Posted on Nov 4, 2009

Get ready for a farce.

The Department of Theater and Dance will present “Servant of Two Masters” Wednesday, Nov. 11 through Saturday, Nov. 14 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 15 at 2 p.m. in Yulman Theater.

The play, by Carlo Goldoni, is directed by William Finlay as a cross between traditional Italian commedia and postmodern vaudeville, pitting a madcap servant against masters, mistresses, lovers, lawyers – and 27 plates of meatballs.

"This production is unique because there is a rugged, relaxed composition to the set, costumes and acting,” said Bart Tomaszewski ’10, who plays the lead role, Truffaldino. “The story is fun. Trying to keep two masters is especially hard since they are staying at the same inn and are looking for each other. There are many complicated situations I find myself in, and I have to lie my way out of them.”

He also noted how intriguing Professor Charles Steckler’s set design is, with its exaggerated buildings that offer different perspectives. “The farther down the stage, the smaller the set pieces. This makes people seem taller than they really are,” Tomaszewski said.

Finlay attributes part of the fun – and the challenge – to the fact that “they are mixing periods and recycling other shows into this show. The students have to get adjusted to the fact that they are in mask and are doing a farce, which is very demanding physically.”

“When the audience enters the theater, they will be able to tell the play is light and comedic right from the start,” said Amy Wiener ’12. “My character, Clarice, is definitely an enjoyable part. There is nothing better than playing a silly and obnoxious girl fighting for her happiness. She’s ‘dizzy with love,’ and as they say, love makes you do stupid things.”  

Of Truffaldino, she said, “He’s just amusing to watch. We never know what he will do or say just to get food in his darling stomach.”

Other students with lead roles are Althea Schepperly ’12 as Beatrice, Anne Woodward ’11 as Doctore Lombardi, Kamara Simpson '10 as Pantalone and Monica Niedermeyer ’10 as Smeraldina.

Alecia Pickett ’11 is stage manager, and Shannon Vandawalker ’12 is in charge of mask design and construction.

Technical director and production manager is Visiting Assistant Professor Steven Michalek. Costume designer is Professor Lloyd Waiwaiole. Senior Artist-in-Residence Patricia Culbert is vocal coach. In addition to directing, Finlay is the show’s sound designer.

Tickets are available for purchase at the Yulman Theater Box Office; 388-6545.

Posted on Nov 3, 2009

Mix an international culinary star with a group of talented college chefs, throw them together in the cramped kitchen of Upperclass Dining Hall and what do you get?

A magical Mexican menu created to feed the appetites of students, staff and faculty.

On Monday, Nov. 9, acclaimed chef Roberto Santibanez will share his culinary skills with Union’s dining staff and chefs from other area schools, including Marist College and SUNY New Paltz. The chefs will prepare an authentic Mexican meal featuring ancient Aztec tortilla soup, Conchinita Pibil and Guajillo marinated chicken breast, which will be served for lunch in Upperclass. At 6:30 p.m. in Old Chapel, Santibanez will lecture on Mexican cuisine and lead the chefs in a cooking demonstration for the campus community.

During his two-day stay, Santibanez will also talk with students and staff and sign copies of his books.

The visit by Santibanez, the former culinary director of Rosa Mexicano restaurants, comes at a time when the College has been using his “Mex to the Max” recipes since the start of the school year.

Santibanez and fellow chef Mai Pham recently partnered with Sodexo, a leading food service company used by Union, to share their recipes with about 600 schools to “help satisfy a growing culinary literacy among college students who have traveled to or lived in different countries or read about world cuisines and insist on authentic flavors.”

“We are very fortunate to have someone like Roberto Santibanez visit our campus,” said Dan Detora, Union’s director of Dining Services. “We’ve had great success using his recipes and have received wonderful feedback. This is a great opportunity for the campus to enjoy truly authentic Mexican cuisine.”

The menu:

Soup: Ancient Aztec Tortilla Soup

Deli: Mexican Club Sandwich

Panini: Very Veggie Quesadilla

Demo: Conchinita Pibil

Hot: Guajillo Marinated Chicken Breast

        Salsa Vera Cruz Filet

        Frioles Negro

        Vegetarian Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Dessert: Authentic Mexican Fruit Cake

Posted on Nov 3, 2009

Hilary Tann, the John Howard Payne Professor of Music, will present “Evocations,” a program of diverse chamber music from the late 20th and early 21st century, with Eight Strings and a Whistle, a flute, viola and cello trio, at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, Thursday, Nov. 5 at 8 p.m. The program includes Tann’s “The Walls of Morlais Castle,” inspired by the ruins of the destroyed Welsh Castle of the same name, and William Dickerson’s “Night Music,” an eight-movement work chronicling an overnight walk in New York City. The concert, part of the Sterne Virtuoso Series, will be held in Filene Recital Hall. Tann and her trio recently performed “Night Music” at a reception for Gov. Deval Patrick of Massachusetts, where President Obama was among the distinguished guests.

