Events: Literature

Come hear what happens next for Goldilocks in this Sunday afternoon opera perfect for the family!

In partnership with the U of A, The Three Bears was composed to educate young children about opera, with the show featuring all components that make up an opera: arias, duets, trios, quartets, recitative (sung dialogue), spoken dialogue, and pantomime. The story presents characters that a young audience is probably familiar with, but now in a new setting!

A workshop for NWA’s writing community to get together, network, and chat about the business and/or hobby of writing.

Join us for a hilarious screening of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, the perfect comedy about holiday travel mishaps, just in time for Thanksgiving!

Get into the Thanksgiving spirit with our screening of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, presented in partnership with the Arkansas Cinema Society! Follow the chaotic and comedic journey of two mismatched travelers as they struggle to get home for the holidays. Packed with laughs, heart, and a bit of holiday madness, this classic comedy is the perfect way to kick off your holiday season. Don’t miss out on a night of fun as we celebrate the joys—and frustrations—of holiday travel!

Adults only, please: Planes, Trains and Automobiles is rated R.

Join us for a conversation with Marlene Johnson, moderated by Gina Shelton.

Marking a milestone for women in state government, Marlene M. Johnson became Minnesota’s first woman lieutenant governor under Rudy Perpich’s gubernatorial administration in January 1983. That same year, she met her husband, Peter, and their deeply loving relationship profoundly sustained her for twenty-seven years. A story of learning and leadership in politics, business, and public service, Rise to the Challenge is a moving portrayal of spirit, perseverance, and grace in the face of daunting personal challenges, supported by unwavering faith in the public good.

Marlene M. Johnson was Minnesota’s first woman lieutenant governor, serving in Governor Rudy Perpich’s administration from 1983 until 1991. She is cofounder of the Minnesota Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners and the Minnesota Women’s Campaign Fund and was executive director and CEO of NAFSA: Association of International Educators for nearly two decades. She is now on the advisory board of Kakenya’s Dream, a board member of the Washington Office on Latin America, and a trustee of The Alexandria Trust. In 1988, she was awarded the Royal Order of the Polar Star by the Kingdom of Sweden. She lives in Washington, D.C.

Gina Holland Shelton is a former national reporter for The Associated Press, where she covered the U.S. Supreme Court for five years during her 17-year career. Shelton joined the University of Arkansas in 2013 and has taught courses in media law, government and media, news reporting, and editing. Shelton serves as the campus adviser to the Society of Professional Journalists and is president of the Northwest Arkansas Professional SPJ chapter. Earlier this year she was named interim director of the U of A Center for Media Ethics and Literacy.

Join award-winning authors Ruth C Mitchell and Wendy Taylor Carlisle for a reading of their most recent poetry and prose.
Wendy Taylor Carlisle is the recipient of the 2020 Phillip McMath Prize for poetry.

Ruth C Mitchell was featured at the LA Times Festival of Books 2024 and has won numerous awards for her novel Beyond: A Tale of Discovery on the other Side of Life.

Local poet, Noelia Cerna, will be reading from her newest book of poetry, Las Piedrecitas.

Book sales and signing to follow the reading.

For more information and to purchase Las Piedrecitas, click here.

About Noelia Cerna:

Noelia Cerna is a Latina poet based in Springdale, AR. She was born in Costa Rica and immigrated to the United States at the age of 7 where she received a Bachelor’s degree in English from Westminster College in Missouri. Her poems have been published in audio form in Terse. Journal and in print in The Revolution [Relaunch], the Girl Gang blog, the Plants and Poetry Journal and The North Meridian Review. Noelia is a book editor for the North Meridian Review and an award-winning writing mentor for Pen America’s Prison Writing Mentorship program.