New York, NY — February 23, 2023 — Great American artists. New discoveries in biblical architecture. George Harrison, Peggy Guggenheim and Isabella Stewart Gardner – and the literary works of Dante, Shakespeare, Updike and Welty, among others. These are just a few of the February/March classes from Roundtable by the 92nd Street Y, New York, an online learning platform offering a wide variety of courses by experts from around the world.
Come celebrate George Harrison’s 80th birthday – one day later! (He was born on February 25th.) How to describe him? Founding member of The Beatles; brilliant solo artist; a political activist, his Concert for Bangladesh originated the concept of the star-studded benefit concert in the world of rock music; an excellent songwriter who had three number one hits – “My Sweet Lord”, “Give Me Love”, “Got My Mind Set On You”; a performing songwriter who brings a new level of spiritual depth to popular song; a terrifically talented guitarist who developed a sound and style immediately recognizable as all his own; a student of the sitar who had a profound impact in bringing awareness of Indian music to the western world; and the first Beatle to combine critical and commercial success for his solo work, the brilliant, All Things Must Pass. We celebrate his extraordinary legacy, exploring a selection of great songs spanning from his work with The Beatles to his terrific, posthumously released last album, Brainwashed. “Here Comes the Sun…”
american artists: from tiffany to basquiat
With Janetta Rebold Benton
Friday, March 3-Mar 10, 12-2:15 pm, $160 for two sessions
Let Professor Janetta Rebold Benton introduce you to the greatest artists of 20th century New York City. Discover how these creative pioneers, spanning several generations, made NYC the heart of the art world, shaping each other’s careers in the process. Artists discussed in the class include: Louis Comfort Tiffany, Jackson Pollock, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Alexander Calder, among others.
isabella stewart gardner & peggy Guggenheim: women art champions of 20th-century italy
With Carla Gambescia
Wed, March 8, 2-3 pm, $27
Among the winding canals of 20th century Venice, two women’s passion for art redefined who art collectors could be. Explore the lives, collections, and legacies of two of the most prescient art collectors of the last century, Isabella Stewart Gardner and Peggy Guggenheim.
A brief history of The new yorker cartoon
With Liza Donnelly
Thur, Mar 16-Apr 6, 7-8 pm $160 for four sessions
From its inaugural issue in 1925, The New Yorker has treasured its cartoon artists, understanding that visual humor is not only important but just plain fun. The history of the art form tells us a lot about ourselves and our culture. This class will dive into the world of The New Yorker cartoon from 1925 to 2022, profiling key artists and examining the power of their cartoons.
literature
dante’s paradiso
With Joseph Luzzi
Mon, Mar 6-Mar 20, 6:30-8 pm, $360 for three sessions
What makes Dante’s Divine Comedy such essential reading today, even though it was written seven centuries ago? And why have so many readers throughout history rapturously praised the poetic majesty of Paradiso , which many believe to be the most beautiful of Dante’s three canticles? This course will explore the fascinating world of Dante’s epic poem in all its cultural and historical richness as we consider Dante’s relation to his beloved hometown of Florence, his lacerating experience of exile, and his lifelong devotion to his muse Beatrice, among many other issues.
reading the short story
With Tessa Hadley
Tue, Mar 7-Mar 21, $120 for three sessions
What is a short story? Why would an author choose to tell this story in short form and not at length? Reviewing one story a session, acclaimed author Tessa Hadley will lead discussions about them in detail, reading aloud and moving between close readings of single sentences to questions about the writers’ style, their choices, their meanings. Somewhere in the background too, she will throw in what bits and pieces we know about these writers’ lives and careers. For instance, Eudora Welty and John Updike were also novelists, but Lucia Berlin wasn’t—can we feel that in their writing?
Play the page: all about shakespeare’s as you like it
With Lia Wallace
Wed, Mar 8-Mar 22, Different Times, $120 for three sessions
“To be or not to be, ay, there’s the point” (Shakespeare, Hamlet, 1603 First Quarto). Over 400 years since his death, Shakespeare’s text is still widely enjoyed, taught, and quoted. Yet, mining those famous lines for variations, literary devices, embedded stage directions—and more—opens up a new appreciation for his works.
Based in the American Shakespeare Center’s unique expertise in performance and scholarship, “Play the Page” unlocks the hidden (and not so hidden) details of Shakespeare’s language to inform and enliven choices made for performance. Each course dives deep into the text of one of Shakespeare’s plays featured in the ASC’s 2023 season, beginning with As You Like It in the Spring. These courses are for Shakespeare enthusiasts of all kinds—sharpen your eye as an audience member, see the words come alive as an academic, or expand your toolbox as a classic performer.
mary welsh and the hemingway legacy
With Timothy Christian
Tue, Mar 21-Apr 4, 2-3 pm, $120 for three sessions
Join Hemingway biographer Timothy J. Christian and examine celebrated wartime journalist Mary Welsh’s world before, with, and after Ernest Hemingway. Students will learn how Mary successfully pursued her dream of being a journalist, becoming the first woman writing about foreign affairs for Time-Life and one of the first women accredited to the US Army. Christian will detail the turbulent marriage between Mary and Ernest and her essential contributions to his writing–she read and typed his work every day and made plot suggestions. Finally, students will trace how Mary devoted herself to Ernest’s literary legacy after his death, negotiating to reclaim Ernest’s manuscripts from Cuba and publishing one-third of his work posthumously. Learn about the extraordinary life of Mary Welsh Hemingway, both as an individual and an instrumental figure in creating the legacy of one of America’s greatest writers.
