Provided

Sage Chapel hosts Christmas Vespers, its popular annual 'Candlelit Lessons and Carols' service, Dec. 6 and 7 at 7:30 p.m.

Public affairs showcase

Work by students in the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs (CIPA) Capstone Program is featured in “The Art of Public Engagement,” an exhibition on display Dec. 4-11 in the DEA (Design and Environmental Analysis) Gallery, 1250 Martha Van Rensselaer Hall.

Students will discuss their projects during a wine and cheese reception in the gallery, Dec. 4 from 4 to 6 p.m.

Through CIPA, students in domestic and international capstone courses this semester are working on 12 unique hands-on public engagement projects with clients in the United States, Latin America, Uganda, Mali and Haiti. Posters prepared by each team highlight their project goals, research findings and recommendations. Blog entries on the projects are featured in an accompanying slideshow.

Hosted by the College of Human Ecology, the exhibit and reception are free and open to the public.

Salsa celebration

Celebrate the last day of classes with a concert and dance party, Salsa en Vivo!, Dec. 4 from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the Big Red Barn Graduate Student Center. Admission is $8 for Cornell students, $10 for others.

Grupo Calle Uno, an 11-piece dance band, will play salsa classics and Latin hits. A Survival Latin Dance Lesson at 9 p.m. will help beginners learn the basics of salsa, merengue, bachata and cha-cha, followed by two sets of live music starting at 10 p.m. and a DJ between sets.

The event is sponsored by Proyecto Palante and supported by the GPSA Finance Committee and the International Students Union. For information, call 607-592-1986 or email mlr24@cornell.edu.

Outdoor gear sale

Cornell Outdoor Education (COE) holds its annual Gear Sale, Saturday, Dec. 5 from 9 a.m. to noon in the Bartels Hall Ramin Room.

The sale features a broad selection of new and used outdoor gear from COE and the community. Arrive early for best selection.

To sell your gear on consignment, drop off items between 5 and 9 p.m. at COE, B01 Bartels Hall, through Dec. 4.

For information, call 607-255-1807 or email brb4@cornell.edu.

Christmas Vespers

The annual Sage Chapel Christmas Vespers, Dec. 6 and 7 at 7:30 p.m., will feature songs and readings from the seasons of Advent and Christmas, including audience participation on familiar Christmas hymns. The events are free and open to the public and presented by the Department of Music.

Sage Chapel will be decked with a tree and greens and lit by candlelight for the performances. Selections by the Cornell University Chorus and Glee Club will be sung largely in Latin, in anticipation of the groups’ joint concert tour of Mexico and Guatemala next month; with a focus on works celebrating the Virgin Mary – such as William Cornysh’s “Ave Maria” and Rachmaninoff’s “Bogoroditse Devo” (“Rejoice, O Virgin”).

Fourteen Cornell community members (seven each night) will give readings at the traditional “Candlelit Lessons and Carols” services. Organist Matthew Hall will play a prelude and postlude, both by J. S. Bach, and accompany the choral selections and hymns. Daniel McMullin and Rev. Kenneth Clarke of Cornell United Religious Work will give the opening and closing prayers and blessing. The Cornell Chimes will play for 30 minutes before and after each program.

Crime and time travel

Two “Back to the Future” films come to Willard Straight Theatre this week, at 1980s prices. Admission is $2 for “Back to the Future” (1985), Dec. 6, and for “Back to the Future Part II” (1989), Dec. 8, both starting at 7:15 p.m. In “Part II,” Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) and Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) travel from 1955 to October 21, 2015 to avert disaster.

Cornell Cinema also presents the mob drama “Black Mass,” starring Johnny Depp, Dec. 6 at 4:30 p.m. and Dec. 10 at 9:30 p.m.; and recent box office hits “Mad Max: Fury Road” (Dec. 7-12) and “Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation” (Dec. 9-13).

One night only

To celebrate being named the Best College Food in New York state and ninth nationwide in Niche.com rankings, Cornell Dining’s award-winning chefs are preparing one-of-a-kind menus on Tuesday, Dec. 8.

Look up meal times and special Prime Night menus at each of the nine All You Care to Eat dining rooms on campus, at Cornell Dining Now.