Events

LEXINGTON, Ky.—Babies, wild dogs, komodo dragons and hula dancers abound in Naomi Iizuka’s “Aloha, Say the Pretty Girls,” which runs Feb. 17-19 and 24-26 at 7:30 p.m., and Feb. 20 at 2 p.m., in Transylvania’s Lucille C. Little Theater.  Presented by Transylvania University Theater and directed by Sullivan Canaday White, visiting assistant professor of drama, the fantastical play is about finding your tribe in a world gone haywire. Winner of the prestigious Whiting Writers’ Award in 1999, Iizuka’s play received its world premiere in the 1999 Humana Festival of Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville. “‘Aloha, Say the Pretty Girls’ is a hilarious show with characters who are searching for what they are missing in their lives, something not only the actors, but all of us, can relate to,” said senior Emileigh Burns, assistant director of the play. “Working on this show has been an experience of a lifetime. As a senior, this is my last department show, and I wouldn’t trade that for anything.” A post-performance colloquia on the play will begin immediately following the shows on Feb. 17 and 24. Tickets are $10 and may be reserved by calling the box office at (859) 281-3621, Monday-Friday from 1-4 p.m. For more information, contact the fine arts office at (859) 233-8141.

LEXINGTON, KY.—Randall Kennedy, one of the preeminent voices on race in America and a Harvard law professor, will tackle sensitive racial issues in his lecture titled “Can We Talk? Problems in Race and Conversation” on Tuesday, Feb. 15, at 7:30 p.m. in Haggin Auditorium in the Mitchell Fine Arts Center. The lecture is free and open to the public. Known for his fearlessness, Kennedy brings the divisive issues that plague black America to the forefront of mass culture. With wit and accessibility, he challenges audiences to confront society’s—and their own—racial prejudices.  Frank conversations include the ongoing linguistic and historical baggage of loaded words like “nigger” and “sellout,” interracial intimacies and adoptions and overt (and covert) racial lines. Kennedy’s bestseller, “Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word,” sparked a firestorm of national debate, including articles in The New York Times, Newsweek and TIME, as well as in the popular consciousness. Kennedy studied at Princeton, Oxford and Yale and served as a law clerk for Judge J. Skelly Wright of the U.S. Court of Appeals and for Justice Thurgood Marshall of the U.S. Supreme Court. While a faculty member at Harvard Law School, he has written extensively for academic and popular journals and served on the editorial boards of The American Prospect and The Nation. Kennedy is also the author of “Sellout: The Politics of Racial Betrayal and Interracial Intimacies: Sex, Marriage, Identity and Adoption.” This lecture is part of Transylvania’s

Read ““Can We Talk? Problems in Race and Conversation” is topic of Transylvania’s Kenan Lecture, Tuesday, Feb. 15; free and open to the public”

LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University’s vocal ensembles will present “An Evening at the Cabaret: As Seen on TV,” Friday and Saturday, Jan. 28 and 29, at 7:30 p.m. in Carrick Theater in the Mitchell Fine Arts Center. Admission is $10. The box office next to Carrick Theater will be open for ticket reservations Monday, Jan. 24-Friday, Jan. 28, from 12-3 p.m. The phone number is (859) 233-8601. “An Evening at the Cabaret,” featuring the Transylvania Choir, the Transylvania Singers, the Pioneer Voices, the a capella group Formerly Known As and several soloists, will include a variety of songs from television shows, spanning multiple decades and styles. Selections include songs that have been featured on “Glee,” a medley of Phoebe’s songs from “Friends,” and theme songs from newer shows such as “The Office,” “Smallville,” as well as classic television shows and cartoons. For more information, contact the fine arts office at (859) 233-8141.