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SEASON OPENING EVENT
In conversation with Joe Donahue
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, September 2
Main Theatre
UAlbany Performing Arts Center
Uptown Campus
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Free and open to the public
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No tickets/registration required
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Conversation, not a concert
One of the defining singer-songwriters of her generation, Natalie Merchant is celebrated as much for the poetry of her lyrics as for the distinctive sound and emotional richness of her voice.
At this event, in conversation with WAMC's Joe Donahue, she will discuss her new album and multimedia collaboration, "Cabinet of Wonder," an ambitious educational project based on traditional Mother Goose nursery rhymes and original songs.
Merchant joined the alt rock band 10,000 Maniacs in 1981, serving as lead singer and primary songwriter. Five of the band’s songs became top ten hits, including the #1 hit, “These Are Days.” She became a solo artist in 1993, releasing nine acclaimed albums, including "Tigerlily," "Ophelia," "Motherland," "Natalie Merchant" and "Paradise Is There." More
""Brownsville Bred" with writer-director Elaine Del Valle
One of three film nights coming this fall
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Season at a glance
October
5 Literature to Life: "The Giver"
16 Film screening/discussion "Joe the King"
28 Lois Lowry
29 Loubna Mrie
Fall 2026
A CREATIVE LIFE CONVERSATION
In conversation with Joe Donahue
University at Albany
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, September 2
(conversation, not a concert)
CHINA'S POST-90s GENERATION
Award-winning writer M Lin discusses her debut story collection, The Memory Museum, a powerful exploration of contemporary China and the lives of people navigating rapid social change. Born and raised in Beijing, Lin brings empathy, insight, and surprising narrative range to stories that illuminate memory, identity, and belonging. More
4:30 p.m. Thursday, September 3
Conversation / Q&A
University at Albany
MILLENNIAL FICTION
Novelist Andrew Martin, hailed by Kirkus as a leading chronicler of millennial life, discusses his new novel, Down Time. With sharp humor and emotional insight, Martin explores friendship, ambition, and adulthood through the lives of five friends navigating the challenges of their thirties in contemporary America. More
4:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 8
Conversation / Q&A
University at Albany
AMERICAN SCOUNDREL
Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Kai Bird and coauthor Susan Goldmark discuss American Scoundrel: Roy Cohn's Dark Journey from Joe McCarthy to Donald Trump (2026),
In praise, Jon Meacham called it “powerful and illuminating”; Stacey Schiff called it, “a propulsive mind-boggling read”; and Ken Auletta called it, “an extraordinary up-close view of Cohn’s internal wiring.” More
7:30 p.m. Monday, September14
Conversation / Q&A
Page Hall, University at Albany Downtown Campus
AN IMMIGRANT’S MANIFESTO
Suketu Mehta is an acclaimed journalist, author, and NYU professor whose work explores immigration, identity, and urban life. Author of This Land Is Our Land: An Immigrant's Manifesto and Pulitzer finalist Maximum City, he brings sharp insight to debates on belonging, migration, New York, and contemporary politics, including the rise of Zohran Mamdani. More
4:30 p.m. Thursday, September17
Conversation / Q&A
Recital Hall, University at Albany Performing Arts Center
FILM SCREENING AND DISCUSSION
A special screening of "Brownsville Bred" will be followed by a conversation with writer-director Elaine Del Valle. Adapted from her award-winning play and acclaimed YA novel, the Oscar-eligible film is a moving coming-of-age story set in 1980s Brooklyn. Del Valle’s work transforms her Puerto Rican girlhood into a powerful portrait of family, resilience, and community. More
7 p.m. Friday, September 18
Screening and discussion with director Elaine Del Valle
Page Hall, University at Albany Downtown Campus
A.I. & SOCIETY CONVERSATION SERIES
Francine Berman, author of Better Tech: Putting People First in Cyberspace (2026) and frequent guest on WAMC's Roundtable, explores how society can harness emerging technologies while safeguarding humanity.
