April 16, 2007 (Vol. 5, No. 6)

Famed British Playwright to Join in 'Conversations' Series April 18

Sir Arnold Wesker, a British playwright widely considered to be one of the key figures in twentieth-century drama, will visit with Professor William M. Hoffman on Lehman's "Conversations" series Wednesday, April 18, from 2 to 3 p.m. The discussion, which is taped for broadcast, will take place in the Studio Theatre in the Music Building. It is free and open to the campus community, as well as the public.

Sir Arnold is the author of 42 plays, four volumes of short stories, two volumes of essays, three books of non-fiction, a children's book, and an autobiography. He was propelled into fame on the English stage in the late 1950s and early 1960s with the production of his now-classic plays The Kitchen, The Wesker Trilogy (comprised of Chicken Soup with Barley, Roots, and I'm Talking about Jerusalem), and Chips with Everything.

The son of politically involved London parents of Eastern European Jewish heritage, Sir Arnold has often dealt in his work with issues touching upon the consciousness of the working poor. In 1961, he played a leading role in demonstrations against nuclear weapons and was sentenced to a month in prison. His more recent work includes Groupie (2001) and Longitude (2002), which is an adaptation of Dava Sobel's book about the clock-maker John Harrison. In 2006, Sir Arnold Wesker was awarded the honor of knighthood.

Produced by Lehman's Department of Journalism, Communication, and Theatre, in conjunction with BronxNet and the College's Information Technology Resources Department, "Conversations" features discussions with theatre and music professionals about their experiences. Previous guests have included Pulitzer Prize-winners Edward Albee, John Corigliano, and Lanford Wilson, world-renowned singers Marilyn Horne, Regina Resnick, and Barbara Cook, Broadway director Marshall W. Mason, Tony Award-winning composer Stephen Schwartz, and opera composer Mark Adamo.

"Conversations" airs over Bronxnet and CUNY-TV. For more information about the series, call (718) 960-8217.

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