Lifelong Learning

USC Fisher Museum of Art (HAR)

Thursday, October 3, 2024 at 6 p.m.

Join science-fiction authors Ryka Aoki, Micaiah Johnson, and Brent Lambert for readings and a conversation that delve into the fascinating world of science fiction and its intersection with queer narratives. The authors will share their journeys of how they became interested in sci-fi and why this genre became a channel for their creative process, and explore how it sparks imagination, defies conventions, and inspires visions of tomorrow. The conversation will be moderated by Dr. Phoenix Alexander, a sci-fi writer and Jay Kay and Doris Klein Librarian for Science Fiction and Fantasy at the University of California, Riverside.

USC Ray Stark Theatre, University Park Campus

Thursday, November 21, 2024 at 7 p.m.

According to MoMA, artist and filmmaker Arthur Jafa “invites viewers to look along with him, not turning away but bearing witness to a chorus of beauty and terror that, for Jafa, define the richness of Black life.” At this event, a screening of short films by the Los Angeles–based artists will be followed by a conversation with Jafa, Smith, and USC Dornsife professor Kara Keeling.

Newman Recital Hall (AHF 151), University Park Campus

Tuesday, February 25, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.

Award-winning musician and Harvard professor Vijay Iyer, who has been voted DownBeat magazine’s Artist of the Year four times since 2012 and Artist of the Year in Jazz Times’ Critics’ and Readers’ Polls for 2017, will kick off his residency at USC with an intimate solo performance at Newman Recital Hall.

Organized by Erin Graff Zivin (Spanish and Portuguese, Comparative Literature) and Jonathan Leal (English). Co-sponsored by the USC Dornsife Experimental Humanities Lab.

Doheny Memorial Library (DML), Friends of the USC Libraries Lecture Hall, DML 240, University Park Campus

Thursday, February 27, 2025 at 6 p.m.

To conclude his residency at USC, Vijay Iyer—a celebrated pianist, composer, collaborator, and tenured professor at Harvard University, with a joint appointment in the Department of Music and the Department of African and African American Studies—will discuss his process, art, career, and more.

CASA 0101, 2102 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90033

Thursday, April 3, 2025 – Sunday, April 6, 2025

Join us for workshop performances of Homeboys, a new musical celebrating the iconic L.A.-based nonprofit that began serving former gang members and at-risk youth in 1988. Created by Alberto López, Greg Koppenhaver, and Mark C. Marino, and co-produced by CASA 0101, the original theatre piece follows six homeboys and homegirls as they try to leave la vida, recounting the founding of Homeboy Industries by Father Greg Boyle and featuring pan-Latin musical styles from 1990s rap to reggaeton and cumbia.

Mark C. Marino (book and lyrics) is a professor in the Dornsife College Writing Program at USC, where he directs the Humanities and Critical Code Studies (HaCCS) Lab.

USC Brain and Creativity Institute’s Joyce J. Cammilleri Hall (BCI), University Park Campus

Wednesday, April 16, 2025 at 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

“A System in Collapse Is a System Moving Forward”

A Dance Performance-Lecture by Aimar Pérez Galí and Daniel Méndez Piña

Reception to follow.

Panelists:

Aimar Pérez Galí, Dancer

Amelia Jones, Vice Dean and Professor, USC Roski School of Art and Design

Patrick Corbin, Associate Professor, USC Kaufman School of Dance

Gian Maria Annovi, Associate Professor, Italian and Comparative Literature, USC Dornsife College

Miguel Caballero-Vázquez, Assistant Professor, Iberian Studies, Northwestern University