Film explores environment from Mayan perspective

The film Heart of Sky, Heart of Earth, which explores environmental impacts from a Mayan perspective, will be shown Wednesday, April 8, at 7 pm at the Capitol Restaurant, Main St.

The film is sponsored the Bloomsburg Green Campus Initiative and the Exchange.

"The ancient Maya believed this present world would end and a new cycle arise after 5125 years,” begins the description from the film producers. "How does the story end? Does the water change color? Do the oceans collapse? Does the sky fall as the last tree is cut?” The multiple-award-winning film is free of charge and open to the public. The producers describe the presentation as being appropriate for everyone.

In the film, six young Maya from Chiapas and Guatemala show the contrast in their world view and that of many in the Western World. They reveal "through their daily and ceremonial life… their determination to resist the destruction of their culture and environment. As corporations go to the ends of the earth to extract all value, all resources, they put forth a wholly indigenous perspective in their own words, without narration. Each story touches upon a facet of the current global crisis.”

More information at www.heart-of-sky.com

Coming up: 

On Tuesday, April 28, in Carver Hall, Green Campus in conjunction with the International Faculty Association will present Gringo Trails at 7 pm. Gringo Trails shows the environmental impacts of expanding travel into the most remote parts of the world. The stories told reveal the effects of ever-increasing, unplanned and mismanaged growth in tourism. Another award winning presentation, the film has been heralded as “Required viewing for all thoughtful travelers,” by Conde Nast Traveler magazine.

Renaissance Jamboree on Main Street Saturday

The 36th annual Renaissance Jamboree will be held on Main Street, Bloomsburg, Saturday, April 26.
The event features hundreds of craft vendors from the region and delicious food from stands provided by non-profit organizations in Columbia and Montour counties. Enjoy FREE entertainment, kiddie rides, and games. Free parking with shuttle service will be available from the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds starting at 9:30 am.

Renaissance Jamboree Entertainment Schedule

Courthouse Stage

10 am: Beef—Classic Rock
11 am: BU Jazz Ensemble- Jazz Classics
Noon: Joyous—Classic Motown & Funk
2:30 pm: Chamuris and Brown—Classic Acoustic Rock
3:45 pm: Third Street- Original & Classic Rock

 Iron Street Stage 

10 am: Darren Inman- Acoustic Rock
11 am: NC7—Original & Contemporary Christian Rock
Noon: Darling Run- Modern Rock
1 pm: Clickard Consortium—Straight Ahead Jazz
2 pm: Emily Inman- Alternative Pop
3:00 pm: NC7—Original & Contemporary Christian Rock
4:00 pm: Fricknadorable- Americana, Roots, Novelty

 Market Square 

10:30 am: Flippenout Extreme Aerial Trampoline Team
11:15 am: The Friendship Squares
Noon: Flippenout Extreme Aerial Trampoline Team
12:30 pm Crosswinds Martial Arts
1:15 pm: YMCA Zumba
2:00 pm: Flippenout Extreme Aerial Trampoline Team
2:30 pm: Covered Bridge Cloggers
3:15 pm: Karen Gronsky School of Dance Dancers
4 pm: Flippenout Extreme Aerial Trampoline Team

 Jefferson Street Children’s Show Area 

10:30am: The Magic of Brent Kessler
11:15 am: Elmo Show Noon: Juggler Rob Smith
12:45 pm: Sully Show 1:30 pm: The Magic of Brent Kessler
2:15 pm: Elmo Show
3 pm: Juggler Rob Smith
3:45 pm: Sully Show 

Strolling performances by Rob Smith, Elmo, Sully, and Leo Schott on Bagpipes.

BTE will be performing their Theatre in the Classroom show (The Amazing Mr. Franklin or Ben There, Done That) at 2 pm in Phillips Emporium. The show is free.

 Pony Party Paradise will be offering pony rides for a nominal charge on Market Street north of the Fountain. Backyard Bouncin’ will be offering 3 inflatables for a nominal charge at Main & West streets.

