What's happening at Penn State? Here's a look at some of the cultural events — both in-person and virtual — open to the University and local community:
Performances
Ivyside Pride — 7:30 p.m., Dec. 4 and 5, Wolf Kuhn Theatre, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. Penn State Altoona’s Ivyside Pride choral group will offer its fall performance, “Uplifted." Free.
Pennsylvania Ballet Academy: Nutcracker Sweets – 6 p.m., Dec. 6, Pullo Center, York campus. Pennsylvania Ballet Academy presents Nutcracker Sweets, featuring selections and special choreography inspired by ballet’s signature holiday classic, The Nutcracker. The Academy joins with the Lancaster Symphony Orchestra to bring an unforgettable evening of ballet and timeless music.
Mosaic – 4 p.m., Dec. 7, Eisenhower Auditorium, University Park campus. The annual Mosaic student concert showcase returns to Eisenhower Auditorium with a concert featuring the Penn State School of Music’s most talented ensembles and soloists. With the use of special lighting effects, the performances on the stage, grand tier, and balcony connect for a fast-paced and unique concert experience.
Penn State Rock Ensemble – Time TBD, Dec. 9, School of Music Recital Hall, University Park campus. The Penn State Rock Ensemble will present a concert showcasing the work of students enrolled in MUSIC 188.2. The performance, directed by Jesse Moore, will feature an extended set of 20th- and 21st-century repertoire across a wide range of genres including classic rock, heavy metal, punk, dance pop and more.
Penn State Altoona Jazz Band — 7:30 p.m., Dec. 13, Wolf Kuhn Theatre, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. Musical selections in a variety of contemporary big band styles will be performed. Free.
“The Nutcracker” – Multiple performances, Dec. 13-14, Eisenhower Auditorium, University Park campus. The Performing Arts School of Central Pennsylvania's Nittany Ballet will reprise its magical performance of “The Nutcracker.” The classical ballet school’s annual production will transport audiences to a magical world where life-sized toy soldiers fight giant mice, snowflakes dance, and the Sugarplum Fairy welcomes theatergoers of all ages to the Nutcracker’s Kingdom and performers from the Land of Sweets.
EMC Performing Arts Studio Annual Holiday Celebration — 4 p.m., Dec. 14, Pullo Center, York campus. A festive presentation of dance, music and acrobatics performed by people of all ages will entertain the whole family.
Cirque Dreams Holidaze – 7:30 p.m., Dec. 18, Bryce Jordan Center, University Park campus. Cirque Dreams Holidaze presents a holiday spectacular for the whole family. This show wraps a Broadway-style production around awe-inspiring contemporary circus arts, featuring original music, fresh twists on beloved holiday favorites, dazzling scenery, and stunning costumes.
Sixpence None the Richer – 7:30 p.m., Dec. 19, Pullo Center, York campus. Sixpence None the Richer will visit Penn State York to perform, featuring fan favorites and hits from their discography. Sixpence None the Richer has helped shape the musical landscape across generations and continues to bring their music, both new and old, to audiences worldwide.
Events
Art After Hours: Engineering Creativity – 5-8 p.m., Dec. 4, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. Discover how art and engineering collide through creative, hands-on activities. Hear from students, staff, and faculty in the College of Engineering at the tabling and research poster showcase and participate in an interdisciplinary gallery conversation with faculty curators.
Café Laura Theme Dinner: A Taste of Magic - A Disney Dining Experience – Dec. 4, Café Laura, Mateer Building, University Park campus. Students in HM 430 Advanced Food Production and Service Management prepare a series of themed dinners throughout the semester to be served in the student-run Café Laura restaurant. Reservations required.
Penn State Fayette 60th Anniversary – 5 p.m., Dec. 5, Fayette campus. Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus will honor its 60 years of academic excellence and community impact with a special celebration, including lantern-lit campus tours, opportunities to connect with former faculty and staff, hot cocoa around the firepit, cookie decorating, live music and catering by The Historic Stone House Restaurant.
Drop-in Tour: Art, Exploration and the Stories We Collect – 2 p.m., Dec. 7, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. Drop in and discover the Palmer’s world-class collections and exhibitions with a friendly and knowledgeable museum guide.
Lectures
Gallery Talk: Structures, Systems, and Society – 6 p.m., Dec. 4, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. Enjoy an interdisciplinary gallery conversation during Art After Hours with faculty and staff collaborators on the art and engineering Teaching Gallery exhibition.
César de la Fuente – 11 a.m., Dec. 5, Foster Auditorium, Paterno Library, University Park campus and via Zoom. The One Health Microbiome Center (OHMC) at the Penn State Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences will welcome César de la Fuente, an internationally renowned artificial intelligence (AI) biologist. De la Fuente will discuss his work at the intersection of biology, engineering and computation in the Machine Biology Group at the University of Pennsylvania.
Department of Geography Coffee Hour series — 3:30 p.m., Dec. 5, 112 Walker Building, University Park campus and via Zoom. Three undergraduates will present their research from their fall 2025 Undergraduate Research Opportunities Connection (UROC) projects
“Drawing from Within: Unleashing Creativity for Mental Health” – 2-3:30 p.m., Dec. 8, Outreach Building Rooms 121 G and H, 100 Innovation Boulevard, University Park campus. Bill Doan will share highlights of his research along with his own drawings and a short, guided drawing activity with the audience. Doan has created solo performance projects at a variety of venues across the U.S. and abroad.
