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NEWS RELEASE
Communications and Marketing Office
600 S. Clyde Morris Blvd.
Daytona Beach, FL 32114-3900
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For more information, contact:
Phone: 386-226-6157
Fax: 386-226-6158
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Contact: Mary Van Buren
Phone: 386-226-6525
Embry-Riddle Announces 2007-2008 Arts & Letters Series
Daytona Beach, Fla., Aug. 17, 2007 -- Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Arts & Letters Series this year includes a play about Mary McLeod Bethune, the music of the Civil War performed on guitar, classical and popular music performed on organ, a poetry reading, and a photo display. Speakers will address the topics of race relations, the origin of our universe, and aviation in fiction and nonfiction.
In addition, Embry-Riddle faculty and students will present a multimedia live performance celebrating women, a faculty member will speak on the new kind of hero seen in two television series, and the university’s Board of Visitors chairman will discuss his extensive collection of aviation art.
Unless noted otherwise below, all events are at 7 p.m. in the Willie Miller Instructional Center on Embry-Riddle’s Daytona Beach campus at 600 S. Clyde Morris Blvd. and are free and open to the public, with donations gratefully accepted. Parking is free. For more information, call the Humanities and Social Sciences Department at (386) 226-6668 or visit www.erau.edu/arts.
Forgotten Florida: Farm Security Administration Photographs of Florida
Now and ongoing, Willie Miller Instructional Center hallway. Free.
An exhibit from Daytona Beach Community College’s Southeast Museum of Photography showcases photos taken in Florida during the Depression by such prominent artists as Dorothea Lange.
Gregory Byrd Reads Florida Poetry
Wednesday, Sept. 12, 7 p.m., Academic Complex, Room A109. Free.
Byrd’s poetry celebrates Florida’s beauty in warm, human, and inspiring verse. His work has appeared in numerous literary journals, including Tampa Review, Poet Lore, and International Quarterly. In 2005 his chapbook, Florida Straits, won the Yellowjacket Press Chapbook Prize for Florida Poets. Previously Byrd was awarded the Ann Durham Prize for Outstanding M.A. Thesis in Creative Writing and the Academy of American Poets Prize, both from Florida State University. He is an English professor at St. Petersburg College.
Tom Hoehn Performs Silent-Film Organ
Wednesday, Sept. 26, 7 p.m., Willie Miller Instructional Center auditorium.
Admission is $5; free with Embry-Riddle ID card.
During the silent film era -- “The Age of the Silver Screen” -- films were almost always shown with live music. The actual experience of the silent film will be recreated at the Embry-Riddle event with live accompaniment, featuring organist Tom Hoehn. He performs throughout the nation as a popular accompanist to silent films and is the official organist of the First United Methodist Church in Clearwater, Fla. Hoehn's performance will include improvisations with several classic silent films to recreate the music that accompanied serious drama and high comedy.
Robert Gandt Speaks on Aviation Fiction and Nonfiction
Friday, Oct. 5, 7 p.m., Academic Complex, Room A109. Free.
Following his distinguished career as a Navy fighter pilot and airline captain, Gandt turned to writing and is now considered one of the nation’s top aviation authors. His six novels feature Brick Maxwell as a naval aviator hero; his five works of nonfiction include Bogeys and Bandits: The Making of a Fighter Pilot. As a screenwriter and technical consultant, Gandt worked on the CBS television series, “Pensacola: Wings of Gold.” Currently he is the leader of the Mavericks, a precision flying team based at Spruce Creek Fly-In in Port Orange, Fla.
What It Means to Be a Hero: Unlikely Heroes from “Lost” and “Heroes”
Monday, Nov. 26, Willie Miller Instructional Center auditorium. Free.
This multimedia presentation by noted pop-culture expert Dr. Lynnette Porter examines the surprising debate on heroism as seen in such television series as “Lost” and “Heroes.” Among her many publications is the recent book, Unlocking the Meaning of Lost: An Unauthorized Guide, now in its second edition. Dr. Porter is an associate professor in Embry-Riddle’s Humanities and Social Sciences Department.