 Renaissance Jamboree is co-sponsored by: Columbia Montour Chamber of Commerce, Bloomsburg University, Town of Bloomsburg, and Downtown Bloomsburg, Inc.

A choral concert. A look at commune life.

Bloomsburg University’s Fall Choral Concert, featuring the Women’s Choral Ensemble, Husky Singers and Concert Choir, will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 19, in First Presbyterian Church, 345 Market St., Bloomsburg. The concert is open to the public free of charge.

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The Friends of the Bloomsburg University Library Association is presenting its Fall Program this Sunday afternoon, October 20, at 2 p.m. in the Andruss Library Schweiker Room. The guest speaker is Melvyn Stiriss, the author of “Voluntary Peasants: Birth of the Farm Commune.” Stiriss spent the 1970s on a commune in Tennessee, and will relate his experiences on the farm and writing the book, the first in a four-part series. Here is the link to information on the book:www.voluntarypeasants.com/ It should be an interesting presentation, so please be sure to attend. Light refreshments will be served.

Poetry: Harry Humes featured reader Thursday

Harry Humes will be the featured reader for the River Poets Thursday, June 6, at 7:30 pm in the Bloomsburg Public Library. Humes' most recent collections of poetry are August Evening with Trumpet (2004) and Butterfly Effect (1998). MC will be Dave Barsky and there will be time for open readings.

River Poets Thursday reading to feature Rob Burnside

Rob Burnside will be the featured reader for the River Poets on Thursday, May 2, at 7:30 pm at the Bloomsburg Public Library, 225 Market Street. The theme of the reading is Old Friends. A native of northeastern Pennsylvania, Burnside's interest in poetry began in childhood, listening to his mother recite from memory. He is a graduate of Wyoming Seminary and received a B.A. in Art Education from Wilkes University. In the early 1990s, near the end of a career on the Wilkes-Barre City Fire Department, he began writing poetry and short fiction to fill in long night shift hours at the fire station, and joined the River Poets shortly thereafter. He currently resides in Swoyersville, and has published a chapbook Falling Off the Bone, with the help of Finishing Line Press. His work is substantially influenced by the poetry of Stanley Kunitz, Ruth Stone, William Stafford, Patti Smith, and Walt Whitman. MC is Mike DeMarco.

Concert Choir to perform downtown Saturday

The BU Concert Choir will give a concert on Saturday, April 27, at 7:30 p.m. in the sanctuary of First Presbyterian Church, 345 Market St., Bloomsburg.

This concert is free and open to the public. The program will feature sacred and secular music, including Z. Randall Stroope’s “Lamentations of Jeremiah” and “Inscription of Hope” and Randall Thompson’s “Choose Something Like a Star.” World music selections will include “Dubula” by Stephen Hatfield and the “Jamaican Market Place” by Larry Farrow.” Gospel music, spirituals and vocal jazz will complete the program.

Following commencement on Saturday, May 18, the Concert Choir, BU’s Husky Singers and Women’s Chorale will perform concerts in Chicago, with proceeds benefiting cancer-related organizations in memory of the late professor Eileen Hower, who passed away in December 2012. The Concert Choir is directed by professor of music Alan Baker and accompanied by Harry Martenas, jazz musician and church organist.

More weekend music

Two Bloomsburg University ensembles will perform in the annual Knoebels Amusement Resort Pops Concert Sunday, April 28, at the park in Elysburg. BU’s Concert Band will play at 2 p.m., followed by the Jazz Ensemble at 5:30 p.m. The performances are open to park visitors free of charge.

