 — The Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University earned a 2015 Gold Muse Award from the American Alliance of Museums’ Media and Technology Professional Network. The Cantor won the Honeysett and Din Award for TandemArt, a software application created by recent Stanford Graduate School of Education (GSE) students Renee Bruner…
Choices!
It’s May at Stanford and that of course means – an exciting smorgasbord of arts activities. Every weekend is packed with an abundance of arts options. Make some difficult choices – or attend them all! Here is just a sampling of what each weekend brings: May 1-3: Musical Happy Hour with Fleet Street and Chanticleer…
Students draw parallels between civil rights movement in the 1960s and today in “Hairspray”
Stanford’s oldest and largest theatrical organization, the Ram’s Head Theatrical Society, explores civil rights and today’s world in its upcoming Hairspray production. Hairspray will take the spotlight in Memorial Auditorium for five performances: April 10–11 and 16–18. The theatrical society sets the scene for the production: Tracy Turnblad is a high school student in 1962…