Bobby Horton Performs Civil War Music
Wednesday, Jan. 16, 7 p.m., Willie Miller Instructional Center auditorium. Free.
Admission is $5; free with Embry-Riddle ID card.
Acclaimed songwriter, singer, and guitarist Bobby Horton, a contributor to the soundtrack of Ken Burns’ PBS series “The Civil War,” plays the authentic music of the Civil War era to transport his audience back in time. Horton believes one of the most effective ways to connect with those who have gone before us is discovering the music they wrote to tell their own stories, the music that sustained them in hard times, and the music they wrote to celebrate their achievements. His latest album is titled “Homespun Songs of the Smoky Mountains.”
“I Leave You Love” -- The Life of Mary McLeod Bethune
Friday, Feb. 15, 7 p.m., Willie Miller Instructional Center auditorium. Free.
The play by Lois Fennelly portrays the life of Dr. Bethune through drama and music. Based on historical events, the play depicts the vision and passion of the child of former slaves who in 1904 became the founder of the school that is now Bethune-Cookman University. Dr. Bethune is remembered as a forceful and inspiring educator and one of Daytona Beach’s most dynamic citizens. Presented in honor of Black History Month, this event is co-sponsored by the Diversity Initiative.
Author Daryl Davis Speaks on Race Relations
Friday, Feb. 29, 7 p.m., Willie Miller Instructional Center auditorium.
Admission is $5; free with Embry-Riddle ID card.
The author of Klan-Destine Relationships: A Black Man’s Odyssey in the Ku Klux Klan discusses the transformation of hearts and minds in enemy territory that occurred when Davis met with Klan leaders unaware of his skin color and attended KKK rallies as he researched the roots of racism. This thought-provoking and sometimes humorous speaker empowers his audience to confront their own prejudices. The multitalented Davis is also a Grammy Award-winning pianist. His talk is co-sponsored by the Diversity Initiative.
Women on the Page, Stage, and Screen: A Multimedia Celebration
Wednesday, March 5, 7 p.m., Willie Miller Instructional Center auditorium. Free.
The complexity of female identity will be explored in a light-hearted one-hour event featuring film clips and live readings by Embry-Riddle faculty and students. The selections range from poems and short stories to excerpts from a memoir, plays, and creative nonfiction. Professor Libbie Searcy of the Humanities and Social Sciences Department created and will direct this presentation, a Women’s History Month event co-sponsored by the Diversity Advancement Office.
David Cummock Speaks on Aviation Art
Wednesday, March 26, 4-6 p.m., Aviation Building atrium. Free.
The chairman of Embry-Riddle’s Board of Visitors will display 25 framed prints by the world’s best aviation artists: Robert Taylor, John Shaw, Nicholas Trudgian, and Gerald Coulson. Cummock will discuss the aircraft and events depicted in the prints, mostly action from World War II but also from the Korean and Vietnam wars, as well as the pilots, many of whom he has met personally. Cummock is the national director of the Air Force Association and flies with the Mavericks aerobatic team. Light snacks will be available for early arrivers.
Paul Steinhardt Speaks on Cyclic Universe Theory
Saturday, April 5, 7 p.m., Willie Miller Instructional Center auditorium. Free.
Paul Steinhardt, Princeton University’s Albert Einstein Professor in Science, will discuss two radically different views of the universe: the standard big bang theory and a new alternative, known as the cyclic universe. This new perspective challenges the conventional views of space and time and offers a novel vision of the origin, evolution, and future of the universe. Steinhardt is the co-author of the popular book Endless Universe: What Lies Beyond the Big Bang. His talk is co-sponsored by the Fred Elston Fund and the Honors Program.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world’s largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, offers more than 30 degree programs in its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business, and Engineering. The university educates more than 34,000 students annually in undergraduate and graduate programs at residential campuses in Prescott, Ariz., and Daytona Beach, Fla., through the Worldwide Campus at more than 130 centers in the United States, Europe, Canada, and the Middle East, and through online learning. For more information, visit www.embryriddle.edu.
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