February is Black History Month, and Lehigh University in Bethlehem is offering special programming, with Zoellner Arts Center hosting the interactive art installation “Traveling While Black.” It will open at 11 a.m. next Thursday, Feb. 12, in the second-floor lobby.
“Traveling While Black” is an award-winning cinematic virtual reality experience that immerses viewers in the long history of restriction of movement for Black Americans and the creation of safe spaces in communities. This film, by Academy Award-winner and Easton native Roger Ross Williams and Emmy Award-winning Felix & Paul Studios, transports viewers to historic Ben’s Chili Bowl restaurant in Washington, D.C., where they share an intimate series of moments with several of Ben’s patrons as they reflect on their experiences of restricted movement and race relations in the United States. Through intimate conversations with the diner’s patrons, audiences are invited to reflect on the experiences of restricted movement, systemic racism, and the ongoing realities faced by Black travelers in the United States. Confronting the way people understand and talk about race in America, “Traveling While Black” highlights the urgent need not only to remember the past but to learn from it and to facilitate a dialogue about the challenges minority travelers still face today.
Williams won an Oscar in 2010 for his short film “Music By Prudence.”
The installation will run on select dates through April. Registration is required, and tickets are pay-as-you-wish, with a suggested price of $5 and $10.
Award-winning documentary
Zoellner Arts Center at Lehigh University in Bethlehem will screen the documentary “The Ebony Canal,” an award-winning film narrated by Academy Award-winning icon Viola Davis, and host a panel discussion at 4:30 p.m. next Thursday, Feb. 12, in Baker Hall.
Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Emmai Alaquiva, this powerful cinematic poem explores the urgent disparities in maternal health affecting Black and Brown women in the United States.
“The Ebony Canal” examines the historic and ongoing crisis surrounding infant mortality and maternal health outcomes for Black and Brown mothers. Through a blend of storytelling, expert insight, and poetic filmmaking, the documentary illuminates the systemic challenges that shape these realities while also centering voices of resilience, healing, and transformation.
Featuring collaborative perspectives from former Vice President Kamala Harris, Lamman Rucker, Kimberly Seals Allers, Charles Johnson, and leading maternal health advocates and experts, the film offers a compassionate yet unflinching look at the journey toward equity in maternal care. Ultimately, “The Ebony Canal” aims to inspire solution-driven practices and foster meaningful progress in saving the lives of mothers and babies.
Following the screening, the audience is invited to participate in a post-film panel discussion with director Alaquiva. This conversation will provide space to reflect on the film’s themes and engage in dialogue about the path forward for maternal health justice. The evening also will include receptions and networking opportunities to connect with community members and campus partners committed to this work.
The schedule is: an opening reception from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.; screening from 5:40 to 6:15 p.m.; post-film panel from 6:15 to 7:15 p.m.; and a networking reception from 7:15 to 8 p.m.
Admission is pay-if-you-wish, with a suggested price of $5 or $9. The $9 ticket option is symbolic, representing the nine months of pregnancy. A portion of proceeds will be donated to nine organizations dedicated to supporting maternal health initiatives.
Tickets are available on Zoellner’s website.
Reclaimed ‘Macbeth’
Raven Whitefawn
Kailey Edwards Photography
Reclaimed Performing Arts Company will open its 2026 season with “Macbeth” at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday at the Charles A. Brown Ice House in Bethlehem.
Now in its third year, the company was founded by 2023 Cedar Crest College graduate Carter Reichard, who said the group’s goal is to create a judgment-free artistic space that is not limited by how artists are perceived.
Reichard said the company’s goal is to produce productions with the goal of showcasing those that are typically unseen and under-represented in the arts.
After presenting its first fully produced production of “Hamlet” last March, the troupe is tackling Shakespeare’s dark tragedy that explores themes of power, ambition, guilt, and fate.
Reichard is directing, with assistance by Giovanni Marini.
“Macbeth” follows the titular Scottish general, played by Raven Whitefawn, whose ambition is fueled by a prophecy from three witches. Spurred by Lady Macbeth, played by Alyssa Rismiller, Macbeth murders King Duncan, played by Anthony Cornatzer, and seizes the throne. Macbeth’s guilt and paranoia, however, leads to more bloodshed and tyrannical rule that ends in Macbeth’s downfall and civil war. One of Shakespeare’s shortest and most powerful plays, “Macbeth” delves into the corrupting nature of ambition, the psychological effects of guilt, the conflict between fate and free will, and the disruption of natural order.
The cast also features Julisa Trinidad, Kristen Brown, Mia Zappacosta, Zachery Lentz, Emily M. Shaffer, Sam Philipps, Emily Badman, Nic Penn, Jaeden Reppert, and Lars Philipps. Zappacosta is understudy for Macbeth.
The technical staff includes Reese Blaszczyk as stage manager, Caleb Flannery as composer and sound design, Kelsey Snively as intimacy coordinator, Owen Dorlac as fight choreographer, Sofia Barbour as dramaturg, and Alyssa Rismiller, Casmeron Kunsman, and Sam Philipps, design team.
Tickets cost $18 for adults and $15 for students and seniors.
Korean fusion
Zoellner Arts Center at Lehigh University in Bethlehem will welcome Sangjaru, a Korean folk fusion band, to Baker Hall at 7 p.m. on Thursday.
