[Chronicle]

Oct. 26, 1995
Vol. 15, No. 4

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    Humanities Open House

    The cultural links between Jurassic Park and the Toronto Raptors basketball team and "Humanities Online: Classical Texts in the Age of Electronic Networks" are among the more than 50 topics to be presented at the University's 16th annual Humanities Open House on Saturday, Oct. 28.

    The event offers an opportunity for the public to experience the worlds of art, music, literature, history, philosophy, film and drama through sessions with members of the Humanities faculty and representatives of the University's cultural organizations. The day's events will include lectures, discussions, exhibits, tours and performances in music, art, literature, philosophy and other areas.

    Admission to all events is free, but registration is required. Registration begins at 9 a.m. in Ida Noyes Hall. The open house begins at 10 a.m., and the last sessions are at 3 p.m. The keynote speech will be presented at 11 a.m.

    This year's keynote speaker will be Richard Franke, University Trustee, chairman and chief executive officer of the John Nuveen Company and chairman of the University's Humanities Visiting Committee. Franke, who last spring testified before a congressional committee on behalf of federal funding for the humanities and the arts, will present "The Humanities and the Universities: Barometers of Freedom."

    Other Humanities Open House highlights are listed below. For more information, call 702-8469.

    DRAMA

    n David Bevington, the Phyllis Fay Horton Professor in the Humanities, and Charles Newell, Artistic Director of Court Theatre, will describe how they have adapted several of Shakespeare's plays to create a new production of Henry IV exploring questions of identity and monarchy.

    n A backstage look at rehearsals for University Theater's production of Macbeth.

    LANGUAGE & LINGUISTICS

    n Karen Landahl, Associate Professor in Linguistics, will analyze a "Star Trek" episode that hinges on overcoming a 24th-century language barrier.

    n Jerrold Sadock, the Glen A. Lloyd Distinguished Service Professor in Linguistics, will challenge a common myth by asking, "How many words for 'snow' are there really in Eskimo?"

    LITERATURE & MUSIC

    n Milton Ehre, Professor in Slavic Languages & Literatures, will explore Dostoyevsky's insights into decadence in Notes From the Underground and Crime and Punishment.

    n Philip Gossett, the Robert W. Reneker Distinguished Service Professor in Music and Dean of the Humanities Division, will lecture on "Rossini and Verdi: Newly Discovered Manuscripts and Their Implications for Performance."

    SPECIAL EXHIBITS

    n A firsthand look at rare, original prints from a first-edition copy of John James Audubon's Birds of America at Regenstein Library.

    n Guided tours of the Oriental Institute Museum that trace the roots of the legal system back through ancient Mesopotamia.