Tuesday, March 4

“The Color Purple”

Turner Theatre, Schar Hall, 7 p.m. | Global Film & Cultures Series

Film screening and Q&A discussion with actress Pearl Mpasi ’15.

Tuesday, March 4

Ken Waldman and Jeremy Jones

Whitley Auditorium, 7:30 p.m.

Ken Waldman, author of 20 books and composer/performer of 12 CDs, teams with North Carolina musician Jeremy Jones for an evening of literary reading, Appalachian string band music on fiddle and banjo, and storytelling on writing, music, North Carolina, Alaska and more.

Born and raised in western North Carolina, Jeremy Jones ’04 is the author of “Bearwallow: A Personal History of a Mountain Homeland,” which was named the Appalachian Nonfiction Book of the Year Award in 2015, and the Gold Medal for autobiography/memoir in the Independent Publisher Book Awards among other recognition. Reviewers said “a fine debut of a fine writer,” noting that “Jeremy Jones represents a new generation of Southern writer, not held captive to the past.”

Jones graduated from Elon with degrees in English and Religious Studies. He received the 2019 Elon College Distinguished Alumni Award for Arts & Humanities. He is currently an Associate Professor of English at Western Carolina University.

Wednesday, March 5

Ash Wednesday

Elon Community Church | 12:15 p.m. and 9 p.m.
Sacred Space, Numen Lumen Pavilion | 9:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.

We invite you to receive ashes during a worship service beginning the Christian season of Lent. The 12:15 p.m. worship is ecumenical (Protestant and Catholic), and the 9:00 p.m. service is Catholic Mass. Shorter services with the distribution of ashes are also available in the Sacred Space, Numen Lumen Pavilion, at 9:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Sponsored by Catholic Campus Ministry, LEAF (Lutherans, Episcopalians, and Friends), and The Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life

Friday-Sunday, March 7-9

Department of Performing Arts presents “Emanation – The Spring Dance Concert”

McCrary Theatre, Center for the Arts | March 7, 8 at 7:30 p.m.; March 8, 9 at 2 p.m.

Artistic direction by Jasmine Powell

Out of the dark void, a spark ignites, sending ripples of energy that come to life on the McCrary stage. “Emanation” is an evening-length performance that explores the transformative power of movement and the flow of creation. This dynamic concert showcases the work of faculty and special guest choreographers Kara Janelle Wade and Wesley Williams Jr., featuring the talent of dance program majors and community members. It’s sure to be an evening of innovation, expression and the captivating rhythms of the human body in motion. Admission: $15 or Elon ID. Tickets available beginning Friday, February 14 at ElonTickets.com.

Monday, March 10

Kate Brauman, “Water Security: Making Sense of Global Trends in Water Availability and Water Use”

McCrary Theatre, Center for the Arts, 7 p.m. | Voices of Discovery Science Speaker Series

Access to sufficient clean water impacts all facets of life, including agriculture, health, transport, energy, manufacturing, economics, biodiversity and essential ecosystem services. This in turn impacts geo-political security, with decreased water availability destabilizing social structures. Changing climate is already impacting water security and exacerbating water-related threats to human well-being.

Kate Brauman is the deputy director of the Global Water Security Center at the University of Alabama. The center supports government offices, NGOs and industry, aiming to bridge the gap between environmental research and policy development and implementation. Her research has included the assessment of global trends in water use and best practices for managing watershed ecosystem services. Brauman was the coordinating lead author for the 2019 Global Assessment of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services and a section lead for the 2021 United Nations Environmental Program Global Synthesis Report, “Making Peace with Nature.”

Tuesday, March 11

Tectonic Plates: Alamance County’s Science Café: Practical Carbon Sequestration Technologies with Bethany Brinkman, Elon University Associate Professor of Engineering

Burlington Beer Works, 103 E. Front Street, Burlington, 7 p.m.

Each month on 2nd Tuesdays, a different scientist will present an engaging topic at Burlington Beer Works in downtown Burlington, North Carolina. Expect a lively event in a relaxed atmosphere without all the technical jargon. In March, Tectonic Plates welcomes Bethany Brinkman, Elon University Associate Professor of Engineering. The series runs from September through May, and the presentations are free and open to the public.

Wednesday, March 12

The U.S. Navy Band 2025 National Tour

Alumni Gym, Koury Athletic Center, 7:30 p.m.

The U.S. Navy Concert Band, Sea Chanters Chorus and Cruisers popular music group join forces to create a dynamic musical production featuring traditional wind band repertoire, Broadway showstoppers, pop and patriotic favorites. In 2025, the United States Navy celebrates 250 years of defending freedom and protecting America’s interests around the world. As the premier musical organization of the U.S. Navy, the United States Navy Band is honored to mark this historic milestone throughout the year bringing the Navy where ships can’t go, representing the professionalism or more than 330,000 active-duty sailors serving across the globe. Admission is free, but a ticket is required. Reservations will be taken beginning February 12 at ElonTickets.com.

