Desktop News February 2021 – College of Arts & Sciences

Performing Perspectives: Discussing Diversity in the Performing Arts

February 24, 2021

From the February 2021 Desktop News | Every other Monday, a diverse group of faculty, students, and others gather together for Performing Perspectives, a virtual conversation series about underrepresented pieces of performing arts. Sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance’s diversity, equity and inclusion committee, the open discussions aim to expose people to works created by marginalized artists that they otherwise might not encounter. The series is a byproduct of conversations that Misha Hadar, an instructor in the department, […]

UA Researcher Publishes Article in “Nature Scientific Reports”

February 22, 2021

A woman crosses through a rainforest on a rope bridge

From the February 2021 Desktop News | In the Amazon rainforest, the Brazil nut tree is an invaluable resource. Towering over their harvesters’ homes at over 160 feet tall, the tree produces fruit that contains the famous Brazil nut, which economically sustains the thousands of people who live there. But the Brazil nut tree’s yield varies from year to year–sometimes it’s bountiful and sustains the harvesters financially, but sometimes, the trees don’t provide a single fruit. UA biology professor Christina […]

Dance Alabama! Tour Brings Art to Alabama Schools

February 22, 2021

A dancer leads elementary students in a stretch.

From the February 2021 Desktop News | From year to year, one of the most anticipated productions from UA’s Department of Theatre and Dance is Dance Alabama!, a program choreographed and performed entirely by students. Hundreds of people flock to Tuscaloosa to watch as dancers perform a wide variety of genres and styles. But this isn’t the students’ only chance to perform. Over the past six years, Dance Alabama! has taken its show on the road, performing at elementary schools […]

UA Percussionists Earn Top Placements at International Convention

February 22, 2021

From the February 2021 Desktop News | After taking home the top award for university concert snare players at the 2020 Percussive Arts Society International Convention Individual Competitions, graduate student Nathan Rearick looks forward to seeing UA’s percussion program evolve into a powerhouse. “The UA percussion studio is a thriving family that keeps pushing the boundaries of proficiency,” Rearick said. His claim holds true, with three of his classmates also placing in the competition, making UA’s the only percussion program […]

Remembering Shelia Washington

February 10, 2021

From the February 2021 Desktop News | The late Shelia Washington, founding director of the Scottsboro Boys Museum and Cultural Center in Scottsboro, Alabama, will be remembered by the UA community for the strong partnership she built between the institution and UA scholars and students. Washington opened the Scottsboro Boys Museum in 2010 to honor the nine young African-American men who were falsely accused of rape and subsequently imprisoned in the 1930s. Since it opened its doors, Washington and colleagues […]

UA Professor Receives Prestigious Grant to Create Digital Dance Archive

February 9, 2021

From the February 2021 Desktop News | Dance is one of the most challenging art forms to teach because there is no widely-used form of notation, no scripts to read or music to transcribe. Instead, dance technique and choreography are most often passed down orally, from teacher to student, making it difficult to share with those outside this chain. While the invention of film, then video, and now digital recording has created an alternative means of sharing dance, public access […]

UA Grad Named to International Literacy Association’s 30 Under 30 List

February 9, 2021

From the February 2021 Desktop News | UA graduate Candace Chambers was recently named among the top 30 young leaders globally working to improve literacy. Chambers, who received a master’s degree in English at UA, has always wanted to use her gift of writing to help others. As a tutor in the writing center, instructor for first-year students, and community outreach volunteer, her goal was to teach her students how to advocate for themselves through their writing. Now a PhD […]