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November 7 Friday12:00 PM-01:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Daryl DavisLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisWe’ll explore the parallel innovations of Brian Wilson (The Beach Boys) and Sylvester Stewart, a.k.a. Sly Stone (Sly & The Family Stone), two visionary artists who transformed the sound of American popular music in the 1960s and 70s. Their music inspired countless future musicians and remains relevant today. (Directly following this class, please... read more -
November 11 Tuesday02:00 PM-03:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Jonina DukerLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisWhen Abraham Lincoln won the presidency on November 6, 1860, it sparked five chaotic months that led the nation to the brink of Civil War. In his latest work of popular history, Erik Larson draws on a rich collection of primary sources to bring these tense, pivotal months to life. Please read the book so you can participate in our structured, facilitated,... read more
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November 12 Wednesday12:00 PM → 1:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Joan HartLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisAfter more than 20 years, Washington, D.C. will be hosting a major exhibition on the works of Grandma Moses to be held at the National Museum of American Art. This program will provide a virtual tour of GRANDMA MOSES: A GOOD DAY’S WORK, highlighting her colorful paintings of rural New England and the farm life she knew. Self-taught, Anna Mary Robertson... read more
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November 13 Thursday09:30 AM-02:00 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Molly WilliamsonLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisEven if you attended Molly’s talk in January 2025, you won’t want to miss this program. Each session builds on the other — with Part II offering deeper analysis of themes introduced in Part I. Part I: Key Factors in the Current Chaos This segment examines the regional demographic, economic, and policy factors in the evolving period of the Arab unrest... read more
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November 18 Tuesday09:30 AM-10:30 AM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Kim WilliamsLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisLong before it became a bustling capital, Washington, D.C. was a patchwork of farms and country estates spread across a quiet rural landscape. This presentation traces the transformation of that landscape from the late 18th century until the last farm ceased operation in the 1960s. As the city grew beyond its original bounds, most of these farmsteads and... read more
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November 18 Tuesday12:00 PM-01:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Seth KibelLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisDave Brubeck was a gifted jazz pianist, composer, and bandleader, but even more than that, he helped redefine the sound of 20th century American music. We'll follow him from his early days as a leading figure of both the West Coast and "cool" jazz movements, to his golden years as an elder statesman of American music. We'll also explore the strange genesis... read more
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November 19 Wednesday12:00 PM-01:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Owen UllmannLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisThe U.S. government has used tariffs as an economic tool since the founding of the Republic. Over the centuries, they have proven useful for developing economies to establish a manufacturing base. But they have led to catastrophes in a modern world of advanced economies and global trade. This lecture looks at the benefits and dangers of new tariff-triggered... read more
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November 20 Thursday12:00 PM-01:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Steven GimbelLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisAfter the Crusades, Christianity came into possession of Greek and Roman philosophy and influenced by the Muslim and Jewish thinkers before them, some early Church Fathers took up the conversation on their own terms. Saints Anselm, Augustine, and Thomas Aquinas offered different approaches to the Divine and the worldly based on different philosophical... read more
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November 24 Monday09:30 AM-11:00 AM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Julie KurzavaLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisStephen Schwartz has been working steadily in American musical theater, both onstage and in film, for over 50 years. Godspell was his first success, produced when he was only 23, leading up to his mega hit Wicked, written more than 30 years later. Much like Andrew Lloyd Webber, Schwartz brings a contemporary pop sound to musical... read more
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December 2 Tuesday12:00 PM-01:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Daryl DavisLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisExplore the groundbreaking music of Ray Charles and Willie Nelson—two iconic songwriters whose genre-crossing styles reshaped American music and transcended generations. We'll revisit their music and some of the stories behind... read more
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December 3 Wednesday12:00 PM-01:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Bonita BillmanLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisJohn Constable and J.M.W. Turner were contemporaries but very different artists. Constable focused on the familiar scenes of his native East Anglia and select English locales, capturing the quiet beauty of the countryside. Turner, inspired early by Dutch landscape painters, traveled widely across Europe whenever possible—painting dramatic waterfalls,... read more
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December 4 Thursday12:00 PM-01:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: George ScheperLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisThe ancient Maya cities of Copán and Tikal were thriving centers of culture, art, and ceremony between 300 and 800 CE. Their impressive pyramids, carved monuments, and rich artwork tell the stories of powerful rulers, religious traditions, and everyday life in these vibrant cities. In this class, we will journey through the history of Copán and Tikal,... read more
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December 9 Tuesday12:00 PM-01:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Brian RoseLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisAlfred Hitchcock often called Psycho “a big joke” and was horrified to discover that audiences “were taking it seriously.” But his flip attitude can’t disguise what made his 1960 film a landmark in movie history. Working without his usual menu of big budgets, big stars, and glamorous locations, Hitchcock crafted a masterful study of fear and... read more
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December 9 Tuesday02:00 PM-03:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Jonina DukerLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisThe author’s own life inspired the fictional tale of Arnold Spirit, Jr., a fourteen-year-old living on the Spokane Indian Reservation and the choices he makes to navigate his adolescence under difficult circumstances. How did this 2007 novel wind up the most challenged book in the USA from 2010 to 2019? Please read the book so you can participate in our... read more
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December 10 Wednesday12:00 PM-01:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Dan ShermanLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisFor more than 50 years, this boy from Brooklyn charmed the world with song, dance, and manic comedy. This class will present Danny Kaye's fascinating life story and illustrate it with audio and video clips from stage ("Tchaikovsky!"), film ("The Vessel with the Pestle"), and TV, including clips of Kaye (who could not read music) conducting symphony... read more
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December 11 Thursday12:00 PM-01:30 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Steven GimbelLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro OasisWhile much of Medieval philosophy is informed by the theological commitments of the thinkers of the day, there were rebel thinkers who sought new, interesting, and in some cases disturbing ways of making sense of being in the world. Giordano Bruno, Niccolo Machiavelli, and the Marquis de Sade proposed views that led to their vilification...but it doesn't... read more
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January 20 Tuesday12:00 PM → 1:30 PM Central Time Sessions: 1Instructor: Richard Bell, Professor of History, University of MarylandLocations: Zoom - Washington Metro Oasis Don’t miss this opportunity to see instructor Rick Bell in-person. Dr. Bell invites you to rediscover the Revolution as a... read more -
January 21 Wednesday12:00 PM → 1:15 PM Central TimeSessions: 1Instructor: Brian Rose, Professor (ret.), Department of Communication and Media Studies, Fordham UniversityLocations: Zoom - Wash Metro Oasis From its start in the early 1950s,the talk show has been one of television’s most versatile and durable formats. Pioneering... read more -
January 22 Thursday12:00 PM → 1:30 PM Central Time Sessions: 1Instructor: Steven Gimbel, Professor of Philosophy, Gettysburg CollegeLocations: Zoom - Wash Metro Oasis The Scientific revolution not only gave us new theories about the ways in which the universe worked, but undermined larger... read more -
January 26 Monday12:00 PM → 1:30 PM Central Time Sessions: 1Instructor: Joan Hart, Art History Instructor, Museum One, Inc.Locations: Zoom - Washington Metro Oasis Even winter can be beautiful through the eyes of the Impressionists! In fact, next to summer, winter was probably Monet’s... read more