August 12, 2004
Author discribes immigrant experience,
cultural changes
Author Andre Aciman will discuss the writing process
he used to translate
his immigrant experiences and
feelings of cultural loss into his memoir,
Out of Egypt, at 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 2, in the Memorial Union Sun
Room.
Aciman, who teaches in the French department at the City University of
New York Graduate College, was born in Alexandria, Egypt. His memoir is an
account of his Jewish-Turkish-Italian family's life in Alexandria. The book
has been called a "classic memoir of modern Jewish life" by the New York
Times.
Aciman also authored False Papers (14 essays that explore themes
of identity, home and exile) and a collection of essays called Letters of
Transit.
Following his talk, he will be joined by John Monroe, assistant professor
of history, for a public interview.
The talk is sponsored by the Center for Excellence in the Arts and
Humanities.
Cox play Aug. 29
Clara Schumann: Liebe und Leben, an original play by Jane Cox,
will be presented at 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 29, in the Recital Hall, Music
Building.
(From left) Jane Cox, Mary Creswell and Sue Haug.
Contributed photo.
Clara Schumann was the wife of composer Robert Schumann, who died in 1856
age 46 in an asylum, probably from syphilis.
"The life of Clara Schumann was filled with tremendous joy and great
tragedy," Cox said. "Through it all she raised seven children, was a loving
wife and mother, a composer, and a famous concert pianist."
This is a return engagement of Clara Schumann and again features
Cox in the title role, and Sue Haug, chair of the department of music, as
Clara the concert pianist. Mary Creswell, assistant professor of music and
mezzo-soprano, assists.
The production is free.
Short-shorts popular in China
Aili Mu, assistant professor of foreign languages and literatures, and
two colleagues are compiling a bilingual edition of "short-short"
stories.
Short-short stories are a subgenre of Chinese fiction, about 1,500 to
3,000 (Chinese) characters in length. Mu said thousands of journals,
magazines, newspapers and Web sites in the People's Republic of China, Hong
Kong and Taiwan publish these stories.
Short-shorts "reflect what is happening in China at the most fundamental
level in the daily experiences of its people," Mu said.
Mu, along with Howard Goldblath, Notre Dame University, Indiana, and
Julie Chiu, Lingnam University, Hong Kong, received a $75,000 National
Endowment for the Humanities grant to compile the anthology.
Nutcracker audition Sept. 12
Auditions for the Iowa State Center's annual production of the
Nutcracker Ballet will be held from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 12,
at Stephens. Registration begins at 11:15 a.m.
Dancers must be at least 8 years old and should wear a leotard, tights,
and ballet or pointe shoes. Participants should park in lot B-3 and enter
through the stage door on the southeast side of the building.
The audition schedule is:
- Noon-3 p.m., children for the roles of Fritz and friends, Clara and
friends, Indian boys, Mother Ginger's children, angels, soldiers, mice,
Russians and puppets.
- 3-4 p.m., adults for roles of first act party guests and maids.
- 4-7 p.m., ballet dancers (pointe and non-pointe) for roles of dolls,
flutes, flower soloists, flowers, snowflakes, and international
roles.
For more information, call Robert Thomas, 233-3609.
"All You Can Eat," a montage exhibit by artist Sandy Dyas, will be on
display in the Memorial Union Pioneer Room through Oct. 17.
