Sewanee Event Highlights

Oct. 29 - Dec. 12 
The University Art Gallery

In From Where Loss Comes, Pradip Malde presents a series of photographs of women confronting the traditional practice of female genital mutilation (FGM/C) in Tanzania. The photographs included in the exhibition work to honor the women portrayed, and, as Sarah Mwaga asked, to bring into the open some of their experience. Please be aware that this exhibition and talk consider challenging and potentially disturbing subject matter. Professor Malde will present his work on Nov. 13, at 5 p.m., in Convocation Hall. Reception to follow.

Oct. 30 at 7 p.m.
Torian Room, duPont Library

Is your dorm haunted? Who is The Man at the Track? Please join us for a spirited evening of spooky Sewanee lore as we host alum and retired University Archivist Annie Armour Morgret.  She will be reading from and signing copies of her book, Haunted Sewanee. 

Oct. 28 - Oct. 30, at 8 p.m.
All Saints' Chapel

Join us for a walking ghost tour of Sewanee this Halloween season! Meet us at All Saints' at 8p.m. on Oct. 28, 29, and 30, to hear ghost stories from throughout campus. Bring a jacket and some walking shoes and get ready to get spooked! This event is free and open to the community. 

Oct. 31 - Nov. 2 at 7:30 p.m.
Nov. 3 at 2 p.m.
Tennessee Williams Center

The Great Comet is a sung-through musical adaptation of a 70-page segment from Leo Tolstoy's 1869 novel War and Peace. It is based on Part 8 of Tolstoy's novel, focusing on Natasha's romance with Anatole and Pierre's search for meaning in his life. The show features a cast of 22, an orchestra of nine, design by faculty and guest artists, production support by dozens of students, and is directed by Jim Crawford. 

Nov. 1 at 3 p.m.
Proctor Hill Theater, Tennessee Williams Center

A panel of distinguished alumni answers the question: What can you do with a degree in theatre? Alumni panelists:  J. Theresa Bush, Bryan Davis, Tory Depew, Ananelies Echols, Raymond McAnally, Jana Mestecky, Jon Morris, Anson Mount, and Audrey Tchoukoua. Part of the Theatre & Dance Reunion at Homecoming, 2024.

Nov. 1 at 3:30 p.m.
Stirling's Coffee House

Stirling's will have a ribbon cutting for the new pavilion in honor of Dr. Jim Peterman. Light refreshments will be provided.

Nov. 1 at 5:15 p.m.
All Saints' Chapel

Nearly 70 undergraduate choristers will sing the service of Evensong in All Saints' Chapel.  The service features prayers and anthems sung mostly by the choir as well as readings from scripture.  Evensong does not include a sermon or communion, meaning you can settle in and let the music draw you into prayer. Musical works will include Evening Hymn by H. Balfour Gardiner, Canticles in C by Charles V. Stanford, and responses by Joanna Forbes L'Estrange sung by the 70-member University Choir under the direction of Organist and Choirmaster Dr. Geoffrey Harris Ward and accompanied by Assistant Organist Stephanie Yoder.

Nov. 5, 3 - 5 p.m.
Nov. 10, 3 - 5 p.m.
IONA Art Sanctuary

Professor Emeritus Ed Carlos is exhibiting Visionaries, 40 drawings at IONA Art Sanctuary at 630 Garnertown Rd. in Sewanee. The exhibit is dedicated to those ill with or dying from Covid. All students, staff, and faculty plus the Sewanee community are welcome. 

Nov. 5 at 6 p.m.
Biehl Commons

Join us for a non-partisan evening of community, conversation, and camaraderie as we watch the election results unfold together. Enjoy snacks, refreshments, and the company of fellow citizens as we engage in this important civic event. 

Nov. 8 at 7 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

Join the Sewanee Voice Studios for our Fall Vocal Showcase. From musical theatre and art song to pop, rock, soul, and jazz, there is something for everyone in this popular semi-annual concert. With Vicki Collinsworth, piano.

