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Upcoming Programs

 

History of Ballet Part 3

Co-taught with Jeff Nigro

6 Tuesday afternoons, January 8-February 12, 1:30-3:00/Center for Life and Learning/126 East Chestnut/Chicago/312-981-3387/www.fourthchurch.org/cll

 

Our series on the history of ballet continues with an exploration of more masterpieces of dance, from traditional and new takes on 19th century classics to modern masterpieces by Mikhail Fokine, Vaslav Nijinsky and George Balanchine to a celebration of dance in Hollywood films, to music by composers from Delibes and Tchaikovsky to Stravinsky and Gershwin.

 

1/8 Coppélia; 1/15 Le Spectre de la Rose and The Afternoon of a Faun; 1/22 American Dance in Hollywood Films: Oklahoma!, An American in Paris and West Side Story; 1/29 Apollo;  2/5 Swan Lake; 2/12 A Month in the Country

 

 

Hitchcock Classics

6 Tuesday afternoons, January 29 to March 5, 11:30-1:00//Center for Life and Learning/126 East Chestnut/Chicago/312-981-3387/www.fourthchurch.org/cll

 

Alfred Hitchcock was one of the most accomplished directors in film history. Six films from the height of his career reveal Hitchcock’s ability to grip audiences in suspense making these masterpieces of film. 

 

1/29 Strangers on a Train; 2/5 I Confess; 2/12 Rear Window; 2/19 Vertigo; 2/26 North by Northwest; 3/5 Psycho

 

 

Shakespeare: The Winter’s Tale

5 Wednesday Afternoons, February 13 to March 13, 2:00-4:00/Newberry Library/60 West Walton/ Chicago, IL/www.newberry.org/WS19Shakespeare

 

Shakespeare’s late romance examines the universal themes of redemption and forgiveness, family reunions, destruction of trust through suspicion, the unintended consequences of self-involvement, the magic of the theater, and the renewal of life through an awakening to love. In addition to reading and discussing the play, we will view video performances to deepen our appreciation of Shakespeare’s genius.

 

 

Music of the French Masters: Fauré, Debussy, and Ravel

6 Wednesday mornings, February 20 to March 27, 10:00-11:30 am/Center for Life and Learning/126 East Chestnut/Chicago/312-981-3387/www.fourthchurch.org/cll


The music of Gabriel Fauré, Claude Debussy, and Maurice Ravel display a distinctive sensibility through a world of sensual sound. We will listen to masterpieces by these twentieth century composers to deepen our appreciation of their ability to express subtle, complex emotions, and to reach a new sound palate in music. 

 

Lunch and Learn: The Women

Co-taught with Jeff Nigro

1 Thursday afternoon, March 7, 12:00-2:45/Center for Life and Learning/126 East Chestnut/Chicago/312-981-3387/www.fourthchurch.org/cll

 

A feast of witty dialogue and stylish catfights from Hollywood's Golden Age, as a group of women gossip about each other and battle over men. This 1939 film is based on a play by Clare Booth Luce and features an all-star, all-female cast, including Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, and Rosalind Russell.

 

 

The Medici: Patrons of Art and Music

Co-taught with Jeff Nigro 

3 Saturday Afternoons, March 9-23, 1:00-4:00/Newberry Library/60 West Walton/ Chicago, IL/www.newberry.org/WS19Medici

 

The Medici of Florence were the first ruling family to realize that their path to immortality lay through the arts. This seminar will focus on the most significant Medici patrons during the family’s Renaissance heyday, exploring their most important contributions to art and music.

 

 

Playhouse 90

6 Tuesday afternoons, March 12 to April 16, 11:30-1:00//Center for Life and Learning/126 East Chestnut/Chicago/312-981-3387/www.fourthchurch.org/cll 

 

First aired on television in the 1950s, episodes of Playhouse 90 feature actors in some their most famous roles. Captured in rare kinescopes, this series of stage plays filmed for television have been declared among the top fifty television shows of all time.

