“It’s hard to make something that’s interesting. It’s really, really hard. It’s like a law of nature, a law of aerodynamics, that anything that’s written or anything that’s created wants to be medio-cre. The natural state of all writing is mediocrity… So what it takes to make anything more than mediocre is such an act of will…”―Ira Glass
Ira Glass is the creator, producer & host of This American Life, the iconic weekly public radio program with millions of listeners around the world. Using audio clips, music, and video, Ira Glass delivers a unique talk; sharing lessons from his life and career in storytelling: What in-spires him to create? What drives his passion? How have failures and successes informed his decisions? During his presentation, Ira Glass will mix stories live onstage and help his audience better follow the creative process of one of our foremost storytellers.
“Fran Lebowitz’s trademark is the sneer; she disapproves of virtually everything except sleep, cigarette smoking, and good furniture. Her essays and topical interviews on subjects ranging from the difficulty of finding an acceptable apartment to the art of freeloading at weekend houses have come to be regarded as classics of literary humor and social observation.”—The Paris Review
Author, Journalist & Social Observer
In a cultural landscape filled with endless pundits and talking heads, Fran Lebowitz stands out as one of our most insightful social commentators.
Her essays and interviews offer her acerbic views on current events and the media – as well as pet peeves including tourists, baggage-claim areas, after-shave lotion, adults who roller skate, children who speak French, or anyone who is unduly tan. The New York Times Book Review calls Lebowitz an “important humorist in the classic tradition.” Purveyor of urban cool, Lebowitz is a cultural satirist whom many call the heir to Dorothy Parker.
Lebowitz on frankness: “Spilling your guts is exactly as charming as it sounds.”
Lebowitz on herself: “Success didn’t spoil me, I’ve always been insufferable.”
This is Lebowitz off the cuff. Her writing—pointed, taut and economical—is equally forthright, irascible, and unapologetically opinionated.
Lebowitz was named to Vanity Fair’s International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 2008. She remains a style icon. Lebowitz lives in New York City, as she does not believe that she would be allowed to live anywhere else.
Master of satire and one of today’s most observant writers addressing the human condition, best-selling author David Sedaris returns once again with his acerbic humor, social commentary, and outlandish stories. Slashing through cultural euphemisms and political correctness, he will delight the audience with twists of humor and intelligence as he shares both published stories and works-in-progress.
Come early or stick around post-performance for Sedaris’s legendary book-signing sessions.
Hosted by San Diego-based Celebrity Chef/Entrepreneur Claudette Zepeda
Spend a delicious evening with Yotam Ottolenghi as he talks about his new book, COMFORT, in this fun and participatory event. Live on stage, Yotam will take the audience through COMFORT, (from eggs, to noodles, to roast chicken, to a wide array of cultural and culinary themes) in conversation with his local host, and will invite the audience to participate in a second half as he prepares one of his dishes. Just as food brings people together, this event combines the culinary innovation of Ottolenghi with suggestions and questions from the audience (that’s you!) to create a one-off live experience. Yotam will undoubtedly share some childhood stories, his passion for layered dishes with bold flavors and colorful ingredients, and his influences from across the world.
About
Yotam Ottolenghi is a celebrated chef and bestselling cookbook author. He is the restauranteur and chef-patron of six London-based Ottolenghi delis, as well as the NOPI and ROVI restaurants. He is the author of ten bestselling and multi-award-winning cookbooks. Yotam has been a weekly columnist for the Guardian (UK) for over sixteen years and is a regular contributor to the New York Times. His commitment to the championing of vegetables, as well as ingredients once seen as ‘exotic’, has led to what some call ‘The Ottolenghi effect’. This is shorthand for the creation of a meal which is full of color, flavor, bounty, and surprise.
In Fall 2024 Yotam Ottolenghi will publish his latest cookbook, COMFORT (published by Ebury in the UK and by Ten Speed Press in the US and Canada). Ottolenghi COMFORT is a celebration of food and home; of the connections we make and pass on as we cook, from place to place and from generation to generation.
Join beloved actor Sir Patrick Stewart for an evening of inspiring conversation in celebration of his long-awaited memoir, Making It So. From his acclaimed stage triumphs to legendary onscreen work in the Star Trek and X-Men franchises, Stewart has captivated audiences around the world and across multiple generations. Now, he presents Making It So, a revealing portrait of an artist whose astonishing life – from his humble beginnings in Yorkshire, England to the heights of Hollywood and worldwide acclaim—proves a story as exuberant, definitive, and enduring as the author himself.
The intimate conversation will be facilitated by Barry Edelstein, The Old Globe’s Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director, and is presented by ArtPower at UC San Diego in partnership with Warwick’s Bookstore and the Arthur C. Clarke Center for Human Imagination.
Books will be available for purchased online or at the venue through Warwicks.
*The first five hundred tickets purchased through the ArtPower website – artpower.ucsd.edu – will include a copy of Making It So by Sir Patrick Stewart.
Master of satire and one of today’s most observant writers addressing the human condition, best-selling author David Sedaris returns once again with his acerbic humor, social commentary, and outlandish stories. Slashing through cultural euphemisms and political correctness, he will delight the audience with twists of humor and intelligence as he shares both published stories and works-in-progress.
Come early or stick around post-performance for Sedaris’s legendary book-signing sessions.
Master of satire and one of today’s most observant writers addressing the human condition, best-selling author David Sedaris returns once again with his acerbic humor, social commentary, and outlandish stories. Slashing through cultural euphemisms and political correctness, he will delight the audience with twists of humor and intelligence as he shares both published stories and works-in-progress.
Come early or stick around post-performance for Sedaris’s legendary book-signing sessions.
“Lush movement, infectious music and magnetic dancers” (New York Times) in an enticing program A.I.M by Kyle Abraham brings a unique program to UC San Diego that ranges from the bold to the sensual to playful. The program includes Big Rings choreographed by A.I.M company member and Dance magazine’s “25 to Watch”, Keerati Jinakunwiphat. This powerful, yet fun, work is a celebration of the unique style and camaraderie of this dynamic dance tribe, as well as an ode to her hometown Chicago. Also featured is Our Indigo: If We Were a Love Song, a series of poetic vignettes that explore the intimacy, intricacies, and vulnerabilities of Black Love set to the songs of Nina Simone. The film adaptation of this work has been nominated for a 2023 NY Emmy. This flavorful gumbo of cultural expression is one you won’t want to miss.
Reggie Wilson/Fist and Heel Performance Group is a Brooklyn-based dance company whose mission is to create, research, develop, and present new performance work that investigates the intersections of culture and movement practices. The Company’s body-of-works draw from the spiritual and mundane traditions of Africa and its Diaspora; Fist and Heel believes in the potential of the body as a valid means for knowing.
The company performs POWER, Reggie Wilson’s newest work.It reimagines compelling core Shaker values, contributions, practices and histories through a postmodern American lens.
The presentation of POWER was made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Mellon Foundation.
David Sedaris, the master of satire and one of today’s most observant writers addressing the human condition, returns with the acerbic humor, social commentary, and outlandish stories that transfixed a sold-out audience at his last year’s ArtPower show. Slashing through cultural euphemisms and political correctness, he will delight the audience with twists of humor and intelligence as he shares both published stories and works-in-progress.
Come early or stick around post-performance for Sedaris’s legendary book-signing sessions. Books will be available to purchase from Warwick’s.