A pioneer in digital preservation and cyberinfrastructure, she offers practical strategies for responsible innovation. Berman directs Public Interest Technology at UMass Amherst and collaborates with Harvard. More
4:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 22
Conversation / Q&A
Recital Hall, University at Albany Performing Arts Center
OUR 9th ANNUAL FALL FESTIVAL
10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, September 26
University at Albany
Join us for our 9th annual Albany Book Festival, featuring guest authors, panel discussions, a local author marketplace, children's activities. All free and open to the public.
AMERICA IN POETRY
Praised by Dissent as “one of the most impressive voices in poetry today,” Joshua Bennett is the author of We (The People of The United States) (2026), an ambitious book-length poem exploring America’s past, present, and future. A poet, scholar, and cultural historian, he teaches literature at MIT today as professor. More
4:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 29
Conversation / Q&A
University at Albany
LITERATURE TO LIFE STAGE PRESENTATION
7 p.m. Monday, October 5
Stage presentation
Main Theatre, University at Albany Performing Arts Center
At the age of twelve, Jonas, a young boy from a seemingly utopian, futuristic world, is singled out to receive special training from The Giver, who alone holds the memories of the true joys and pain of life.
Performed by Aurea Tomeski and directed by Elise Thoron, this stage adaptation of Lois Lowry’s Newbery Award-winning bestseller explores a world without conflict, injustice, or inequality, and one boy’s life-changing awakening. More
Presented in association with Lois Lowry’s visit to UAlbany on Wednesday, October 28.
AGING THE RIGHT WAY
4:30 p.m. Wednesday, October 7
Conversation / Q&A
University at Albany
Roger Rosenblatt, journalist and longtime essayist for Time and the "PBS NewsHour," returns to the subject of growing older with More Rules for Aging: Making the Most of Your Ridiculous, Wondrous Life (2026), a witty and wise follow-up to his bestselling Rules for Aging. Join this acclaimed author and award-winning commentator in conversation. More
RUNNING'S LIFE LESSONS
7 p.m. Friday, October 9
Conversation / Q&A
Recital Hall, University at Albany Performing Arts Center
Nick Thompson, journalist and CEO of The Atlantic, is, at age 51, one of America’s fastest runners in the over-40 category. In his national bestseller, The Running Ground: A Father, a Son, and the Simplest of Sports (2025), he explores the many life lessons that running can teach us, from motivation and perseverance to family and purpose. More
A LUCKY LIFE
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 13
Conversation / Q&A
Page Hall, University at Albany Downtown Campus
Paul Grondahl, longtime Times Union journalist, UAlbany alum, and director of the New York State Writers Institute, is the author of Andy Rooney: A Lucky Life (2026). This vivid new biography traces the life of Albany native Andy Rooney, the beloved journalist and sharp-witted commentator best known for his memorable appearances on "60 Minutes." More
EXPLORING MATERNAL HERITAGE
4:30 p.m. Thursday, October 15
Conversation / Q&A
University at Albany
Kristen Millares Young, journalist and novelist, is the author of Desire Lines (2026), a feminist memoir exploring her Cuban and Spanish matrilineal heritage, selfhood, motherhood, the feminine divine, and women’s liberation. Her acclaimed novel Subduction was a Paris Review staff pick and a finalist for two International Latino Book Awards. More
FILM SCREENING AND DISCUSSION
Starring Noah Fleiss, Karen Young, and Val Kilmer, this acclaimed film was written and directed by UAlbany graduate Frank Whaley, who won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at Sundance. Drawn from his Upstate New York boyhood in the 1970s, it follows a young boy navigating family dysfunction, neglect, and abuse. More
7 p.m. Friday, October 16
Screening and discussion with director Frank Whaley
Page Hall, University at Albany Downtown Campus
POETRY: RECONNECTING
4:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 20
Conversation / Q&A
University at Albany
m.s. RedCherries, poet and citizen of the Northern Cheyenne Nation, won the American Book Award and was a National Book Award finalist for mother (2024). The poems trace a young Native American, adopted by white parents, as she reconnects with her tribe, family, culture, and ancestral land in a powerful story of identity and belonging. More
FIGHTING TYRANNY WITH BOOKS
