etc. - Jan. 14, 2010

Library MLK closures

All 14 branches of the Whitman County Library System will close Jan. 17-18 in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Due dates for library materials have been extended in anticipation of the closure and no late fines will be charged for those two days.

Clubs & Youth Groups

Colfax Thrifty Grandmothers

The first meeting since November of the Thrifty Grandmother’s was Monday, Jan. 11, at the Nazarene Church with 18 members present. One prospective member and two guests were also present.

In November contributions of $4,000 were given to various needy organizations and private individuals.

In December $300 was given to the Sharing Tree and $500 to the Fireman’s Toy Box.

Twenty-two grandmothers attended the Christmas luncheon, served by the Methodist Ladies.

On campus

MUSIC

The WSU School of Music’s concert by mezzo-soprano Sheila K. Converse has been rescheduled for Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. in Bryan Hall Theatre. She will be accompanied by pianist Meg Kelley and by WSU’s faculty members Ruth Boden, cello, and Meredith Arksey, violin and viola.

This concert is free and open to the public, and will include folk songs arranged by Beethoven, Britten, Quilter and Copland.

WSU’s School of Music will present the 2010 Festival of Contemporary Art Music, featuring guest composer Robert Carl, Feb. 4-6 on the WSU campus. The festival’s culminating concert of original works by Carl will be performed by WSU music faculty and students at 8 p.m. Feb. 6 in Kimbrough Concert Hall. All festival concerts are free and open to the public.

Carl, 55, is professor of composition and theory and chair of the composition department in the Hartt School at the University of Hartford, Conn. His music has been widely published, recorded and performed in the U.S. and Europe.

The festival begins at 11:10 a.m. Feb. 4 in Kimbrough Concert Hall with a recital of new works by WSU student composers. A concert featuring new works by faculty composers Ryan M. Hare, David Jarvis, H. James Schoepflin, Aleksander Sternfeld-Dunn and Gregory Yasinitsky follows at 8 p.m. Feb. 4 in Bryan Hall Theatre. An all-electroacoustic concert will be performed at 3:10 p.m. Feb. 5 in Kimbrough Concert Hall.

DRAMA

The WSU Department of Theatre and Dance will present “The Glass Menagerie” Jan. 28 to Jan. 30, and Feb. 4 to Feb. 6. The Tennessee Williams play is the story of Tom Wingfield, a young man who feels trapped by his family that rely on him for survival. The play takes place in St. Louis in 1937.

Tickets for the show can be reserved by email at reservations@wsu.edu or by calling the theater box office, 509-335-7236. Tickets can also be purchased at the theater box office in Daggy Hall from 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. the week of the performance as well as 6:30 p.m. the night of the performance. Only cash and checks are accepted.

BOOKMARK

Read about your favorite celebrities at Whitman County Library. The Time of My Life by the late Patrick Swayze details his career, which spanned more than thirty years. Get a behind-the-scenes look at his Hollywood life and remarkable marriage.

American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot is an autobiography by Craig Ferguson who journeys from the mean streets of Glasgow, Scotland, to the comedic promised land of Hollywood. Along the way he stumbles through several attempts to make his mark once as a punk rock musician, a construction worker, a bouncer, and, tragically, a modern dancer.

Whitman County Library Board of Trustees meeting will be Jan. 19 at 4 p.m. in the rear of the U.S. Bank.

Friends of WCL will meet Tuesday, Jan. 26, at 11 a.m. at Two Old Gals.

A cake decorating class is scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 24 from 2-3:30 in the Garfield Library. Pre-registration is required for teens and adults with a fee of $20 being requested to cover supply costs. Contact the library or go on-line to register.