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Villanova Theatre’s 2024 Debut: Crazy for You

By Rebecca Amrick

Photo courtesy of Villanova Theatre

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to see Villanova’s Theatre’s production of Crazy for You. This musical, written by Ken Ludwig, features Bobby Child, a reluctant uptown banker, who dreams of dancing on Broadway–but instead of getting his foot in the door, it seems he’s always stepping on toes. When Bobby is sent to foreclose on a rundown theatre in Nevada, his luck takes an unexpected turn as he falls head-over-heels for the theatre owner’s daughter, Polly Baker. Set in the 1930s and scored with the infectious songs of George and Ira Gershwin, this firecracker of a musical showcases classic tunes like “I Got Rhythm,” “Embraceable You” and “Someone to Watch Over Me.” Winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical, this madcap comedy “makes everything old feel new again” (New York Times).

This show was directed by Villanova University’s President, Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA, PhD. Father Donohue served as Villanova’s chair of theatre department from 1992-2006 before he became the University’s 32nd president.

This musical was such a joy to watch. It’s colorful, funny, and full of great characters. This show’s got everything: hilarious wit and physical comedy, multiple love stories, catchy songs, and lots and lots of tap dancing! All the dance numbers were amazing and truly took my breath away. Truly a wonderful show!

 

To learn more about Crazy for You, check out this virtual playbill which includes a note from the dramaturg as well as information about the playwright and musical composers.

Check out the education guide for more information about this show’s director and dramaturgs as well as some context for the show’s setting.


Rebecca AmrickRebecca Amrick is a first year graduate student in the English Department and a Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.


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Cat in the Stax: Leap Year

As Falvey’s Cat in the Stax, Rebecca writes articles covering a broad range of topics, from academics to hobbies to random events. All the while highlighting how Falvey Library can enhance your Villanova experience!

Happy Wednesday, Wildcats! March is almost here, which means spring break is right around the corner! I wish you all a safe, relaxing, and fun week off. Enjoy it, I know I will!

I don’t know how many of you noticed, but this year is a leap year! That means this year will last 366 days and the month of February is 29 days instead of the usual 28.

Fun Fact: Did you know that Ireland has an old tradition where women can propose to their boyfriends on Leap Day, Feb. 29? This day is known as either “Bachelor’s Day” or “Ladies Privilege.” Not only that, but according to Irish folklore, any man who rejects a proposal must compensate the woman with a gift—either a kiss, a silk gown, or gloves. This tradition is the premise for the 2010 movie Leap Year, starring Amy Adams, which you can get through Falvey’s Interlibrary Loan Program.

Image by wongmbatuloyo from iStock.com

 

But why do we have leap years? Basically, the purpose of a leap year is to keep our calendars aligned with Earth’s revolution around the Sun. We attribute one year to the amount of time it takes for the Earth to make a complete revolution. The Gregorian Calendar has 365 days in a single year, but in reality, it takes Earth approximately 365.242189 days to circle the Sun, which leaves an extra 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 45 seconds unaccounted for in our calendar. That means we’re getting behind Earth’s orbit by almost 6 hours every year, so we add a day every few years to make up for this extra time.

 

People tend to think leap years occur every four years, but this is actually not true! Julius Caesar, the Roman General who first introduced the concept into western calendars, established the formula that a leap year should occur every four years. However, this led to too many leap years in the Julian Calendar which placed religious holidays out of sync with fixed dates such as equinoxes and solstices by several days. Pope Gregory XIII developed his own calendar, the Gregorian Calendar, in 1582 to fix this error. His new formula determines whether a leap year should occur based on three criteria:

  1. The year must be divisible by four
  2. If the year can be evenly divided by 100, then it is not a leap year; UNLESS
  3. The year is also evenly divisible by 400—then it is a leap year

So there you have it, the long and somewhat complex history and understanding of leap years boiled down into a few paragraphs. An occasional event that we all take for granted has some interesting history and a bunch of science behind its origin.


