Lectures, an opera, and wine tasting highlight Fanfare’s finale

Lectures, Mozart’s final opera, and wine tasting round out the 40th season of Fanfare, Southeastern Louisiana University’s annual fall festival of the arts, humanities and social sciences.

Kicking off the week Monday, Oct. 27, is the Southeastern English Department Common Read Q and A with Common Read Author Jose Olivarez at 11 a.m. Following is the presentation of “Reading and Signing: Promises of Gold,” at 12:30 p.m. in the Student Union Ballroom.  

Next up is a History and Political Science Department lecture Wednesday, Oct. 30. Scheduled in the Student Union Theatre at 12:30 a.m., the lecture, titled “A Monster Behind the Mask? A Harrowing Halloween History of His Highness Henry VIII,” will be given by Southeastern History and Political Science Department Head William Robison.  

The more-or-less annual Halloween lecture, according to Robison, returns with the usual mix of scholarship, silliness, and sweets as he addresses questions about England’s most notorious king. 

“Was he the monster portrayed in Firebrand? The sex-crazed perpetual adolescent of The Tudors? The cold glutton of The Private Life of Henry VIII? Did he deserve the label ‘man, monarch, monster?’ Did he have the mind of a tyrant? Would he have thrown candy to the audience? The speaker will,” Robison said. 

Also scheduled Oct. 30 at 5 p.m. are artist talks courtesy of the Visual Arts + Design Department. The talks will take place in the Contemporary Art Gallery in Clark Hall on campus.

For the final presentation on Oct. 30, Columbia Theatre for the Performing Arts will present a movie screening of “Psycho.” Scheduled at 7:30 p.m. in the downtown Hammond theatre, the film is a special Halloween treat courtesy of Alfred Hitchcock and Columbia Theatre. Join in the celebration of 65 years of one of the greatest horror films of all time. Columbia Theatre’s resident Historian Jason Landrum will introduce the film and share some fun facts about its making, massive influence, and enduring legacy. Tickets are $20 and include free popcorn and a trick-or-treat bag.

The final installment of the Fanfare lecture series is scheduled Nov. 5 in the Student Union Theatre. Beginning at 2 p.m., the lecture will be delivered by Southeastern history alumni Nicholas Scamardo. He will present “Soil v Soul; Thomas Paine’s Vision of American Identity.” 

Scamardo notes that Paine not only championed  the American Revolution but also voiced the nation’s aspirational “soul,” a promise of justice, inclusion, and rights for all. History often records the “soil,’ i.e. slavery, Jim Crow, exclusionary naturalization laws, internment camps, and mass surveillance, but the tension of soul vs soil permeates American identity, Scamardo said, and that Paine sought a nation grounded in universal justice.

Next up Nov. 6 and 7 is a presentation by Southeastern Opera/Music Theatre of “The Magic Flute,” complete with a live orchestra. The production is scheduled at 7 p.m. each evening at the Columbia Theatre. Directed by Jennifer Mouledous, the timeless fantasy tells the story of Prince Tamino and his odd companion, Papageno, on their quest to rescue the daughter of the Queen of the Night. 

Tickets are available at the Columbia Theatre box office and are $30 adults and $15 students, faculty and staff. Southeastern students are admitted free with university ID.

Rounding out Fanfare on Nov. 7 is a fundraiser with a kick for Sims Memorial Library. Scheduled at 6:30 p.m. on the second floor of Sims Library, the 17th annual Friends of Sims Library Annual Wine Tasting and Silent Auction will feature five wines paired with food samplings, live music, a silent auction that boasts art, books, a selection of gift baskets and gift certificates for restaurants, events and services, plus drawings for a number of door prizes to be given away during the event, said Sims Library Director David Sesser.  

The Friends of Sims Library is the organization that supports the activities and collections of the library. Funds generated by the Friends are used to supplement the library’s annual budget, purchase needed equipment and resources, and provide programs, lectures, author readings and signings, and other special events. 

Space is limited, so early reservations are suggested. Tickets will not be sold at the door.

Reservations are $95 each and can be made online at southeastern.edu/librarywine or by check made payable to “Southeastern Foundation” and mailed to Friends of Sims Library, ATTN: Janie Branham, SLU 10896, Hammond, La., 70402. Reservations by mail must be received by Wednesday, Oct. 29, to guarantee entry. 

Fanfare events are free, unless otherwise noted. For more information, contact the Columbia/Fanfare office at 985-549-2999.