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Events

Poet Richard Blanco

President Obama’s Inaugural Poet, Richard Blanco was made in Cuba, assembled in Spain, and imported to the United States—meaning his mother, 7 months pregnant, and the rest of the family arrived as exiles from Cuba to Madrid where he was born. Only 45 days later, the family emigrated once more and settled in Miami. His acclaimed first book of poetry, City of a Hundred Fires, explores the yearnings and negotiation of cultural identity as a Cuban- American, and received the Agnes Starrett Poetry Prize. His second book, Directions to The Beach of the Dead, won the Beyond Margins Award from the PEN American Center for its continued exploration of the universal themes of cultural identity and homecoming.

First Senior Exhibition: Fine Art

Joan and Robert Rechnitz Hall

Featuring the work of Monmouth University graduating seniors who will receive their degrees in Fine Art.

Free

Songwriters by the Sea

Pollak Theatre

The Sounds of Asbury Park and other Shore points are celebrated when a pair of musically minded Jersey Joes — Joe D’Urso and Joe Rapolla — bring their nationally regarded Songwriters by the Sea series of intimate, relaxed and inspired round-robins to the Pollak Theatre stage. Artists to perform include Marshall Crenshaw, David Johansen, Allison Moorer and Monmouth University students Natalie Zeller, Bryan Haring and Erin Holmes.

$25; $35

Met Opera: PRINCE IGOR Encore

Pollak Theatre

Borodin’s defining Russian epic, famous for its Polovtsian Dances, comes to the Met for the first time in nearly 100 years. Dmitri Tcherniakov’s new production is a brilliant psychological journey through the mind of its conflicted hero, with the founding of the Russian nation as the backdrop.

$23

33rd Annual Black Maria Film and Video Festival

Pollak Theatre

The films that become the centerpiece of the Black Maria Film and Video Festival honor the vision of Thomas Edison, New Jersey inventor and creator of the motion picture. It was his New Jersey studio, the world’s first, which he called the “black maria” (pronounced “mariah”) after which the festival is named. The cutting edge, cross-genre work that makes up the festival’s touring program, has been traveling across the country every year for decades.

Black Maria focuses on diverse short films – narrative, experimental, animation, and documentary – including those which address issues and struggles within contemporary society such as the environment, public health, race and class, family, sustainability, and much more. These exceptional works ranging from comedy to drama to the exploration of pure form in film and video are not sidebars to feature length films, they are the heart and soul of the festival. The program is free and all are welcome. Works which will be screened are unrated; some of the content is sophisticated and might not be suited to younger audiences.

Spring Career Day

MAC At Monmouth

Open to Current Students and Alumni Only

ETHEL featuring Kaki King: …And Other Stories

Pollak Theatre

Known worldwide for transcending the limits of tradition, the New York City-based string quartet ETHEL, comprised of Ralph Farris (viola), Dorothy Lawson (cello), Kip Jones (violin) and Tema Watstein (violin), has for the past decade and a half actively, aggressively, joyfully, adapted their epic skill-set to the presentation of rainbow-colored music of every style and description. Guitarist Kaki King, recognized as one of “The New Guitar Gods” by Rolling Stone has, likewise, won an enthusiastic international following as her gutsy, honest, and astonishingly beautiful works seem to defy gravity. Brought together, these celebrated sound worlds intermingle and swarm to create a glorious and inspired collaboration.

$25, $37

Met Opera: LA BOHÉME

Pollak Theatre

Puccini’s moving story of young love is the most performed opera in Met history—and with good reason. Anita Hartig stars as the frail Mimì in Franco Zeffirelli’s classic production, with Vittorio Grigolo as her passionate lover, Rodolfo.

Encore: Sun. May 4 at 1:00 p.m.

$23

In the Mood: 1940s Musical Revue

Much more than a concert, IN THE MOOD presents a retro 1940s musical revue featuring the IN THE MOOD Singers and Dancers with the sensational String of Pearls Big Band Orchestra. The music and the arrangements are as authentic as it gets. This was a time that all America was listening and dancing to the same kind of music.