Posted on Feb 23, 2001

Yulman Theater's contemporary adaptation of
Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound opened Thursday as the second
offering in the “Season of Science.”

“In many ways, this was the first play about science,”
said Director William Finlay. “Prometheus gave fire to
mankind, and it also touches on medicine and the healing
arts, farming, mathematics and the ability to write down
one's thoughts (`the-all remembering skill').”

Shows are Friday, Feb. 23 and Saturday, Feb. 24, at 8
p.m.; Sunday, Feb. 25, at 2 p.m.; March 1 through 3 at 8 p.m.; and
March 4 at 2 p.m.

Ardelle Striker, artistic director of the Blue
Heron Theater in New York City, wrote the contemporary
adaptation. This is Finlay's third direction of the
play.

Cast members are Marty Albert (Strength),
Andrew Levinson (Violence), Jeff Silver (Hephaestus), Spencer
Christie (Prometheus), Ariel Fierman and Alison Struzziero (daughters
of Oceanus), Josh Dubs (Oceanus), Colleen Sentance (Io) and
Mark McKee (Hermes). Lighting is by John Miller, and costumes
by Lloyd Waiwaiole. Stage manager is Tamara Carl. Vocal coach
is Patsy Culbert.

The set, designed by Prof. Charles Steckler, consists of
lots of angular stone and iron. The chorus appears back
lighted above the stage. Among the unusual features are a
trapeze that carries Prometheus about 8 feet off the ground from
stage right to center stage, a vulture with a 16-foot wingspan
created by New York City sculptor Haakon Faste (trained as
artist and physicist), and a “Promethean ball” made of
8-foot iron hoops to which the hero is bound.

Finding the ball took some legwork, recalled Finlay, who
built it some 15 years earlier for a production of the play. He
finally tracked it down to a backyard in a rough Boston
neighborhood, where it was being used as a stand for a barbecue grill. When
a curious woman stuck her head out a window to ask what he
was doing, Finlay replied, “I'm Prometheus. I've come for
my ball.”

Yulman's “Season of Science” began last fall with a
Commedia Dell' Arté production, The Big Bang.
It concludes next term with Electrifying Acts,
a commissioned play by Jon Lipsky about the relationship of Thomas
Edison and Nikola Tesla and invention in America.

“The Season of Science has given us the opportunity to
work closely with our colleagues in the sciences, particularly
physics,” Finlay said. “Combining the
two is a hot topic in both the arts and the sciences,” he added,
noting several popular plays that deal with the themes:
Copenhagen, Proof and Arcadia. (The latter
was read this week by faculty and students as part of
freshman preceptorial, Finlay said.)

Tickets are available at the Yulman Theater box office,
ext. 6545.

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Posted on Feb 23, 2001

The College has launched a new Web site that features
some of the best stories about Union that have appeared in
major newspapers.

The Union home page now sports a catchy button that
leads users to the “Newsmakers @ Union” site. (The site can
be accessed directly by going to
www.union.edu/News/Newsmakers.)

Stories include “Colleges Embracing Towns Once Held
at Arm's Length” (Washington Post), “A River Town Makes
Amends” (New York Times), “How a Prominent Irish Writer Paid
a Posthumous Price for His Sharp Tongue” (Chronicle of
Higher Education) and “Students get `real-world' training in
engineering and architecture (Times Union).

The site will not be limited to national publications,
however. To satisfy prospective students' curiosity about the academic
life at Union, selected stories from Union's on-campus
publications (Union College magazine and
The Chronicle) will be added to a new section for “Student and
Faculty Profiles.”

“It's a shame to keep these great stories about Union
stuffed away in the attic,” said Tom Smith, Web site director.
“Now that they are on the Web, everyone will be able to
learn more about Union.”

Click Here To See It For Yourself!

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Posted on Feb 23, 2001

Is it acceptable to slurp oyster juice from the shell at a
formal dinner?

Or, what do you do if you spill at the table?

Those questions and others were discussed on Monday at
a Class of 2002 Honors Dinner organized by Byron
Nichols, director of graduate honors and fellowships, through
Dining Services.

Besides celebrating academic success and encouraging
the College's most promising juniors to pursue opportunities such
as an NSF, Rhodes or Watson, the event was designed to
expose the students to dining etiquette that might come in handy
during interviews, said Nichols.

The menu included cream of broccoli soup, pear sorbet,
Dijon encrusted rack of lamb and berries Napolean. Nearly
60 students and 18 faculty attended.

With so many busy families having dinner “on-the-go,”
it's getting rare that entire families sit down to eat together,
said Steve Pearse, director of dining services, who dusted off
books by Emily Post and others for the dinner. Pearse and his staff
have organized similar events for other groups.

Nichols on Monday told a story of a top law school
graduate who was having trouble landing a job. The reason:
prospective employers thought his poor dining habits would not
represent their firms well.

By the way, it is acceptable to slurp oyster juice from the
shell. And if you spill? Blot a small one with your napkin. Ask a waiter
for help with a bigger one. (Don't apologize. That embarrasses
the host.)

