Past Events

In the world premiere of After the War, commissioned and developed by A.C.T. under the direction of Carey Perloff, Philip Kan Gotanda portrays an unexpected grouping of characters as they struggle to revive a community shattered by the effects of the war.

Alfred Brendel’s accomplishments as an interpreter of the great composers have earned him a place among the world’s most revered musicians. He is the first pianist to have recorded all of Beethoven’s piano compositions and one of the few to have recorded the complete Mozart piano concertos.

Panel Discussants: Robert Post, Deniz Göktürk (German), David Hollinger (History) and Saba Mahmood (Anthropology)
Moderator: Anthony J. Cascardi (Townsend Center Director)

Robert Post is David Boies Professor of Law at Yale University. His subject areas are constitutional law, the First Amendment, legal history, and affirmative action, and his books include Constitutional Domains: Democracy, Community, Management and Prejudicial Appearances: The Logic of American Antidiscrimination Law.

As the nation’s 22nd Secretary of Labor under Bill Clinton, Robert Reich implemented the Family and Medical Leave Act; led a national fight against sweatshops in the U.S. and illegal child labor around the world; headed the administration’s successful effort to raise the minimum wage; secured worker’s pensions; and launched job-training programs, one-stop career centers, and school-to-work initiatives.

Throughout his career, Robert Pinsky has been dedicated to identifying and invigorating poetry’s place in the world. As Poet Laureate, Pinsky founded the Favorite Poem Project, in which thousands of Americans shared their favorite poems.

Panel Discussants: Walter Mignolo, Pheng Cheah (Rhetoric), Gillian Hart (Geography) and José David Saldívar (Ethnic Studies and English). Moderated by Anthony J. Cascardi (Townsend Center Director)

Walter D. Mignolo is William H. Wannamaker Professor of Literature and Romance Studies, Cultural Anthropology and Spanish at Duke University. Professor Mignolo’s research focuses on global coloniality and the history of capitalism.