Rebecca Amrick

Rebecca Amrick is a first-year graduate student in the English Department and a Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.


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Peek at the Week: February 26

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

In The Alchemist, Paul Coelho wrote, “The secret to life, though, is to fall seven times and to get up eight times.”

Happy Monday, Wildcats! As you move through midterms week, remember that trying and failing is always better than not trying, and mistakes are meant to be learned from, not obsessed over. You could fall, but I wholeheartedly believe that each of you will be able to get back up.

Good luck with midterms and enjoy Spring Break!


THIS WEEK AT FALVEY

Monday, February 26

Mindfulness Monday | 1-1:30 p.m. | Multifaith Prayer Room, St. Rita’s Hall | Virtual Option | ACS-Approved | Free & Open to Villanova Students, Faculty, & Staff

Center for Speaking and Presentation/The Learners’ Studio | 4-9 p.m. | Room 301 | Free

Tuesday, February 27

Center for Speaking and Presentation/The Learners’ Studio | 4-9 p.m. | Room 301 | Free

Wednesday, February 28

Center for Speaking and Presentation/The Learners’ Studio | 4-9 p.m. | Room 301 | Free

Thursday, February 29

Center for Speaking and Presentation/The Learners’ Studio | 12-9 p.m. | Room 301 | Free

Friday, March 1

Villanova Undergraduate Research Fellows (VURF) Summer Program Application Deadline | 11:59 p.m. | More Details Here

Sunday, March 3

Center for Speaking and Presentation/The Learners’ Studio | 3-9 p.m. | Room 301 | Free


HOLIDAYS THIS WEEK

Photo by Yuyang Liu on Unsplash

If you need to fuel up for midterms, this Tuesday, Feb. 27, is Big Breakfast Day, which celebrates the most important meal of the day. If you’re a big breakfast person (or just like breakfast foods), today is a great excuse to enjoy a big breakfast (or even treat yourself to breakfast for dinner).

Wednesday, Feb. 28, is Rare Disease Day, a day dedicated to raise awareness about rare diseases. Whether you have a rare disease that you want to share your experience with or you’re a curious scholar wanting to learn more, Wednesday is a great opportunity to focus some of your attention on rare diseases and what it’s like to live with one. You can also check out last weekend’s “Weekend Recs” on medical mysteries for more.

Share a Smile Day is this Friday, Mar. 1. Midterms might be a bit bleak, but don’t forget to let a little cheer into your day. It might not cure everything, but hanging out with your friends, making someone smile, or even watching a funny TikTok can sometimes make a big difference in lifting your spirit.


Annie Stockmal is a second-year graduate student in the Communication Department and Graduate Assistant in Falvey Library.


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Foto Friday: Data Whiz


Congratulations to the 2024 Falvey Data Visualization Competition award winners! From left to right: Nicole Daly, Social Sciences Librarian, recognizing Shealyn Murphy, Amanda Wagner, Melissa Wright, and Jonah Miles Gavino. Check out their award-winning projects here.


Kallie Stahl ’17 MA is Communication and Marketing Specialist at Falvey Library.

 

 


 

 


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Weekend Recs: Medical Mysteries

Happy Friday, Wildcats! Falvey Library is delivering you another semester of Weekend Recs, a blog dedicated to filling you in on what to read, listen to, and watch over the weekend. Annie, a graduate assistant from the Communication department, scours the internet, peruses the news, and digs through book stacks to find new, relevant, and thought-provoking content that will challenge you and prepare you for the upcoming week. 

Next Wednesday, Feb. 28, is Rare Disease Day, a day dedicated to spreading awareness about rare diseases. Suffering from a rare disease is an uphill battle, often both because of the actual symptoms and because of not being taken seriously by doctors or being treated differently. Although there are just too many rare diseases to cover in a blog post, this weekend’s recs will spread some awareness of what’s it’s like to live with one.

If you have 10 minutes…and are a fan of Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros, check out this article about how she balances being a best-selling author with living with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), a “rare” (though, we’re slowly learning it’s much more common than previously thought) genetic connective tissue disorder. You might recognize some of Rebecca’s real life symptoms in her protagonist Violet.

