The Sacramento State Festival of The Arts (FoTA) will bring the work of students and faculty to a wide range of events that showcase dance, theater, visual art, writing and philosophy.
The five-day event will take place from April 5-9 and exhibit work from the students and faculty of the College of Arts & Letters. The public will be allowed to view and interact with different aspects of art.
There will be theatrical, music and dance performances as well as guest lectures and exhibits on campus. An Vo, the FoTA external relations and communications coordinator, said that the festival will not only showcase student work, but also those by artists in the broader Sacramento community.
“At the same time, we celebrate the regional arts community that we are so lucky to be a part of,” Vo said in an email.
According to Vo, Sac State has strived to find new ways to engage and inspire the campus community each year since the festival was first held in 1992.
“We are proud of the accomplishments of our students and faculty, and this festival allows us to show off their work,” Vo said. “With over 30 events planned, there really is something for everyone.”
The third annual U-Create! Street Faire will bring together different disciplines like dance, theater and music at Sac State into one downtown event at Seventh and S streets on April 6.
Michael Vann, a history professor, said that public events like FoTA can help showcase the work of the College of Arts and Letters and share exciting intellectual opportunities with the campus as well as the Sacramento community.
Vann said that he was particularly excited about two authors — food expert Trami Nguyen Cron and Jeff Chang, the executive director of the Institute for Diversity in the Arts at Stanford University — who will come to the festival.
Cron will be doing a reading and book signing of her novel, “VietnamEazy” — a story about a Vietnamese-American woman on a reality cooking show — in the Hinde Auditorium at the University Union on April 5 at 5:30 p.m.
Then on April 7, Chang will be speaking at the Hinde at 5:30 p.m. on his award-winning book on race in contemporary America, “We Gon’ Be Alright.”
“Chang’s books explore American race relations over the past few decades,” Vann said. “He directly engages the issue of police violence against African-American men.”
FoTA will come to a close with “Sunday Funday,” an open house designed for the public to explore the arts at Sac State, said Vo.
The event will be held on campus from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and offers activites for people of all ages. There will be games and hands-on art projects spread out around campus.
“I’m so proud of the College of Arts and Letters’ commitment to intellectual engagement as seen in the FoTA events,” Vann said.
From faculty-student collaborative projects to scholarly research to family-oriented activities, the week is packed with lectures, performances and exhibits put together by faculty, staff and students, according to Robin Fisher, a professor of voice at Sac State.
“We all work together to share what we do at Sac State and how it will make a difference in our world, both now and in years ahead,” Fisher said.
Japanese language and culture will be celebrated with Japan Day on April 9 at 11 a.m. in the Library Quad.
There will be a number of hands-on activities at the event — such as origami, go, kendama and paper-mask making — according to Kazue Masuyama, a professor of world languages.
The Sac State Japan Club will also host stage performance. The stage performances will include taiko drumming, a traditional bon dance, martial art performances, cosplay and dances and singing by students from various schools and universities, Masuyama said.
In addition, the French Club, Italian Club, Spanish Club and Alumni Association of World Languages and Literatures will run their tables in the quad.
“This event provides Sac State students with ample opportunities to explore arts and cultures of the world through hands-on experiences and performing together,” Masuyama said.