Nov. 12 at 5:15 p.m.
Convocation Hall

Dinner & Dialogue recognizes how important everyday rituals are to building community at Sewanee, and views such occasions as opportunities to activate a shared vision for Sewanee defined by a robust culture of respectful dialogue. Together, we are creating a space to connect with one another and practice having meaningful conversations. 

Oct. 23 – Dec. 6
Carlos Gallery

Versions and Translations is a collection of working and artist proofs that are not about one series but more about things in a relationship. Cone’s practice of making and developing the printed image is activated by the materiality. She’s interested in the intersections, combinations, and states of inked matrixes and forms. Cone wonders about the "how" of transformation through the exploration of plate, digital file, negative, or printing method toward a new situation.

3 p.m. - 7 p.m. Monday - Friday 
Carlson Listening Room

The William Ralston Music Listening Library is located on the second floor of duPont Library at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. The Ralston Library boasts an expansive collection of physical format recordings—LPs and CDs—that seeks to be representative of the standard repertoire of Western art music.
The centerpiece of the Ralston Library is the Carlson Listening Room, a loudspeaker room that was designed to bring a stunning, life-changing sonic and aesthetic experience to every visitor. The Carlson Room is considered by many reviewers and audiophiles to be the best publicly available audio playback space in the world.

Oct. 29, at 6 p.m.
Community Engagement House behind Ayres

Float into fun at our Halloween Party. Join us for a community trunk-or-treat. Pumpkin painting and more.

Oct. 29 at 4:30 p.m.
Torian Room, duPont Library

Dr. Dasgupta will read from her latest essay collection, Brown Women Have Everything: Essays on (Dis)comfort and Delight (UNC 2024), followed by a conversation with Dr. Heidi Siegrist, author of All Y'all: Queering Southernness in US Fiction 1980-2020 (UNC 2024).

Oct. 26 at 9 a.m.
University Farm

This vibrant event is not just about fun, but also about community. The purpose of this Title IX event is to raise awareness and show support for those affected by domestic violence. Purple is the color for domestic violence awareness, so every step and splash of purple color you take will help us spread the message of hope, strength, and solidarity with survivors. Feel free to walk, roll a stroller, wheelchair, or just come and watch the fun of seeing everyone get splashed with color!

Oct. 25 at 7 p.m.
All Saints’ Chapel

University Organist and Choirmaster Geoffrey Ward will be playing the organ, and Joel Treybig will be playing the trumpet. Dr. Treybig is the professor of trumpet at Belmont University, and he is a regular performer for Lessons and Carols at Sewanee. Music by Bach, Charpentier, Hovanness, and Howells will be featured as part of the program.

Oct. 25 at 3:30 p.m.
Convocation Hall

The Bell Route of the Trail of Tears passed through what is now known as the Sewanee Domain on Oct. 25-26, 1838. The community is invited to a public launch of the database. There will be a demonstration of the resource and the contributors will be celebrated. Light refreshments will follow. 

Oct. 24 at 4:30 p.m.
The Torian Room, duPont Library

Navigating a nonlinear career path requires diversity of thought, experience, and interests, skills that Blair Overman, C’07, says helped her succeed in her career journey from leading nonprofit organizations to advising clients around the world. Overman, principal and chief operating officer of Andart Global, is the Babson Center’s Bryan Viewpoints Speaker for the 2024 Advent semester.

Oct. 21 at Noon
Convocation Hall

There will be an attempt to ring a full peal, the equivalent of a marathon in the bell ringing world, at Breslin Tower. Eight ringers will ring close to three hours without repeating a pattern. Bell ringers from Great Britain, Canada, and the United States will gather to ring the changes on the Bentley Bells. The public is invited to Convocation Hall, where daily ringing activity in Breslin Tower will be livestreamed to hear the changes being rung while simultaneously watching the ringers high above in the Paul Engsberg Ringing Room.

