Arda Collins poetry features a quiet assertive voice that builds or collects or accumulates a domestic space.  It is an approach to subject matter and context that has, in the poetry world, found a greater voice through women poet’s work.

Five-time Grammy Award winner Angélique Kidjo is one of the greatest artists in international music today, a creative force with fifteen albums to her name. Kidjo’s creative power is palpable through the beauty and strength of her voice, her music and movement, visual aesthetic, linguistic prowess and enormous advocacy work that serves so many. Kidjo has cross-pollinated the West African traditions of her childhood in Benin with elements of American R&B, funk and jazz, as well as influences from Europe and Latin America. Yet her love for collaboration inspires musical fusions and partnering with gifted musicians from across the globe. Angelique also advocates on behalf of children as a UNICEF and OXFAM Ambassador. She created her own charitable foundation, Batonga, dedicated to support the education of young girls in Africa.

Tickets are required, but are available free of charge via the Watson Box Office (limit 2 per person).
“I believe music is a language beyond the colour of skin, country or culture. I want to inspire people to work to help educate, nourish and protect our children.”
Angélique Kidjo, Benin

Join us to kick off Family & Friends Weekend arts@wheaton style. Come get a taste of what the arts at Wheaton can offer, there will be live performances, food trucks, tie dye, galaxy glitter jars and more!

Writer, teacher, and tattoo artist, Phuc Tran, reads from his humorous and introspective memoir, “Sigh, Gone. A Misfit’s Memoir of Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In”, about his family’s escape from Vietnam, displacement in America, and his struggle to fit in during high school.  A brief Q&A will follow this lunchtime event.

Writer Kim Adrian reads from her memoir “The Twenty-Seventh Letter of the Alphabet” and discusses growing up with the confusion and chaos of mental illness and generational trauma.  A brief Q&A will follow this lunchtime event.

Join us for a reception celebrating the opening of our latest exhibition What Only You Can Make: The Art of the African Wrap Doll from the National Black Doll Museum. The exhibition will be on display from September 15–October 29, 2022.

Faculty members in the Department of Music perform as part of the Faculty and Friends Music Series.

Award winning composer, saxophonist, and flutist Anna Webber performs with her band Simple Trio (Matt Mitchell, piano; John Hollenbeck, drums) blending strands from contemporary concert music and free improvisation. It is surprising, inventive, virtuosic, and engagingly problematizes entrenched notions about the genre of a jazz trio.

Interested in getting involved in Music? Come out and meet the faculty and hear about opportunities for classes and performance.

Come out and meet the faculty and staff of the Department of Theatre and Dance and hear what’s planned for the coming year. Information about auditions for both theatre and dance will be provided as well as information about classes and the major.