WAMFEST 2011 features impressive lineup of writers and musicians

MADISON, NJ (April 11, 2011)— For two weeks in April and May, Fairleigh Dickinson University will be hosting the 2011 WAMFEST (Words and Music Festival). This year’s WAMFEST will feature an eclectic and prestigious lineup of novelists, music producers, and singer/songwriters, in five events in April and May. WAMFEST artist in residence, Wesley Stace/John Wesley Harding will host and perform all of the events.

WAMFEST is an annual series hosted by FDU’s Becton College and the Creative Writing Programs that brings successful artists of various genres and media to the Madison campus, to inspire and inform students who hope to one day follow in these artists’ creative footsteps. The festival is designed to celebrate the literary qualities of popular music and to break down the barriers between the community and academia, bridging the gap between the literature in universities and the literature of the people. Past guests have included Bruce Springsteen, Robert Pinsky, Roseanne Cash, and Eugene Mirman.  

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Angeliki Frangou to Deliver Female Entrepreneur Lecture

Madison, NJ (March 16, 2011) — Angeliki Frangou, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Navios Maritime Holdings, will share her entrepreneurial experience at Rothman Institute of Entrepreneurship’s Eighth Annual Female Entrepreneur Lecture. The event will take place on Friday, March 25 at 6 p.m. at the College at Florham of Fairleigh Dickinson University.

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Another snowy day in NJ

With yet another snow storm over New Jersey, the university has closed early for the day. The 2 p.m. dismissal has delayed many students from attending the first session of some of their courses today.

Students to Present 'Last Night of Ballyhoo' in October

Alfred Uhry’s Tony award-winning play, “The Last Night of Ballyhoo,” will be presented Wednesday, Oct. 6, to Saturday, Oct. 9, at 8 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 10, at 2:30 p.m. in Dreyfuss Theatre at Fairleigh Dickinson University’s College at Florham, 285 Madison Ave., Madison.

A special free matinee for high school classes will be held on Friday, Oct. 8, at 11 a.m. Arrangements for high school classes to attend may be made by calling Stephen Hollis, director, at 973-443-8467.

General admission is $10, $5 for students/seniors. Tickets may be reserved by calling 973-443-8644, press 4, or purchased at the door.

The 1997 production premiered at the Helen Hayes Theatre in New York City, and received a Tony Award for Best Play and the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Broadway Play.

This Uhry comedy is set in Atlanta, Ga., in December 1939. Although Hitler has just invaded Poland, the Freitag family is consumed with finding a date for their daughter, Lala, so she may attend Ballyhoo, the Jewish social event of the season. With the introduction of eligible Joe to their family’s life, assimilation, prejudice and identity are revealed in this touching portrait of a family struggling to know its place.

This student production, directed by Stacie Lents, is sponsored by FDU’s Department of Visual and Performing Arts.

FDU Holds 67th Commencement on May 18

More than 3,500 Students from 58 Countries to Receive Degrees

Teaneck, NJ (May 3, 2010) — On Tuesday, May 18, 2010, the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, NJ will be the site for the 67^th Commencement ceremony of Fairleigh Dickinson University. University President J. Michael Adams will preside at the 10 a.m. ceremony as approximately 3,000 students receive doctoral, master’s, bachelor’s and associate degrees. The campus provosts will present the Student Pinnacle Awards.

The Class of 2010 represents 58 countries including the United States, 35 states plus the District of Columbia and all 21 counties in New Jersey.

The Commencement ceremony will be live on the Web, allowing family and friends around the world to share the ceremony with the graduates. The live stream begins at 8 a.m. EDT with the scrolling of the names of the graduates and Grad Greetings, followed by the full commencement ceremony.

This ceremony also celebrates the first graduating class from FDU’s Vancouver campus.

The university will confer honorary doctor of humane letters degrees on two outstanding individuals — U.S. Senator Robert Menendez and Chinese-Filipino industrialist Lucio C. Tan.

FDU offers learning and love

Couple’s event highlights story of FDU grads


by Barbara J. Stewart
Photo by Scott Giglio

Bonnie and Stewart Krentzman joined many other couples recently as they celebrated their love which had its beginnings at Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU). The annual event, held at Hennessey Hall at the FDU College of Florham in Madison, drew nearly one hundred FDU alumni who met and fell in love while students at the University.

“We can identify at least 1,000 couples who fell in love while attending FDU,” said Okang McBride, the University’s Director of Alumni Relations. “They came here to get an excellent education and they obtained an additional benefit – someone to love and cherish for the rest of their lives.”

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WAMFEST at FDU

MADISON, NJ (April 16, 2010) Fairleigh Dickinson University’s Creative Writing Program kicks off WAMFEST 2010: Words and Music Festival, its annual series of readings, interviews, talks and performances, on May 3 at the College at Florham. The festival showcases top literary and music talents including Bruce Springsteen and former US Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky, members of the legendary punk band X, Pulitzer Prize winning poet Paul Muldoon, and more -- in ways audiences have never seen them before.