Oct. 19 at 11:55 a.m.
Ralston Listening Room, duPont Library

Mezzo-soprano Emily D’Angelo, one of opera’s most compelling young stars, portrays Jess, a hot-shot fighter pilot whose unplanned pregnancy takes her out of the cockpit and lands her in Las Vegas, operating a Reaper drone halfway around the world. As she struggles to adjust to this new way of doing battle, she fights to maintain her sanity, and her soul, as she is called to rain down death by remote control. Content advisory: Grounded contains adult language and war sequences.

Oct. 11-13 
Various Venues - check schedule

A diverse, exciting conference for the Southeast’s public interest environmental movement. Attorneys, scientists, conservation groups, grassroots environmental advocates, and students are coming together to strengthen our bonds and hone our tactics for the coming era of environmental renewal across our region.

Oct. 16 at 6:30 p.m.
Convocation Hall

The Rev. Senator Kim Jackson will deliver the Rev. Melissa Kean, T'19, Memorial Lecture entitled Faith and the Fight for Justice. In her lecture, Jackson will speak about the intertwining of her faith life, her call to ministry in the church, and her call to action at the Georgia State Capitol. What does it mean to live out your call to ministry both inside the walls of the church and inside the walls of the state capitol? What does fighting for justice look like as a senator, and how can faith inform that work?

Oct. 15 at 7 p.m.
All Saints' Chapel

Join us for a lecture by the Rev. Dr. Malcolm Guite entitled The Poetry of Music and the Music of Poetry: Some Reflections on John Donne, George Herbert and Others. Ayodeji Malcolm Guite is a poet and priest in the Church of England. The author of many books of both poetry and theology, Guite has also collected multiple anthologies of poetry, has his own YouTube channel, and frequently collaborates with musicians. 

Oct. 15 at 5 p.m.
Torian Room, duPont Library

Two longtime ghostwriters, Bessie Gantt and Dudley Delffs will share their experiences as behind-the-scenes collaborators for their many bestselling clients. How does ghostwriting work? What exactly does a ghostwriter do to help create someone else’s book? What are the ethical, legal, moral, and personal boundaries for writing another author’s work? Gantt has worked with CEOs, TV cooking stars, and stand-up comedians, among others. She graduated from Sewanee in 1998 and earned her master’s in fine arts in creative writing from the University of Florida. Delffs is an award-winning poet, novelist, biographer, and ghostwriter with more than 25 years in the publishing business. He has also published his own work, including The Faith of Dolly Parton and The Faith of Queen Elizabeth. 

Oct. 14 at 6:45 a.m., noon, and 6:30 p.m.
Angel Park, The Quad, and Ayres Center

Indigenous Sunrise Service, Angel Park at 6:45 a.m.: This event holds special significance as our university is situated on the Trail of Tears. Indigenous songs, 7-direction prayers, and readings led by Rev. Bude Van Dyke, Rev. Nancee Martin, and other community members. A shuttle from McClurg to Angel Park will be provided for University students to participate, leaving at 6:30 a.m.. 
Labyrinth Exhibitions and Drumming, The Quad at noon: This year’s design is the Medicine Wheel in the colors of the four directions set up by visiting labyrinth designer Dr. Dan Nivens. There will be Native drumming by Dan Hull & flute by Christina Ulibarri.
Reflective Trail of Tears Remembrance, The Ayres Center, St. Mary’s Road at 6:30 p.m.: Join us for candlelight prayers and readings with Native flute. Readings from the Voices from the Bell Route project. A shuttle from McClurg to St. Mary's will be provided for University students to attend, leaving at 6:15 p.m..

Closing Oct. 13 at 4 p.m. 
University Art Gallery

Arlyn Ende worked extensively with textiles, while Jack Hastings sculpted in concrete and metal. Ende explored liminalities and ephemeral states, while Hastings embodied archetypes. This exhibition builds on Tinney Contemporary’s prior exhibitions of Ende and Hastings’ work, folding in work generously loaned by the Tennessee State Museum, the William R. Laurie University Archives and Special Collections of the University of the South, and a private collector.  The University Art Gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, and noon until 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. 

