Things to Do, Sept. 12-19

Henry Winkler
Provided
Cornell Hillel brings Henry Winkler to campus for a talk Sept. 17.

Journey to womanhood

Laverne Cox presents “Ain’t I a Woman: My Journey to Womanhood,” Sept. 12 at 7:30 p.m. in Bailey Hall. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Free tickets are available at the Willard Straight Hall Ticket Office; a limited number of remaining tickets will be available at the door. Sponsored by the Cornell University Program Board.

Cox stars in the Netflix original series “Orange Is the New Black” and has been an outspoken voice in the LGBTQ community. She will talk about her experiences as a transgender woman in Hollywood and the obstacles she has overcome.

Electronic music

Eric Ross will lead an “ultimedia” concert of electronic music with visual accompaniment, Sept. 12 at 7 p.m. in Willard Straight Theatre, as part of Cornell Cinema’s fall series “A Celebration of the Moog Synthesizer.” Tickets are $12, $10 for students and senior citizens, available at CornellCinemaTickets.com.

Ross is a composer and musician who has played the theremin in concerts around the world and on radio, film and television since 1975. He met and played for the instrument’s inventor, Léon Theremin, in 1991 and was a friend of the late Robert Moog, Ph.D. ’65.

Ross’ ERA Avant Ensemble includes Trevor Pinch, the Goldwin Smith Professor of Science and Technology Studies at Cornell and author of “Analog Days: The Invention and Impact of the Moog Synthesizer,” and Peter Rothbart of Ithaca College on analog and digital synthesizers; Joseph Perkins on bass; and John Snyder on digeridoo, waterphone and theremin.

Welcome ‘the Fonz’

Actor Henry Winkler comes to campus for a talk Sept. 17 at 5:30 p.m. in the Schwartz Center’s Kiplinger Theatre. Free and open to the public, the event is presented by Cornell Hillel.

Winkler’s iconic early 1970s television role as Arthur Fonzarelli on “Happy Days” began a long career in films and TV, and added “jumping the shark” to the lexicon. An MFA graduate of the Yale School of Drama, he has won four Emmy awards and two Golden Globes.

He has an Order of the British Empire and other honors in recognition of his work on behalf of children with dyslexia and special educational needs, including his “Hank Zipzer” series of children’s books. Winkler has suffered from dyslexia since childhood but was not diagnosed until he was 31.

‘Safety’ first

Civic Ensemble explores community-police relations in its second annual community-based play, “Safety,” Sept. 19-28 at several locations in Ithaca.

Civic Ensemble recruits community members each year to develop, create and perform an original play about a topic of local importance, based on collaboratively created storytelling. For “Safety,” the company conducted story circles, individual interviews and an online survey for civilians and members of law enforcement to gather their experiences of policing and public safety.

Performances will be held Sept. 19 at 8 p.m. and Sept. 20 at 2 and 8 p.m. at Lehman Alternative Community School; Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. in Cornell’s Barnes Hall Auditorium; Sept. 26 at 7:30 p.m. at Ithaca College in 101 Textor Hall; Sept. 27 at 5 p.m. in the Beverly J. Martin Library during the community Latino Festival; and Sept. 28 at 6 p.m. at Calvary Baptist Church, 507 N. Albany St.

Admission is pay what you can. Reservations are encouraged; reserve a seat at civicensemble.org or call 607-241-0195. Partial proceeds from the Sept. 28 performance will benefit the Southside Community Center.

The company’s first community-based production, “Parent Stories,” debuted in May 2013.

Women in leadership

More than 20 alumnae leaders in business, government and nonprofit organizations will share their stories with students at the second Dyson Symposium on Women in Leadership, Sept. 19-20.

Sponsored by the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, the event features a variety of student organizations along with professional perspectives at workshops and panels on topics including navigating corporate life; gender-related challenges in the workplace; and careers in STEM and health fields and in government, social entrepreneurship and nonprofit sectors.

Best-selling author of “Winning” Suzy Welch and Kathryn Boor, the Ronald P. Lynch Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, will give the opening keynote speeches, Sept. 19 at 7 p.m. in the Statler Amphitheatre. Free and open to the public. Registration is required for Sept. 20 events.

Travels with Brian

Fiction and nonfiction writer Brian Hall will be featured at the first Literary Lunch of the semester, Wednesday, Sept. 24, at 11:30 a.m. at the Cayuga Heights residence of President David Skorton and Professor Robin Davisson. The event is free and open to the first 25 people to RSVP by Sept. 17 to special-events@cornell.edu.

A native of Lexington, Massachusetts, Hall lives in Ithaca with his two daughters and occasionally teaches. After earning a bachelor’s degree in English from Harvard College in 1981, he bicycled and camped throughout Europe for two years. On his return, he wrote his first book, “Stealing From a Deep Place: Travels in South-Eastern Europe.” He is the author of seven books, including four novels, and his writing as a journalist has appeared in Travel-Holiday, The New York Times Magazine and The New Yorker.

 

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