 

3/12 Marty—Rod Steiger; 3/19 Patterns—Elizabeth Montgomery; 3/26 No Time for Sergeants—Andy Griffith; 4/2    A Wind from the South—Julie Harris; 4/9 Requiem for a Heavyweight—Jack Palance; 4/16 The Comedian—Mickey Rooney

 

 

Masterpieces of Antonio Vivaldi

3 Monday afternoons, March 11 to 25, 4:00-5:00/The Clare/55 East Pearson Street/Chicago

 

Beyond his most famous violin concertos in The Four Seasons, Antonio Vivaldi’s works reveal an ability to express a wide range of emotion, a gift for writing attractive melodies, and a remarkable ability to capture a dramatic moment. In addition to listening and discussing the concertos included in The Four Seasons, we will focus on Vivaldi’s other concertos, religious works, chamber music, and operas. Short talks by the seminar leader will help to appreciate Vivaldi’s genius.

 

 

Masterpieces of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

3 Saturday afternoons, March 23 to April 6, 1:00-4:00/

Newberry Library/60 West Walton/ Chicago, IL/www.newberry.org/www.newberry.org/WS19Tchaikovsky

 

Tchaikovsky’s music displays his distinctive personality through expansive and passionate melodies, strong dramatic contrasts, and a romantic sensibility unmatched during the nineteenth century. Drawing on Tchaikovsky’s rich and varied output, we will listen to and discuss representative works from a variety of genres, including grand symphonic works, tragic operas, melodic ballet scores, intimate songs, powerful concertos, and rarely-heard chamber music.

 

 

Shakespeare Plays in Station Eleven 

1 Thursday evening, April 4, 6:30 pm/Saint Charles Public Library/1 S 6th Ave, St. Charles, IL 60174/www.scpld.org

One hour lecture with Audience Q/A

 

 

Focus on Cinematography

6 Tuesday afternoons, April 23 to May 28,11:30-1:00/Center for Life and Learning/126 East Chestnut/Chicago/312-981-3387/www.fourthchurch.org/cll

 

How do camera angles, light and shadow, and the framing of images come together to tell a story? Participants will view six cinematic masterpieces from Orson Welles’s dramatic use of black and white to Stanley Kubrick’s historically accurate sets and lighting, to Ron Fricke’s gorgeous use of color and light to film scenes from over forty countries around the world.

 

4/23 Citizen Kane; 4/30 Lawrence of Arabia; 5/7 Barry Lyndon; 5/14 Russian Ark; 5/21 Far From Heaven; 5/28 Samsara

 

 

Brideshead Revisited

3 Tuesday afternoons, June 4 to 18, 11:30-1:00/Center for Life and Learning/126 East Chestnut/Chicago/312-981-3387/www.fourthchurch.org/cll 

 

The grandparent of all PBS Television Historical Series, the 1981 filming of Evelyn Waugh’s 1920s-1940s novel features spectacular performances by Jeremy Irons, Anthony Andrews, Claire Bloom, John Gielgud, and Laurence Olivier.

Audience Feedback

 

“Thank you again for your interesting, enlightening, and most enjoyable class. It is exactly what I had hoped it would be. You are a gifted teacher and bring much to your class.”

 

"Your lecture wasn’t just a summary of the coming season's operas, but a little class on what the high points were and how to enjoy them more. We know when something moves us­­—your talk showed us what the composers do to make that happen. I really thought that this was one of those ‘special occasions’ when magic happens and we all go home richer and excited for having experienced the event. You’re a great teacher, as well as an opera lover. Would love to have you come back and talk to us again."

 

“This was just about as perfect as a course gets." 

 

“You are a very stimulating, most exciting seminar leader. I so look forward to your lectures—so rich in information, so beautifully delivered. I feel lucky to be in your class.”   

 

“Again, thank you for putting together such a rich panorama of the Wars of the Roses and of Shakespeare’s world. Not an English major and only a sometime theater goer, I never really “got” Shakespeare until this class.”

 

"I hope I am able to take another course with you.”

"John knows his material, is engaged by it and as a result shares his knowledge with ease."

 

"I would recommend his seminar because it is great for 'beginners' as well as 'old-timers' (people with expertise and knowledge). He creates an excellent balance of new and traditional information."

 

"One of the best lectures I've ever heard anywhere. It made me want to go out and read Richard III and Machiavelli. Intellecutally stimulating and very interesting and expertly crafted."

 

 "John is professional, polished and gives elegant presentations of the course material, well prepared in his background information. He has a good balance of lecture, audio-visual and class participation."

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