Renaissance Jamboree Saturday Schedule

Renaissance Jamboree Entertainment Schedule

April 27, 10 am - 5 pm
Downtown Bloomsburg

Courthouse Stage

• 10 am Beef—Classic Rock
• 11 am Seasoned Sounds—Contemporary Swing 
• Noon Joyous—Classic Motown & Funk
• 2:30 pm Chamuris and Brown—Classic Acoustic Rock 
• 3:45 pm Stained Grass Window-Bluegrass & Country

Iron Street Stage

• 10 am Darling Run- Modern Rock
• 11 am Finally Surrendered—Original & Contemporary Christian Rock
• Noon Fricknadorable—Americana, Roots, Novelty
• 1 pm Clickard Consortium—Straight Ahead Jazz
• 2 pm Mime Tribes—Original Music
• 3:00 pm Finally Surrendered—Original & Contemporary Christian Rock
• 4:00 pm Jeff Brown- Classic Acoustic Rock

Market Square

• 10:10 am Greenwood Friends & Susquehanna International Folk Dancers
• 10:45 am Susque Country Danjo Wheelers Square Dance
• 11:30 am Flippenout Extreme Aerial Trampoline Team
• Noon Rainbow Twirlers
• 12:30 pm Crosswinds Martial Arts
• 1:15 pm Flippenout Extreme Aerial Trampoline Team
• 1:30 pm YMCA Zumba
• 2:15 pm Flippenout Extreme Aerial Trampoline Team
• 2:30 pm Covered Bridge Cloggers
• 3:15 pm Karen Gronsky School of Dance Dancers
• 4 pm Flippenout Extreme Aerial Trampoline Team
• 4:30 pm International Student Assn Dancers

Jefferson Street Children’s Show Area

• 10:30am Dora Show
• 11:15 am Jerry Brown- “The Monkey Man”
• Noon Sully Show
• 12:45 pm The Magic of Brent Kessler
• 1:30 pm Dora Show
• 2:15 pm Jerry Brown—“The Monkey Man”
• 3 pm Sully Show
• 3:45 pm The Magic of Brent Kessler

Strolling performances by Jerry Brown, Dora, Sully, and Leo Schott on Bagpipes.

The Bloosmburg Theatre Ensemble will perform their theatre in the classroom show Patch Works: Life & Legends of the Coal Towns, at 2 pm in Phillips Emporium. The show is free.

Pony Party Paradise will be offering pony rides for a nominal charge on Market Street north of the Fountain.

Backyard Bouncin’ will have two inflatable games for a nominal charge at Main & West streets.

Renaissance Jamboree is co-sponsored by: Columbia Montour Area Chamber of Commerce, Program 
Board of Bloomsburg University, Town of Bloomsburg, Bloomsburg University, Renaissance Jamboree Committee, Downtown Bloomsburg, Inc.

The impact of Marcellus Shale ... in art, film and words

Just a reminder: The Moose Exchange on West Main is hosting a multi-disciplinary project focused on the impact of Marcellus Gas Shale on Pennsylvania communities. 

The extensive multi-disciplinary project includes an art exhibit, lectures, film screenings. Get the details direct from the Moose. 

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The Moose is also hosting a Mayoral Debate for the Town of Bloomsburg.

An unexpected exhibit on Main Street

Here's a great example of artistic initiative. A group of graduating BU art students are showing their work in a downtown storefront.

Dubbing their show the "Senior Squat Exhibit," the students will display their work at 40 East Main Street until Saturday, April 27 (Renaissance Jamboree). The gallery space, donated by Jag Student Housing, will be open from noon to 8 pm daily except for Sundays, when it will be noon to 6 pm. There will be an opening reception Friday, April 19, from 3 to 6 pm.

I had a chance to get a peek at the show as it was going up over the weekend. Definitely worth a walk on Main Street ... the students' work is big, bold and ambitious. I've posted the photo above to give a sense of the scale they've worked in without giving away the details. —EFG.

A fun take on the expression: "Keep your pants on"

The Bloomsburg University Players will present comedian Steve Martin’s adaptation of Carl Sternheim’s play The Underpants from Wednesday, April 17, to Saturday, April 20, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, April 21, at 3 p.m. at the Alvina Krause Theater, 226 Center St., Bloomsburg.

