Reaching Higher

Your fall datebook is about to fill up. The new and well-rounded season of the Quick Center at Fairfield University will get you jazzed about one program, completely intrigued about another. That’s the point! The Open VISIONS lecture series lures to town world-renowned experts in journalism, art, culture, science, politics and other disciplines. The proof is thrown down right from the start, when the season kicks off with Steve Kroft of 60 Minutes. Known for intense interviews that rattle even the most confident subjects, Kroft has won three Peabody Awards and nine Emmys. The seasons wraps up in April with a big bang, too: Dr. Spencer Wells, a geneticist and anthropologist and Explorer-in-Residence at the National Geographic Society. He leads The Genographic Project, a complex program to trace the ancient roots of our DNA—and, thereby, the scientific history of humankind. The Quick also hosts award-winning artists in classical music, jazz, blues, Portuguese fado as well as contemporary dance and theater. Along with the live performances is The Met: Live in HD, which screens performances at The Met in high-definition transmission. Theatergoers can’t always dash to England for a hot show but National Theatre Live-HD broadcasts of performances shot live at London’s National Theatre.