If you have 15 minutes…and want to better understand what living with long COVID is like (or if you can relate), read this New York Times article. Through impeccable graphic design, Giorgia Lupi’s essay is really able to convey how long COVID can take over your life.

If you have 44 minutes…and like medical dramas, watch an episode from the first season of House M.D. (or simply House), available in Falvey’s DVD Collection.

If you have 1 hour and 35 minutes…and want to experience what it’s like to be a medical mystery (if you haven’t already personally), watch Brain on Fire, available to stream on Netflix. The movie follows reporter Susannah Cahalan and her journey to being diagnosed with a rare brain disorder.

Bonus: if you liked the movie, you can also read the book, available in our Popular Reading Collection.

If you have 4 hours…and want to solve medical mysteries along with the author, read Playing the Ponies and Other Medical Mysteries Solved, available online through Falvey.

If you have 5 hours and 31 minutes…and like medical shows about real people, watch the first season of Netlifx’s Diagnosis. It’s both interesting to learn about new rare disorders while also humanizing the people going through the often grueling process of trying to obtain a diagnosis.


Annie Stockmal is a second-year graduate student in the Communication Department and Graduate Assistant in Falvey Library.


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Curious Cat: Spring Break Plans

"Curious Cat Banner"

Happy Thursday, Wildcats! Spring break is less than two weeks away, and the Curious Cat team wanted to know what students had planned for the week. We asked students at Falvey, “What are you doing over spring break?”

“Going to South Carolina with friends”
-Gianna Angelone ’27 CLAS

 

“Miami!”
-Madeline Cunningham ’26 COE

 

“Going home”
-Taylor Dillon ’26 CLAS

 


Rebecca AmrickRebecca Amrick is a first-year graduate student in the English Department and a Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.

 

 

 

Julia Wagner ’26 CLAS is a second-year Economics major and student worker at Falvey Library.

 

 

 


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TBT: “Twinkles in Their Eyes”

Image courtesy of the Villanova Digital Library (Bell Air 1964, p. 166)


Villanova’s 2024 Winter Gala has concluded, and students will now wait another year to dress up and take some pictures in Driscoll all while freezing in their suits, dresses, and heels in the chilly Pennsylvania weather.

Today’s TBT features a Junior Week formal from 1964. Would you wear any of these styles? Don’t forget, vintage styles are making a comeback! Maybe keep some inspiration in your back pocket for next year’s Gala.

Now that this Winter Gala is over, students are forced to face a long two weeks before they can bask in the relief of spring break, which is coming up after classes end on March 1. We hope that for those who attended the Winter Gala this past weekend, you enjoyed every minute with your friends dancing on the floor and saw “twinkles in their eyes and glows on their faces,” and that those memories will hold you over these next two weeks (and until the Winter Gala next year!)

Happy Thursday!


AJ Balinski ‘26 CLAS is a Communication major from Gibraltar, Mich. She works as a Communication & Marketing Student Assistant at Falvey Library.

 

 


 


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Dig Deeper: International Mother Language Day

By Abby Stinson

Today, Feb. 21, marks International Mother Language Day, a commemoration established by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to honor the linguistic diversity that enriches our world. Sadly, 40 percent of the world’s population lacks access to education in their “mother language,” or native tongue, leading to the loss of a language every two weeks and erasing valuable aspects of history and culture.  

This initiative, inaugurated in 1999 in Bangladesh, aims to “promote the preservation and protection of all languages used by peoples of the world,” according to the UN. The 2024 theme, “Multilingual education: a necessity to transform education,” underscores the significance of incorporation indigenous languages into education systems. To further this goal, the UN is convening an online panel event featuring experts in multilingual education from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. They also have named 2022-2032 as the “International Decade of Indigenous Languages”, ensuring an opportunity to collaborate and stimulate global change in this department.  

