Contact: Ginny Greenberg (516) 463-6819/[email protected]
Hofstra University Presents: Oscar Wilde: The Man, His Writings and His World
An April 27 to 29 Conference, Featuring the Writer's Grandson, Merlin Holland
Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY ... In commemoration of the Oscar Wilde Centenary, Hofstra University is presenting the interdisciplinary conference Oscar Wilde: The Man, His Writings and His World, April 27, 28 and 29, 2000. The conference will feature speakers of international renown, including Merlin Holland, Wilde's grandson and author of The Wilde Album.
Oscar Wilde, author of "The Portrait of Dorian Gray," "The Importance of Being Earnest" and "The Ideal Husband," is known for his impact and contributions to the worlds of literature, drama, art and essays. He is considered an icon of the transitional period between the Victorian and modern ages. Discussions at the conference will feature experts in Wilde's life and work like Sander Gilman of the University of Chicago and former president of the Modern Language Association; Karl Beckson of Brooklyn College; Joan Navarre of Marquette University; and Kerry Powell of Miami University.
There will be several other events to highlight the conference. On Thursday, April 27, at 8 p.m. Hofstra USA Productions will present the New York premiere of "Oscar Over Here" by Romulus Linney and directed by Bob Spiotto. Linney will be at the performance and will answer questions at the end of the show. Oscar Over Here is an exploration of Wilde's emotional life and follows him from his arrival in America to his death in Paris in 1900. Inevitably, it centers around his greatest artistic triumph and his greatest personal defeat -- the premiere of "The Importance of Being Earnest" and Wilde's sentence to hard labor for the crime of homosexual activity. The show will also be performed on April 28 and 29 at 8 p.m.
At noon on Saturday, April 29, Hofstra's New College Theater will present "An Evening with Oscar Wilde," a collection of readings from some of Wilde's lesser-known poems and children's stories, as well as essays and letters. The conference will close with an exhibition in Hofstra's David Filderman Gallery titled "The Living World of Oscar Wilde," featuring manuscripts, books and photographs.
Registration for "Oscar Wilde: The Man, His Writings and His World" is $75. Price includes one ticket to Oscar Over Here. A Friday evening banquet is priced separately at $30 per person, and tickets for Oscar Over Here may be purchased separately at $14 each.
Highlights of Oscar Wilde: The Man, His Writings and His World:
Thursday, April 27:
Noon: Keynote address by Merlin Holland, grandson of Oscar Wilde
6 p.m.: Film screening of the silent movie "Salome," by Oscar Wilde
8 p.m.: New York premiere of "Oscar Over Here," followed by a Q/A with the playwright Romulus Linney
Friday, April 28:
6 p.m.: Cocktail reception and banquet, featuring an address, "Oscar Wilde and the Importance of Not Being Earnest," by Karl Beckson
Saturday, April 29:
Noon: New College Theater presents "An Evening with Oscar Wilde"
2 p.m.: Exhibition viewing and closing reception
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