News and Events

NEA Grant (2015)

April 3, 2015

NEA Grant 2015: In its first year of eligibility, The Common has been awarded a 2014 Artworks Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. NEA funds will help to bring The Common‘s place-based literature into classrooms around the country, to develop and promote its online presence, and to grow its readership. Starting in 2015, The Common will work vigorously to reach more students, of all ages, across the humanities and interdisciplinary fields such as architecture. The Common will also develop and promote its free, multimedia online content to a wider global readership.

NEA Grant (2015)
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The Common in the City: Mumbai!

March 26, 2015
Event Date: 
Thursday, May 14, 2015 – 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Location: 
Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute, New York University, 20 Cooper Square, New York

 

Join The Common for a unique postcard auction, cocktails/canapes, and music inspired by a night in India.

Featuring Suketu Mehta in conversation with Parul Sehgal.

The Common in the City: Mumbai!
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The Common & Copeland Colloquium Host Arabic Culture Series at Amherst College

The Common & Copeland Colloquium Host Arabic Culture Series at Amherst College

March 12, 2015

poster

AMHERST, MA. MAR. 12, 2015—From March 24–26, The Common literary magazine and Amherst College’s Copeland Colloquium will host a series of Arabic cultural events featuring internationally recognized writers, editors, translators, and musicians. Literary conversations will delve into the largely untranslated world of new Arabic writing, fiction in particular, and a live musical performance will bring Arabic music to local audiences. All events aim to broaden and deepen cultural exchange.

panel headshots

CONTEMPORARY ARABIC FICTION: A CONVERSATION: MARCH 24, 4:30PM

What themes and styles are emerging in contemporary Arabic fiction? What are the opportunities and challenges of publishing these works? Panelists include The Common editor in chief Jennifer Acker, acclaimed authors Hisham Bustani (Jordan) and Hassan Blasim (Iraq), Interlink Books founder Michel S. Moushabeck, and executive editor at Penguin Random House John Siciliano. Pruyne Lecture Hall, Fayerweather Hall 115, Amherst College. Reception to follow.

ARABIC FICTION MASTER CLASS: MARCH 25, 4:30–6:30PM

The conversation continues with a translation master class led by Bustani and El-Rayyes. Drawing on texts in an array of source languages, the master class will focus on important literary considerations for translators, translation techniques, and the experimental and collaborative process of translation. Pruyne Lecture Hall, Fayerweather Hall 115, Amherst College.

Email info@thecommononline.org to register.

LAYAALI MUSIC PERFORMANCE: MARCH 26, 7:30PM

The Middle Eastern cultural series culminates in a performance by the Arabic music ensemble Layaali at the Powerhouse at Amherst College. This Massachusetts-based and world renowned group is committed to furthering the appreciation of traditional Arab music and culture through electrifying live performances. The Powerhouse, Amherst College.

Doors open at 7 pm.

You can listen to the following video clips from last year’s Iron Horse concert by Layaali:

“The music of Layaali moves the soul and stirs the spirit.”
–The Palestine Center, Washington, D.C.

All events are free and open to the public.

PARKING MAP

map

Co-sponsored by The Common and Copeland Colloquium. Supported by the Georges Lurcy Lecture Series Fund at Amherst College and the Corliss Lamont Lectureship for a Peaceful World.

In spring 2016, The Common will publish a special issue of contemporary Arabic fiction in translation, featuring more than 24 writers from 14 countries in the Middle East and Africa.

About The Common (www.thecommononline.org)

The Common is an award-winning, print and online literary magazine based at Amherst College. Inspired by the role of the town common—a public gathering place for the display of ideas—the magazine publishes fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and images that invoke a modern sense of place. Since its debut in 2011, The Common has received multiple awards from the Best American series, a design award from the New York Book Show, and praise for its editorial vision from national media such as The New Yorker, The Millions, and The Chronicle of Higher Education.

The Common & Copeland Colloquium Host Arabic Culture Series at Amherst College
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Layaali Arabic Music Performance

January 22, 2015
Event Date:
Thursday, March 26, 2015 – 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Location:
POWERHOUSE, Amherst College

Join us at the Amherst College Powerhouse for an electrifying musical performance by Layaali, a Massachusetts-based group committed to furthering the appreciation of traditional Arab music and culture.

Doors open at 7pm on Thursday, March 26. Concert begins at 7:30pm.

Free and open to the public!
 

Part of the Copeland Colloquium Program at Amherst College.
Photo by Layaali Facebook Page.

Layaali Arabic Music Performance
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Translation Master Class – Postponed

January 21, 2015
Event Date:
Wednesday, March 25, 2015 – 4:30pm – 6:00pm
Location:
PAINO LECTURE HALL, BENESKI MUSEUM, Amherst College

THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED. Check back for rescheduling. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Hisham Bustani and Thoraya El-Rayyes will lead a translation master class. Drawing on texts in an array of source languages, the master class will focus on important literary considerations for translators, translation techniques, and the experimental and collaborative process of translation.

To register, email info@thecommononline.org.
Part of the Copeland Colloquium Program at Amherst College.

Translation Master Class – Postponed
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