Join Leah Smith (Wheaton class of 2014) and Michael Townsend of the Providence-based Tape Art studio to help create an original tape-based mural in the Haas Concourse & Lobby of Watson Fine Arts. Tape Art has conducted hundreds of community mural projects, highlighted most recently in Jeremy Workman’s award-winning documentary, Secret Mall Apartment (2024). Training and materials will be provided free of charge; participants may choose to work in one or both of the mural project’s two-hour shifts.
Students interested in participating should email [email protected] for more information.
This event is part of Wheaton’s Fall of Freedom programming.
Join us for a presentation by Mike Curato, author of the graphic novel Flamer which received several honors including the 2020 Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ Young Adult, the 2021 Massachusetts Book Award for Young Adult, and was listed as one of NPR’s Best Books of 2020. Flamer also has the distinction of being one of the top 10 banned books of 2024, and Mike has become a fierce advocate of free speech.
The highly acclaimed young adult book is a semi-autobiographical graphic novel in which Curato addresses his own adolescent struggles with being gay and bullied. Curato said he wrote the book to validate his own life and help other kids like him. Mike’s debut adult graphic novel, Gaysians, released in June of 2025 to critical acclaim. His presentation will be followed by a book signing.
This event is part of Wheaton’s Fall of Freedom programming.
Joan Scheckel is an internationally renowned creator of The Technique™, a highly influential approach to writing, directing, and filmmaking craft in Hollywood. Dubbed the “director’s guru,” she is celebrated as a master teacher inspired by traditions such as Stanislavski, Strasberg, and Joseph Campbell. Her pioneering work advocates for a shift away from cultural conflict towards storytelling rooted in feeling and meaning, transforming all aspects of mise en scène—from writing and acting to directing and visual style.
Jeremy Workman’s 2025 documentary “Secret Mall Apartment” tells the story of eight Rhode Island artists who created a secret apartment inside the Providence Place Mall, living undetected for four years. Far more than a prank, the secret apartment became a deeply meaningful place for all involved—both a creative protest against gentrification and a compelling examination of what (and where) we call “home.” Join us for a post-screening discussion with artist Michael Townsend, the documentary’s primary subject.
Join us to kick-off Family & Friends Weekend arts@wheaton style! Enjoy performances by our student music, dance and theatre groups and a variety of free activities. Make-your-own Chia Pet jar; choose a bandana, zippered pouch or bucket hat to tie-dye; get an airbrush tattoo; try your hand at the Innovation Spaces drone obstacle course; or help us make press cider with apples from President Whelan’s orchard.
How do the arts activate public life? What is the role of the arts in sustaining democracy? In different eras and regions of the world, citizens have responded to these questions quite differently. As we mark the 250th anniversary of both the Phi Beta Kappa Society and of the United States of America, these questions have never been more resonant. The arts are key to advancing the rights of free assembly and of free expression. The arts contribute to social movements and to the formation of civic identity. This lecture alights upon a range of socially engaged art practices, investigating how the arts both shape and challenge our sense of community. Considering historic examples as well as those from our present moment—including ideas from Wheaton College students— we will explore how public art can open us to new ideas of what democracy might mean.
Through the Phi Beta Kappa Society’s Visiting Scholar Program, Dr. Jackson, Professor of the Arts & Humanities and Department Chair of History of Art at UC Berkeley, will visit Wheaton for two days.
Kresge Theatre Company presents 24 Hour Play Festival. Groups of students will write, rehearse, and perform a play in just 24 hours.
Tickets are free and can be reserved via the Box Office.
Please join us for the opening of our latest gallery exhibition, Ctrl+Delete.
The exhibition explores the persistent threat of censorship in the United States, from historical book bans used to control knowledge and suppress marginalized voices to today’s escalating restrictions—including the removal of books and art from public spaces as well as the June Supreme Court decision (Mahmoud v. Taylor) requiring schools to provide opportunities to opt out of listening learning about books that include LGBTQ+ characters. By tracing these acts of erasure across time, the show reveals how censorship has shaped, and continues to shape, what stories are told and who gets to tell them.
Alongside overt bans and challenges, the exhibition also addresses the quieter but equally insidious forces of self-censorship within art and educational institutions, where fear of controversy, loss of funding, or political pressure can limit which narratives are made visible. Central to the exhibition is the Ultra Violet Archive, an interactive library which resists silencing by preserving cultural memory and amplifying suppressed voices. Projects like the Minecraft Uncensored Library—a digital platform where banned texts are freely accessible—demonstrate how artists, activists, and technologists are developing inventive strategies to fight suppression.
As part of the exhibition, we will hold a community reading of Frederick Douglass’s work during National Banned Books Week in October. The exhibition also features a dedicated space where visitors can share their own experiences with censorship creating an archive that underscores the ongoing relevance of these struggles. Opportunities to engage will create a space for shared reflection, underscoring the enduring power of words to inspire freedom, dialogue, and change.
Gallery Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m., Thursdays 1:00 p.m.—8:00 p.m.
Please note: the galleries will be closed November 26-December 1 for Thanksgiving break.
Ctrl+Delete explores the persistent threat of censorship in the United States, from historical book bans used to control knowledge and suppress marginalized voices to today’s escalating restrictions—including the removal of books and art from public spaces as well as the June Supreme Court decision (Mahmoud v. Taylor) requiring schools to provide opportunities to opt out of listening learning about books that include LGBTQ+ characters. By tracing these acts of erasure across time, the show reveals how censorship has shaped, and continues to shape, what stories are told and who gets to tell them.
Alongside overt bans and challenges, the exhibition also addresses the quieter but equally insidious forces of self-censorship within art and educational institutions, where fear of controversy, loss of funding, or political pressure can limit which narratives are made visible. Central to the exhibition is the Ultra Violet Archive, an interactive library which resists silencing by preserving cultural memory and amplifying suppressed voices. Projects like the Minecraft Uncensored Library—a digital platform where banned texts are freely accessible—demonstrate how artists, activists, and technologists are developing inventive strategies to fight suppression.
As part of the exhibition, we will hold a community reading of Frederick Douglass’s work during National Banned Books Week in October. The exhibition also features a dedicated space where visitors can share their own experiences with censorship creating an archive that underscores the ongoing relevance of these struggles. Opportunities to engage will create a space for shared reflection, underscoring the enduring power of words to inspire freedom, dialogue, and change.
Gallery Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m., Thursdays 1:00 p.m.—8:00 p.m.
Please note: the galleries will be closed November 26–December 1 for November break.
Book & Lyrics by Greg Kotis, Music & Lyrics by Mark Hollman.
Winner of three Tony Awards and two Obie Awards, Urinetown is a hilarious musical satire of the legal system, capitalism, social irresponsibility, populism, environmental collapse, privatization of natural resources, bureaucracy, municipal politics, and musical theatre itself! In a Gotham-like city, a terrible water shortage, caused by a 20-year drought has led to a government-enforced ban on private toilets.The citizens must use public amenities, regulated by a single malevolent company that profits by charging admission for one of humanity’s most basic needs. Amid the people, a hero decides that he’s had enough and plans a revolution to lead them all to freedom! Hilariously funny and touchingly honest, Urinetown provides a fresh perspective on one of America’s greatest art forms.
Tickets may be purchased online through the Box Office once they become availalbe.