Courses and Workshops
Monday, Starts September 26
Berkeley
Joy of Singing
Would you like to strengthen your singing and speaking voice, increase your range and projection, and grow in confidence?
Berkeley
Life/Story: a Memoir Workshop
This workshop is for anyone interested in writing a memoir or short memoir-based pieces. We’ll discuss how to get started, keep the words flowing, zero in on a story, and rediscover the forgotten.
Berkeley
Murder? an Investigation
Like Season One of the popular NPR podcast “Serial,” this course will focus on one murder case.
Berkeley
Last Quartets
For many music lovers, Beethoven’s late quartets stand as the pinnacle of profundity,stretching the boundaries of music to a soul-shattering series of climaxes that ultimately yield to a state of sublime transcendence. Transfixed by Op. 132, T.S.
Berkeley
Mystical Poets of Britain
Poetry is the universal language of the spirit. We will read and discuss that language in the words of some of the greatest mystical poets of Britain, spanning from the 17th century, through the Romantic and Victorian periods, all the way to the modern era.
Berkeley
Performing Arts of Bali
This course explores the relationship between music, dance, theater, and ritual in Bali, Indonesia. The last remaining Hindu culture in Indonesia, Bali has a vibrant performing arts scene that encompasses tradition while fostering individual creativity and innovation.
Berkeley
Standing on Sacred Ground
Why are sacred places important to indigenous people, and what can their values and worldviews teach Western society?
Tuesday, Starts September 27
Berkeley
Cultivating Neuroplasticity through Volunteering
What does helping others have to do with the healthy, progressive functioning of our brains? We will study how volunteering can cultivate neuroplasticity and participate in discussions and practices to expand our minds and hearts.
Berkeley
Global Education
Explore current human rights debates in global education and sustainability, considering the impact of this new global village on the expression and preservation of cultures, arts, and languages in the developing world.
Lafayette
Marx and Freud
Is it impossible to understand our time and ourselves if we don’t understand the towering intellects of Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud? At first sight, their areas of interest seem totally distinct.
Berkeley
Scandinavian Crime Fiction: Novels, TV, and Film
In this edition of the “Scandinavian Crime Fiction” course, we will discuss the representation of northern culture, landscape, and social norms and how various forms of telling crime stories work and to what effect.
Lafayette
California Modernism
Much is being discovered about modern architecture in California. New archival sources and an expanded understanding of the conditions that fostered the making of the 20th century built-environment in the Golden State are prompting a full reassessment of its institutional history.
Berkeley
Holding On and Letting Go
As we age, how can we uncover and integrate the wisdom we have gained while continuing to grow and change? In this experiential class, we will use mindfulness and grounding practices to cultivate presence.
Berkeley
Nationalist China (1927 - 1949)
Survey the history of Nationalist China as a means of understanding the complex interplay between human will and the forces of historical change, specifically failed regimes.
Berkeley
The Many Faces of Abraham Lincoln
This course will examine different visions Americans have held about Abraham Lincoln from his own time to the present.
Berkeley
Your Tech Questions Answered
The world of technology moves so fast that our skills and knowledge can’t always keep up! If you want to stay in the know and get all of those nagging tech questions answered, this is the class for you. No topic is taboo, and no level is disqualified.
Wednesday, Starts September 28
Berkeley
Elements of Murder: A History of Poison
Many naturally occurring elements are vital for normal human functions, but some exert their toxic effects upon unsuspecting individuals — and become ideal agents for murder.
Berkeley
Presidential Campaign 2016
This course will examine the presidential race from both domestic and international perspectives.
Berkeley
Southern Gothic: Flannery O'Connor
Through lectures, discussion, and close reading, we will look at some of Flannery O’Connor’s disturbing and comic short stories, which embodied a critique of Southern society and the flawed vessels who live in it.
Berkeley
Five Personal Pieces, Part II
Delve deeper into techniques you can use to write memoir. Discover and dramatize the themes in your life story. Learn more about structure, suspense, and point of view. Consider the challenge of characterizing yourself on paper.
Berkeley
Folk Music: The Golden Age (1950–75)
Folk music that emerged in the 1950s continues to remain of vast importance. Why? Because the confluence of people, politics, philosophies, and growing social awareness that came out of the post-war era ushered in a new age of enlightenment.
Berkeley
Independent Film Before Sundance
In the 1960s and 70s, a vibrant independent film scene flourished in Southern California and New York. The L.A. Rebellion represented mostly unheralded artists who created the first major films to portray radical views of communities of color.
Berkeley
Multiracial Asian Americans
Examine the complex experiences of Asian Americans who identify with more than one racial group. We will consider how people of mixed Asian-white, -black, -Native American, and -Latino descent are both marginalized and privileged in popular culture.
Thursday, Starts September 29
Lafayette
Documentary Touchstones
The pioneering and innovative films that opened the way for the contemporary documentary are well known yet rarely shown.
Berkeley
How Your Brain Works and When It Doesn’t, Part III
This is Part III of a course that describes nerve cell functions and how injury and disease disrupt neuronal networks. Each lecture will cover a basic neuroscience topic and related clinical concepts.
Berkeley
Word Problems: Literature and the Metaphors of Math
Both math and literature have a fundamental role in philosophic, artistic, and cultural questions.
Berkeley
Writing 10-Minute Plays
Deepen your appreciation of any dramatic writing you see in theater, film, and television. Discover your dramatic voice. Students will create short plays and scenes through a progressive series of at-home writing exercises and in-class readings.
Berkeley
Zaha Hadid: an Architect of Consequence
The sudden passing of Iraqi-born London-based architect Zaha Hadid (1950-2016) sent shock waves through the global architecture community and beyond. Her work, mesmerizing and awe-inspiring, expanded exponentially the formal vocabulary of the contemporary built-environment.
Lafayette
Contemporary Cuba
This course will focus on Cuba since 1991, when its major source of economic support, the Soviet Union, collapsed.
Friday, Starts September 30
Berkeley
Moving Pictures: Dance and Film
Dance and film make thrilling partners. View films by Broadway legends Jerome Robbins and Bob Fosse, as well as contemporary works from the 2016 San Francisco Dance Film Festival.
Berkeley
Watercolor and Nature
Explore the world of nature through watercolor painting. We will discuss watercolor theory, paint application, pen techniques, and draftsmanship. You will learn how to paint trees, plants, landscapes, and mammals. Basic drawing skills are helpful but not required; everyone welcome.
Thursday, Starts October 6
Berkeley
From Charlotte Bronte to Virginia Woolf
Examine major texts from two critically important British novelists and the ways in which their work influenced their successors. Discuss how Charlotte Bronte’s and Virginia Woolf’s personal experiences and social statuses, as well as the climates of their times, informed their writing.