The preservation of languages is paramount for maintaining identity, facilitating communication, fostering social integration, promoting education, and driving development. For more information, read here: International Mother Language Day | United Nations.

Dig deeper and explore the resources below.


Abby Stinson ’26 VSB, is a Marketing and Business Analytics major and a student worker at Falvey Library.

 

 

 


 


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Cat in the Stax: Author Spotlight: Zadie Smith

As Falvey’s Cat in the Stax, Rebecca writes articles covering a broad range of topics, from academics to hobbies to random events. All the while highlighting how Falvey Library can enhance your Villanova experience!

Happy Wednesday, Wildcats, and welcome to a new segment I’m introducing into the Cat in a Stax Blog: Author Spotlight. I love to read, it’s probably one of my favorite pastimes. And as an English grad student, I’m constantly introduced to writers and texts I might not have otherwise have heard of, let alone read. I want to use this platform to expand your readership and hopefully help you discover some new interests in literature. Every month, one Cat in the Stax post will be dedicated to informing about and celebrating a  writer whose work is available at here at Falvey. Our very first featured author? Zadie Smith.

Photo by David Levenson/Getty Images

Zadie Smith is a British writer whose work includes novels, essays, and short stories. She was born in London, England on Oct. 27, 1975 to a Jamaican mother and an English father. She studied English Literature at Cambridge University and graduated with her B.A. in 1998. In 2010, she became a tenured professor of Creative Writing at New York University. For Smith, fiction is “a medium that must always allow itself . . . the possibility of expressing intimate and inconvenient truths.” She explores many of these truths in her work, which often ponder questions of race, religion, and cultural identity.

Her debut novel, White Teeth, was published in 2000. It explores a contemporary multicultural London through the lives of three different, but connected, families. The book was an immediate literary sensation and won many awards, including the Guardian First Book Award, the Whitbread First Novel Award, and the Commonwealth Writers Prize (Overall Winner, Best First Book). Her second book, titled The Autograph Man, examines loss, obsession, and the nature of fame. This book won the 2003 Jewish Quarterly Literary Prize for Fiction. It was also this same year that Granta magazine named Smith as one of 20 “Best of Young British Novelists” and published her short story Martha, Martha in their 2003 issue. On Beauty is Smith’s third novel (published in 2005), and tells the story of two families living in the fictional town of Wellington, Massachusetts. On Beauty won the 2006 Orange Prize for Fiction.

Smith is also the author of NW, a story focused on the friendship between two women in London that is tested by the trials and tribulations of adulthood, and Swing Time, which follows the lives of two aspiring dancers whose lives take drastically different turns. Smith’s most recent book, The Fraud, is set in Victorian London and based on the historical Tichborne Trial. The Fraud can be found on Falvey’s new Popular Reading Shelves.

Zadie Smith’s work includes essays and short stories as well. A collection of her short stories was published in 2019, titled Grand Union. She has three essay collections: Changing My MindFeel Free, and Intimations. Smith also wrote a play called The Wife of Willesden, a reimagining of Geoffrey Chaucer’s Wife of Bath’s Tale from his Canterbury Tales.

If you’re looking to read something different that will make you think, definitely check out this incredible and prolific writer!


Rebecca Amrick

Rebecca Amrick is a first year graduate student in the English Department and a Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.


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The Printed Image: “Phiz” and the Illustrated Works of Charles Dickens

This February installment of ‘The Printed Image’ serves as a belated commemoration of the birthday of Charles Dickens (February 7), by highlighting the work of one of his most frequent illustrators, Hablot Knight Browne (1815-1882). Also known by the pen name “Phiz” to complement Dickens’s own moniker “Boz”, Browne illustrated seven of Dickens’s fifteen novels, among them Nicholas Nickleby, The Old Curiosity Shop, Dombey and Son, David Copperfield, Little Dorrit, and A Tale of Two Cities.

Browne’s illustrations for Dickens are represented in Falvey’s Special Collections in two works: a complete set of the original serialization of The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickelby from 1838-1839, and in The Writings of Charles Dickens, a 32 volume set printed by the Riverside Press in Cambridge, Massachusetts, published by Houghton Mifflin & Company in 1894.

