Check out the dynamic arts performances and events that Holy Cross has lined up.
For directions to Holy Cross and arts venues on campus, please visit our Maps, Directions, Transporation and Parking site.
Fall 2019 Arts Events
All events are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted.
- View the fall 2019 arts brochure (PDF) » (Please note that this was created in the summer. For a complete and accurate listing of arts events, please see below.)
- See our Events Calendar for a complete listing of events taking place at Holy Cross »
Sept. 5-Dec.14 │ 10 a.m.-5 p.m. M-F; Noon-5 p.m. Sat.
Cantor Art Gallery
“Dharma and Punya: Buddhist Ritual Art of Nepal”
Co-curated by Jinah Kim, Garner Cowles Associate Professor of History of Art & Architecture, Harvard University and Todd Lewis, Distinguished Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross
This exhibition highlights Nepal’s artistic heritage as a rich and enduring continuation of Indic Buddhist traditions and features paintings, illustrated texts, sculptures, and ritual implements on loan from major institutions that were crafted by Newar artisans over the last millennium. With some objects never before displayed in the West, this historic exhibition will focus on the unparalleled contributions of Kathmandu Valley artisans and patrons not only in their communities, but in the subsequent development of Tibetan art.
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Pictured: Vajracharya Priest’s Crown
Photo courtesy of Metropolitan Museum of Art
Sept. 5 │ 4:30 p.m.
Rehm Library
How Art is Central to Buddhist Tradition
Lecture by Curator Todd Lewis
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Sept. 9-13 │ Daily, 4 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Sand Mandala Creation
Naresh Bajracharya, visiting Fulbright professor from Kathmandu, Nepal
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Pictured: Naresh Bajracharya creating a sand mandala
Sept. 10 │ 12:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
First Tuesday Lunch Concert
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Sept. 12 │ 4:30 p.m.
Rehm Library
Curators’ Talk by Dr. Jinah Kim and Dr. Todd Lewis
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Sept. 12 │ 5:30 -7:30 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Opening Reception: “Dharma and Punya”
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Pictured: Vasudhārā Mandala
Photo courtesy of Metropolitan Museum of Art
Sept. 14 │ 1 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Pratistha Rituals for Exhibition Stupas and Images
Naresh Bajracharya, visiting Fulbright professor from Kathmandu, Nepal
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Sept. 16 │ 7:30 p.m.
Fenwick Theatre
Taylor Mac
“A 24-Decade History of Popular Music” (Abridged)
“A 24-Decade History of Popular Music” is Taylor Mac’s subjective history of America since its founding in 1776. Originally performed as a one-time 24-hour event, this abridged version is a highly immersive and outrageously entertaining crash course in the 240 years (and counting) of the history of American culture and dysfunction. Told from the perspective of groups whose stories are often “forgot, dismissed, or buried,” the show highlights various musical styles and artistic voices ranging from murder ballads to disco, Walt Whitman to Davie Bowie and beyond.
Tickets: 24decades.eventbrite.com
Funded in part by the Expeditions program of the New England Foundation for the Arts, made possible with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional support from the six New England stage arts agencies.
Co-sponsored by Arts Transcending Borders, the Department of Theatre and Dance and the W. Arthur Garrity Sr. Professorship in Human Nature, Ethics and Society, and by the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
Photo courtesy of Sarah Walker
Sept. 18 │ 7:30 p.m.
Location TBA
Working Writers Series: Leah Cohen & Oliver de la Paz
Come celebrate new books by faculty members Leah Hagar Cohen and Oliver de la Paz. Leah Hagar Cohen is the author of six novels, most recently “Strangers and Cousins,” and five works of nonfiction. Oliver de la Paz is the author of five collections of poetry, most recently “The Boy in the Labyrinth,” and is a founding member of the non-profit literary arts organization, Kundiman.
Sponsored by Creative Writing
Photo of de la Paz courtesy of Danielle Papandrea
Sept. 19│ 4:30 p.m.