WAMFEST is an annual series hosted by FDU’s Becton College and the Creative Writing Programs. WAMFEST is designed to celebrate the literary quality of popular music and to break down the barriers between the community and academia. It bridges the gap between the literature in universities and the literature of the people. Past guests have included Rosanne Cash, John Wesley Harding, and David Gates.

 “The whole idea of WAMFEST is to allow students to have an intimate experience with people who are not generally available in that way,” said David Daniel, WAMFEST originator and professor of creative writing. “By bringing together writers — poets, novelists, journalists — and songwriters and starting a conversation, I hope that the festival creates a forum that bridges the gap between ‘the people’s art’ and the ‘art of the academy,’ and that WAMFEST provides a model for teaching and celebrating the arts across the country.”

WAMFEST artist in residence and host from the beginning John Wesley Harding is back to moderate these engaging presentations.  Harding is a critically acclaimed singer/songwriter and novelist. He has released fifteen music albums, ranging in style from folk to pop. Performing under his stage name of John Wesley Harding, he has also written two novels with a third due out this year under his real name, Wesley Stace.

WAMFEST 2010 SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Monday, May 3, 4:00 pm (Hartman Lounge)

JOHN DOE & EXENE CERVENKA from X

    WILD GIFT:  A History of Punk: John Doe and Exene In Conversation

Founders of the legendary punk band, X, John Doe and Exene are among the most celebrated and respected figures in the history of rock.   John is one of our greatest living songwriters, and Exene is also an acclaimed performance poet. Their first album, Los Angeles, is essential listening for anyone interested in rock music. They will have a conversation with John Wesley Harding, play a few songs (acoustically), and answer questions.    

Tuesday, May 4, 4:00pm    (Location TBA)

EUGENE MIRMAN AND HIS PRETTY GOOD FRIENDS

(WHO ARE ALSO COMEDIANS)

Eugene Mirman (Flight of the Conchords, Delocated)

Michael Showalter (MTV's The State, Wet Hot American Summer, Michael and Michael Have Issues)

Leo Allen (Comedy Central Presents, former writer Saturday Night Live)

Kumail Nanjiani (Colbert Report, David Letterman, Michael and Michael Have                            Issues)

Experience a fantastic collection of literary-minded comedians performing together for the very first time!  Hosted by WAMFEST Artist-in-Residence Wesley Stace, this show will feature individual sets by these premiere comedians and will be followed by a discussion and questions.

Wednesday, May 5, 4:00pm  (Hartman Lounge)

PAUL MULDOON & JOHN WESLEY HARDING

   WORDS FOR MUSIC, PERHAPS:  A Performance and Discussion

Pulitzer Prize Winning Poet from Northern Ireland Paul Muldoon has been called “the most significant English-language poet born since the Second World War.”  When he collaborated with rock-icon Warren Zevon (“Werewolves of London”) he was the first major poet to cross those genres and thus became an inspiration for WAMFEST.   He is the poetry editor of the New Yorker, teaches creative writing at Princeton, where he also fronts his band, Rackett.   John Wesley Harding will share the stage with Muldoon in this exciting performance. Muldoon and Harding will perform songs they've written for Wamfest, discuss the process, answer questions, and Muldoon will read poems.  

Thursday, May 6, 4:00pm

NOTE: Due to space restrictions, this is a private event for the FDU community.

ROBERT PINSKY & BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN

   JERSEY RAIN: Bruce Springsteen and Robert Pinsky in Conversation and Performance with John Wesley Harding

Former US Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky was born in the same hospital as Bruce Springsteen, and from Monmouth Memorial, these two have reached the pinnacle of their respective fields.   Robert’s classic book of poems, Jersey Rain, was said to remind the world that “poetry is a tool for living”, and his astonishing career as a poet and essayist has done more than any other poet to promote and exemplify how poetry is relevant in all our lives.   Likewise, Bruce’s astonishing lyrics reveal the “poetry” that may be discovered at the heart of American life, the stories that bind us all together--and both of these great artists have shown us the art and beauty and dignity and truth that may be mined from those stories, those ordinary lives led in sunlight or in Jersey rain.   

John Wesley Harding will lead this engaging discussion that is sure to be a unique experience for everyone in attendance.

Program Note:  THIS IS NOT A BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN CONCERT!   It will be a conversation with a few songs and a few poems. The program will be followed by a brief question and answer period.  

WAMFEST INFORMATION

The public is invited to WAMFEST events, except the Springsteen/Pinsky event on May 6.  Admission is free.

Fairleigh Dickinson University’s College at Florham is located at 285 Madison Avenue, Madison, N.J. 07940.

For more information about WAMFEST please visit wamfest.wordpress.com or email ddaniel@fdu.edu.