What's happening at Penn State? Here's a look at some of the cultural events — both in-person and virtual — taking place across the University:
Performances
Bach's Lunch — 12:10-12:45 p.m., Sept. 26, Eisenhower Chapel, University Park campus. "Bach's Lunch" is a weekly concert series during the school year. These popular concerts are brief in order to make it possible for the University community to attend during the lunch hour. Free.
Chanticleer: "Sing Joyfully" — 7:30 p.m., Sept. 26, Eisenhower Auditorium, University Park campus. The 12-man-strong Chanticleer choral ensemble will perform “Sing Joyfully,” exploring performances of Renaissance motets, jazz standards and contemporary arrangements of modern songs. A Classical Coffeehouse is also planned for 8 p.m. Sept. 25, in Pasquerilla Spiritual Center.
Jim Henson’s Labyrinth: In Concert – 7:30 p.m., Sept. 27, Pullo Center, York campus. Audiences will get the chance to see Jim Henson’s cult classic film “Labyrinth” on the big screen, complete with a live band, performing the iconic soundtrack in sync with David Bowie’s original vocals.
Penn State Chamber Orchestra concert — 4 p.m., Sept. 29, School of Music Recital Hall, University Park campus. The concert will feature an engaging program of works by Jacques Ibert and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Jelly Roll – 7 p.m., Oct. 1, Bryce Jordan Center, University Park campus. Multi-genre hit making entertainer Jelly Roll will bring his Beautifully Broken Tour 2024 run to Penn State. The arena tour marks the Nashville native’s biggest headlining tour to date and includes opener Warren Zeiders and Alexandra Kay.
Events
Penn State Homecoming Week — Multiple events through Sept. 28, University Park campus. Homecoming Week activities continue with fun-filled events, including a pep rally, student-alumni ice cream social, the Homecoming Parade, Guard the Lion Shrine, and the Penn State vs. Illinois football game.
National Hispanic Heritage Month events — Mid-September through the end of October, Multiple campuses. Penn State units at campuses across the commonwealth will be holding events in honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month, celebrated annually from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 as a time to honor and celebrate the historic background, culture, heritage and many influences of the Hispanic and Latino communities throughout the years.
Marathon Read: "Youth on Fire: Stories of Growing Up" — 10 a.m.-10 p.m., Sept. 26, Dewey Room of the Collaboration Commons, Pattee Library, University Park campus. Marathon Read is an annual event featuring students and members of the Penn State community coming together to read in five-minute increments for 12 hours straight. This year’s new location will allow participants to view graphic novels while they are being read. Food will be provided throughout the day. Free.
Eunice Levis Film Showcase — 5 p.m., Sept. 26, Perkins Student Center Multipurpose Room, Berks campus. Dominican-American filmmaker Eunice Levis will present a showcase of her short films, which focus on genre-bending stories that combine her love of horror, sci-fi and fantasy, often through a diasporic lens. Free.
An Evening in Najd — 6 p.m., Sept. 29, Bryce Jordan Center, University Park campus. Join the Saudi Arabian Student Association as they celebrate Saudi National Day. The evening promises a captivating lineup of events, culminating in a concert by Dhom Altlasi, a renowned Saudi artist whose harmonious melodies and vibrant rhythms will inspire a deep sense of national pride and unity among attendees.
Fiesta Latina – 5 p.m., Oct. 2, Perkins Student Center Multipurpose Room, Berks campus. La Fiesta Latina is an annual event celebrating Latin heritage. With the theme of "one language; many cultures," this event features live presentations, dancing, and a taste of Latin cuisine. Free.
Women and Queer Night at the Bike Den — 6:15-8:15 p.m., Oct. 3, West Deck ground floor, University Park campus. In addition to creating a local community centered around cycling, this event provides an opportunity for underrepresented populations to connect and meet other cyclists whose biking experience ranges from beginner to seasoned cyclists and bike mechanics. Free. RSVP required.
Lectures
“Race and Democracy: America is Always Changing, but America Never Changes” — 7 p.m., Sept. 26, The State Theatre, Downtown State College. Schreyer Honors College will host Eddie Glaude Jr. for this lecture as part of the college’s Schreyer’s Dilemmas of Democracy series.