Oct. 11 at 11 a.m.
Spencer Quad

National Coming Out Day is a recognized civil awareness day. "Coming out" is both a process and a privilege; the event held on this day is to give tools for the campus community to support themselves, the LGBTQ+ community, and others on the journey. Join us for a community celebration with music, free food, lawn games, and information about campus resources. 

Oct. 10 at 7 p.m.
McGriff Alumni House

Is gender still a useful category for organizing society? With Molly Brookfield (History & WGS) and Terri Fisher (Psychology & WGS). Sewanee Night Owls is a venue for informal, late-night discussions of interesting and controversial philosophical topics. Everyone is welcome to attend and no prior experience of philosophy is required. 

Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. 
Torian Room, Second Floor duPont Library

Join us with author Toby Sells for a reading and book signing. Haint Blues: Strange Tales From the American South explores the region’s haunted back roads, beaches, and bayous with a reporter’s eye for detail and a Southerner’s ear for a good story. This event is free and open to the public. Books will be available for sale.  

Oct. 10 at 5 p.m.
Carlos Gallery

Visiting Assistant Professor Caroline Minchew will give an artist talk in conjunction with her exhibition of large-scale photographic prints. Free and open to the public.

Oct. 10 at 5 p.m.
Naylor Auditorium

Solidarity within groups of girls and women can be tricky to establish and even harder to maintain. To what extent are these bonds between girls and women subversive or threatening to heteropatriarchal social norms? Dr. Scott's presentation will focus on Lauren Berlant's notion of the "intimate public" as explained through two examples from 21st century Germanophone cinema, the 2011 indie rock film Lollipop Monster and the 2022 queer sports film Breaking the Ice. By analyzing how these groups of girls on film succeed and fail in their efforts to subvert systems of oppression, we can better understand the political potential and the risks of such solidarities. 

Oct 10 at 4:30 p.m.
Ayres Multicultural Center

Come and learn about our program, faculty, and classes. This event is open to all Sewanee students, faculty, and staff. Refreshments will be provided

Oct. 8 at 5 p.m.
Convocation Hall

Brian Selznick is the author and illustrator of many books for children, and won the Caldecott Award for The Invention of Hugo Cabret, which was subsequently adapted into the film Hugo by Martin Scorsese. His book Wonderstruck was adapted by Todd Haynes into a film for which Selznick wrote the screenplay. His book Big Tree, which was inspired by an idea from Steven Spielberg, was named one of the best children's books of 2023 by The New York Times, and the audio book, narrated by Meryl Streep, was nominated for a Grammy. He will discuss storytelling, the power of images, and adapting stories from one medium into another. All are welcome. The talk will be followed by a book signing.

Oct 7 at 5:15 p.m.
Convocation Hall

Dinner & Dialogue recognizes how important everyday rituals are to building community at Sewanee, and views such occasions as opportunities to activate a shared vision for Sewanee defined by a robust culture of respectful dialogue. Together, we are creating a space to connect with one another and practice having meaningful conversations. 

Oct. 6 at 2 p.m.
Top Floor Wellness Commons

Spending just one hour in nature can lift your mood, reduce stress, and improve memory and attention. This hike is one hour, combining meditation and mindfulness with the beauty of the Sewanee Domain. Contact moellson@sewanee.edu with any questions.

Oct. 4 at 1 p.m.
Hamilton Hall

Please join us for the dedication of the newly renovated Hamilton Hall, the home of the School of Theology.

Oct. 4 at 2 p.m.
St. Luke's Chapel

Join the Sewanee voice studio for a clinic with master teacher Carole FitzPatrick of Arizona State University! Sewanee vocalists will receive feedback on select classical, musical theatre, and popular songs in a collaborative, growth-oriented environment. She has had many students starring in national musical theatre tours, such as Frozen, Dear Evan Hansen, Amazing Grace and Suessical. 
Featuring Vicki Collinsworth, piano.

