Friday PM   

This class continues our friendly, non-judgmental approach for students who completed Improving Beginner Bridge Skills I or who are somewhat advanced as beginners. We will learn some simple bidding conventions, improve our declarer play techniques, and explore how to defend more effectively. Students will be encouraged and enabled to play online and face-to-face games. Students may not have mastered, but should already be familiar with, the following terms and point requirements: “opener,” “responder,” and “overcaller.” As responder, they should be able to determine if game is certain, impossible, or possible and what to bid accordingly. Repeat remote course. Format includes hands-on learning.

SUGGESTED BOOKS: Modern Bridge Conventions, William Root and Richard Pavlicek, ISBN 9780517884294; Bridge Basics I, Audrey Grant, ISBN 9780939460908; Bridge Basics II… Competitive Bidding, Audrey Grant, ISBN 9780939460915

Strong, smart, stylish, and sassy, their work ethic made them memorable, their glamour made them stunning, and their talent made them stars. For this course, we look at the films of seven of the most hard-working women of the studio era and marvel on what made them so great. Included will be the films of Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Rita Hayworth, and four others. Class will run long for discussion. New in-person course. Format includes film.

What defines a revolution and how do radical ideas take root? Framed by Fareed Zakaria’s recent book, Age of Revolutions, this course explores the historical and cultural DNA of the movements that built our modern Western world. Through a combination of lecture, film, and lively discussion, we will trace how revolutionary ideas emerged in the Netherlands and migrated to England and the United States and beyond. We will consider how these legacies are reflected globally today. No prerequisites or required readings — just curiosity about the forces that redefine nations. New in-person course. Format includes lecture, discussion, and film.

We will be discussing how we can manage conflict in creative rather than destructive ways in our families, societies, and on our Earth. Building a culture of peace with justice requires the use of different toolsets. These involve different approaches to negotiation, methods of non-violent action, “strength-tools” (such as law, policing, and military action), and tools of a political, economic, and religious nature. Successful use of these tools can be aided by techniques of personal/spiritual transformation. New in-person course. Format includes lecture and discussion.

REQUIRED BOOK: Selected xeroxed material will be provided at a cost of $12 paid to the instructor.

Tap basics — combinations, short routines, watching movie inspirations. Possible short performance opportunity. New in-person course. Format includes movement.

This in-person monthly workshop is a supportive group of 12 writers focusing on the elements of fiction writing. Members’ projects range from short stories and vignettes to segments of full-length novels. Pieces to be critiqued are shared via email prior to the meeting. During the meeting, the author reads a short excerpt of the work, and members give constructive feedback, during the discussion and in written comments. With our wide range of styles and experience, we learn from each other!  Format includes discussion and hands-on.