The Creative Life

Philippe Petit - Thursday, October 3 at 7pm

UAlbany Performing Arts Center 

French artist Philippe Petit has performed on the high wire more than eighty times around the world; he is also a magician, street juggler, visual artist, builder, lecturer, writer and subject of the Academy Award-winning documentary, Man on Wire (2008) as well as the feature film The Walk (2015). Before turning 25, he gained initial fame for his high-wire walks between the towers of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in 1971 and the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City in 1974, the latter of which was considered “the artistic crime of the century.” He is the author and illustrator of Why Knot: How to Tie More than Sixty Ingenious, Useful, Beautiful, Lifesaving, and Secure Knots! (2013); Creativity: The Perfect Crime (2014), a manifesto about the creative process, and his new book On the High Wire (2019), first published in French in 1972. Werner Herzog said, “This is a book of instructions to those who will dare one day the impossible.”

On the evening of the conversation, Mr. Petit will perform an excerpt from his stage show entitled Open Practice at the University Art Museum at 6pm and will join audience members at a reception.

Following the conversation, Mr. Petit will meet audience members for a book signing in the theatre lounge.

In advance of the conversation, there will be a free screening of the Man on Wire documentary on Friday, September 27 at 7:30pm at Page Hall on the University’s downtown campus at 135 Western Avenue.

Rakim - Monday, October 28 at 7pm

UAlbany Performing Arts Center 

William Michael Griffin Jr., better known by his stage name Rakim, is “near-universally acknowledged as one of the greatest MCs – perhaps the greatest – of all time within the hip-hop community” (Steve Huey, AllMusic.com). He began his career as the emcee of the rap duo Eric B. & Rakim, “the most influential DJ/MC combo in contemporary pop music, period” (Tom Terrell, NPR). Where many MCs of the time developed their technique through improvisational battles, Rakim was among the first to demonstrate the possibilities of sitting down and writing intricately crafted lyrics packed with clever word choices and metaphors. Described as “part memoir, part writing guide,” Sweat The Technique: Revelations On Creativity From The Lyrical Genius follows his career from his beginnings as a teenage rapper in Wyandanch, Long Island and offers insight into how he thinks about words, music, writing and rhyming as it teaches writers of all levels how to hone their craft.

Following the conversation, there will be a book signing and reception in the theatre lounge.