Oct. 2 at 10:30 a.m.
Spencer Quad

Join us for our second annual Neurodiversity Days. All are welcome to learn more about neurodiversity as well as executive functioning skills, wellness skills, and inclusive classroom planning. There will be goat petting. Dialogue and Mountain Goat pizza starts at noon at EQB.

Oct. 2 at 9 a.m., 1:30 p.m., and 3 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

The Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray was a path-breaking poet, activist, attorney, professor, and Episcopal priest whose legacy of human rights work continues to reverberate.

Lecture One at 9 a.m. "Thy Will Be Done: Pauli & the Picket Sign" Christianity has too often functioned as a risk-management system that shields the powerful at the expense of those whom Jesus sought to protect: the poor, the sick, women, children. Pauli could not stomach this distortion.
Lecture Two at 1:30 p.m. "How Mighty the Sword: Pauli & the Pen" Humility in the face of rejection. Discipline. Patience. Empathy. These are but a few of the virtues Pauli develops through the practice of writing poetry and letters within a social landscape undergirded by violence.
Lecture Three at 3 p.m. "Pauli’s Canine Homiletic: Pauli & the Pulpit" Roy, Pauli’s rambunctious dog, was a loyal companion in the sermon composition and debriefing process. With his unconditional support, the risky work of preaching became a tad easier.

Sept. 30 at 5 p.m.
Convocation Hall

General Seidule's visit comes at a pivotal time as communities across the South, including many universities and colleges like Sewanee, have undertaken an examination of the names and memorials on buildings that honor Confederate leaders, enslavers, and proponents of the post-Civil War Lost Cause campaign to romanticize slavery and legitimize white supremacy.

Brigadier General Seidule, a native Southerner, was once steeped in the Lost Cause reverence for Confederate figures like Robert E. Lee. Over the course of his 36-year military career, which included serving as professor of history at West Point, his views underwent a profound transformation. His bestselling book, Robert E. Lee and Me: A Southerner's Reckoning with the Myth of the Lost Cause, recounts this journey and serves as a touchstone for those working to confront the mythologization of Confederate history.

Sept. 30 at 3:30 p.m.
McGriff Alumni House

A University-wide farewell reception will be held at McGriff Alumni House to thank University Chaplain Peter Gray for his years of service and spiritual guidance, which has impacted so many lives in the Sewanee community and beyond.

Sept. 26 at 6 p.m.
Ayres Multicultural Center on Willie Six Road

Participants will celebrate Hispanic/Latinx heritage in the MCC while enjoying cultural foods and listening to music. This program will give students the opportunity to engage with one another and to build community across various cultures and identities. We will have giveaways.

Sept. 26 at 5 p.m.
Mary Sue Cushman Room, Bairnwick Women’s Center

We are delighted to welcome whale biologist and research ethicist Éadin O'Mahony to Sewanee for a pair of talks related to her work on whale conservation in close collaboration with coastal First Nations in British Columbia, Canada. The public is welcome. O’Mahony is a Ph.D. candidate at the Scottish Oceans Institute, University of St. Andrews, and a lead researcher and field station manager with the North Coast Cetacean Society (BC Whales). Her Ph.D. is in collaboration with the Gitga’at First Nation and BC Whales. 

Sept 25 at 4:30 p.m.
Convocation Hall

The Babson Center for Global Commerce welcomes Bryan Viewpoints Speaker Boo Corrigan, P'25, director of athletics, North Carolina State University. College sports is a multibillion-dollar industry fueled by commercialization, media rights, and technological advances. In 2022-23, nine schools brought in revenues over $200 million, and the NCAA recorded $1.28 billion in revenue. Boo Corrigan will share his perspective on leading a major Division I program in the midst of rapid change in the business, including conference realignment, media bidding competitions, player NIL (Name, Image, Likeness), and emerging labor movements among college athletes. 

Sept. 22 at 2 p.m.
Studio Theatre, Tennessee Williams Center

A reading of a new play in progress by Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder. No reservation needed.

