Posted on Oct 27, 2009

Cory Booker, mayor of Newark, N.J. and a rising national figure in politics, will speak Wednesday, Nov. 4 at 6:30 p.m. in the Nott Memorial.

Booker’s talk, “How to Change the World with Your Bare Hands” is free and open to the public.

Booker, 39, has garnered national attention for his efforts to transform New Jersey’s largest city, where he has been mayor since July 2006. He has been featured in Time, Esquire, the New York Times and Black Enterprise. He also is the focus of “Brick City,” a five-part documentary series about Newark’s struggles and promise currently airing on the Sundance Channel.

Recently, Booker was thrust into the national spotlight because of a facetious feud with Conan O’Brien of the “Tonight Show.” Last month, O'Brien joked that Booker's new health care program consisted of a bus ticket out of Newark. Booker responded with a funny video on YouTube in which he banned O’Brien from Newark Liberty International Airport. Booker eventually appeared on O’Brien’s show, where the host announced a $100,000 donation to Booker’s Newark Now charity.

Booker’s political career began in 1998, after serving as a staff attorney for the Urban Justice Center and program coordinator of the Newark Youth Project. He upset a four-term incumbent to become a councilman in Newark, serving for four years. He is a member of several boards including Integrity Inc.'s Board of Trustees, the Executive Committee of Yale Law School, Columbia University Teachers' College Board of Trustees and the Black Alliance for Educational Options.

Booker received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Stanford University. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Modern History at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, and completed his law degree at Yale University.

Booker’s talk at Union is sponsored by the Speakers Forum.

Posted on Oct 22, 2009

Emanuel Ax is a pianist renowned for his poetic temperament, unsurpassed virtuosity and exceptionally diverse performing capacity. On Wednesday, Nov. 4 at 8 p.m., he will give his fifth Chamber Concert Series performance in Memorial Chapel.

During the show, Ax will present Chopin’s Polonaise-Fantasy, Op. 61, Mazurkas, Op. 41 and 56, and Andante Spianato and Grand Polonaise, Op. 22. He will also play portions of Schumann’s Fantasiestucke and Fantasy.

Born in Lvov, Poland, Ax captured public attention when he won the first Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Competition in 1974. A year later, he went on to win the Michaels Award of Young Concert Artists, and four years after that, he clinched the coveted Avery Fisher Prize.

Ax, who studied at The Julliard School, has also been honored for his recorded releases. The second and third volumes in his cycle of Haydn’s piano sonatas received Grammy awards, as did his series of recordings with cellist Yo-Yo Ma.

Ax’s special projects for the current season include performances with pianist Yefim Bronfman and a solo recital tour in North America and Europe. He will also return to several orchestras, including the Cleveland Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the San Francisco Symphony, and the Toronto Symphony.

During his 2004-2005 season, Ax contributed to a BBC documentary commemorating the Holocaust. It aired on the 60^th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, and was awarded an International Emmy.

The musician, who lives in New York City with his wife, the pianist Yoko Nozaki, and their two children, is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

General admission tickets cost $25, though area students may attend for $10. The show is free to members of the Union community.

For more information, call (518) 388-6080. For a complete Series schedule, click here.

Posted on Oct 22, 2009

The preeminent performing arts company OrisiRisi returns to Union Tuesday, Oct. 27 with an African folklore performance. OrisiRisi, which previously visited the College in February 2008, will present its energetic and enjoyable program in Taylor Music Center at 8 p.m.

Co-produced, directed and performed by veteran stage actor Don Harrell ’75 and his wife, the Nigerian-born folk-artist Ilenbilu Adetutu “Tutu” Harrell, OrisiRisi was created in 1986 to share the beauty and poignancy of African life and culture.

Pronounced “O-re-she-Re-she,” a Yoruba term meaning “different things,” the team has received critical acclaim for its creative use of vocals, dance, drums and audience participation to impart African-rooted folk-knowledge and educational experiences.

The event is free and open to the public, and is co-sponsored by the College President’s Office, the Union College Scholars Program, the Africana Studies Program, the Union Posse Program, the Minerva Office and UNITAS.

For more information, click here.

Posted on Oct 22, 2009

Posted on Oct 22, 2009

The Office of Admissions will host the second of two fall Open Houses for prospective students of the Class of 2014 on Monday, Oct. 26, starting at 8:45 a.m.

Once again, visitors will have the opportunity to tour campus grounds and facilities; attend sessions on financial aid, housing and career planning; meet faculty and students; discuss varsity, club and intramural athletic options; and learn about undergraduate research and international programs.

Prospective students and their parents can register for the Open Houses and view a complete schedule of activities here.

More than 500 people came to campus on Monday, Oct. 12, a perfect fall day.