Thursday, March 13

Purim

McBride Gathering Space, 5:30 p.m.

Come celebrate the holiday of Purim by participating in multilingual readings from the biblical Book of Esther. This event will celebrate diversity within the Jewish community and the Elon campus community and highlight reflections on minority experience through the lens of this Jewish holiday. Purim marks the survival and resilience of the Jewish community during a time of oppression and threat of massacre during the Persian period. Sponsored by Jewish Life and Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life

Thursday, March 13

Vernice FlyGirl Armour, “Harness a Breakthrough Mindset”

McCrary Theatre, Center for the Arts, 7 p.m. | Baird Lecture

How one reacts to personal and professional obstacles, adversity and disappointment is a choice. It also determines their future. Black, female, gay, and a child of divorce, Vernice FlyGirl Armour learned this early in her pioneering journey from motorcycle cop to the Marines to becoming America’s first Black female combat pilot. The author of “Zero to Breakthrough: The 7-Step, Battle-Tested Method for Accomplishing Goals that Matter, she launched VAI Consulting and Training LLC after her completion of two tours in Iraq. FlyGirl’s energy rocks the house as she recounts her challenges, adventures and ultimate triumph. Her authenticity, enthusiasm and positivity inspire people to get gutsy and finally reimagine what’s possible. Admission: $15 or Elon ID. Tickets available beginning Feb. 20 at ElonTickets.com.

Wednesday, March 26

Elon Wind Ensemble, “Cathedrals”

Alumni Gym, Koury Athletic Center, 7:30 p.m.

The Elon Wind Ensemble will host its first concert of the semester, which will explore the evolution of western music through a variety of pieces written for winds. Sponsored by the Department of Music

Thursday, March 27

Maysoon Zayid, “Find Another Dream: An Evening of Comedy and Questions”

Whitley Auditorium, 7:30 p.m. | Liberal Arts Forum Lecture

Renowned comedian, actress, writer and disability advocate Maysoon Zayid jokes that if there were an “Oppression Olympics,” she would win gold. “I’m Arab, I’m Muslim, I’m a woman of color, I’m divorced and live in New Jersey.” Zayid is the co-founder and co-executive producer of the New York Arab American Comedy Festival and The Muslim Funny Fest. A current Princeton University Arts Fellow, Maysoon teaches in-demand courses on comedy and collaboration. She has performed around the world, including headlining the Arabs Gone Wild Comedy Tour and The Muslims Are Coming Tour, in which comedians perform throughout the U.S. to counter Islamophobia.

Friday-Saturday, March 28 & 29th

Elon Music Theatre presents “Grand Night”

Roberts Studio Theatre, Scott Studios at Arts West, 6:30 & 8:30 p.m. both nights (same show)

“Grand Night” is an Elon Music Theatre annual tradition that celebrates the entrepreneurial talents of our students and serves as a formal farewell to the senior class. Each number is directed, choreographed, music directed, arranged and performed by Elon music theatre students, showcasing their versatility, work ethic and leadership skills. Don’t miss this year’s lineup of group production numbers, original choreography, new arrangements and heartfelt performances! Admission: $15 or Elon ID. Reservations are highly recommended and will be offered beginning Friday, March 14 at elonperformingarts.com.

Monday, March 31

Liz Ensz, “The Climate Sublime”

Artist talk and opening reception, 5 p.m. | Gallery 406, Arts West, 406 W. Haggard Avenue, Elon

Exhibition continues through May 2

Featuring works of printed and woven textiles, cast metal, found materials and site-specific installation and arrangement of works, Liz Ensz examines designed and found icons of American character in search of our underlying values and our aspirations as individuals and as a society. The work presents a comparative study of the mass-cultural investment in disposability and the human desire to imagine permanence through emblems, monuments and commemoration. While disparate intentions inform these impulses – one to remember, and the other to quickly forget – each will materially describe our society to future generations.

Ensz’s Anthropocene-Era commemorative textiles and metalwork contrast human-scale and geological-scale time and space. Ensz’s installations include large-scale sheer silkscreened “tarps,” cast metal plaques, and a curated collection of locally sourced discarded materials that are arranged differently each time they are displayed. This contemplative combination of materials becomes existential, questioning the solidity and permanence of both nature and culture and implicating the local community in a global conversation about materials.

Ensz has exhibited their work internationally including the Henry Moore Institute, Leeds, UK; Frontviews Gallery, Berlin, Germany; Museum of Contemporary Art, Arlington, Virginia; Franconia Sculpture Park, Shafer, Minnesota; Smack Mellon, Brooklyn, New York; Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, New York; Roots & Culture Contemporary Art Center, Chicago, Illinois; Boston Center for the Arts, Boston, Massachusetts; The Mission Projects, Chicago, Illinois; UnSmoke Systems Artspace, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Current Space, Baltimore, Maryland; and Goucher College, Baltimore, Maryland. Ensz joined the Maryland Institute College of Art as a full-time faculty member in Fiber.