Sept. 19 & 20 at 7 p.m.
Studio Theatre, Tennessee Williams Center

When Libby inherits a wrecked 1961 Rolls Royce, she sets off on a journey to reassemble the car and pieces of the past her father left behind. In honor of her Alabama roots, she names the car after Zelda Fitzgerald. A little broken herself, Libby finds herself with a new understanding of marriage and family. From the playwright of Gee’s Bend and White Lightning, Zelda in the Backyard is a story of love and loss, and all the roads in between. 

Sept. 19 4:30 p.m.
Naylor Auditorium, Gailor Hall

Absorbing, charming, and intimate, Dayswork considers the blurry lines between life and literature, the slippage between what happens and what gets recorded, and the ways we locate ourselves in the lives of others. In wry, epigrammatic prose, Chris Bachelder and Jennifer Habel have crafted an exquisite and daring novel.

Sept. 17 at 5 p.m.
Convocation Hall

Join us for an engaging faculty panel discussion on “Liberal Arts, Democratic Citizenship, and the U.S. Constitution,” hosted by Sewanee Votes!, Dialogue Across Difference programs, and the Politics Department. Dive into how higher education can fortify our democracy and enrich democratic citizenship. Don’t miss this opportunity to explore the vital role of liberal arts in shaping a vibrant, informed democracy.

Sept. 10 at 8 p.m.
Mary Sue Cushman Room at the Wick

Watch and discuss the presidential debate with students, faculty, staff, and community members. Desserts and coffee will be provided. Register to vote or request your absentee ballot during the debate. All are welcome, regardless of political affiliation.

Sept. 9 at 4:30 p.m.
Convocation Hall

Step into the room with Stuart Weitzman, the visionary behind a global luxury footwear empire. With an eye for fashion and comfort, Weitzman designed and sold his shoes for more than 50 years. His entrepreneurial spirit and creativity launched his company into more than 70 countries with celebrities, such as Beyoncé, Kate Middleton, and Taylor Swift, wearing his shoes on the red carpet, on volleyball courts, in sold-out arenas, and beyond.

August 6 at 7 p.m.
Angel Park

Bill Miller is a world-renowned musician, singer, songwriter, storyteller, painter, and, most importantly, an instrument of peace. He has won eight Native American music awards and three Grammy awards, and has been named as one of the top 50 musicians from the state of Wisconsin to change the world. Miller was raised on the Stockbridge Munsee Mohican reservation. A Native American Flute Workshop will be at the Social Lodge at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 7, for beginners and all who are interested. Both events are free to the public, however, direct donations to the artist are welcomed.

July 10 at 7:30 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

OperaFest Sewanee is an artist incubator program that brings together emerging artists and leading experts in opera from around the world. Directed by Laura Brooks Rice, OperaFest offers private coaching, masterclasses, various performance opportunities, and workshops exploring professional learning.

July 6 at 7:30 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

Arthur Foote—At Dusk

Sergei Prokofiev—Overture on Hebrew Themes

Christopher Farrell—Trio for Flute, Viola, and Double Bass

Franz Schubert—Piano Trio in E-flat major

July 5 at 7:30 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

The Cumberland Orchestra is a pre-professional symphony orchestra for advanced pre-college and college students. Led by gifted educators and supported by the Sewanee Summer Music Festival's dedicated faculty, the Cumberland Orchestra offers these participants the opportunity to learn and grow as orchestral performers, exploring significant literature from the symphonic canon as well as contemporary works. Musical selections for this Friday include: Louise Farrenc—Overture #1; Dvorak—Serenade for winds; Ottorino Respighi—Pini di Roma.

July 3 at 4:30 p.m.
Gailor Hall

Justin Taylor's latest novel, Reboot, was published in April. A review by author Joshua Ferris made the cover of the New York Times Book Review, where he called Reboot a “performance full of wit and rigor freed of the familiar polarizing semantics." Taylor directs the Sewanee School of Letters MFA program. 

