Things to Do, May 19-26, 2017

Play with the work

Sample and play new games created by students at the annual Game Design Initiative at Cornell (GDIAC) Showcase, May 19 from 4 to 7 p.m. in Carpenter Hall. The event is free and open to the public.

The final projects from undergraduate game design classes will include games for smartphones and tablets, including card games, as well as fantasy and action games in which players can do battle with each other (“Laser Penguins”), protect a little girl from danger (“Moving Mansion”) or steal other people’s food (“Fridgeraiders”).

Student grades will depend in part on public reaction. Visitors are invited to vote for their favorites, which will be recognized at an awards ceremony at 6:45 p.m.

'Get Out' now

Cornell Cinema concludes its spring semester schedule in Willard Straight Theatre with the new horror-thriller “Get Out,” May 19 at 9:15 p.m. and May 20 at 7:15 p.m. The directorial debut of comedian Jordan Peele (Key and Peele) stars Allison Williams, Daniel Kaluuya and Catherine Keener.

Also showing: “Monty Python’s Life of Brian,” May 19 at 7:15 p.m.; and “Logan,” a new “X-Men” sequel with Hugh Jackman, May 20 at 9:30 p.m.

Cornell Cinema will announce its outdoor series of summer terrace screenings in early June.

Music, wine, poetry and yoga

The Department of Music celebrates the 10th anniversary of its springtime chamber music festival, Mayfest, with a variety of new events May 19-23. Performances will be in Barnes Hall, Sage Chapel and community venues, with a finale concert May 23 at the Carriage House Café.

Under the artistic direction of Miri Yampolsky and Xak Bjerken, Mayfest will feature traditional chamber concerts as well as music paired with wine, May 20 at Red Newt Winery in Hector; yoga with Bach cello suites, May 20-21 at the Community School of Music and Arts; and music with poetry, May 22 in Barnes Hall Auditorium.

Concerts will feature music by Rachmaninoff, Schubert, Schumann, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and modern composers including Zachary Wadsworth, DMA ’11; Jesse Jones, DMA ’13; and Ithacans Dana Wilson and Nicholas Walker. A concert of works with animal themes, Sunday, May 21 at 4 p.m. in Sage Chapel, will feature the Ithaca High School Choir and Cornell Chamber Singers and include Saint-Saëns’ “The Carnival of the Animals,” narrated by Tish Pearlman.

Tickets are $10 for students, $20 for adults and free for those under age 18 with an accompanying adult. See mayfest-cornell.org for the full schedule and event details. 

'Heads of the Hydra'

In one of Cornell's best-known traditions, every March students create an enormous dragon for a parade across campus. The annual project of first-year architecture students has been a rite of spring for more than 100 years.


William Staffeld/College of Architecture, Art and Planning
"Heads of the Hydra" in John Hartell Gallery features images and trophies of Dragon Days past.

John Hartell Gallery in Sibley Dome is hosting an exhibition celebrating this history, “Heads of the Hydra: Trophies of Dragon Day,” showcasing photographs and artifacts of Dragon Days past including T-shirts and the heads of the dragons themselves.

The exhibition goes on display May 24 and continues through June 11 for Reunion 2017. The gallery is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 

Reach for the stars

The Cornell Astronomical Society hosts public viewing nights every Friday evening (if skies are clear) throughout the year at Fuertes Observatory on North Campus.

Call 607-255-3557 to find out if the observatory will be open. Admission is free, and parking is available in the Appel Commons lot, across Cradit Farm Road from the observatory.

Media Contact

Lindsey Knewstub