Bird-friendly Coffee Takes Wing and More Programs in February

Smithsonian Associates offers innovative, engaging learning experiences for people of all ages. Hundreds of livestreamed and in-person lectures, seminars, performances, studio arts classes, study tours and children’s programs are offered annually. To view the Smithsonian Associates digital program guide, visit smithsonianassociates.org.

 

Thursday, February 1

The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess: A Folk Opera on Broadway: Gershwin scholar and pianist Robert Wyatt leads presents lively evening of music and history as he reveals how and why this unusual musical drama of the 1930’s spawned a furious debate about authenticity, race, discrimination and national identity. The program includes an examination of intimate correspondences, archival recordings, film footage and interviews. Presented on Zoom from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET. $30-$35

 

Saturday, February 3

Charles Dickens: The Ultimate Storyteller: Joseph Luzzi, professor of literature at Bard College, discusses three major works: Oliver Twist, Hard Times, and A Tale of Two Cities to illustrate how Dickens pushed the novel form in new directions through his storytelling and commentary on social issues. This full day presentation concludes with insights on why Dickens’ work remains relevant and essential today and for future generations of readers. This program is presented on Zoom from 10 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. ET. $80-$90

 

Saturday, February 3

In Search of Ancient Israel: In this illustrated all-day program, biblical scholar Gary Rendsburg presents an engrossing overview of the people and the society that produced the Bible. Using ancient relics and records discovered over the centuries, Rendsburg reveals surprising new discoveries from ancient Egypt, Canaan and Mesopotamia and analyzes historical events as well as religious beliefs and practices not mentioned in the bible. This program is presented on Zoom from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET. $80-$90

 

Tuesday, February 6

Russian Art: From Icons to the Avant-Garde: In this four-part course, art historian Aneta Georgievska-Shine brings the culture of this vast country to life as she highlights some of the major art developments in Russia over the centuries. This session focuses on the language of icon paintings which reflected a visual culture that promoted prayer and contemplation rather than a representation of the material world. Participants enrolled in the Smithsonian World History Certificate program will earn 1 credit. This online program is presented on Zoom from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET. $95-$105

 

Thursday, February 8

Yoga as Lifestyle Medicine: A Prescription for Healthy Living: Join certified yoga therapist Linda Lang for an interactive, all-day experience that includes discussion on techniques, practices and yoga movements. Lang offers perspectives on how to embrace yoga as a clear path to lifelong health, inspired living and better being. This program is presented on Zoom from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET. $80-$90

Monday, February 12

Chocolate's Delicious History: Embark on a scrumptious journey through the captivating history of chocolate. Led by noted food historian Francine Segan, this lively and entertaining evening at the Smithsonian’s S. Dillon Ripley Center unravels the intriguing story of chocolate from its early origins to the irresistible delicacy we all adore today. The program ends with a treat for the taste buds and chocolate-infused recipes, both sweet and savory, to take home. 6:45 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET. $45-$55

 

Wednesday, February 14

The Japanese Empire: From Politics to Baseball: In a five-part series, historian Justin M. Jacobs takes you on a thematic tour of five fascinating topics in the history of the Japanese empire: politics, tourism, baseball, zoos and video games. The first session, tourism, studies how the early colonies of Taiwan, Korea, Manchuria and Micronesia were acquired and governed, and how Japanese tourists interacted with lands and peoples who were both familiar and strange. This program is presented on Zoom from 6:45 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. ET. $25

 

Thursday, February 15

To Kill a Mockingbird: High School Classics Revisited: Joseph Luzzi, professor of literature at Bard College, considers this legendary novel in depth, addressing its relationship to earlier literary traditions, its representation of life in the South, and treatment of racism and its pernicious effects. He also explores how To Kill a Mockingbird creates some of the most memorable characters in American literature. This program is presented on Zoom from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET. $30-$35

Sutro's Glass Palace: San Francisco’s Fabled Baths: Join historian John Martini in a fascinating exploration of this majestic building opened in 1894 featuring swimming pools, museum exhibits, restaurants and promenades. Martini tells the intriguing story of a vanished but enduring piece of urban history and answers the inevitable question: “What was this place?” This program is presented on Zoom from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET. $25-$30

 