Emily Adrian is the author of the novels Everything Here Is Under Control and The Second Season, a novel about a former women’s college basketball star who becomes the first female NBA announcer, which Kareem Abdul-Jabaar called “riveting, insightful, and touching.” Her memoir, Daughterhood, will be published by Autofocus Press in 2024. Adrian has joined the School of Letters for her first summer, teaching a nonfiction workshop.

June 30 at 3:30 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

The Sewanee Symphony is a pre-professional ensemble of college and select pre-college students that will study core literature, explore contemporary works, and collaborate with faculty soloists. Festival faculty will guide weekly sectionals and attend rehearsals to reinforce fundamentals of orchestral performance. This Sunday's music includes: Gabriela Lena Frank—Escaramuza, and Dimitri Shostakovich—Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47.

June 29 at 7:30 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

Igor Stravinsky—Pastorale for Violin and Wind Quartet

Gabriel Faure—Piano Quartet No. 1 C minor

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart—Horn Quintet in Eb Major, K 407

Ludwig v. Beethoven—Quartet in F Major, Op. 18 No. 1

June 28 at 7:30 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

The Cumberland Orchestra is a pre-professional symphony orchestra for advanced pre-college and college students. Led by gifted educators and supported by our dedicated faculty, the Cumberland Orchestra offers these participants the opportunity to learn and grow as orchestral performers, exploring significant literature from the symphonic canon as well as contemporary works. Musical selections this Friday include: Higdon—Machine; Faure—Pavane; Saint Saens—Samson et Delila: Bacchanale; Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov—Capriccio Espagnol, Op. 34.

June 26 at 6 p.m.
St. Luke's Chapel

STARTALK—Sewanee Chinese Language Camp, and the Sewanee Summer Music Festival are excited to host Wu Fei, a classically trained composer, singer, and master of the guzheng, the 21-string Chinese zither. She has performed around the world at venues including New York’s MoMA, Paris’ Quai Branly Museum, and the North Sea Jazz Festival.

She plays in the guzheng’s vernacular—a musical language at least 2,500 years old – mixing Western classical and Chinese traditions with a contemporary, idiosyncratic sound.

June 26 at 4:30 p.m.
Gailor Hall

Tiana Clark's next poetry collection, Scorched Earth, will be published in March of next year. Clark is currently working on, Begging to be Saved, a memoir-in-essays reckoning with Black burnout, millennial divorce, faith, art making, and what lies on the other side of survival. 

Ryan Chapman's newest novel, The Audacity, was released in April of this year. Vanity Fair called it a “delicious satire,” and fellow author Kevin Nguyen described the novel as “a satire that hits on the line level, sparing none of its characters or observation from its skewering wit.” 

Jamie Quatro’s next novel, Two-Step Devil, will be published by Grove Press in September, followed by her story collection, Next Time I’ll Be Louder, in 2025. Her debut novel, Fire Sermon, was selected as one of the Top Seven Novels of 2018 by The Economist, and named a Book of the Year by the San Francisco Chronicle, LitHub, Bloomberg, and the Times Literary Supplement.

June 23 at 3:30 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

The Sewanee Symphony is a pre-professional ensemble of college and select pre-college students that will study core literature, explore contemporary works, and collaborate with faculty soloists. Festival faculty will guide weekly sectionals and attend rehearsals to reinforce fundamentals of orchestral performance. This Sunday's music includes: Johannes Brahms—Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80; Richard Strauss—Der Rosenkavalier Suite; J. Strauss—Radetzky March; Brahms—Hungarian Dance No. 5; J. Strauss II—Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka.

June 23 at 7:30 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

Toru Takemitsu—Between Tides

Edward Gregson—Quintet for Brass

Alyssa Morris—Mathematics

Sergei Prokofiev—Quintet in G minor, op. 39

June 21 at 4:30 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

The Cumberland Orchestra is a pre-professional symphony orchestra for advanced pre-college and college students. Led by gifted educators and supported by our dedicated faculty, the Cumberland Orchestra offers these participants the opportunity to learn and grow as orchestral performers, exploring significant literature from the symphonic cannon as well as contemporary works. Musical selections this Friday include: Strauss—Die Fledermaus Overture, Nkeiru Okoye—Voices Shouting Out, and Edvard Grieg—Peer Gynt Suite No.1, Op.46.