Five students from the Department of Physics and Astronomy were among some 140 undergraduate students from the U.S. and Japan who presented posters at the Third Joint Meeting of the Nuclear Physics Division of the American Physical Society (APS) and the Physical Society of Japan in Waikoloa, Hawaii, in October. Daniel Barringer ’11 and Ana Mikler ’12 presented posters on their research in nuclear astrophysics with Professor Rebecca Surman. Colin Gleason ’11 and Chad Harrington ’11 reported on work they conducted with Professor Michael Vineyard on the elemental analysis of pollutants in aerosol samples using proton-induced X-ray emission (PIXE). Katie Schuff ’12 presented a poster on the PIXE analysis of pollutants in rain water performed with Professor Scott LaBrake. The students all won competitive awards from the Conference Experience for Undergraduates program of the APS for travel and/or lodging.

Samuel Amanuel, assistant professor of physics, and three of his students, Hillary Bauer ’11, Peter Bonventre ’11 and Dana Lasher ’08, published a paper on nonfreezing interfacial layers of cyclohexane molecules inside nanoporous silica. The paper, which appears in the Journal of Physical Chemistry C, addresses the fundamental question of how physical confinement (to nano scale) and interfaces influence melting and freezing behaviors of molecules and materials.

“Learning through Publishing the Pi Sigma Alpha Undergraduate Journal of Politics,” an article by Zoe M. Oxley, associate professor and chair of the Department of Political Science, recently appeared in “PS: Political Science and Politics.” Co-authors are Benjamin Bauer ’08, Whitney Ogás’ 08, Omar Shakir ’08 and Rosalee A. Clawson, associate professor at Purdue University. The article is based on their experiences hosting the undergraduate journal.

Posted on Nov 3, 2009

During the summer of 1969, Woodstock became a watershed in America’s cultural history. What many do not know is that the legendary music festival almost didn’t happen.

Enter one Elliot Tiber.

Tiber was working to save his parents’ motel in the Catskills when he heard about a concert that was cancelled and lobbied to have it take place near his motel in White Lake, N.Y. He was the only man to have a festival permit, and his actions set off a chain of events that brought half a million people to rally around Woodstock.

Forty years later, Tiber’s best-selling memoir about his journey that summer was adapted into a film of the same name. Directed by Academy Award-winner Ang Lee, “Taking Woodstock” (Focus Features, August 2009) stars Demetri Martin as Elliot.

Tiber will discuss the story of Woodstock as well as an individual’s ability to create change on Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 7 p.m. at Reamer Campus Center Auditorium. His talk is titled, “Taking Woodstock: A True Story of a Riot, a Concert and a Life.”

Screenings of the movie will be held in the auditorium Monday, Nov. 9 at 8 and 10 p.m. and Tuesday at 5 p.m.

Empowered by the gay rights movement of the time, Tiber was no stranger to cultural revolution. He had socialized with Truman Capote, Tennessee Williams, Andy Warhol and a talented young photographer named Robert Mapplethorpe in Greenwich Village, the mecca of gay life in New York. Present at the June 1969 Stonewall Inn riots in the village – frequently cited as the first time American’s homosexual community confronted government-sponsored persecution of sexual minorities – Tiber was a witness to an event that would galvanize the gay movement in the United States.

Tiber’s first novel, “Rue Haute,” was an instant bestseller in Europe, and was published in the U.S. as an Avon Paperback under its English title, “High Street.” Tiber has appeared on television shows around the world and has performed his one-man standup show, “Woodstock Daddy,” for clubs, theaters and TV.

He currently resides in New York City and California.

Tiber’s visit to Union is sponsored by U Program, Spectrum and Speakers Forum.

Posted on Nov 3, 2009

Thursday, Nov. 5, 12:50-1:50 p.m. / Hale House, Everest Lounge / Michael S. Rapaport Ethics Across the Curriculum Initiative luncheon workshop, “Report from the Trenches: Faculty Discuss Their Experience Incorporating Ethics Into the Curriculum”;  RSVP to Amy Bloom (blooma@union.edu or ext. 8386)

Thursday, Nov. 5, 4:30 p.m. / Hale House, Everest Lounge / Philosophy Speaker Series presents Tulane University's David Shoemaker on: "Responsibility Without Identity"

Friday, Nov. 6, 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. / Reamer Campus Center / Fundraiser by Union chapter of FaceAIDS, the national student campaign to fight the epidemic in Africa; proceeds will help AIDS sufferers and orphans in Rwanda and the educational and medical programs of Partners in Health, a Boston-based global nonprofit organization

