Andrew Gillis/Cascadilla Photography

Visiting lecturer and actor Jeffrey Guyton appears March 21-27 at the Schwartz Center in “In the Middle of the Night,” an original physical comedy work created with Performing and Media Arts students and inspired by Charlie Chaplin.

Native American Day

The American Indian Program (AIP) marks Haudenosaunee/Native American Day with a “Tree of Peace” panel and exhibition March 21 at Cornell Plantations and “Promising Futures,” a March 22 symposium geared to prospective Haudenosaunee students, held in collaboration with the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS).

“Ögwe’ ö:weh Consciousness as Peace,” March 21, 3-5:30 p.m. at Cornell Plantations, offers scientific and artistic perspectives on the Great White Pine, an enduring symbol of peace and Haudenosaunee knowledge, with AIP faculty Jane Mt. Pleasant, Jolene Rickard, Kurt Jordan and Troy Richardson, and Mohawk Faithkeeper Tom Porter. Free and open to the public.

The March 22 symposium, 8:30 a.m.- 5:30 p.m. at the Africana Studies and Research Center, features a student panel on “Transition and Success at Cornell University,” “Why Cornell?: Advantages of an Ivy League Education” and remarks by CALS Dean Kathryn Boor and President David Skorton. The schedule includes a financial aid workshop, CALS admissions information and walking tours, for high school students, parents and counselors in attendance.

Information: 607-255-6587, ump4@cornell.edu or http://aip.cornell.edu

Pratfalls and improv

Physical comedy comes to the Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts this month with “In the Middle of the Night,” an original piece directed by associate professor Beth Milles.

Inspired by Charlie Chaplin’s 1916 silent film “One A.M.,” the production features visiting lecturer and actor Jeffrey Guyton, who collaborated with Performing and Media Arts students on developing long-form improvisation with little or no dialogue.

Performances are March 21, 22, 26 and 27 at 7:30 p.m. in the Class of ’56 Flexible Theatre. Tickets are $13; $11 for students and senior citizens, available at www.SchwartzTickets.com, by calling 607-254-2787 or at the box office, noon-4 p.m. Monday-Friday.

Moving in (a) space

Taking their performance outside of a theater space, Cornell dancers will occupy the vertical and layered planes and corridors among the everyday traffic inside a busy campus building at “Cultivating Space: Mid-Levels at Milstein Hall,” March 24 at 5 p.m. Free.

Directed by Jumay Chu and E.D. Intemann, the performers will be dancing on top of one another, sweeping across passersby and engaging pedestrian spectators. In exploring the dramatic and psychological imaginings of a restless, occupied space, the intent of the performance is to challenge preconceptions of the physical function of the space and construct meaning from movements defined by its architecture.

Presented by the Department of Performing and Media Arts, the event is co-sponsored by the Cornell Council for the Arts, as part of the Locally Grown Dance Festival to be performed May 1-3 at the Schwartz Center.

Miners and singers

Cornell Cinema presents a free screening of “The Miners’ Hymns,” March 25 at 7:30 p.m. in Sage Chapel. With little-seen footage from the British Film Institute and BBC archives, the 52-minute documentary shows social, cultural and political aspects of the now-extinct coal mining industry in northeast England, from the hardships of pit work to an annual Miners’ Gala.

Cosponsored by ILR’s Catherwood Library and its Kheel Center, the Cornell Council for the Arts and the Finger Lakes Environmental Film Festival.

Also at Cornell Cinema: “The Punk Singer,” March 26 and 28, an intimate look at pioneering musician Kathleen Hanna, an outspoken feminist who fronted the bands Bikini Kill and Le Tigre and formed The Julie Ruin in 2010 after a five-year hiatus from performing. Director Sini Anderson provides insight into the “riot grrrl” movement, through archival footage and interviews with musicians including Joan Jett, Carrie Brownstein and Kim Gordon.