O’Kane 495
“The Multilayered Nature of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara in Nepal”
Lecture by Sonali Dhingra, Harvard University
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Sept. 19 │ 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Dickinson Songs
Guest artist Jennifer Ashe (soprano) joins Matthew Jaskot (piano) in presenting musical works inspired by Emily Dickinson’s poetry. The program includes works by Copland, Larsen and others, as well as two world premieres by Jaskot, “It Still Resounds,” for voice and piano, and a solo piano work inspired by Dickinson’s poetry. The evening will also include a pre-concert lecture on Dickinson’s work by Professor Susan Elizabeth Sweeney.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Sept. 21 │ 1 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Storytelling Session: “The Simhalasarthabahu Tale”
Naresh Bajracharya, visiting Fulbright professor from Kathmandu, Nepal
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Sept. 24 │ 6:30 p.m.
Worcester PopUp, downtown Worcester
Jam Session with Silkroad
Calling all community musicians with diverse musical and cultural traditions! Join us for a free-flowing evening of music making and cultural exchange with members of Silkroad.
Sponsored by Arts Transcending Borders
Photo courtesy of Liz Linder Photography
Sept. 26 │ 4:30 p.m.
Rehm Library
“Crowns of Transformation: How Vajrācāryas Become Bodhisattvas”
Lecture by John Guy, Florence and Herbert Irving Curator of the Arts of South and Southeast Asia, Metropolitan Museum of Art
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Sept. 27 │ 12:30 p.m.
Hogan Oval (Rain Location: Brooks Concert Hall)
Lunchtime Concert: Silkroad Ensemble
Join us for this short performance by Silkroad artists and guests as part of the Festival of the Arts at Holy Cross, a day of arts immersion for high school students from Worcester Public Schools.
Sponsored by Arts Transcending Borders
Sept. 28 │ 1 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Gallery Talk by Louis Copplestone, Harvard University
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Sept. 29 │ 3 p.m.
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Holy Cross Chapel Artist Series
Ezequiel Menendez, Organist of Cathedral of St. Joseph, Hartford, Conn.
Holy Cross’ organ professor will open this year’s season with an eclectic program including works by Buxtehude, Bach, Piazzolla and Mendelssohn. Menendez is well-known for his musicality and is considered a master of making the king of instruments sing.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Oct. 1 │ 12:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
First Tuesday Lunch Concert
World-renowned pianist Roman Rabinovich performs his specialty, the solo works of Joseph Haydn, alongside his pioneering video-animation series featuring illustrations of his imagined interactions with the great composer.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Oct. 1 │ 4:30 p.m.
Rehm Library
“Svayambhū Purāna Bilampau”
Lecture by Alexander von Rospatt, University of California, Berkley
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Oct. 1 │ 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Artist-in-Residence Concert: A Two-Piano Extravaganza
Guest artist Roman Rabinovich and artist-in-residence Adam Golka conclude their tour of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Cleveland with an exclusive Worcester appearance. This program of 20th century masterpieces includes a 2018 arrangement of Debussy’s orchestral masterpiece “La Mer” for two pianos by Golka.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Oct. 3 │ 4:30 p.m.
O’Kane 495
“Śākyamuni’s Lumbinīyātrā: A Visual Tradition and its Context”
Lecture by Gudrun Bühnemann, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Oct. 4 │ 7:30 p.m.
Location TBA
Working Writers Series: A.E. Stallings & Rachel Hadas
Join us as we hear two remarkable poets and translators, A.E. Stallings and Rachel Hadas. Stallings is a classics scholar and author of four books of poetry. Her most recent book, “Like,” was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry. She is a recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim and MacArthur Foundations and is the director of the Poetry Center in Athens, Greece. Hadas has published numerous collections of poetry, essays, and translations which include “Strange Relation: A Memoir of Marriage, Dementia, and Poetry,” “The Ache of Appetite,” “The Golden Road,” and “Questions in the Vestibule.” She has received grants from the Ingram Merrill and Guggenheim Foundations and has taught at Columbia, Princeton, and Rutgers. This event is part of the 2019 ALCSW Conference.
Sponsored by Creative Writing
Photo courtesy of Nancy Crampton
Oct. 5 │ 1 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Vasundhara Vrata Practice
Naresh Bajracharya, visiting Fulbright professor from Kathmandu, Nepal
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Oct. 9 │ 7 p.m.
O’Kane 495
Kinnari Jātaka Painting: Another Example of Newar Artistic Creativity
Lecture by Gautama Vajracharya, professor emeritus, Asian Languages and Cultures, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Oct. 22 │ 7:30 p.m.
