1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

Events

Project SEE Theatre continues professional residency at Transy with “Marie Antoinette”

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Project SEE Theatre will present playwright David Adjmi’s satire, “Marie Antoinette,” in Transylvania University’s Little Theater for five performances from May 17–21. “Marie Antoinette” marks the second annual production of the university’s professional theater residency program, which is sponsored by the Dixon/White Theater Fund. The fund also underwrites the cost of tickets, which makes professional productions free to the Lexington theater-going community. The Project SEE residency gives students a chance to work and perform alongside theater professionals, said director Sullivan Canaday White, who is a Transylvania professor and a Project SEE Theatre co-founder. While depicting the past, the upcoming production of “Marie Antoinette” will resonate with modern audiences. “Adjmi’s acerbic wit and unflinching depiction of class warfare offers a cautionary tale for America in the 21st century,” White said. “Though the play begins with royal diversions and regal amusements, it quickly descends into the chaos and violence of the French Revolution. I don’t think the historical ending needs a spoiler alert, but the death spiral of the French aristocracy clearly portrays what can happen when the billionaire-class loses touch with the needs of the 99 percent.” Hailed by Time Out in New York as a “jagged yet elegant historical riff,” Adjmi’s contemporary take on the ill-fated queen of France unmasks an aristocracy whose addiction to entertainment turns their dream of untold wealth into a nightmare of resentment and revenge. Read more about the production, including the cast and crew,

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Transylvania senior thesis exhibition opens Friday

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University’s senior thesis exhibition, In Case You Missed It (or #ICYMI), will open Friday with a reception and art talks. The Morlan Gallery exhibition will feature works in a variety of media, from tennis balls to textiles. A catered reception will be from 6-7 p.m., followed by 15-minute talks by the artists about their work. The show, reception and talks are free and open to the public. Featured artists Carrie Billet, from Harlan, Ky., is a studio art major who works in textile, video and paint to create a narrative about the relationship between place and self. Henry Kramer, of Cincinnati, is a studio art major working in the traditional media of paint and the not-so-traditional media of tennis balls to investigate his personal life and what he describes as “important things in my way.” Hannah Logsdon, from Georgetown, Ky., is majoring in studio art and history. Her work is primarily ceramic, but she includes drawing, painting and metal work in her thesis exhibition. Logsdon, who explores the human form and artwork as a living being, said: “I like the physicality of artmaking; there is a tangible partnership the artist has with the work, both in the manipulation of material and the relationship to the subject.” Theodora Salazar, originally from Chicago, is a self-designed social practice art major. She has created a series of mixed media pieces exploring social and community responsibility and self reflection. The Morlan Gallery, which

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The Places We Live: Social Practice Artworks

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Lexington, Ky.— Transylvania University’s Morlan Gallery presents “The Places We Live,” an exhibition of artists working in social engagement from Feb. 21 through March 29. Six social intervention artists from across the U.S. will activate local and regional spaces while exhibiting tangible art objects from those programmed interventions. The artists include Meredith Knapp Brickell, Wes Janz and Sean Starowitz of Indianapolis; Maria Lind Blevins of Morehead, Ky.; Mark Menjivar of San Antonio, Texas; and Michael Strand of Fargo, N.D. Social practice artists embrace a variety of methods to engage with community, both directly and indirectly. Brickell is one the artists who decided to work directly with the Lexington community. Over the last six months, she has travelled frequently to meet with a group of girls from the Northside neighborhood. This group of 7-11 year-olds—called Busy Bees—has ventured into neighborhoods with cameras and notepads to document communities. The project, titled “Sidewalk Stories,” also has been facilitated by neighborhood resident Felice Salmon. It will culminate in a Busy Bee-created fanzine, which will be on display in the Morlan Gallery as part of a larger in-gallery installation documenting the project. A variety of other social interventions will be included in “The Places We Live”—including Menjivar’s “My Sadness Goes On and On…,” a listening station of collected sad songs submitted to him from contributors around the world. Also, Janz’s installation, “Crazy for Cages,” examines the U.S. prison industrial complex. Morlan Gallery, located in Transylvania’s

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Transylvania to host Affrilachian poetry, visual arts exhibition

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University’s Morlan Gallery will open its 2017 exhibition year on Friday, Jan. 13, with an exhibition of Affrilachian visual artists and poets. Titled “Black Bone” after the Affrilachian Poets’ first literary anthology to be released this month, Morlan’s exhibition will showcase artists and poets from states in the Appalachian region—including Kentucky, South Carolina, North Carolina and Ohio. They will share how those connected to Affrilachia tell the story of the United States through visual and written culture. The exhibition, which will be free and open to the public, will run through Feb. 14. An opening reception for the artists will be Thursday, Jan. 19, from 7:30-9 p.m. The Affrilachian Poets will give a reading that evening at 6 in Carrick Theater adjacent to the gallery. Coined by Frank X Walker, the term Affrilachia is “an ever-evolving cultural landscape poised to render the invisible visible. Affrilachia embraces a multicultural influence, a spectrum of people who consider Appalachia home and/or identify strongly with the trials and triumphs of being of this region,” according to the group’s website. The “Black Bone” exhibition is part of Transylvania’s Creative Intelligence series, which also includes concerts and lectures. The theme of this year’s series is “Unlearn Fear + Hate,” which is a term from one of Walker’s poems. Artists in Morlan’s “Black Bone” exhibition include: Brian Campbell, Angel Clark, Willis “Bing” Davis, Natasha Giles, Jared Owens, Kelly Phelps, Kyle Phelps, Bobby Scroggins, Bianca Spriggs, Kiptoo

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Time for Three to perform at Transylvania on Oct. 11

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—The world-class string trio Time for Three will perform a free, public concert at Transylvania University on Tuesday, Oct. 11. Known for their genre-bending concerts, the ensemble’s eclectic variety of styles include classical, jazz, Appalachian, rock and hip-hop. The performance will begin at 7:30 p.m. in Haggin Auditorium. It is part of the Smith Concert Series. Go here for free tickets. “Time for Three was an absolute sensation when they performed with the Lexington Philharmonic a few years ago, and since then their international reputation has grown,” Transylvania music professor Greg Partain said. “We’re thrilled we were able to entice them to Transy for a full-length concert.” Time for Three is known as a “classically trained garage band” with astonishing virtuosity and a relaxed style. “In person, the members of Time for Three come off as just three dudes in a band,” according to National Public Radio. “But with their staggering technique and freewheeling genre-crossing, it’s hard not to be swept up in the force of their contagious energy.” The ensemble features violinists Nicolas Kendall and Charles Yang and double-bassist Ranaan Meyer.  Time for Three has performed in venues that range from Carnegie Hall to NFL games and the Indy 500. They hold a successful residency with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. The Smith Concert Series at Transylvania was created in 2007 by the late Dorothy J. Smith, a 1942 graduate, to bring high-quality musical performances to campus. The series is

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