Update: The French theme party and reception for the “Amelie” Spring Soiree March 22 is at 7:15 p.m. in the Willard Straight Memorial Room; “Amelie” screens at 8:30 p.m. in Willard Straight Theatre. Tickets for both events are $10, $8 for students; regular price ($5-$8) for the film alone. See http://cinema.cornell.edu

‘Empire of Lies’

Author, screenwriter and commentator Andrew Klavan is a rarity: an open conservative in Hollywood, critical of the media and the entertainment industry for their roles in promoting a biased view of the world.

Klavan presents “Empire of Lies: News and Entertainment in the Postmodern Age,” March 24 at 5:30 p.m. in 165 Statler Hall. Free and open to the public, the talk is sponsored by Cornell’s Program on Freedom and Free Societies.

A five-time nominee and two-time winner of the Mystery Writers of America’s Edgar Award, Klavan wrote the screenplays for “A Shock to the System,” starring Michael Caine; and for “One Missed Call,” starring Ed Burns. His novels include “True Crime” (filmed by Clint Eastwood), “Don’t Say A Word” (adapted for a film starring Michael Douglas) and thrillers for young adults, including the series “The Homelanders.”

Gypsy inspiration

The Grammy Award-winning Orpheus Chamber Orchestra performs with violinist Christian Tetzlaff in the Cornell Concert Series, March 26 at 8 p.m. in Bailey Hall. The concert will feature gypsy-inspired works by Joseph Joachim, Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály.

Admission is $25-$35, $17 for students. Tickets are available at http://baileytickets.com. Information: 607-255-5144, www.cornellconcertseries.com

Countdown to Cornell

The Undergraduate Admissions Office invites all Cornellians to celebrate the acceptance of newly admitted members of the Class of 2018 at Countdown to Cornell, March 27, 4:30 to 6 p.m. in Robert Purcell Community Center’s first floor lounges.

The kickoff event for campus yield programs will welcome the newest class of Cornellians via social media, with photo opportunities and other activities; and will help with the recruitment of student volunteers and hosts for Diversity Hosting Month (April 10-27) and Cornell Days (April 11, 14-18 and 21).

In addition to two Twitter hashtags, #MyCornellMoment (for current students to share memories of first seeing their acceptance letters) and #CountdownToCornell, the countdown to regular decision release (March 27 at 5 p.m.) is viewable online at http://www.admissions.cornell.edu/countdowntocornell.

The event is held in partnership with the Red Carpet Society, CUIMAGE and Community Center Programs.

113th Dragon Day

One of Cornell’s longstanding spring traditions continues Friday, March 28, at the 113th annual Dragon Day celebration.

The dragon – designed and built by first-year architecture students – will be paraded across campus and accompanied by costumed students. Since 1987, rival engineering students in the Phoenix Society have participated in the spring ritual, creating a creature to challenge the dragon.

The Dragon Day Parade begins at 1 p.m. next to Rand Hall on East Avenue, proceeding south toward the Engineering Quad, continuing west on Campus Road and then turning north, passing through Ho Plaza and ending on the Arts Quad. Due to construction, the southbound lane of East Avenue remains closed to traffic; there is limited room for spectators along sections of the route. Road closing information: http://www.cornell.edu/cuinfo/specialconditions/

Dragon Day, originally called Architecture Day, was initiated in 1901 by Willard Straight, a member of Cornell’s first graduating class of architects. Information: http://aap.cornell.edu/academics/architecture/about/dragon-day

Bonding at work

Registration is from March 24 at 9 a.m. for Bring a Child to Work Day, Thursday, April 24. Registration continues until April 4 at 5 p.m., but many sessions fill up early.

Bring a Child to Work Day is an annual opportunity for children to visit campus and see what parents, relatives and friends do at Cornell, and explore interests and career possibilities.

Activities include making butter; meeting live animals, decorating baked goods, and visiting the Dairy Bar, Fuertes Observatory or the Johnson Museum; and learning about the U.S. Navy, the police, judo, rock-climbing, gardening and the weather. All activities: https://www.hr.cornell.edu/life/celebrating/bactwd_session_descriptions.pdf