Arts & Entertainment

On weekend nights, many Luther students get out of the dorms and into town to check out the live music scene, most of it generated by Luther students.

Audience members have their own criteria for what makes a good performance.

Every year, Christmas comes to the Luther campus bringing treats, a festive holiday atmosphere and, of course, Santa. On Dec. 9 from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. students and community members enjoyed frost-your-own-cookie stations, hot apple cider, hot cocoa and crafts with the PALS and College Ministries groups.

Nestled in the midst of towering bluffs and beautiful scenery is a community that charms and amazes those who live here and those who visit. Thriving and quaint shops fill the downtown areas, wonderful restaurants tempt the palate, cultural and historic venues teach and entertain and, of course, recreational opportunities abound.

Priya Kumar, associate professor of English at the University of Iowa, spoke on “Gender, Violence and Injustice in Amrita Pritam’s ‘Pinjar’” Nov. 10 at 7 p.m. in the Center for Faith and Life Main Hall. Kumar’s lecture examined the topic of violence against women, one of the major issues explored in the Paideia I novel “Pinjar.” This violence was caused by religious feuds that erupted around the time when British-colonized India came to be divided into two independent countries, India and Pakistan, in August, 1947.

It was a celebration filled with music, games, hot cider and students’ favorite frost-your-own cookies. SAC Special Events hosted the second annual Fall Fest in Marty’s Tuesday, Nov. 3rd.

Lead vocalist Mike Reisenauer’s muted facial expressions said it all as he sang, uninspired, to a small audience paying as much attention to their laptops as to Madison band Pale Young Gentlemen’s performance in Marty’s last Friday.

Swinging legs and pumping jazz music filled Storre Theatre this past weekend as Jennie McEllistrem (‘10) and her team of swing and jazz dancers performed “Smoke and Jazz.” The piece, performed in the style of renowned choreograper Bob Fosse, was inspired by McEllistrem’s dancing experience from this past summer.

Luther’s Physics Department hosted “The Haunted Lab,” featuring ghostly yet interactive science demonstrations for excited and fascinated folks, Oct. 30 in Valders Hall of Science.

The second salsa dance of the semester was held in Marty’s Oct. 24 with Iowa salsa band Orquesta Alto Maiz. Compared to the attendance at the previous salsa dance of the semester, there were very few people, however, more people showed up as time went on.

The ArtHaus Poetry Slam moved from ArtHaus’ cozy confines to the Elks Lodge Friday, Oct. 23 due to the overwhelming support received in the previous three slams. Adorned with velvet thrones, elk heads and Christmas lights, this setting didn’t distract the 150-plus audience members or the poets.

Dozens of students clustered in the Center for the Arts atrium to watch a wide variety of acts Saturday, Oct. 24. Organized and hosted by student-run SPIN Theater, the event, “Artists’ Night Out,” was created to give students a different kind of opportunity to share their art.