Friday, Nov. 6, 1:50 p.m. / Emerson Auditorium in the Taylor Music Center / Union College Department of Music and IEF present: "Modern Jazz," part of Friday Jazz with professor Tim Olsen & Friends

Friday, Nov. 6, 3 p.m. / Messa Rink at Achilles Center / Women's ice hockey vs. Cornell

Friday, Nov. 6, 7:30 p.m. / Messa Rink at Achilles Center / Men's ice hockey vs. Brown

Friday, Nov. 6 – Monday Nov. 9, 8 and 10 p.m. / Reamer Campus Auditorium / Film: "G.I. Joe"

Saturday, Nov. 7, noon-3 p.m . / Memorial Field House / First Union College Children’s Health Carnival / Children (accompanied by an adult) may visit fun stations to learn about leading a healthy lifestyle; music, games, face painting, spin art, a bouncy house, prizes and more. Food and drinks provided; bring a favorite stuffed animal. Carnival hosted by: The Pre-Health Society, Biology Club, Union College EMS, UCOPE, Student National Medical Association, the Counseling Center, Colleges Against Cancer, Green House, Greek Life, DKE, Delta Delta Delta, Hillel, Project Sunshine, Campus Action, Arts House, Club Hockey, the Kenney Community Center, Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, WRUC, Health Professions Office, the Bookstore, Price Chopper, Children Guidance Center, Dental Offices LLP and Indian Ladder Orchards.

Saturday, Nov. 7, 2:30 p.m. / Messa Rink at Achilles Center / Women's ice hockey vs. Colgate

Saturday, Nov. 7, 7 p.m. / Messa Rink at Achilles Center / Men's ice hockey vs. Yale

Sunday, Nov. 8, 3 p.m. / Memorial Chapel / Union College & Community Orchestra; directed by Victor Klimash; free and open to the public

Monday, Nov. 9, 8 and 10 p.m. / Reamer Campus Center Auditorium / Film: “Taking Woodstock,” directed by Ang Lee

Tuesday, Nov. 10, 5 p.m. / Reamer Campus Center Auditorium / Film: “Taking Woodstock”

Tuesday, Nov. 10, 7 p.m. / Reamer Campus Center Auditorium / “Taking Woodstock: A True Story of a Riot, a Concert and a Life,” talk by Elliott Tiber, author and subject of the recent movie, “Taking Woodstock” and the only person in Bethel, N.Y. who had a music festival permit, which allowed Woodstock to occur; follows film screening.  

Wednesday, Nov. 11, 8 p.m. / Emerson Auditorium / Union College Jazz Ensemble; free and open to public 

Wednesday, Nov. 11,  through Saturday, Nov. 14, 8 p.m. / Yulman Theater / Fall theater production, "Servant of Two Masters" by Carlo Goldoni, directed by William Finlay. A cross between traditional Italian commedia and postmodern vaudeville, this new version of Goldoni's classic pits the madcap servant Truffaldino against masters, mistresses, lovers, lawyers and 27 plates of meatballs.

Thursday, Nov. 12, 5 p.m. / Emerson Auditorium / Union College Student Recital; free and open to public

Friday, Nov. 13, 7 p.m. / Messa Rink at Achilles Center / Women's ice hockey vs. Brown

Friday, Nov. 13 – Monday Nov. 16, 8 and 10 p.m. / Reamer Campus Auditorium / Film: "Julia & Julia"

Saturday, Nov. 14, noon / Frank Bailey Field / Football vs. Susquehanna

Saturday, Nov. 14, 2 p.m. / Alumni Gym / Men's swimming and diving vs. University of Rochester

Saturday, Nov. 14, 2 p.m. / Alumni Gym / Women's swimming and diving vs. University of Rochester

Saturday, Nov. 14, 4 p.m. / Messa Rink at Achilles Center / Women's ice hockey vs. Yale

Sunday, Nov. 15, 1-3 p.m. / College Park Hall / 6th Annual Capital Region College Monopoly Tournament, co-sponsored by the Interfraternity Council, Panhellenic Council and Multicultural Greek Council with Family & Child Services of Schenectady, to benefit the 75-year-old agency; register at Reamer Campus Center through Friday, Nov. 6, 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.; cost, $5 per person

Sunday, Nov. 15, 2 p.m. / Yulman Theater / Fall theater production, “Servant of Two Masters" by Carlo Goldoni, directed by William Finlay. A cross between traditional Italian commedia and postmodern vaudeville, this new version of Goldoni's classic pits the madcap servant Truffaldino against masters, mistresses, lovers, lawyers and 27 plates of meatballs.

Saturday, Nov. 15, 3 p.m. / Memorial Chapel / Camerata Singers; free and open to public