This electrifying performance will blend the spirit of traditional Korean music with the vibrant sounds of gypsy swing, funk, rock, and improvisation.
Sangjaru creates a fresh, genre-crossing sound that honors Korea’s rich musical heritage while expanding it in thrilling new directions. Its performances combine traditional Korean instruments and melodies with infectious rhythms and improvisational energy drawn from global styles. The result is both deeply rooted and wildly contemporary, a celebration of cultural tradition infused with modern creativity.
The band’s name reflects its artistic philosophy. “Sangja” means box, something fixed in form, while “jaru” means sack, something flexible and adaptable. Inspired by this contrast, Sangjaru seeks to reshape and reimagine traditional Korean music, allowing it to evolve and transform while retaining its powerful essence.
Sangjaru is known for its captivating stage presence and innovative approach to folk music fusion. By weaving together Korean tradition with the swing of Django-inspired jazz, the groove of funk, and the intensity of rock, the ensemble has emerged as an exciting voice in contemporary world music. Its artistry invites audiences into a soundscape where cultures meet, rhythms collide, and musical boundaries dissolve.
Tickets cost $20 and are available on Zoellner’s website.
The power of the human voice
Williams Center for the Arts at Lafayette College in Easton will present Roomful of Teeth, a Grammy Award-winning vocal band dedicated to reimagining the expressive potential of the human voice, at 8 p.m. on Saturday.
By engaging collaboratively with artists, thinkers, and community leaders from around the world, Roomful of Teeth seeks to uplift and amplify voices old and new while creating and performing meaningful and adventurous music.
Founded in 2009 by Brad Wells, the band was incubated at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, where members studied with some of the world’s most extraordinary singers and teachers. Experimentation, exploration, and plenty of failures has taught the group that the boundaries of the human voice are never what they seem, that rules can be bent, even broken, and perhaps they should be.
Through its unique collaborative process, Roomful of Teeth has worked with many of today’s most compelling musical creators to build a significant and continuously growing repertoire. It has collaborated with a wide range of artists and ensembles spanning genres and art forms.
As the world rapidly changes, Roomful of Teeth is cultivating deeper relationships with technology, continuing to explore and expand the artistic reach of the human voice. It said it is excited about new collaborative projects focused on stories of place, home, and community in diverse environments around the world. It explores, learns, and collaborates with passionate curiosity, contagious enthusiasm, and deep gratitude.
The program will include “Partita for 8 Voices: 1. Allemande” by Caroline Shaw; “Speaking in Tongues” by Gabriel Kahane; “Math, the one which is sweet” by Angélica Negrón; “Bits torn from words: IV” by Peter Shin; “Vesper Sparrow” by Missy Mazzoli; “On Stochastic Wave Behavior” by Leilehua Lanzilotti; and “The Isle” by Caroline Shaw.
Tickets cost $33 for adults and $6 for students.
Chamber concert
Satori, a mixed ensemble of winds, strings, and piano that plays both traditional and contemporary chamber music, will present “Two Part Invention — Plus One!” at 2 p.m. on Sunday at Central Moravian Church Old Chapel in Bethlehem.
This will be the group’s third annual Super Bowl Sunday concert and will feature music by Telemann, Caliendo, Sor, DeFalla, Schocker, and more.
Performers will be Nora Suggs, flute; John Arnold, guitar; and Elizabeth Mendoza, cello.
A free-will donation will be accepted at the door.
Kutztown Presents
Grammy Award-winning Pacifica Quartet will appear at Kutztown University’s Schaeffer Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. next Thursday, Feb. 12, as part of Kutztown University Presents.
With its powerful energy and captivating, cohesive sound, Pacifica has established itself as the embodiment of the American quartet sound. To recognize the semiquincentennial (250th anniversary) of America in 2026, the Pacifica Quartet will feature three works that create a musical collage based on themes from the American experience. From the incorporation of American hymn tunes in the first quartet of Charles Ives, to the popular sounds from Hollywood’s silver screen in Korngold’s String Quartet No. 2, to the indigenous folk influences found in Dvorak’s beloved “American” Quartet, this program will give listeners a unique opportunity to celebrate the diversity of America’s musical landscape captured over its 250-year history.
Tickets cost $35 for adults; $34 for seniors and $19 for students.
‘Hollywood Jazz’
The New York Jazz Repertory Orchestra will present “Hollywood Jazz” at Zoellner Arts Center in Bethlehem at 8 p.m. on Saturday.
The program will feature iconic film music from the 1940s to the present, performed in vibrant jazz style under the direction of Bill Warfield.
“Hollywood Jazz” will present the magic of the movies on the concert stage, highlighting unforgettable film music reimagined through the energy, swing, and sophistication of jazz. Spanning decades of cinematic history, the program will showcase themes and melodies that have shaped the soundtrack of American culture, transformed through bold arrangements and dynamic improvisation. From golden-age classics to modern favorites, the audience will experience the glamour, drama, and excitement of Hollywood through the lens of a world-class jazz orchestra.
The orchestra said it is dedicated to preserving and celebrating the legacy of jazz through performances that honor the genre’s history while keeping it fresh and alive for today’s audiences. Under the leadership of Warfield, a respected performer, educator, and conductor, the orchestra continues to present programs that explore jazz’s deep connections to American music and popular culture.
Tickets cost $15 and are available on Zoellner’s website.