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, October 28
Conversation / Q&A
Page Hall, University at Albany Downtown Campus
Lois Lowry, one of the greatest writers of fiction for young people, presents Building 903 (2026), a novel about a brother and sister struggling to survive in a near-future America where books and basic freedoms are outlawed. The two-time Newbery Medal winner is also the acclaimed author of The Giver and Number the Stars. More
AWAKENING, REBELLION, AND SURVIVAL
4:30 p.m. Thursday, October 29
Conversation / Q&A
Recital Hall, University at Albany Performing Arts Center
Loubna Mrie, Syrian Arab journalist, is the author of Defiance: A Memoir of Awakening, Rebellion, and Survival in Syria (2026), the true story of a young woman raised to be loyal to a brutal regime who chooses revolt at tremendous personal cost. Mrie has written on Syrian and Middle Eastern affairs for The Atlantic, Foreign Affairs, and The Nation. More
BURIAN LECTURE ON LIFE IN THE PERFORMING ARTS
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, November 4
Conversation / Q&A
Recital Hall, University at Albany Performing Arts Center
D.B. Woodside, acclaimed television, film, and stage actor and a 1991 UAlbany theatre graduate, is known for standout roles in "The Night Agent," "24," "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Lucifer," "Single Ladies," and "The Temptations."
An award-winning stage performer, he portrayed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in his New York theater debut and won an NAACP Award for "Skeleton Crew." He delivered UAlbany’s 2023 Commencement Address. More
HEARTACHE AND HOPE
4:30 p.m. Thursday, November 5
Conversation / Q&A
University at Albany
Kristen McCallum holds an MA in English from the UAlbany. Her debut novel, Free Girls, was published by Flatiron Books in July 2026. She credits growing up with the adventures of her Jamaican family as the beginning of her fascination with stories, and the many ways they can be shared.
In 2017, she founded SafeWordSociety, a creative initiative celebrating the depth and beauty of historically marginalized communities. More
FILM SCREENING AND DISCUSSION
Saturday, November 7 TIME TBA
Screening and discussion with director Sharon Liese and Marion County Record editor/publisher Eric Meyer
Palace Theatre, Albany
A 2023 police raid on the Marion County Record, a small-town Kansas newspaper, ignited a national debate about freedom of the press.
The documentary, directed by UAlbany alum Sharon Liese, chronicles the crisis and its aftermath. Join Liese and Eric Meyer, publisher of the Record, for a conversation about journalism, government power, and the enduring importance of a free press. More
RACE, VIOLENCE AND NYC IN THE 1980s
7:30 p.m. Monday, November 9
Conversation / Q&A
Page Hall, University at Albany Downtown Campus
Elliot Williams is a CNN legal analyst, broadcaster, and former federal prosecutor. His new book, Five Bullets: The Story of Bernie Goetz, New York's Explosive '80s, and the Subway Vigilante Trial That Divided the Nation (2026), revisits a notorious case that sparked fierce debates about race, crime, justice, and public fear in America. More
A.I. & SOCIETY CONVERSATION SERIES
4:30 p.m. Thursday, November 12
Conversation / Q&A
University at Albany
William Alexander, Cuban-American science fiction and fantasy author, won the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature for Goblin Secrets (2012). His debut adult science fiction novel, Sunward, a finalist for the Philip K. Dick Award, follows a human space traveler mentoring juvenile AI, or “baby bots,” as they learn to navigate society. More
THE EMPIRE STATE ARCHIVES & HISTORY AWARD
7 p.m. Thursday, November 12
Ceremony/Conversation with host Harold Holzer,
The Egg, Empire State Plaza
Tickets required. More information to come
Douglas Brinkley, eminent scholar of American history and CNN Presidential Historian, will receive the 2026 Empire State Archives and History Award of the New York State Archives Partnership Trust.
Brinkley is the author of more than 35 books, including most recently, Silent Spring Revolution: John F. Kennedy, Rachel Carson, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and the Great Environmental Awakening (2022); American Moonshot: John F. Kennedy and the Great Space Race (2019), winner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal; Rightful Heritage: Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Land of America (2016); and Cronkite (2012). More
Presented by the New York State Archives Partnership Trust.