Admission is free with BU ID, $6 for adults and $4 for students and seniors. Directed by David A. Miller, assistant professor of theatre, The Underpants tells the tale of Theobald Maske and his unusual problem: his wife’s underpants won’t stay on. One Friday morning, they fall to her ankles right in the middle of town. Mortified, Theo swears to keep her at home until she can find some less unruly undies. Amid this chaos, he's trying to rent a room in their flat, and the prospective lodgers have some surprises of their own.

 Miller said Martin’s comic genius and sophisticated literary style have transformed the 1910 German social satire written by Sternheim into a comedy about gender politics.

Advance tickets are available at Haas Center Box Office at (570) 389-4340. For more information, visit buplayers.org.

Poetry: Jim Magill featured reader Thursday

Jim Magill will be the featured reader for the River Poets on Thursday, April 4, at 7:30 pm at the Bloomsburg Public Library, Market Street. Magill's writing has received, and continues to garner, some national attention. A sample of his writing can be accessed at his web site: http://romonxassociatedartists.com/profile/JamesMagill. This will be an interactive event, audience participation requested.

Columbia County celebrates 200 years

Columbia County will celebrate its bicentennial Saturday, March 23, with several events (in addition to the magic show mentioned below).

There will be a Bicentennial 5K Run/Walk at noon beginning at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds Race Track and finishing at the Bloomsburg Hospital parking lots, where the top three finishers of male and female participants will be given awards.

There will be a parade starting at 2 pm at the Geisinger- Bloomsburg Hospital/Bloomsburg University parking lots and continuing to the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds grandstand entrance.

From 11 am to 9 pm the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds Arts and Crafts Building will be open with exhibits of local businesses, churches, historical societies and other organizations showcasing their years of service. There will also be live entertainment from noon to  6 pm. The celebrate will be capped off when the Bicentennial Time Capsule will be displayed and sealed at 7 pm followed by a firework show at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds.

Flood Stories continue

Performances of “Flood Stories, Too” continue Thursday through Sunday at the Alvina Krause Theatre downtown on Center Street.

Related to the Flood — BU's Institute for Culture & Society is sponsoring two programs this week (light refreshments provided):

• Tuesday, March 12, 5:30 – 8:30 pm, Moose Exchange, Grille Room
  Panel 1) Jennifer Whisner, PhD, asst. professor of environmental, geographical and geological Sciences, presents “Climate Change and Flooding”
  Panel 2) Rita Inklovich, Red Cross; Kathy Lowe, Agape; & Lee Sokoloski, chief of police, Bloomsburg, present “The Role of Response Services to the 2011 Flood” 
  
• Thursday, March 14, 6:30 – 7:45 pm, Hartline Rm 108 (Auditorium)
  “Psychological Responses to Natural Disaster: Stress, Community, Resilience” — James Dalton, PhD, professor of psychology; William R. Harrar, PsyD, BU director of counseling; Joseph G. Tloczynski, PhD, professor of psychology; Jennifer M. Yarnell, MCAT, PhD, instructor of psychology and private practitioner; Jodi Weiskerger, LSW, private practitioner; Moderator: Nancy D. Giles, PhD, assistant professor of psychology

Sibelius for Sunday

The Bloomsburg University Chamber  Orchestra will perform Sunday, March 10, at 2:30 pm at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, 123 N. Market St.

The program will be:

• Sibelius: Finlandia
• Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 
• Beethoven: PIano Concerto No. 3

The guest artist is pianist Cathal Breslin. Mark Jelinek directs. And the show is free.

Reception for Larry Ney at Artspace

There will be an artists' reception for Larry Ney II Saturday, March 9, from 6 to 8 pm at Artspace Gallery, 221 Center Street.

I love Ney's work. He goes big, abstract, bold. He uses color very powerfully. But to me eye, there's an additional beauty in his brushwork, which seems simultaneously spontaneous and controlled. For me, it recalls Japanese Sumi-e ink painting with a bolder palette.  — EGF.

