Inauguration of the 18th President

Brown to celebrate inauguration of President Ruth Simmons Oct. 14

The inauguration of Ruth J. Simmons as 18th president of Brown University will take place on The College Green at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 14, 2001. The three-day inaugural celebration will include theater performances, concerts, faculty forums and other events.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — On Sunday, Oct. 14, 2001, Brown University will celebrate the inauguration of its 18th president, Ruth J. Simmons. The inauguration procession, ceremony and address, scheduled for 2 p.m. on The College Green, will cap a three-day festival of theater, concerts, faculty forums and other events, all of them open to the public.

Simmons, whose selection was announced Nov. 9, 2000, was sworn in as Brown’s 18th president in a private ceremony July 3, 2001. The inauguration represents the public administration of the “engagement of office” and the formal presentation of the University’s presidential symbols: the president’s robe, the president’s chain, the Manning chair, and a tin box commissioned by the Corporation in 1765 to hold its copy of the University’s charter.

In addition to the inauguration ceremony, highlights of the weekend include readings by Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison, Irish poet Paul Muldoon and writer Sonia Sanchez; a theater performance directed by Oskar Eustis of the Trinity Repertory Company, featuring Broadway stars and works by Tony Kushner and Paula Vogel; 20 “Voyages of Discovery” presentations by Brown faculty from many disciplines; a symposium on the future of higher education featuring former presidents of colleges and universities; and a concert by the Brown University Orchestra and the Tougaloo College Concert Choir. A schedule of events follows.

Editors: The University will provide camera platforms, a multbox and reserved press seating for the inauguration. Please contact the Brown News Service (401 863-2476) to reserve space and register for credentials or to receive additional information about events during Inauguration Weekend. Also, please note that all tickets for the Saturday evening theater event and Sunday evening concert have been distributed. Any seats not taken 15 minutes before the events begin will be made available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Friday, October 12

1:30, 2:45 and 4 p.m.
Voyages of Discovery forums featuring the Brown faculty (see our release 01-036v for descriptions of these presentations.)

8 and 9 p.m.
Student performances

• 8 p.m. – Inaugural Dance Concert, Ashamu Dance Studio (tickets: 863-2838)
• 8 p.m. – Noel Coward’s Design for Living, Sock and Buskin Theatre (tickets: 863-2838)
• 8 p.m. – Gala Showcase Concert, student soloists and ensembles, Orwig Music Building, 1 Young Orchard Ave. (tickets at the door or in advance at Orwig Music Building)
• 9 p.m. – Sarah, a Black Girl in Buenos Aires, by Camille Bryan ’01, Rites and Reason Theatre (tickets: 863-3558)

Saturday, October 13

9, 10:15 and 11:30 a.m.
Voyages of Discovery forums featuring the Brown faculty continue (see our release 01-036v for locations and descriptions)

Noon
Homecoming football game: Brown vs. Princeton, Brown Stadium (tickets: 863-2773)

1 and 2:30 p.m.
Voyages of Discovery forums featuring the Brown faculty continue

4:00 p.m., Sayles Hall
The Inaugural Symposium:
The University As We Do Not Know It

Frank Newman, former president of the University of Rhode Island, leads a discussion about the critical forces shaping the future of higher education. Participants include former presidents Johnnetta Cole (Spelman College), Vartan Gregorian (Brown University), Frank Rhodes (Cornell University), and Jorge Klor de Alva (University of Phoenix). Representing the student and young alumni perspective will be Jasmine Waddell, a 1999 Brown graduate who was a Truman Scholar, Rhodes Scholar and student body president. (See our release 01-036s for additional information.)

7 and 8 p.m.
Student performances

• 7 p.m. – Sarah, a Black Girl in Buenos Aires, Rites and Reason Theatre (see Friday evening)
• 8 p.m. – Noel Coward’s Design for Living, Sock and Buskin Theatre (see Friday evening)

9 p.m., Meehan Auditorium
Inaugural Readings and Theater Performance

Nobel laureate Toni Morrison, Irish poet Paul Muldoon, writer and poet Sonia Sanchez, Broadway actor/singer James Naughton and playwrights Tony Kushner and Paula Vogel will present a tribute to the performing arts. The program is directed by Oskar Eustis, professor of theater, and artistic director of Trinity Repertory Company.

Editors: All tickets to the Inaugural Readings and Theatre Performance have been distributed. However, any seats not taken by 8:45 will be made available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Sunday, October 14

9 a.m.
Worship service at the Meeting House of the First Baptist Church in America, with the Tougaloo College Concert Choir

2 p.m.
The Inaugural Convocation

• Academic procession of faculty, trustees, fellows, senior officers and University guests
• Engagement of office and presentation of presidential symbols
• The Inaugural Address

3 and 8 p.m.
Student performances

• 3 p.m. – Noel Coward’s Design for Living, Sock and Buskin Theatre (see Friday evening)
• 8 p.m. – Sarah, a Black Girl in Buenos Aires, Rites and Reason Theatre (see Friday evening)

5 p.m., Meehan Auditorium
The Inaugural Concert

The Brown University Orchestra will perform Joan Tower’s For an Uncommon Woman in honor of President Simmons’ inauguration, as well as George Gershwin’s An American in Paris and the overture from Giuseppe Verdi’s La Forza del Destino. The Tougaloo College Concert Choir will join the orchestra for the concert.

Editors: Note that the time of this performance, originally announced for 8 p.m., has been changed.

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