Gallery Talks: “Re/Collecting the Andes” with artist Kukuli Velarde and Associate Professor of History Christopher Heaney — 6 p.m., Sept. 26, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. Enjoy in-depth engagement with selected exhibitions or specific areas of the permanent collection. Talks are led by museum curators, educators, or invited specialists.
In-person exhibits
“Lost in Paradise” — Through Oct. 19, Friedman Art Gallery, Wilkes-Barre campus. A new solo exhibition by artist Seth Ellison will feature various paintings reflecting Ellison's life growing up in the rural South. Ellison is a Philadelphia-based painter and multimedia artist.
“Familiar Strands” — Through Oct. 24, McLanahan Gallery, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. Ivyside Juried Art Exhibition winner Zoraye Cyrus uses vintage photographs as the foundation for drawings that utilize personal experiences, family relationships and her Afro-Caribbean American heritage to delve into the intricate connections between belonging and identity. Free.
“Color Intaglio: Fauna, Flora, Figures” — Through Oct. 25, Sheetz Gallery, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. A body of work by Ivyside Juried Art Exhibition winner Yuji Hiratsuka reflecting on everyday human conditions such as wryness, satire, whimsy, irony, paradox or mismatch. Free.
Philadelphia Watercolor Society’s 124th International Exhibition of Works on Paper — Through Oct. 29, The Henry Gallery, Great Valley campus. This exhibition will feature a diverse range of styles and techniques, from delicate landscapes to bold abstracts, to evoke emotion, challenge perception, and celebrate the beauty of the medium of paper.
“Made in PA” – Through Dec. 1, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. An ambitious show highlights post-1945 paintings, sculpture, mixed-media assemblages and installations by artists who hail from Pennsylvania or who have made their homes and sustained their careers in the Keystone State.
“Re/Collecting the Andes: Andean Art, Science, and the Sacred at Penn State” — Through Dec. 8, 2024, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park campus. “Re/Collecting the Andes” tells the story of more than 10,000 years of agricultural, cultural, intellectual, and religious innovation in the Andes region of South America. It also narrates how the Incas and their surviving Andean subjects reclaimed that legacy after Spain's invasion, through museums, science, and art.
“Re(de)fining Landscape” — Through Dec. 13, Abington Art Gallery, Abington campus. Bonnie Levinthal’s work is rooted in the exploration and re-presentation of landscape, incorporating methods and mediums that connect process with content to create a visual record of her experiences in response to place. This exhibition showcases three bodies of work alongside artist’s journals, reflecting Levinthal’s response to place through a sampling of artworks completed at home and abroad.
"Caretelling: Stories to Sustain Ourselves" — Through December, Woskob Family Gallery, University Park campus. This interdisciplinary group exhibition explores the intersection of storytelling and caregiving through collaborative art-making, video installations and graphic narratives.
"Myth, History, and the Written Word: Manuscript and Print Culture in Latin America" — Through Feb. 7, 2025, Special Collections exhibition space, 104 Paterno Library, University Park campus. The rare and distinctive Latin American collections held by the Eberly Family Special Collections Library are the focus of this exhibition, curated by Manuel Ostos, librarian and curator of Romance Language and Latin American Collections. Free.
“Biomachine” — Through Spring 2025, Hite Lobby, Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts, Altoona campus. A collaboration between Daryl Branford and Talley Fisher of Huck SciArts offers a glimpse into the microscopic world of viruses and is a reaction to how humanity must learn to coexist with them.
"I Am a Penn Stater: Nittany Lions in World War II" — Through June 2025, Penn State All-Sports Museum, Beaver Stadium, University Park campus. Timed to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the conflict, "I Am a Penn Stater" chronicles the contributions of Nittany Lion varsity lettermen and Women’s Recreation Association athletes during the conflict and follows their service from training in the United States, to fighting on battlefields around the globe, to their postwar occupations. Free.
Virtual exhibits
In addition to in-person events, a number of virtual exhibits are available through University departments. The Palmer Museum of Art and University Libraries offer a rotating selection of historical and artistic collections to view online.