Tuesday, September 13, 2011

The woman Newsweek has called "the most exciting individual in American theatre" will use her personal brand of theatre to challenge thousands at the University of North Carolina Wilmington to examine their beliefs about diversity as part of the annual Synergy Common Reading Program.

Actress and writer Anna Deavere Smith will share Snapshots: Glimpses of America in Change at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 14 in Kenan Auditorium. She was awarded the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship for creating "a new form of theatre - a blend of theatrical art, social commentary, journalism and intimate reverie." Unclaimed tickets will be released 30 minutes before the lecture at the Kenan Box Office. A limited number of tickets will be available for overflow seating at Lumina Theatre one hour before the show.

Deavere Smith's performance is one of several events of the UNC Wilmington Synergy Common Reading Program, which helps build community and conversation by encouraging the whole campus to read one book together. This year's Synergy selection, Zeitoun by Dave Eggers, is the first to be recommended by a UNCW student. The book details the story of a prosperous Syrian-American who chose to stay in New Orleans through Hurricane Katrina and highlights issues of injustice and social responsibility. Additional Synergy events of interest include:

Low and Behold screening and discussionwith director Zack Godshall
7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 29, Lumina Theater

This film tells the story of a young insurance claims adjuster in post-Katrina New Orleans who risks his job to help a local man find his lost dog. Filmed on location in New Orleans only months after Hurricane Katrina, Low and Behold blurs the line between reality and fiction, creating a mosaic of images, faces and voices that together make for a unique cinematic experience. The film premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2007.

Synergy Panel Discussion: "Living in the Century of Disasters"

6:30-8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 5, Kenan Hall 1111

A panel of professors and experts will shed light on what we have learned from the political, social and personal aspects of recent catastrophic events and how we might prepare for and respond to such events in the future.

Art Exhibition: "The Katrina Collection" by Lori K. Gordon
7 a.m.-11 p.m. daily, Tuesday, Oct. 18 - Monday, Oct. 24, Warwick Center Lobby
Artist Gallery Talk 4-5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 18, Cultural Arts Building 2033

In 2005, Gordon was doing work on the Mississippi Gulf Coast when her studio and artworks were destroyed by a storm surge from Hurricane Katrina. She returned a few weeks later and began creating new collages of art using rubble and objects found in the destruction that remained and the mixed media "The Katrina Collection" was created. Gordon's work can be found in galleries across the country, Barack Obama's private collection and in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Institution

New Orleans Lunch
11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 20, Wagoner Hall

Students, faculty and staff will enjoy New Orleans-inspired food, music and festivities at Wagoner Hall.

Media Contact:
Joy Davis, UNCW marketing and communications, 910.632.3903, or davisjc@uncw.edu