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
"POLLINATORS! The Musical" — 1 and 3 p.m., Sept. 11, Millbrook Marsh Nature Center, State College. Penn State Extension master gardeners present a musical focused on pollinators as part of its "Monarchs at the Marsh" event. Free.
Pennsylvania Chamber Orchestra — 3 and 7 p.m., Sept. 11, Recital Hall, Music Building 1, University Park campus, and via livestream. The Pennsylvania Chamber Orchestra will present Mozart's Requiem in D Minor in concert. The performance also will include the State College Choral Society and the State College Area High School Master Singers.
"Prince Hamlet" — Sept. 16-17, Playhouse Theatre, University Park campus. A nontraditional telling of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" will feature a gender-bent cast plus American Sign Language and translation.
Lectures
"Climate Change is Everyone's Fight — Including Yours!" — 7 p.m., Sept. 8, 100 Thomas Building, University Park campus. Rhiana Gunn-Wright, one of the architects of the Green New Deal, will discuss how individuals, particularly members of Generation Z, can help combat climate change. Free.
Department of Geography Coffee Hour — 3:30 p.m., Sept. 9, 112 Walker Building, University Park campus. Mark Ortiz, President's Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Geography, will discuss the work of transnational youth movements across the physical and digital spheres, and the movements' distinct visions of climate justice. Free.
Denmark Vesey plot forum — 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Sept. 12, Foster Auditorium, Paterno Library, University Park campus. Penn State's Department of African American Studies will bring together a panel of scholars to discuss the 200th anniversary of the Denmark Vesey plot, an effort of free and enslaved Blacks to plan a revolt in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1822.
17th annual De Jong Lecture in Social Demography — 9 a.m., Sept. 16, 233B HUB-Robeson Center, University Park campus, and via livestream. Marcy Carlson, professor of sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will present "Generational Overlap: Changing Demography and Shared Lifetimes." Free.
Events
"AI for Good Expo" — 5-7:30 p.m., Sept. 8, Alumni Hall, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park campus. Visitors can learn more about using artificial intelligence, or AI, and machine learning to solve challenges related to education, health, environment and humanitarianism. Free.
LION Bash — 5-8 p.m., Sept. 8, South Allen Street, State College. The annual Living in One Neighborhood, or LION, Bash in the first three blocks of South Allen Street offers food vendors, music, activities and resources for students and community members. Free.
"Napoleon Dynamite: A Conversation with Jon Heder, Efren Ramirez and Jon Gries" — 7:30 p.m., Sept. 8, Pullo Center, Penn State York. A full screening of the film "Napoleon Dynamite" will be followed by a freewheeling, moderated discussion with members of the cast.
University Libraries Fall Open House — 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Sept. 7-8, Pattee and Paterno libraries and other locations at University Park campus. Students can take a self-guided tour and win free prizes as they learn more about the Libraries' academic, research and leisure resources and services. Free.
9/11 memorial ceremony — 5 p.m., Sept. 9, Old Main lawn, University Park campus. The Penn State College Republicans will host a remembrance ceremony for the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States. The group will plant nearly 3,000 flags on the lawn, and remarks will be provided by student leaders and U.S. Rep. Fred Keller. Free.
Extended museum hours — Sept. 12, various locations, University Park campus. Museums at University Park campus are offering special extended hours and will be open until 8 p.m. for campus and community members to explore. Free.
Marathon Read — 10 a.m.-10 p.m., Sept. 15, Pattee Mall, University Park campus. The annual Marathon Read returns as an in-person literature reading event featuring students and members of the University community. This year's theme is "The Pursuit of Sustainability" and attendees will have the opportunity to read in five-minute intervals throughout the event. Free.
7th annual Harvest Fest — 5-8 p.m., Sept. 15, Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Student Farm at Penn State, University Park campus. The Penn State Student Farm will celebrate its Harvest Fest with fresh food and live music. Free.
Virtual Exhibits
"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
"ARC Studio's Premiere" — Through Jan. 29, 2023, Art Alley, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park campus. Photos and paintings by Andrew Castañeda mirror the structure of a day in TV programming. Free.
"The Art of Remembering: A Selection of Gifts" — Through Dec. 18, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. The exhibit honors the gifts to the permanent collection of the Palmer Museum of Art and features works on paper by 19th- and 20th-century European and American artists. Free.
"Earth Archives: Stories of Human Impact" — Through Nov. 22, Eberly Family Special Collections Library, 104 Paterno Library, University Park campus. The exhibit explores the intersection of the environment, human activity, climate change and the documentary record. Free.
"Haiti: Liberation of the First Black Republic" — Through Dec. 16, Paterno Family Reading Room, Pattee Library, University Park campus. The exhibit examines the history of Haiti, the first modern Black republic resulting from its successful fight for liberation from the French. 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.