Friday, February 16

Art + History Museum Tour with Paul Glenshaw: Put on your walking shoes and join lecturer Paul Glenshaw for over three hours of art and insights. Learn the stories behind some of the masterpieces and discover how the artists came to create them. The tour begins at the National Gallery of Art and ends at the American Art Museum. Lunch at Zaytinya is included. The tour meets in the Rotunda of the West Building of the National Gallery of Art (6^th and Constitution Ave NW) and ends at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET. $125-$175

 

Wednesday, February 21

Henri Toulouse-Lautrec: La Vie Bohème: Art historian Joseph Paul Cassar explores the artist's family background; his sufferings due to his physical ailments; and how he found comfort in his art. He offers a critical analysis of paintings and posters within the context of life in Montmarte, which attracted Lautrec and many other artists for its bohemian freedom. Participants enrolled in the Smithsonian World History Certificate program will earn 1/2 credit. This program is presented on Zoom from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET. $30-$35

 

Thursday, February 22

Brewing up a Bird-friendly Cup: Where do songbirds spend the winter? Journey south with research ecologist Ruth Bennett to the misty coffee farms responsible for migratory songbird survival and explore why some coffee farmers are actively protecting bird habitats by growing coffee under native shade trees, while others are eliminating their winter habitat by cutting down cloud forest to grow more coffee. This program is presented on Zoom from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET. $25-$30

 

Monday, February 26

Behind the Handshake: The Oslo Peace Process: In a presentation that helps frame aspects of current events, historian Ralph Nurnberger unravels the intricate web of secret diplomacy, alternating periods of hope and despair and the conflicting goals and objectives of several supporters and opponents of the Oslo Peace Process. This lecture is presented on Zoom from 6:45 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. ET. $20-$25

 

Tuesday, February 27

The Broadway Musical Goes to Hollywood: Spend a part of the afternoon with media historian Brian Rose who looks at the colorful history of the Broadway-to-movie musical and traces its development from truncated adaptations, in which most of the songs were abandoned, to glorious reinterpretations like Milos Forman’s Hair or Steven Spielberg’s remake of West Side Story in 2021. This program is presented on Zoom from 12 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. ET. $20-$25

 

Wednesday, February 28

The Artists of Bloomsbury: Join curator and author Nancy Green to explore this tight-knit group of artists and friends and their place in the pantheon of 20th-century Modernism including Virginia Woolf, E.M. Forster and Bertrand Russell, as well as Woolf’s sister Vanessa Bell, Roger Fry, Duncan Grant and Dora Carrington. Participants enrolled in the Smithsonian World History Certificate program will earn 1/2 credit. This program is presented on Zoom from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET. $20-$25

 

Thursday, February 29

Fighting the Cold War with Words: During the Cold War, literature was both sword and noose. Novels, essays, and poems won the hearts and minds of those caught between the competing creeds of capitalism and communism. Cultural historian and literary scholar Duncan White introduces the key literary conflicts that animated the Cold War from the beginning of the Spanish Civil War to the collapse of the Berlin Wall. This program is presented on Zoom from 6:30 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. ET. $20-$25

Invisible Man: Join professor of literature Joseph Luzzi to discuss the searing account of a young Black man’s quest for identity as he leaves the segregated South and moves to New York, where he becomes involved in the violent world and social upheaval of political activism. Dissect the Invisible Man’s sophisticated literary techniques, memorable characters and artful narrative elements, and learn how this work is essential for understanding the Harlem Renaissance and the civil rights movement. This program is presented on Zoom from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET. $30-$35

Harriet Tubman, Union Spy: Hired by the Union Army during the Civil War, Harriet Tubman ventured into the heart of slave territory—Beaufort, South Carolina—to live, work, and gather intelligence for a daring raid up the Combahee River to attack the major plantations of Rice Country, the breadbasket of the Confederacy. Historian Edda L. Fields-Black—a descendent of one of the soldiers in the June 1863 action that liberated 756 enslaved people—traces the raid’s planning, participants, execution and aftermath. This program is presented on Zoom from 6:45 p.m. to 8 p.m. ET. $20-$25

To view the Smithsonian Associates digital program guide, visit smithsonianassociates.org.

 

Lisa K. Friedman | READ MORE

Lisa K. Friedman is an author and essayist living in Washington, D.C.