Films to kick off college's arts, humanities program
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on January 5, 2012 1:46 PM
The Wayne Community College arts and humanities program schedule for the spring is packed with variety -- from a two-day free film festival, a humorous author and a tribute to Frank Sinatra, to speakers, plays and historic trips.
It all begins later this month, when the second annual Praxis Film Festival kicks off the season the weekend of Jan. 20-21 in Moffatt Auditorium on the WCC campus.
The festival will be a floating event, said Bill Brettmann, director of the arts and humanities program.
He said the public is invited to an opening night reception at 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20, followed by the first film screenings beginning at 8 p.m. "Little Horses" is a 17-minute film about the rivalry between a man and his former wife's new boyfriend, resulting in the buying of extravagant gifts for a child's birthday. "Five-Time Champion," a 92-minute film, centers around a teenage boy whose absent father is the talk of the town while his mother and grandfather are embroiled in relationship issues of their own.
Saturday's schedule starts at 10 a.m. with the seven-minute film "Captain Fork," followed by a 99-minute film, "The Other F Word," a documentary featuring interviews with veteran punk musicians and athletes like Flea, Blink-182's Mark Hoppus and skateboarder Tony Hawk.
Student films and a panel discussion are being developed for the afternoon session, from 1-2:30 p.m., with a steady lineup of films from 2:45-6:30 p.m. and resuming at 8 p.m. Details will be forthcoming, but filmmakers are from the U.S., Argentina and Israel.
The following week, on Thursday, Jan. 26, at 7 p.m., Woody McDonnell, accompanied by Tom Casey, will perform in a free concert. "Sinatra and Company: Love Songs of the Greatest Generation" will feature popular ballads from 1910 to 1960.
The college Foundation is a co-sponsor of a play in connection with this year's Wayne County Reads selection, "The Pleasure was Mine" by Tommy Hayes of UNC-Asheville, about a family dealing with Alzheimer's. The play, inspired by the book, is "The Best is Yet to Be," and will be presented Feb. 1 at 8 p.m. in Moffatt Auditorium. By Dr. Elliot Engle, the one-woman show features Quinn Hawkesworth, who will portray several caregivers and patients.
A North Carolina native and debutante who found herself in a series of humorous situations in the "big city," New York that is, will share some of those experiences on Sunday, Feb. 19, at 2 p.m. in Room 101 of the Walnut Building.
Jane Borden, niece of Goldsboro businessman Ed Borden, grew up in Greensboro and now lives in Tennessee. She will speak about her new book, "I Totally Meant to Do That."
"After her young life as a 'proper Southern girl,' Jane moved to New York and discovered that none of this grooming meant a lick to anyone," Brettmann said. "In fact, she hid her upbringing. It was easier than explaining what a debutante does!"
In addition to being a published author, Ms. Borden has contributed to "Saturday Night Live," New York Times Magazine and the New York Daily News.
Brettmann will lead a course on the origins of sports in the context of ancient Greek religion, including the Olympic Games and the Biblical notion of struggle as a defining fact of spirituality in the Hebrew Scriptures.
"Why March is Madness Month: Sports as Religion" will incorporate lectures and film clips and will be offered Mondays, March 12 through April 2, at 5:30 p.m. in Walnut 101. Cost is $20 per person, $35 per couple.
WCC instructor Margaret Boothe Baddour is directing the play "1001," using actors from her drama class as well as community performers, the weekend of March 30-April 1.
The storyline is about diversity and takes place about the time of "1001 Arabian Nights" as well as modern-day New York City. Details will be announced later.
Organizers are also in the early stages of planning a trip to Charleston, S.C., leaving Sunday, April 15, and returning two days later. Registration fee per person is $100.
The "Civil War on the Neuse" will be the next spring trip, exploring the 1862 campaign in eastern North Carolina, which began with the Burnside Expedition early that year and concluded with Foster's Raid in Dec. 1862.
Participants will travel to Morehead City, Fort Macon and New Bern, seeing pertinent sites along the way, including Kinston and Whitehall, Goldsborough Bridge Battlefield and the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad Bridge. Details to be announced.
For more information on any of the events, call 739-7017.