June 20 at 5:30 p.m.
Sewanee Inn

Jill McCorkle has the distinction of having published her first two novels on the same day in 1984. Of these novels, The New York Times Book Review said: “One suspects the author of The Cheer Leader is a born novelist. With July 7th, she is also a full grown one.” Since then she has published five other novels—most recently published is Hieroglyphics (2020, Algonquin Books)—and five collections of short stories (Old Crimes, 2024). Five of her books have been named New York Times notable books, and four of her stories have appeared in Best American Short Stories.

June 19 at 4:30 p.m.
Naylor Auditorium

Nickole Brown's book Fanny Says won the Weatherford Award for Appalachian Poetry in 2015. To Those Who Were Our First Gods, a book of nine poems, won the 2018 Rattle Prize. Her essay-in-poems, the Donkey Elegies, was published by Sibling Rivalry Press in 2020. She's also a fellow of the Black Earth Institute and is the president of the Hellbender Gathering of Poets, an annual environmental literary festival set to launch in Black Mountain, North Carolina in October 2025. Lindsey Harding, L'11, directs the Writing Intesive Program at the University of Georgia where she earned her Ph.D. in English in 2015. Her novel Pilgrims 2.0 follows four passengers on a luxury cruise line that promises complete reinvention through plastic surgery.

June 16 at 3:30 p.m.
Guerry Auditorium

Adrien Barthe: Passacaille

Jessie Montgomery: Duo for Violin and Cello

Jorge Variego: Fuego y Duende

Edmund Rubbra: Sonata in C for Oboe and Piano, Op. 100

Sergei Rachmanioff: Two Etudes - Tableaux 

Ivan Trevino: Wildings

Maurice Ravel: Pièce en forme de habanera

Kevin McKee: Vuelta del Fuego

June 12 at 4:30 p.m.
Naylor Auditorium

Tracy O’Neill is the author of the novels The Hopeful, and Quotients, a “stunning, and deeply disquieting, literary techno-thriller”. “O’Neill’s sentences are expertly crafted marvels of economy. Her prose almost feels redacted, as if someone has cut out just the right bits to keep you guessing and thinking and feeling,” says Charles Yu. Her memoir, Woman of Interest is “a compulsively readable, genre-bending story of finding her missing birth mother and, along the way, learning the priceless power of self-knowledge.” The former editor-in-chief of Epiphany journal, her writing has appeared in Granta, the New York Times, Rolling Stone, The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Bookforum, and other publications. She is an assistant professor at Vassar College.

June 12 at 7 p.m.
Convocation Hall

Dr. Hannah Matis, associate professor of Church History, will deliver a lecture entitled, “Daring the Wilderness: The Preaching and Theology of the Beguines.” In her lecture Matis will illuminate the religious lives of this diverse group of lay religious women who lived in the high and late Middle Ages. Beguines included some of the most innovative and radical vernacular theologians of their day and influenced other theologians and forms of religious life on the eve of the Reformation. 

June 5 at 4:30 p.m.
Naylor Auditorium

Adam O’Fallon Price is the author of two novels, The Grand Tour and The Hotel Neversink, which won the 2020 Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original. Meera Subramanian is an award-winning independent journalist whose book A River Runs Again: India's Natural World in Crisis, from the Barren Cliffs of Rajasthan to the Farmlands of Karnataka was short-listed for the 2016 Orion Book Award. 

June 3 at 5:30 p.m.
The Sewanee Village Bookstore

Ryan Chapman’s latest novel, The Audacity, was released April 2 and has been described as “a bracing satire about the implosion of a Theranos-like company, a collapsing marriage, and a billionaire's philanthropy summit.’’ School of Letters Director Justin Taylor’s new book, Reboot, “a raucous and wickedly smart satire of Hollywood, toxic fandom, and our chronically online culture,’’ was released on April 23.