Author Sharing the Value of Diverse Stories Highlights Spring Arts & Lectures
A presentation by an author who champions for black and queer voices highlights the spring lineup of the longstanding Arts & Lectures series at Cal State San Marcos.
This season boasts a diverse selection of seven events as the university hosts renowned guest speakers and performances.
Attendees can reserve tickets online via the Arts & Lectures website beginning Jan. 22.
Our Work, Our Dignity: Socially Engaged Performance Practice for Community Organizing With Andreína Maldonado
Feb. 8, 6:30 p.m., Arts 111
The work of interdisciplinary artist, cultural worker and educator Andreína Maldonado (aka Nina Limon) is rooted in her experiences as a Venezuelan immigrant, performing artist and domestic worker. For six years, she has worked with Latinx women and men in the San Francisco Mission District to provide art spaces for healing and building relationships through dance, social activism and performances. This piece will feature 13 domestic workers and day laborers from the Mission District performing live music, poetry, worker testimonies and audio-visual projections. During the event, Maldonado will present a lecture demonstrating her process of creating this work and a short documentary. In conjunction with the Latinx Center, she also is teaching a wellness workshop that is open to the public.
CSUSM students: Free
Faculty/staff/alumni: Free
Community: $5
Tian Ying
Feb. 17, 7 p.m., Arts 111
Pianist Tian Ying is known for his eloquent, poetic and dramatically intense performances. Ying has enjoyed a successful career spanning more than 30 years as a soloist, chamber musician, recording artist and piano professor. Since receiving a top prize at the 1989 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, he has performed at some of the most prestigious concert halls in the U.S. and abroad. To mark his 20th year at the University of Miami, Ying will present Chopin’s Nocturnes, Scherzo, Mazurkas, Fantasie, Polonaise, Impromptu and Sonata No. 3.
CSUSM students: Free
Faculty/staff/alumni: Free
Community: $5
Ed Kornhauser Quartet
March 4, 7:30 p.m., Arts 111
Immerse yourself in an evening of jazz as pianist Ed Kornhauser showcases the brilliance that earned him the honors of Best Jazz Artist and Best Jazz Album at the 2021 and 2022 San Diego Music Awards. Kornhauser’s artistry has been praised by the San Diego Troubadour website, which called him "one of San Diego’s top pianist/keyboardists." He’s not only a solo sensation but also an integral part of the Matt Smith Neu Jazz Trio, and his collaborations with Grammy Award-winning producer Kamau Kenyatta have produced acclaimed albums like "RETROgrade" and "I.Am.Calm."
Before the concert, at 5:30, the CSUSM jazz ensemble will perform for our guest artist and receive feedback; all are welcome to attend. Join us for an evening filled with exceptional music, community spirit and the magic that only live performances can offer.
CSUSM students: Free
Faculty/staff/alumni: Free
Community: $5
Nature-Driven Design: How to Survive Plastics
March 6, noon, Innovation Hub
Dr. Pinar Yoldas will discuss her award-winning nature-based design, including her creation “Hollow Ocean,” which was selected for the 2021 Venice Biennale. Integrating drawing and sculpture with bioengineering centered around the climate crisis, Yoldas works in the mixed realm of architecture, design and speculative biology. She’s an associate professor at UC San Diego, the author of “An Ecosystem of Excess” and the recipient of a Guggenheim fellowship as well as a Creative Capital grant.
Before the talk, from 10:30-11:30 a.m., students will have a chance to interact with Yoldas.
CSUSM students: Free
Faculty/staff/alumni: Free
Community: $5
Landa Lakes
March 7, 7:30 p.m., Arts 111
Chickasaw writer, musician, activist and artist Landa Lakes (J Miko Thomas) will perform a traditional Chickasaw story and dance that explores the current issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women (MMIW) in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Through the art of drag, traditional stories and memories of her upbringing, Landa will show what it means to be a Chickasaw and Two-Spirit, a term for Native American people who identify as having masculine and feminine spirits. Through original music, lip sync and drag performance, Landa brings to light the importance of the intimate and vulnerable Two-Spirit stories.
The event will be followed by a Q&A session about Two-Spirit performance and the future of Indigenous people.
CSUSM students: Free
Faculty/staff/alumni: Free
Community: $5
An Evening With George M. Johnson, author of “All Boys Aren’t Blue”
April 3, 6 p.m., University Student Union Ballroom
As Johnson’s memoir achieved massive success as a New York Times bestseller, it also became the American Library Association’s third-most-challenged book of 2021. But with each shove, Johnson continues to persevere and advocate for Black and queer voices. “Black storytelling has often been banned,” he says. “My book is a tool so that Black queer kids and LGBTQ teens can see themselves and read about themselves and learn about themselves.” Johnson will speak about the importance of sharing diverse stories – why we should remain resilient, how representation in media can support young adults’ mental and physical health, and what we can do to support these voices. By listening to one another and understanding the history, language and actions necessary to change the world, we can form a community where we are all free to be our true, authentic selves.
Johnson will be signing copies of “All Boys Aren’t Blue” after the event.
CSUSM students: Free
Faculty/staff/alumni: $5
Community: $10
Jason Perez
April 15, 6 p.m., USU Ballroom
Through poetry, performance and video, San Diego poet laureate Jason Magabo Perez explores the poetics of memory as an act of anticolonial future-making. Perez is also an essayist, performer and author of a book of poetry and prose titled “This is for the mostless” (2017) and the forthcoming book-length poem "I ask about what falls away." He is an associate professor and director of ethnic studies at CSUSM. He will be joined by DJ, music producer, performer and longtime collaborator Shammy Dee.
CSUSM students: Free
Faculty/staff/alumni: Free
Community: $5
Media Contact
Eric Breier, Public Affairs Specialist
ebreier@csusm.edu | Office: 760-750-7314