HiSTORY
New discoveries in biblical architecture
With Jonathan Goldstein
Mon, Feb 27-Mar 20, $160 for four sessions
Modern archaeology has altered our understanding of the world of the Bible, uncovering much information about Biblical history. Excavations in the Holy Land have long offered archaeological evidence behind Biblical narratives. Jewish historian Jonathan Goldstein will focus on recent digs at sites, including Jericho, Megiddo, Jaffa, and the City of David in Jerusalem, that have raised new questions about our understanding of these stories. Goldstein will explain the latest discoveries of ancient artifacts and how excavations aim to confirm the history presented by the Bible.
1966: the year that redefined the civil rights movement
With Mark Whitaker
Wed, Mar 1-Mar 8, 7-8 pm ET, $60 for two sessions
Journalist and author of Saying It Loud, Mark Whitaker, tells the story of how one year — 1966 — redefined the civil rights movement. With the inception of the Black Power phenomenon, activists began to challenge the traditional civil rights movement of Martin Luther King, Jr. and John Lewis. In this course, you’ll learn from Mark Whitaker about how 1966 became a critical year in American civil rights. Whitaker takes you inside this dramatic seminal year, featuring key figures like Stokely Carmichael, John Lewis, Huey Newton, and Bobby Seale. You’ll also come to understand events from the first cry of “Black Power!” to the founding of the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, as well as the origins of Kwanzaa, the Black Arts Movement, and the first Black studies programs.
Understanding the history and lessons from 1966 offers modern-day insights into the contemporary battles over voting rights, identity politics, and the teaching of Black history.
the art museum: a history and a guide
With Francis Morrone
Wed, Mar 8-Apr 19, 3-4 pm, $185 for five sessions
We take our museums for granted, but the museum is in fact a very recent phenomenon, dating from the late 18th and the 19th centuries, part of the wave of new institutions and building types that came into being during the unprecedented growth of cities of that time. In this series of lectures Francis Morrone will discuss the history of the art museum by surveying the great museums of Europe and the Americas, and the collections they house. Along with looking at the artwork and artists to be found in these museums, Morrone will elucidate the close connections between some of these institutions and how to visit these important spaces critically. We will discuss how each came into being, what was or is its purpose, the architecture of its building(s), and the contents of its collections. This will be an in-depth look at a particular building type—one that plays a very important role in many of our lives—and an invaluable resource for travelers.
food & drink
flodni: hungarian apple, poppy and walnut
With Rick Rogers
Tue, Mar 14, 6:30-8 pm, $35
As winter turns to spring, cozy up with the warming flavors and textures of cakes, fruits, seeds, and nuts. Layers of flavor mirror layers of meaning and history come together in this show-stopping and delicious traditional dessert. Celebrate the Hungarian heritage of New York’s Yorkville (home to the 92NY) with flódni, an authentic recipe from Budapest’s Jewish ghetto. With layers of poppy seed, walnuts, prune butter, and apples, flódni is a sensational cold weather treat that is a cross between a bar cookie and a cake.
Your guide will be Rick Rodgers, an award-winning culinary teacher and cookbook writer who was worked with celebrities like Patti LaBelle and Frankie Avalon. He’s collaborated with Williams-Sonoma, Tommy Bahama, and Chelsea Market. In his cookbook Kaffeehaus, Rodgers focuses on Austro-Hungarian desserts, meaning his flódni recipe is tried and true. You’ll be learning from the best of the best.
Participants have access to the recipes with registration.
jewish italy: food, Culture and travel
With Francine Segan
Mon, Mar 27, 6:30-7:30 pm, $27
Italy is home to Europe’s oldest Jewish community, dating to 200 BC in ancient Rome. Discover Italy’s cucina ebraica — or Hebrew kitchen — and desserts like sour cherry cheesecake from Rome’s famed Forno del Ghetto.
Learn the stories behind many alla giudia (“Jewish way”) dishes like fried artichokes and goose salam,i as you enjoy a virtual tour of Italy’s many Jewish historic sights: Italy’s original ghetto erected in Venice in 1516; Rome’s Jewish Heritage Museum; and Florence’s Tempio Israelitico, a Moorish style 19th century synagogue.
