Arts & Lecture Series

Tuesday, March 6, 2012, 7 p.m.
National Forest Service Premiere in Mississippi
Green Fire Documentary

The first full-length, high-definition documentary film ever made about legendary environmentalist Aldo Leopold highlights his extraordinary career, tracing how he shaped and influenced the modern environmental movement. Leopold remains relevant today, inspiring projects all over the  country that connect people and land. Following the premiere, a panel of environmental specialists will discuss the environmental movement in Mississippi today. Learn more about the film at http://www.greenfiremovie.com/.

Monday, March 26, 2012, 7 p.m.
Sportswriter Rick Cleveland and Baseball Icons Boo Ferriss and Jay Powell
Mississippi's Baseball Legacy

Rick Cleveland, Clarion Ledger sports editor, and baseball icons Boo Ferriss and Jay Powell will discuss Mississippi's World Series connections.

Shaw native Ferriss was a great Boston Red Sox pitcher until a freak shoulder injury sidelined him. He became Delta State University's athletic director and baseball coach in 1959.

Meridian native and MSU standout Powell was the winning pitcher in the deciding game of the 1997 World Series for the Florida Marlins. He is head baseball coach at Jackson Academy.

Tuesday, May 1, 2012, 7 p.m.
Annual Ross Moore Lecture
Southern Writers: Alan Huffman and Reese Fuller

Freelance writer and political researcher Alan Huffman, author of Sultana,  Mississippi in Africa, and Ten Point, is currently working on a new book for HarperCollins to scheduled for release in January 2012.  The book is a humorous nonfiction work about politics and contemporary America. Huffman divides his time between Bolton, MS, and Brooklyn, NY.

Louisiana journalist Reese Fuller has published a new book, Angola to Zydeco: Louisiana Lives, through the University Press of Mississippi. In the book, he profiles some of southern Louisiana's most interesting characters. Fuller is a graduate of Millsaps. Fuller was recently profiled in Louisiana newspaper The Town Talk and interviewed for the blog myneworleans.com.

SOLD OUT - Tuesday, September 13, 2011, 7 p.m.
Brunson Green and Mississippi Film Commission
The Help: Movie-Making in Mississippi

Jackson native Brunson Green, producer of The Help, will talk about the trip from book to screen. A childhood friend of author Kathryn Stockett, he will discuss making the movie in Mississippi and give some interesting details of this film based on the best-selling novel. Part of the filming took place in the Fondren area of Jackson.

The Mississippi Film Office will give an overview of how the office assists and supports filmmaking in the state and talk about some movies recently filmed here and some future projects in the works.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011, 7 p.m.
Eve Beglarian and "Brim"
Music and Tales from the Mississippi

Eve Beglarian, contemporary composer, musician, poet, and photographer, put her bright red, 17-foot kayak into the Mississippi River's headwaters in Lake Itasca, Minnesota, and for the next three months, she glided down the Mississippi's 2,300 or so miles to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way, she collected snippets of sound, image and history from both her perch on the river and excursions into nearby towns, in wilderness areas and in the midst of urban sprawl.  "Brim" is the music she wrote in response to her journey down the river.

Violinist Mary Rowell accompanies Beglarian on stage.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011, 7 p.m.
USAF Veteran G. Mark LaFrancis and The Victory Belles
A Salute to Veterans

Mark LaFrancis, USAF veteran and award-winning journalist, will present a multi-media program, "In Their Boots," poems inspired by soldiers and their loved ones. This program pays tribute to the men and women in uniform in every war.

The Victory Belles from the World War II Museum in New Orleans will take you on a nostalgic journey through World War II-era musical classics all sung in rich, three part harmony. Enjoy a trip down memory lane with their spirited performances of such hits as Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, Chattanooga Choo-Choo, and I'll Be Seeing You.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011, 7 p.m.
Chef Regina Charboneau
12 Ideas for Christmas Parties...Natchez Style

Chef Regina Charboneau gives you 12 easy ideas for memorable Christmas parties with a Natchez twist. Charboneau, who attended cooking school in Paris, came back to her hometown of Natchez after founding San Francisco's successful Biscuits and Blues. As owner of historic Twin Oaks, circa 1832, she has continued to create great southern meals. In her cookbook, Regina's Table at Twin Oaks, she designs seasonal menus with recipes that interpret the four seasons at Twin Oaks through food and entertaining.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012, 7 p.m.
Front Porch Dance with The Strange Pilgrims
Contemporary Dance in Mississippi

Front Porch Dance is a Mississippi-based dance collective of artists who collaborate to produce innovative choreographic works to foster appreciation of contemporary dance through approachable dance art. Belhaven University dance instructors Erin Scheiwe Rockwell, Krista Bower and Emily Wright co-founded the company in 2008 with Belhaven graduate Valerie Nicholson. The dancers bring their formal training in ballet and modern dance techniques to create this American-born dance form.

The Strange Pilgrims are a five-piece acoustic jazz/folk band led by mandolin player and composer, Jamie Weems.

Front Porch Dance and The Strange Pilgrims toured their most recent collaborative project, thislocation, throughout Mississippi in 2010-2011. Events in the tour received funding from the Mississippi Arts Commission, the Mississippi Humanities Council, and the Greater Jackson Arts Council. Please visit http://www.frontporchdance.com/ to learn about upcoming events.