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Theatrical adaptation of Manning’s ‘Book of Visions’ premieres at Transylvania

Posted on March 10, 2014July 14, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.—The world premiere stage production of Maurice Manning’s award-winning book of poetry “Lawrence Booth’s Book of Visions” debuts March 27 at 7:30 p.m. in Transylvania University’s Lucille Caudill Little Theater. This ensemble performance portrays friendships and fantasies from the colorful life of young Lawrence “Law” Booth who imagines incredible things to escape his troubles. Set in Appalachia in the 1970s and 80s, the coming-of-age poetic saga focuses on the adventures of the rebellious Booth, his scurrilous Mad Daddy, his best friend Black Damon, the perhaps imaginary Missionary Woman and Red Dog, his beloved canine pal. Drawn directly from Manning’s poems, this theatrical adaptation features vivid monologues, startling revelations, choral storytelling, Appalachian music and many weird and wondrous visions all brought to vigorous life by Transylvania student actors and a professional production team. “Lawrence Booth’s Book of Visions” took Manning, an English professor and writer-in-residence at Transylvania, more than 10 years to write. It was a project he began right out of college, and although he felt unsure of what he was doing, he was certain he wanted to be a writer. “I didn’t really know what that meant or how to go about it,” Manning said. “I just wanted to be a person who read books and carried around a pen and scraps of paper, someone who studies the world for its meaning.” Manning must have figured it out. “Lawrence Booth’s Book of Visions” won the 2001 Yale Series

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Transylvania recognized as a top-10 regional liberal arts value

Posted on March 5, 2014July 14, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.— A national publication recently recognized Transylvania University as one of the best educational bangs for the buck in the region. Kiplinger’s Personal Finance named Transylvania a top-10 best value for liberal arts schools in the Mid-South and Southeast. The magazine based its ratings on affordability and academic quality. Transylvania and the other top schools on the list give students and parents what they’re looking for in an education: namely small class sizes, a high four-year graduation rate and an outstanding first-year retention rate. While private liberal arts colleges may seem more expensive than public universities at first, better financial aid and scholarship packages and a commitment to four-year graduation help make schools such as Transylvania an affordable option. “You should expect a positive return on your college investment,” said Brad Goan, vice president for enrollment and dean of admissions. “Our students, graduates and their families know an investment in Transylvania pays them back many times over.” Beyond the financial assistance that more than 98 percent of Transylvania students receive, there’s the value of an education that empowers them and gives them the tools and confidence to succeed in life. Kiplinger’s rankings consider both academic and cost-related criteria. These include student-to-faculty ratio, incoming students’ test scores, four- and five-year graduation rates, and the admission rate. Other factors are the sticker price, average student debt at graduation, and availability and average amount of need- and merit-based financial aid. Looking at

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Free program supporting the developmentally delayed population open for enrollment

Posted on March 3, 2014July 14, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.—As a first-year student at Transylvania University, Olivia Oakley ’15 of London, Ky., knew she wanted to volunteer. She was drawn to the unique dynamic she discovered at College for Living, an on-campus program that places college students and their developmentally delayed neighbors side-by-side in a creative environment. She has since come to recognize how powerful and rewarding volunteering can be. Every fall and winter term, students at Transylvania create a college-like experience for local residents with disabilities. The College for Living program provides a special opportunity for high-functioning individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities, age 18 or older, to experience attending classes on a college campus. A program of the university’s Office of Community Service and Civic Engagement, College for Living is largely a student-run enterprise. Classes are organized and taught by students, and at least three student volunteers participate in each class. The ratio of students to community participants helps simulate the experience of working and socializing with college peers. Classes include drawing, language study, dance, singing, sports, and arts and crafts. Participants and their caregivers enjoy the camaraderie and learning that are at the heart of College of Living. Jason Smitha, a long-time participant, looks forward to each session. “I love the socialization and getting to see my friends again,” he explains. “I love being involved in helping decide what kind of things to do in craft class. It makes me smile and it makes

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Warning: This lecture may endanger conventional views

Posted on February 26, 2014July 14, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.—Death of God theology? Not too extreme for John D. Caputo, who will bring his provocative philosophy to Transylvania University’s Carrick Theater at 7 p.m. March 20. His talk, “The Future of Justice: Nihilism and the History of Hope,” is part of the Rick O’Neil Lecture Series. “Caputo’s cutting-edge thought challenges the conceits of religious traditions and secularity to offer different, affirmative ways of imagining the future,” said Wilson Dickinson, associate dean for religious life. “His work stretches the boundaries of our typical ways of thinking to make room for justice, love, and perhaps even God.” Caputo, an internationally known professor emeritus at Syracuse and Villanova universities, has written more than 15 books that have been translated into a dozen languages. He lectures in far-flung locales—from Qatar to Norway. “Caputo writes about profoundly complex matters in accessible prose—in ways that are provocative and understandable,” Dickinson said. “While his ideas are new and challenging, he also draws from the deep wells of philosophical and theological traditions.” Caputo has been influential in the continental philosophy and emergent church movements. According to his Syracuse University profile, he is “intent on producing impure thoughts, thoughts which circulate between philosophy and theology, short-circuits which deny fixed and rigorous boundaries between philosophy and theology.” His book, “The Weakness of God: A Theology of the Event,” earned the 2007 American Academy of Religion Book Award for Constructive-Reflective Studies in Religion, and “What would Jesus Deconstruct?” won

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Transylvania choir tour: This bus is bound for glory

Posted on February 24, 2014July 14, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.―All 39 Transylvania University choir members will soon board a coach bus for an early spring concert tour, performing an eclectic repertoire of sacred music in Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana and Texas churches. The vocal tour kicks off March 7 close to campus, at Second Presbyterian Church in Lexington at 7 p.m., and then heads south, eventually landing in Fort Worth, Texas, the farthest destination on the six-day journey. While the tour is regional, the musical offering is global, including songs of worship and adoration from the ancient to the contemporary. A Lithuanian folk tune, a Nigerian Christmas song, Gregorian melodies and an E.E. Cummings’ poem set to music are all part of the diverse mix of spiritual music offered by the choral group. Transylvania’s a cappella group, TBA, is featured after the intermission. A subset of the choir, TBA will invite the audience to join them in Michael McGlynn’s “Alleluia: Incantations.” Each of the six concerts concludes with singing the praises of the university as well, with a heart-felt rendition of “Hail, Transylvania.” The homecoming concert is Monday, March 17, at 7:30 p.m. in Carrick Theater on Transylvania’s campus. This concert, like all of the concerts on the tour, is free and open to the public. Carrick Theater is in Transylvania’s Mitchell Fine Arts Center on West Fourth Street, between North Broadway and Upper Streets. Free parking is available in the adjacent parking lot. The Mitchell Fine Arts Center

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