"Critical Minerals Research at the Pennsylvania Geological Survey" — 4 p.m., Dec. 8, 112 Walker Building, University Park campus and via Zoom. Gale Blackmer, the Pennsylvania state geologist and director of the Bureau of Geological Survey in the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, will deliver a public talk. Free.
"Imperfect Competition and Sanitation: Evidence from Randomized Auctions in Senegal" — Noon, Dec. 10, 157 Hosler Building, University Park campus. Laura Schechter, an economics professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will lead a seminar on the availability of clean sanitation technologies in developing countries.
“Patterns and processes of lithium enrichment in coal measure strata from the Northern Appalachian Basin” – 4 p.m., Dec. 15, 112 Walker Building, University Park campus and via Zoom. Research Professor Tim White and postdoctoral scholar Nick Sullivan will discuss lithium in the Mercer Formation, a geologic formation long mined in central Pennsylvania for its coal and claystone deposits. Using new and published data, they investigated lithium variations in Mercer claystones, discovering lithium enrichment at its greatest in areas historically mined for refractory clay.
In-person exhibits
“A Puncher’s Chance” – Through Dec. 5, Abington Art Gallery, Abington campus. In this exhibit, interdisciplinary artist James Maurelle explores the “puncher’s chance” — a term used when an underdog has the potential to win by landing a powerful blow. In an instant, the smallest opportunity shifts the scales, defying the insurmountable odds.
“A Study of Movement: The Fleet, Fierce and Feathered” – Through Dec. 5, Abington Art Gallery, Abington campus. Penn State Abington student Sophie Bell mimics stop-motion animation of animals in movement through a series of graphite animal drawings. The works aim to allow viewers to truly appreciate the individual characteristics and personalities of each creature depicted in the work.
“Mark Dion and Alexis Rockman: Journey to Nature’s Underworld” – Through Dec. 7, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. The first two-person survey exhibition of these renowned artists, “Mark Dion and Alexis Rockman: Journey to Nature’s Underworld” explores their shared allegiances and sustaining friendship over three decades. The exhibition will unite some 25 sculptures and paintings by both artists along with related works on paper and a major new collaborative piece, offering an absorbing journey into the depths of the threatened natural world.
"Our House is on Fire" – Through Dec. 18, Henry Art Gallery, Great Valley campus. "Our House is on Fire" celebrates the power of art to inspire environmental action and advocate for a greener, healthier future. The five artists who contributed to this exhibit see a need to advocate for harnessing imagination, wealth and technology to make their communities and country greener and healthier places for everyone to live.
“Tradition Renewed” – Through Dec. 19, Art Space, Schuylkill campus. "Tradition Renewed" is an exhibition featuring works by artist Eric Armusik, his apprentices and select students from the Armusik Academy of Classical Art. Known for his masterful figurative paintings inspired by the Old Masters, Armusik’s work captures the drama and emotion of the human experience through a classical lens.
“Structures, Systems, and Society: Work at the Interface of Art and Engineering” – Through Dec. 21, 2025, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. A diverse selection of objects from the Palmer’s collection appear alongside works by Penn State makers to investigate three intersections between art and engineering. Structures explores the physical forms and frameworks that support innovation, blending function and aesthetics in design. Systems examines the interconnected processes behind artistic and technological creation, highlighting shared methods like visualization and iteration. Society focuses on the cultural and ethical impact of engineering, showing how art fosters empathy, equity and responsible innovation.
“Public Spaces / Private Lives” – Through Dec. 21, 2025, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. “Public Spaces/Private Lives” presents a selection of works on paper that explore how we live, navigate and express ourselves in both private and public settings. Spanning from the mid-1800s to the early 2000s, the exhibition includes scenes of homes, neighborhoods, rooftops, sidewalks, city streets, parks, eateries, public institutions and transit systems mostly set in the United States, with a few works depicting Ireland and France.
“Sounding the Abstract” – Through Jan. 2, 2026, Woksob Family Gallery, downtown State College. "Sounding the Abstract" is a multimedia installation created by Woohun Joo, assistant professor of digital arts and design in the Penn State School of Visual Arts. The installation explores the relationship between visual and auditory perception by creating ambient soundscapes that correspond to geometric artworks through a real-time "reading" of the images.
“Dispositions” – Through Jan. 2, 2026, Woksob Family Gallery, downtown State College. “Dispositions” is an exhibition of art installations by Yasmine Abbas that explores the experience of existing between cultures and places, with a focus on "neo-nomads" and their strategies for navigating life between cultures and unfamiliar territories. Abbas is an assistant teaching professor of architecture in the College of Arts and Architecture’s Stuckeman School.
"Drawing and Analyzing Architecture: Works of Jamie Cooper" — Through mid-January 2026, Willard G. Rouse Gallery, Stuckeman Family Building, University Park campus. James Cooper, associate professor of architecture in the Penn State College of Arts and Architecture’s Stuckeman School, will open an exhibition featuring his own work. Free.
Virtual exhibits and online resources
In addition to in-person events, a number of virtual exhibits and online resources are available through University departments. The Palmer Museum of Art and Penn State University Libraries offer a rotating selection of historical and artistic collections to view via their websites, as well as other online resources.