I’ve always been one to associate birthdays with meaningful markers in America. At age 13, I had my bat mitzvah. At 16, I got my driver’s license. At age 18, I could register to vote. And I’m counting down the days until my 21st birthday, when I can legally drink alcohol. While each of these “big birthdays” merits a grand celebration, each came (or will come) with great responsibility. For example, when I turned 13, my religious community considered me an adult. This meant that I had to fast on the high holidays and act responsibly. When I turned 18, it meant that I could be tried as an adult in a court. And when I finally turn 21, well, you can imagine what I’ll have to do.
Century markers are a bit different than “big birthdays” because you don’t get any privileges for being 100 years old. If you’re lucky, you get to have your face on a jar of Smuckers’ jelly. I hope your children will throw you the biggest party you’ve ever seen. But even that doesn’t capture the power of the number 100. So how can we even think of celebrating 200 years?
At Colby, a bicentennial means a year full of celebration and excitement. And it starts this Friday, October 19th at the “Bicentennial Ball.” For the rest of the academic year, the college will sponsor a number of events to commemorate this important birthday. Here is a list of some of these parties, lectures, and film screenings so that you can help Colby celebrate 200 years of liberal arts!
Here is a list of events for the week:
Bicentennial Recital With Gjergji Gaqi ’07 and Dori Smith ’08
Saturday, October 20, 7:30 p.m.
Lorimer Chapel
Two outstanding music majors return for a joint recital during Colby’s bicentennial year. Gjergji Gaqi ’07, fresh from completing his doctoral degree in piano performance at the University of Michigan, and soprano Dori Smith ’08, a doctoral candidate in voice at the University of Arizona, present a richly varied program of piano and vocal music from the 19th and 20th centuries. Featured works include Fantasies, op. 116, by Brahms; Schubert’s Impromptu, op. 142, no. 2; Desperate Measures by American composer Robert Muczynski; and vocal music from Liszt, Mozart, Lori Laitman, and Ernest Chausson.
Bicentennial Event Downtown: Colby at the Movies
Saturday, October 20, noon – 3 p.m.
Railroad Square Cinema
A special presentation of Colby’s bicentennial video, In Their Footsteps. The turbulent, uplifting story of Colby’s history, from its birth in 1813 to the admission of women in 1871, from the decision to build a new campus in Waterville in 1931 to the student takeover of Lorimer Chapel in 1970, and beyond. Also showing: Reviving Affection: Sense of Place in the Belgrade Lakes by Nikolas Kondiles ’13.
Bicentennial Event Downtown: Colby and Waterville, 200 Years | Celebrating Our Unique Bond
Saturday, October 20, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Hathaway Creative Center
Women at Colby: A Panel Discussion
Thursday, October 25, 7 p.m.
Colby College Museum of Art
Source: http://www.colby.edu/news_events/calendar/bicentennial-events.cfm
Picture Source: www.colby.edu and http://www.kjonline.com/news/colby-celebrates-bicentennial_2012-09-02.html