Seelos Theater
Roger Guenveur Smith: Otto Frank
In a new solo, actor, writer and longtime Spike Lee collaborator Roger Guenveur Smith navigates an intimate odyssey inspired by Otto Frank, the father of diarist Anne Frank. Smith’s performance of this tragic and triumphant history is distinguished by archival immersion, physical narrative, and improvisation, signatures of his astonishing work for the international stage and screen.
Tickets: ottofrank.eventbrite.com
Sponsored by Arts Transcending Borders
Oct. 24 │ 4:30 p.m.
Rehm Library
“Performing Texts: Manuscripts and Paubhas as Ritual Objects”
Lecture by curator Dr. Jinah Kim, Harvard University
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Pictured: Selected page from the Panaraksa Manuscript, 1671
Photo courtesy of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Oct. 24 │ 7:30 p.m.
Location TBA
Working Writers Series: Toi Derricotte
Come celebrate the work of pioneering poet and memoirist Toi Derricotte. The author of several books, her most recent, “I: New and Selected Poems,” catalogs the breadth of her poetic vision. She is also the winner of the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for her non-fiction book, “Black Notebooks.” Derricotte is a co-founder of Cave Canem, the preeminent organization devoted to the development and support of Black poetry in the United States.
Sponsored by Creative Writing
Oct. 24 │ 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Mike Monaghan & Friends
Renowned Jazz musician Mike Monaghan and his colleagues will perform an exciting evening of jazz improvisation.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Oct. 25 │ 7:30 p.m.
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Voices of Black Women
Holy Cross Choir Family Weekend Concert
Inspired by Africana Studies’ year-long exploration of Black Womanhood, this concert will explore choral music composed by black women, with works ranging from transcendent to electrifying.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Oct. 25 │ 9:30 p.m.
Crossroads
Holy Cross Jazz Ensemble Family Weekend Concert
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Oct. 26 │ 2 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Family Weekend Concert
Students involved in the music department’s performance program will present samples of their work to parents and friends with solo and ensemble performances.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Oct. 29 │ 7:30 p.m.
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Holy Cross Chapel Artist Series: A Hallowe’en Concert
Michelle Sacco ’21, organ scholar / Matthew Luca ’22, organ scholar
Holy Cross’ organ scholars Matt Luca and Michelle Sacco will present a program of spooky music including the famous “Toccata and Fugue in D Minor” by Bach.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Oct. 30 │ 4:30 p.m.
Rehm Library
Documentary Film Screening: “On the Road with the Red God”
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Oct. 31 │ 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Silkroad Ensemble
“Falling Out of Time,” a song cycle by Osvaldo Golijov (World Premiere)
Three years ago, Osvaldo Golijov sat down on a park bench to read David Grossman’s “Falling Out of Time.” Part play, part poem, part fable, the book narrates a journey “out of time” as parents grieve the death of their child, a quest to comprehend a loss with no name. Osvaldo’s exquisite and nuanced interpretation of the story portrays a musical, mythical walk that traverses vast and varied emotional landscapes toward a place where breathing is again possible. Workshops for “Falling Out of Time” began in fall 2017 as part of Silkroad’s multi-year residency at the College of the Holy Cross.
TICKETS: fallingoutoftime.eventbrite.com
Sponsored by Arts Transcending Borders
Photo courtesy of Stephanie Berger
Nov. 5 │ 12:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
First Tuesday Lunch Concert
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Nov. 7 │ 7 p.m.
Rehm Library
“Local Manifestations of Universal Compassion: Lokesvara of the Four Places in Nepal”
Lecture by Bruce Owens, Wheaton College
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Nov. 7 │ 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Music and Musings, Genius and Gender
Gabby Diaz, violin / Betty Anne Diaz, piano
Boston area favorites, Gabriela and Betty Anne Diaz will perform works for violin and piano by exceptional women from the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Nov. 7-9 & 14-16 │ 7:30 p.m.
Fenwick Theatre
“Ah, Wilderness!”
By Eugene O’Neill
The only comedy by Eugene O’Neill, the greatest of all American playwrights, “Ah, Wilderness!” chronicles the tender coming of age of a teenage boy in a small Connecticut town around the turn of the 20th century. Richard Miller, months away from his freshman year at Yale, is curious, intellectual, rebellious and eager for his life to start; he’s also baffled by sex and romance. Eric Butler ’06 directs this classic American family play, which is charming and touching by turns.