(Click on the illustrations in this blog post for a larger view.)

“I am married”
from David Copperfield

When I first encountered Browne’s illustrations in Dombey and Son, I was struck by how contemporary they appeared to be; their humor, their expression, their energy. It was a style I could see traces of in modern day comics, cartoons, and illustrations, yet I was surprised to discover they were made and published for the original serializations. The stories of Charles Dickens as “classics” can sometimes have an imposing reverence, so to see how they were published to a Victorian-era public helped to make them more accessible.

 

“The Shadow in the Little Parlour”
from Dombey and Son

“Coming Home from Church”
from Dombey and Son

Browne belonged to a ‘caricaturist’ school of illustration that was popular at this time, a style that included other Dickens illustrators such as George Cruikshank and John Leech, but was opposed aesthetically by the more formal Royal Academician style. As Browne’s son Edgar wrote,

“To this faculty of reproducing at will unconscious impressions he owed most of his excellences, together with most of his faults. Careful adherence to fact, and conscientious reproduction of the model and still life, would have resulted in drawing that might have had a great artistic value, but would not have represented Dickens in the slightest degree.” [1]

 

“Theatrical emotion of Mr. Vincent Crummles”
from Nicholas Nickleby

“The last brawl between Sir Mulberry and his pupil”
from Nicholas Nickleby

 

While Browne was initially apprenticed as a line-engraver to William Finden, he left this apprenticeship to start his own studio with Robert Young, preferring etchings and watercolors for his artistic output. [2] While engraving uses fine tools to create a design on metal or wood, etching is a method where a drawing or design is incised onto a metal plate with acid, allowing for an illustrator’s drawing style to be more readily replicated for the printed page, as a stylus is used to define the areas that will be etched. We can see evidence of this in Browne’s mark-making in the illustrations and in his extensive use of hatching and cross-hatching.

One intriguing aspect that can be found in some of Browne’s illustrations is the use of a “dark plate” method, where a gray tone is used within the background, created using a ruling machine on the plate. [3] This was undertaken partly as a way to control how the illustrations were reprinted; due to the popularity of Browne’s illustrations, publishers would reproduce them through lithographic stones, a practice which displeased Browne. The dark plate method made it nearly impossible for this kind of transfer to occur, thus bringing Browne some measure of artistic control. [4]

“The Wanderer”
from David Copperfield

 

“Visitors at the Works”
from Little Dorrit
(‘dark plate’ illustration)

“The River”
from David Copperfield
(‘dark plate’ illustration)

Nicholas Nickelby and The Writings of Charles Dickens may be viewed in the Rare Book Room by appointment. Falvey’s Digital Library includes a Charles Dickens collection, which includes a volume of collected works, illustrated prints, and letters written by Dickens. To see more work by Hablot Knight Browne, you can visit the British Museum and the Royal Academy. To learn more about the etching process, visit this tutorial at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Finally, if you happen to be visiting Philadelphia, stop by the Free Library’s Rare Books department to visit Grip the Raven, who has a most curious connection to both Charles Dickens and Edgar Allan Poe.


Mike Sgier is a Distinctive Collections Coordinator at Falvey Library.

References
[1] Simon, Howard. 500 Years of Art in Illustration. New York : Hacker Art Books, 1978. Page 114.

[2] “Hablot Knight (Phiz) Browne | Artist | Royal Academy of Arts.” www.royalacademy.org.uk, www.royalacademy.org.uk/art-artists/name/hablot-knight-phiz-browne.

‌[3] “Hablot Knight Browne (1815-1882).” Illustrating Dickens’ World – WPI Digital Exhibits, 27 June 2023, exhibits.wpi.edu/spotlight/illustrating-dickens/feature/hablot-knight-browne-1815-1882.

[4] “Hablot Knight Browne.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 16 Nov. 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hablot_Knight_Browne.


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Last Modified: February 21, 2024

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