POLITICS IN AMERICA
7 p.m. Friday, November 13
Page Hall, University at Albany Downtown Campus
Join us for a conversation about politics in America and the prospects for an enduring democracy.
Panelists will include Jonathan Alter, author of American Reckoning: Inside Trump's Trial―and My Own (2024), and Devlin Barrett, Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter who grew up in Troy and is the author of The Department of Revenge: How Trump Took Control of American Justice.
MARATHON PUBLIC READING
Roscoe marathon reading
11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday, November 17
Albany Distilling Co. Bar and Bottle Shop
Reservations required for reading slot. More info to come.
Join us for a celebration of Roscoe, William Kennedy’s landmark novel of Albany politics, circa 1945, in all its crooked splendor: the backroom dealings and no-bid contracts, the patronage and no-show jobs, the vote buying and bags of cash, the kickbacks, bribes and assorted inducements, not to mention the city-sanctioned gambling halls and prostitution rings!
Bring your favorite ward heeler, crooked judge, or any friend or relative looking for a place on the payroll! More
Donations will be collected at the door to benefit the food pantry and free meal outreach at Sacred Heart Church, 33 Walter St. in Albany, which was Kennedy’s childhood parish.
NEW DYSTOPIAN FICTION
4:30 p.m. Thursday, November 19
Conversation / Q&A
University at Albany
Hernan Diaz, major contemporary fiction writer and former UAlbany Spanish program faculty member, presents his new novel, Ply 2026), one of the year's most anticipated books. Set in a capitalist dystopia, it explores technology's role in America. Diaz won the Pulitzer Prize for Trust and was a finalist for In the Distance. More
UALBANY POET-IN-RESIDENCE
4:30 p.m. Tuesday, December 1
Conversation / Q&A
University at Albany
Anna Moschovakis, poet, novelist and translator, joins the UAlbany English Department as Poet-in-Residence. She shared the 2021 International Booker Prize for translating David Diop's At Night All Blood Is Black. She is also the author of award-winning poetry collections, including They and We Will Get into Trouble for This (2016), which was named a best book of the year by The New Yorker.
Moschovakis will present her work alongside selections by UAlbany students and NYSWI Community Workshop poets. More
LIFE AND HOW TO BEAR IT
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, December 2
Conversation / Q&A
Huxley Theater, New York State Museum
Rachel Eliza Griffiths is an award-winning poet, visual artist, and novelist. Her newest book, The Flower Bearers (2026), is a memoir memoir about coping with the death of her best friend, poet Kamilah Aisha Moon, and the near-fatal attack on her husband, Sir Salman Rushdie.
Geraldine Brooks said, “The Flower Bearers is a memoir of duality, of intoxicating love and excruciating loss. Here is a poet plying her tools in the service of literature’s most vital work: describing life and how to bear it.” More
OF FATHERS AND CHILDREN
6:30 p.m. Wednesday, December 9
Conversation / Q&A
Alice Moore Black Arts and Cultural Center (AMBACC), Albany
Shani King, children’s book writer and Vice Dean of Rutgers Law School, is the author of You Are My Favorite Story (2026), a celebration of the bonds between fathers and children. An expert on juvenile justice and refugee law, he also authored Have I Ever Told You and Have I Ever Told You Black Lives Matter.
Professor King will spend the day visiting elementary schools in Albany, and will speak about juvenile justice and writing children’s books at the Alice Moore Black Arts and Cultural Center in the evening. More
A CREATIVE LIFE CONVERSATION
In conversation with Joe Donahue
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, December 15
Main Theatre
UAlbany Performing Arts Center
Uptown Campus
Melissa Auf der Maur is best-known as the bassist for Hole and Smashing Pumpkins, two alt-rock bands that helped define the music and popular culture of the 1990s. Her new book, My ’90s Rock Photographs (2026), is a visual love letter to the last “analog decade,” featuring images from on tour, backstage, onstage, and in the crowd.
At the event, many of her photos will be projected for discussion. Auf der Maur is also the author of Even the Good Girls Will Cry: A '90s Rock Memoir (2026). More
