Sagan and Serling

A discussion on Rod Serling and Carl Sagan, two visionaries who helped cultivate a sense of wonder and had strong connections to Ithaca and the region, takes place March 24 at 2 p.m. at Cinemapolis, 120 E. Green St., Ithaca.

“Rod Serling and Carl Sagan: Bridging Imagination and Science” will look at their views of the world and the relevance of their legacies, and questions on topics such as the interrelationships between science, imagination and culture.

Panelists Anne Serling and Nick Sagan will offer insights on their respective fathers, and will be joined by Andrew Polak, president of the Rod Serling Memorial Foundation. The moderator is Mason Peck, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Cornell and former chief technologist at NASA.

The discussion, interspersed with video clips, images and quotes, will be followed by a question-and-answer session and a book signing in the lobby with Nick Sagan and Anne Serling.

Admission at the door is $20 general admission, $17 for students and retirees. The event is a benefit for the History Center in Tompkins County and is cosponsored by the Space Systems Design Studio at Cornell and the Department of Media Arts, Sciences and Studies at Ithaca College.

Free local music

The Just About Music (JAM) Program House on North Campus hosts two local acts in its performance space March 24, a free concert open to the Ithaca community.

The show features Teencat at 8 p.m. and Kurt Riley at 9 p.m. Doors open at 7:30 p.m.

Riley is a 2016 ILR graduate and popular local artist. He has released three albums of original music, including “Kismet” (2016), recorded with fellow students in spaces across campus. He recently released a single, “Love is in My Heart.”

Bhangra showcase

The Cornell Bhangra team presents its 17th annual South Asian dance exhibition in Barton Hall, March 24 from 7 to 10 p.m. Tickets are $10 general admission and $15 VIP, available from Cornell Bhangra members and online.

Pao Bhangra XVII will showcase performances by the Cornell team and four visiting bhangra teams – RU Bhangra from Rutgers University, Bhangra Theory and Anakh E Gabroo from New York City, and Bhangre De Shokeen from Philadelphia – as well as other music and dance groups at Cornell.

The Bhangra Olympics will add friendly competition to the event this year, with matchups between bhangra teams.The audience decides the winner.

Vibrant costumes and high-energy music and dance routines are part of the annual celebration of Punjabi culture and “the joy and passion of Bhangra as an art form,” according to Cornell Bhangra.

Exhibition acts include Rochester Bhangra Kids and, from Cornell, the Yamatai taiko drum ensemble, BASE Productions, Sabor Latino Dance Ensemble and The Hangovers a cappella group.

Orchestra premieres

The Festival Chamber Orchestra, a sinfonietta of 14 professional musicians directed by Chris Younghoon Kim, will premiere orchestral works by Cornell graduate student composers Sergio Cote Barco and Jihyun Kim, March 24 at 8 p.m. in Barnes Hall Auditorium. The concert, free and open to the public, is presented by the Department of Music.

The annual event is an opportunity for the composers to work directly with the musicians, a process which Cote Barco says “opens new creative possibilities in which the piece can unfold.”

Canceled: The Innuan piano quintet performance, Sunday, March 25, at the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, has been canceled due to illness.

Funding creative projects

Cornell faculty and students are welcome to apply for funding from the Cornell Council for the Arts (CCA) Individual Grant Program, which offers direct financial support for the development of new, experimental and exceptional arts projects to be shared with the university and Ithaca community.

Faculty, staff and students with questions regarding project feasibility, budgets, locations, co-sponsorship and other guidance on how to prepare a successful application are invited to attend an information session, March 28 from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m. in B1 Sibley Hall. RSVP via email or call 607-255-7274.

The CCA welcomes proposals from individual artists, artists’ groups and artistic collaborations. Proposals from non-artists are also welcome for projects that expand the boundaries of any given arts, design or related discipline in a creative and culturally reflective way.

Project grants are awarded annually: up to $2,500 each to faculty, departments and programs; and $1,000 to individual students and registered student organizations. Interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary work is encouraged, as is work that connects with the 2018 CCA Biennial theme, Duration.

The grant program is particularly interested in promoting original, emergent and critically engaged artforms and ideas.

Goldsworthy on location

Cornell Cinema hosts the area premiere of “Leaning Into the Wind,” March 29 and 30 in Willard Straight Theatre.

The 2017 documentary follows environmental artist Andy Goldsworthy as he encounters sites for his work, from urban Edinburgh and Glasgow to the south of France and New England. Director Thomas Riedelsheimer’s cinematography complements Goldsworthy’s vision of the landscape and the connection between human life and the natural world.

Also showing: “Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” March 23, 6:30 and 9:40 p.m. (the late screening of Episode 8 is presented in 3-D); and March 24 at 9:20 p.m.; and a premiere of the 2017 Finnish film “The Other Side of Hope,” a Jarmuschian melancholy comedy reflecting the refugee crisis, March 29-30.

Celebrating Indonesian culture

The Cornell Indonesian Association’s annual Indo Night is Thursday, March 29, 7 to 11 p.m. in the Willard Straight Hall Memorial Room. The event features a “Night Market,” with Indonesian food, live music, and souvenir crafts and photo booths. Admission is free and open to the public; food is $8 per person. RSVP online for food tickets.

The Cornell Gamelan Ensemble and Ngudi Raras – six master musicians from Surakarta, central Java – will perform music throughout the night. Now on tour in the United States, Ngudi Raras plays traditional Javanese klenèngan, a relaxed spontaneous performance that unfolds live. The professional ensemble’s visit and Indo Night coincide with Sounding Out the State of Indonesian Music, the fourth Cornell Modern Indonesia Project “state of the field” conference, taking place on campus March 28-31.

Indonesian dishes at Indo Night will include siomay (steamed dumplings); tofu with peanut sauce; yellow rice with shredded chicken in Balinese spices, spicy potatoes and thinly sliced fried egg; chicken noodles with boiled bok choy and fried dumplings, served with chili and soy sauce; and Javanese tea, tapioca pudding and bolu pandan, a flavored sponge cake.

For more information, contact Cynthia Clarissa Istanto. Cosponsors of Indo Night include the Department of Music, Southeast Asia Program, and Cornell Council for the Arts.