So, what's the best bit of advice Pearse could offer? “Be
as formal as the person who is hosting,” he said. “Follow
their lead. It's kind of a dance.”

Oh yeah, and don't talk with your mouth full.

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Posted on Feb 23, 2001

Through March 4

Yulman Theater

Prometheus Bound, a contemporary adaptation of
Aeschylus' tragedy directed by Professor William A. Finlay. Admission
$7; students/seniors $5. For tickets and information, call ext. 6545.

Through Mar. 11.

Mandeville Gallery, Nott Memorial

The Mandeville Gallery presents the annual Faculty
Exhibition with works by printmaker Sandra S. Wimer. The exhibition
will include a survey of 45 works over the last decade.

Through March 14.

Arts Atrium Gallery

Photography Invitational 2001 features works by five
noted photographers _ Thomas Broening, Robert
Dahlquist, Linda Levinson, Klaus Schnitzer and Pamela Vander
Zwan. Curated by Timothy Archibald, Union Prof. Martin Benjamin
and Schnitzer. For information, call ext. 6714.

Through May 1.

Social Science Faculty Lounge Art Gallery.

“Related Work,” an exhibition of drawings and prints by
husband-and-wife Ed and Pamela Dreyfuss Smith. For more information,
call ext. 6072.

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Posted on Feb 23, 2001

Events

Thursday, Feb. 22, 11:30 a.m.

Memorial Chapel

Founders Day convocation with address by Lynn
Margulis, distinguished professor at the University of
Massachusetts Amherst, an expert on the role that microorganisms play
in evolution. Also to include presentation of Gideon
Hawley Teaching Prize to high school teacher of Union student.

Friday, Feb. 23, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Hale House

Faculty workshop: “Writing to Learn” with Toby Fulwiler,
writing director at the University of Vermont. Sponsored by
Committee on Teaching and First-Year Preceptorial Review Group.
For more information, call Kathy Hopper at ext. 6234.

Friday, Feb. 23, at 1:40 p.m.

Old Chapel

Performance by Raouf Mama, a storyteller who specializes
in stories from the Fon region of Benin in western Africa. Part
of the College's celebration of Black History Month.

Friday, Feb. 23, 4:30 p.m.

Phi Beta Kappa Room, Schaffer Library

Philosophical Phridays @ Schaffer Library presents Richard
Taylor, professor emeritus at the University of Rochester and
Union College on “Abortion, Mercy Killing and Infanticide: the
Singer Revolution.”

Friday, Feb. 23, 7 p.m.

Achilles Rink

Hockey vs. Brown

Friday, Feb. 23, through Monday, Feb. 26, 8 and 10 p.m.

Reamer Auditorium.

Campus film: Bounce.

Saturday Feb. 24, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Hale House

Faculty workshop: “Learning to Write” with Toby Fulwiler,
writing director at the University of Vermont.

Saturday, Feb. 24, 7 p.m.

Achilles Rink

Hockey vs. Harvard

Sunday, Feb. 25, 3 p.m.

Memorial Chapel

Union College-Schenectady Museum chamber series
presents clarinetist Todd Palmer and friends in program to
include Mozart's Clarinet Quintet; and Osvaldo Golijov's
The Dreams and Prayers of Isaac the Blind.
Free to members of the Union College community.

Wednesday, Feb. 28, noon

Arts 215

“American Discoveries,” a performance of new and
not-so-new music in the American classical tradition by
the Adirondack Ensemble (Michael Debroski, violin;
Ovidiu Marinescu, cello; and Lisa Spilde, piano). Part of the High Noon
in Arts 215 series.

Wednesday, Feb. 28, 5 p.m.

Reamer Auditorium

Simulated public debate and election for Electoral Politics
class. Members of the audience will be asked to vote.

Wednesday, Feb. 28, 7 p.m.

Nott Memorial

“The Hudson River School Painters” by Robert T.
McLean, art gallery proprietor. Part of the Winter 2001 Seminar Series
“The Hudson River: From the Wilderness to the Sea” sponsored
by Environmental Studies and The Association for the Protection
of the Adirondacks. For information, call ext. 6770.

Wednesday, Feb. 28, 8 p.m.

Yulman Theater

A Contemporary Adaptation of Aeschylus' Tragedy
“Prometheus Bound”

Directed by Professor William A. Finlay. Admission $7;
students/seniors $5. For tickets and information, call ext. 6545.

Friday, March 2, 4:30 p.m.

Phi Beta Kappa Room, Schaffer Library

Philosophical Phridays @ Schaffer Library presents Angela
Wasunna, the University of Mombassa, Kenya, and visiting fellow at
the Hastings Center, on “Confronting Ethical Complexities in
International Research.” For more information, call the
Union College Department of Philosophy at ext. 6376.

Friday, March 2, through Monday, March 5, 8 and 10 p.m.

Reamer Auditorium.

Campus film: Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas

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