There’s one big event happening this weekend and that’s Meliora Weekend. This week’s picks are part of the annual weekend celebration and are open to staff, faculty, and the Rochester community. If you’re a ticket holder to Tony Bennett’s sold-out show at the Eastman Theatre, his performance along with appearances by filmmaker Ken Burns, Trevor Noah, host of The Daily Show, and MSNBC’s Morning Joe hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, are expected to be the highlights. In addition, check out concerts this weekend at the Eastman School of Music, and exhibits at the Memorial Art Gallery. There are also ongoing exhibitions on the River Campus. Find daily information on upcoming events on the University Events Calendar at www.rochester.edu/calendar.
#1: Meliora Weekend Pass Holders Take Part in Free Events
Join your University colleagues on Friday, October 7, for lunch at the Campaign Celebration Barbecue at 12:15 p.m. on the new Hajim Quad, while enjoying live music by Provost Rob Clark’s band, Don’t Know Jack. The Scholar Showcase celebrates research, culture, programs, and community from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m., on the Wilson Quadrangle. Come back with the family for the Meliora Village on Saturday, October 8, featuring a food truck rodeo and bounce house for the kids. The Ben Folds Concert, which is free to attend on a ‘first come, first served basis,’ begins at 4 p.m. on Saturday, at the River Campus. Online registration for Meliora Weekend is closed, but you can still register in person at onsite registration locations starting Thursday at Wilson Commons, the Eastman School of Music, and the School of Medicine and Dentistry. For questions call the Office of Alumni Relations at 273-5888 or email alumni@rochester.edu. Read more.
#2: Explore American Myths and Heroism in When You Comin’ Back, Red Ryder?
The International Theatre Program opens its 2016-17 theater season on Thursday, October 6, with the Obie Award-winning drama, When You Comin’ Back, Red Ryder? The story is set in a southwestern small-town diner where a fugitive couple interrupts the lives of the diner regulars and the locals. Medoff’s drama explores the myths of American manhood and heroism with “brutality, humor, and nail-biting suspense.” Directed by Nigel Maister, the Russell and Ruth Peck Artistic Director of the International Theatre Program, When You Comin’ Back, Red Ryder?, will run Thursday through Saturday, October 6 to 8, at 7 p.m. There are matinee performances at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, October 8 and 9. Performances take place at the Todd Theater on the River Campus. Tickets are $12 for alumni, faculty, staff, and for seniors (65+), and $15 for the general public. Purchase online at www.rochester.edu/theatre; by calling the box office at (585) 275-4088; or up to an hour before each performance at the box office.
#3: Inaugural Poet Gives Reading for Plutzik Series
Poet Richard Blanco will read from his work on Friday, October 7, as part of the Plutzik Reading Series. Only five poets have taken part in a U.S. presidential inauguration, and Blanco is a member of that select club. He became not only the youngest but also the first immigrant, the first Latino, and the first openly gay inaugural poet when he read “One Today”—a poem he composed for the occasion—at President Barack Obama’s second inauguration. The reading begins at 4 p.m., in Dewey Hall 1-101 on the River Campus.
#4: Concerts for Classical Music Enthusiasts
The Department of Music will host several free concerts over the weekend. The Chamber Orchestra kicks off the weekend at 4 p.m. Friday, October 7, with a performance that features the overture from “The Italian in Algiers” by Rossini and Mendelssohn’s “Symphony No. 4.” Later that evening, in an ensemble performance—the Chamber Singers, Women’s Chorus, and Men’s Glee Club will perform at 7 p.m. The Symphony Orchestra and Wind Symphony Concert, featuring pieces by Borodin and Tchaikovsky, will begin at 7 p.m. Saturday, October 8. The Jazz Ensemble and Gospel Choir Concert starts at 1 p.m. Sunday, October 9. All concerts will take place at the Strong Auditorium on the River Campus.
#5: Cheer On the Yellowjackets
Rochester’s athletic history will be celebrated both during the football game and later that evening during a Meliora Weekend event on Saturday, October 8. At halftime of the football game versus the St. Lawrence Saints, members of the 1991 men’s cross country national championship team will be introduced. On Saturday evening, eight former athletes and one coach will be inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame. The honorees include five All-Americans and an Academic All-American. They represent seven sports. The football game will pair Rochester, seeking its first Liberty League victory of the season, against St. Lawrence. The Saints are ranked No. 22 in Division III. They are the defending Liberty League football champions. The game starts at 1 p.m. at Fauver Stadium.