Tickets: 508-793-2496 or hcahwilderness.eventbrite.com
Sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance
Nov. 9 │ 1 p.m.
Cantor Art Gallery
Making Clay Stupas
Naresh Bajracharya, visiting Fulbright professor from Kathmandu, Nepal
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Nov. 12 │ 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Artist-in-Residence Concert
This program will present masterpieces of the classical chamber music repertoire, featuring students of the music department in collaboration with the Holy Cross artists-in-residence.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Nov. 14 │ 4:30 p.m.
Rehm Library
Lecture by Holland Cotter
Co-chief art critic of The New York Times
Sponsored by the Cantor Art Gallery
Nov. 14 │ 7:30 p.m.
Location TBA
Working Writers Series: Hala Alyan
Come hear the incredible and harrowing work by Hala Alyan, a Palestinian American poet, fiction writer, and clinical psychologist. Alyan’s poetry collections include “Atrium,” winner of the 2013 Arab American Book Award in Poetry, “Four Cities,” and “Hijra,” winner of the Crab Orchard Series in Poetry. She is also the author of the novel “Salt Houses.” She has been awarded a Lannan Foundation fellowship and lives in Manhattan.
Sponsored by Creative Writing
Photo courtesy of Beowulf Sheehan
Nov. 15 │ 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Madrigals, Old and New
Holy Cross Chamber Singers
Madrigal, a form of a cappella music originated in Renaissance Italy as passionate settings of love poetry, has been transformed through many cultures and centuries since then. Come hear four centuries of a cappella songs about every possible topic, ranging from sublime passion to cacophonous battle to chirping insects.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Nov. 19 │ 7:30 p.m.
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Holy Cross Chapel Artist Series
Oliver Latry, Titulaire, Cathedrale-Basilique de Notre Dame, Paris
Monsieur Latry, regarded as one of the best organists in the world and a true master of the art of improvisation, has promised to end the program with an improvisation. This will be a recital not to miss.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Nov. 20 │ 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Mozart and Wagner: Parallels and Paradoxes
Holy Cross Orchestra
The Holy Cross Orchestra will present a concert featuring Wagner’s “Siegfried Idyll” and Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 with artist-in-residence Adam Golka as conductor and piano soloist.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Dec. 5 │ 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Holy Cross Jazz Ensemble Winter Concert
The Holy Cross Jazz Ensemble and the Brooks Jazz Combo will present their winter concert featuring all-time great jazz classics.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Dec. 5-8 │ 7:30 p.m. (Dec. 5-7); 2:30 p.m. (Dec. 7-8)
The Pit, O’Kane Hall
“The Secret Life of Plants”
By Noah Mailloux ‘20
When a wallflower meets a woman, an introvert begins to blossom into a gregarious personality. However, a triangular romance grows when the invasive species known as the ladies’ man endangers the status quo. Love, growth and a man’s pursuit of happiness are explored in this bittersweet new play, written and directed by Noah Mailloux ’20. An Alternate College Theatre production.
Reservations: 508-793-3536
Sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance
Dec. 6 │ 4 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Student Chamber Music Recital
Student ensembles will present the works studied during the semester as part of the Chamber Music Program.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Dec. 8 │ 2 p.m.
Hogan Ballroom
Holy Cross Concert Band Winter Concert
The Holy Cross Concert Band Winter Concert will feature standard and contemporary works for wind ensemble.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Dec. 10 │ 6 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
End of Semester Student Recital
Students who took private lessons through the Music department performance program will present works from the solo repertoire they worked on during the semester.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Dec. 12 │ 8 p.m.
St. Joseph Memorial Chapel
Advent Festival of Lessons & Carols
Holy Cross College Choir and Orchestra
Join us for one of Holy Cross’ most beloved traditions, the annual Lessons & Carols in the beautiful St. Joseph Memorial Chapel. Both the College Choir and the Chamber Singers will sing Christmastime music both familiar and brand-new. Enter into the Christmas spirit with this beautiful meditation on the story of Christ’s birth. This service will be live-streamed from the College’s YouTube page.
Sponsored by the Department of Music
Dec. 13 │ 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Concert Hall
Gamelan Gita Sari
A glorious melding of Balinese gamelan music and Balinese dance, under the supervision of Balinese performing arts instructor, I Nyoman Catra.
Sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance and the Department of Music