Campus Life

Things to Do at Penn State: Feb. 2-9

A selection of cultural events happening across the University this weekend and next week

“In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson” is based on the award-winning novel by Bette Bao Lord and adapted for the stage by playwright Mark Branner. Credit: Stephen PruittAll Rights Reserved.

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

Dwennimmen African Dance Company7 p.m., Feb. 2, Pullo Center, Penn State York. The student dance company performs African dances. Free. 

2023 African American Music FestivalFeb. 1-4, various locations, University Park campus, and via livestream. Students and faculty in the School of Music, along with special guests, will perform. Free.

U.S. Navy Concert Band3 p.m., Feb. 4, Pullo Center, Penn State York. The Navy's premier wind ensemble presents a wide array of marches, patriotic selections, orchestral transcriptions and modern wind ensemble repertoire. 

"Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson"2 p.m., Feb. 5, Eisenhower Auditorium, University Park campus. The Honolulu Theatre for Youth presents an immigrant girl learning to love her new homeland, with a little help from America's favorite pastime.

Lectures

Ashtekar Frontiers of Science Lectures: Tamma Carleton12:30 p.m., Feb. 4, 100 Thomas Building, University Park campus. Tamma Carleton, assistant professor of economics at the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California, Santa Barbara, will present “Combining satellite imagery with machine learning to address global challenges.” Free.

"Reinterpreting Women in Medieval Biblical Plays" — 4 p.m., Feb. 6, via Zoom. Christina Fitzgerald will touch on some ways scholarship is wrong about women in medieval and early modern biblical plays, the way medieval and early modern women contributed to the economic and cultural life of late medieval and early modern cities and their involvement in play-making. Free.

"Ocean worlds of the outer solar system: Life as we know it or life as we don't?" 4 p.m., Feb. 6, 112 Walker Building, University Park campus, and via Zoom. Alex Hayes, associate professor of astronomy and director of the Spacecraft Planetary Image Facility at Cornell University, will review the current understanding and latest developments in the exploration of the ocean worlds Europa, Enceladus and Titan. Free. 

"Automating Architecture: Architecture in Large Numbers"Noon, Feb. 8, via Zoom. Mollie Claypool and Gilles Retsin, co-founders of Automated Architecture Ltd., a design and technology company based in the U.K., will discuss their work using robotics and automation to provide high-quality, sustainable affordable housing.

"The Frederick Douglass Project"6 p.m., Feb. 8. via Zoom. Emmy Award-winning actor Keith David will deliver a dramatic reading of a speech by the legendary 19th-century American abolitionist. Free.

"What Should You Expect From a Leader?"7 p.m., Feb. 8, via Zoom. Kelly Wolgast, director of the COVID-19 Operations Control Center at Penn State, will share her perspectives on leadership, what makes a great leader, and women in military leadership positions. Free, but registration required.

Events

Black History MonthThrough February, various campuses. Penn State celebrates Black History Month with a variety of events. Free.

Blind Date with a BookThrough February, Franklin Atrium, Pattee Library, University Park campus. Fiction and nonfiction books in a variety of genres will be available for patrons to check out for a reading date. Free.

"Check Your 'fit: Slow Fashion Resource Fair"5-7 p.m., Feb. 8, Dewey Room, Pattee Library, University Park campus. The event will explore the world of slow sustainable fashion. Free.

"The Trial (O processo,)"6 p.m., Feb. 9, Foster Auditorium, Paterno Library, University Park campus. The Brazilian film series kicks off with a 2018 movie with a behind-the-scenes look at the impeachment trial of Brazil's first female President, Dilma Rousseff. Free.

Virtual exhibits

"Penn State Women's Athletics and Title IX: The Success and Struggles for Equal Access" Through May. This University Libraries exhibit focuses on the impact Title IX legislation has had on Penn State women student-athletes. Free.

"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

"Nature and Space"Through Feb. 9, McLanahan Gallery, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Penn State Altoona. The exhibition features work by local artist Sam Dietze. Free.

"Paintings as Memories"Through Feb. 9, McLanahan Gallery, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Penn State Altoona. The exhibition features work by local artist Billie Hollen. Free.

"Dreams | AYDO"Through March 5, HUB Gallery, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park campus. AYDO re-imagines Korean folklore and precolonial spiritual practices to reflect personal and Asian American perspectives. Free.

"Hard Candy Tectonics"Through May 14, exhibition cases, HUB-Robeson Building, University Park campus. Works by Gracelee Lawrence showcase glimmering and seductive surfaces blending into sensual volumes in space that together form the plastic sublime that are Lawrence's sculptures. Free.

"Sticky Mirror"Feb. 4-May 30, Art Alley, HUB-Robeson Building, University Park campus. An exhibition of artist Sarah Sutton's work that imagine in-between space, scalar fluidity, and what the artist calls psychic spaces, where the private and public realm collapse. Free.

"Between the Lines: Global Histories of the Book"Through Aug. 28, Special Collections Exhibition gallery, 104 Paterno Library, University Park campus. Students in HIST 255N: History of the Book share insights and books through this exhibition about the forms and functions of books. Free.

"Zombie Ant Experience"Through August, 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, 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, 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.

Last Updated February 1, 2023