Flood Stories, Too

The Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble and the Bloomsburg University Players are staging Flood Stories, Too from March 7 to 17. Shows are pay what you wish.

More details from BU's College of Liberal Arts blog.

Written and directed by Gerald Stropnicky, Emeritus member of Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble, Flood Stories, Too. is a collection of personal narratives and stories of local residents’ experiences with the flood, artfully crafted into a two-act play. 

“You’ll see through different monologues that almost all of the actual events are taken from stories that people have given us,” said Phil Czekner, Bloomsburg University student and actor in the production. 

Many stories were gathered by Mary Reinsburrow, another Bloomsburg University student and actress in the production. Characters featured in the multitude of stories range from unconcerned students to victims themselves to volunteers, even including Mayor Dan Knorr and Bloomsburg University’s President, Dr. David Soltz.

In addition to the play, there are a series of events related to the events scheduled in the town and university as well.

Friday, March 8^th, 5:00 – 6:30 pm, McCormick 1303

Arlene Goldbard, nationally-recognized author/speaker/activist, presents “Tell It! How Shaping Our Stories Shapes Our Lives and Communities”

Saturday, March 9^th, 4:30 pm, Alvina Krause Theatre (AKT)

Arlene Goldbard, nationally-recognized author/speaker/activist, & Gerard Stropnicky, director/writer of BTE’s Flood Stories, Too., present

"What Happens When Communities Participate in Telling Their Own Stories"

Sunday, March 10^th, 12:30-2:00 pm, Moose Exchange, Grille Room

Gerard Stropnicky presents “Flood Stories, Too.: Context and Process”

Tuesday, March 12^th, 6:00 – 8:30 pm, Moose Exchange, Grille Room

Panel 1) Jennifer Whisner, PhD, Asst. Professor of Environmental, Geographical & Geological Sciences, presents “Climate Change and Flooding”

Panel 2) Rita Inklovich, Red Cross; Kathy Lowe, Agape; & Lee Sokoloski, Chief of Police, Bloomsburg, present “The Role of Response Services to the 2011 Flood”

Thursday, March 14^th, 6:30 – 7:45 pm, Hartline Rm 108 (Auditorium)

“Psychological Responses to Natural Disaster: Stress, Community, Resilience”

Paula Closson Buck featured River Poets reader

The featured reader for the River Poets on Thursday, March 7, is Paula Closson Buck, the author of two books of poems, The Acquiescent Villa (1998) and Litanies Near Water (2008), both from Louisiana State University Press. Readings begin at 7:30 pm in the Bloomsburg Public Library, followed by an open reading. MC is Dick Brook.

She has published poems in such journals as Agni, Denver Quarterly, Gettysburg Review, Shenandoah, and Southern Review and has been the recipient of three individual artist fellowships from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. In addition to teaching at Bucknell University as professor of English, for eleven years she edited West Branch, the nationally distributed literary magazine published out of Bucknell’s Stadler Center for Poetry.

Illustration by Sarah Foster.

A celebration of Gloria Cohen-Dion

Bloomsburg University's College of Liberal Arts will celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Gloria Cohen-Dion, political science professor, who passed away recently. The event will be Thursday, March 7, from 6 to 8 pm in the Kehr Union, Ballroom.

Dr. Cohen-Dion was the wife of Sam Dion, a wonderful artist, and man, whose unmistakable work graces many public spaces in Bloomsburg.

Kidsburg is coming back

Great news.

After more than a year without our downtown playground, plans for the new Kidsburg will be unveiled tonight (Feb. 19) at 7 pm at the Bloomsburg High School caffeteria.

The song's the thing ...

Have a favorite song? The River Poets reading tonight, Dec. 6, will revolve on the theme of "song lyrics."  Readings begin at 7:30 pm at Bloomsburg Public Library. Bring the CD or cassette or any song you'd like to read. Players will be there.