Salem State University Center for the Arts

09/21/2026

Congratulations to all the contributors to "Pieces of Salem: An Anthology of Salem Voices"! A terrific reading and book launch yesterday at the Sophia Gordon Center co-hosted with PEM as part of their PEM Reads series. The collection contains prose and poems from more than 130 citizens who live or work in Salem Congratulations to J.D. Scrimgeour who curated this effort, a literary homage to Salem on the occasion of its quadricentennial!

Salem 400+
J.D. Scrimgeour
Peabody Essex Museum
Salem State University

“Pieces of Salem” is a collection of works from over 130 community members, each contemplating what this city means to them as we mark Salem 400+.

I appreciated the invitation to share my own piece from this important book, reflecting on my childhood memories growing up in North Salem. Thanks to Salem Poet Laureate J.D. Scrimgeour, for leading the effort to compile, curate, and edit the book!

https://www.salemstate.edu/calendar/pem-reads-ssu-pieces-salem-anthology-salem-voices-sep-20-2026

09/21/2026

There is always something creative happening on campus. Did you know the majority of our arts events are free? Check us out!

Ongoing through October 2
Art + Design Faculty Exhibition
Winfisky Gallery, Ellison Campus Center
Monday through Friday, 10 am - 4 pm

Friday September 25
Dance Guest Artists Lauren Horn
Movement Workshop - 12:15 pm -1:30 pm
Artist Talk - 1:40 pm - 2:55 pm
O'Keefe Complex - Dance Studio 303

Saturday, September 26
Music Alumni Recital
7:30 pm
Recital Hall, 71 Loring Avenue

09/19/2026

Guitar America 250: Revolutionaries and Rockstars is guitarist Aaron Large-Caplan’s thoughtful survey of 200+ years of song, verse and musical experimentation. The program includes new arrangements of traditional pieces, blended with covers by Paul Simon and Eddie Van Halen, alongside classical repertoire. Poet Richard Hoffman provides spoken word. This journey through the soundscape of a diverse nation is a unique musical reflection on the American experiment.

Monday, September 28
7:30 pm
Salem State Recital Hall
71 Loring Avenue

Admission is free to this concert, a Salem 400+ event.

Salem 400+
Creative Collective MA

09/18/2026

Tonight at 7:30 pm! ScreenDance RoadShow at the Sophia Gordon Center, 356 Lafayette Street.

Produced by Motion State Arts, ScreenDance RoadShow is the only traveling short dance film series in New England that showcases contemporary creative voices exploring choreography for the camera. Each season, a diverse program of dance films from around the world are screened at venues across New England.

Suggested donation of $10 at the door to support the Dance Honors Society. Students with ID and under 18 always admitted free.

09/18/2026

Join Salem’s Poet Laureate J.D. Scrimgeour and PEM’s Director of Learning and Community Engagement David Snider on Sunday, September 20 at 2 pm for the official book launch of Pieces of Salem: An Anthology of Salem Voices. The program will include selected readings by several contributors and a musical performance by Henley Douglas, Jr.

This PEM Reads event, co-hosted by Salem State University, takes place in the Sophia Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts, 356 Lafayette Street.

Edited by Scrimgeour, the collection contains prose and poems from more than 130 citizens who live or work in Salem. Each contribution keeps to a 400-word limit, a number chosen to commemorate the city's quadricentennial. Taken together, the pieces celebrate a famed city marked by ancient tragedy, but brimming with vitality.

A book signing will follow the program.

No advance registration required.

PARKING
Street parking is available on Lafayette Street and Loring Avenue. If street parking is full, you are welcome to park in the North Campus Parking Garage (43 College Drive). College Drive is accessible via Loring Avenue.


Salem 400+
Peabody Essex Museum

09/16/2026

Join us at the Sophia Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts on Friday, September 18 at 7:30 pm for Season 9 of ScreenDance RoadShow.

See short dance films from around the world, currently touring throughout New England. The evening features five films including: "In The Middle"

"In The Middle" is a dance film set across Tehran and London, using choreography, public space and editing to examine how the body responds to different urban
environments. The film places the two cities in dialogue through parallel movement and visual composition.

Director/Choreographer/Performer: Saba Khatami

ScreenDance RoadShow is produced by Motion State Arts

A suggested donation of $10 at the door supports the Dance Honor Society at SSU. Under 18 and students with ID always free. Visit salemstatetickets.com for
additional information.





Salem State University Music & Dance Department
Motion State Arts
Salem State University

09/16/2026

🔵𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴: "𝗜𝗻 𝗦𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝘀 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗹𝗲𝘆" /followed by Q and A with filmmaker Leslie Askey
📆𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟭
🕛𝟭:𝟯𝟬 𝗽𝗺 - 𝟰 𝗽𝗺
📍𝗖𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗺𝗮 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗺, 𝟭 𝗘 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗦𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗹, 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗺, 𝗠𝗔 𝟬𝟭𝟵𝟳𝟬 (𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗹)

The Salem State University English and History Departments present a screening of In Search of Phillis Wheatley Peters is a 35-minute short film that reveals the little-known love story of Phillis Wheatley—America’s first published Black poet—and John Peters, a free Black man she married in 1778. Drawing from the groundbreaking scholarship of historian Dr. Cornelia Dayton, the film brings new archival discoveries to life, revealing the couple’s struggles for autonomy, dignity, and survival in Revolutionary-era Boston. Featuring insights from leading scholars and poets, the film reimagines Phillis not just as a literary icon, but as a woman who chose love, partnership, and resistance against extraordinary odds.

This event is free and open to the public.

09/16/2026

Join us this week at the Winfisky Gallery for an artist talk and reception for the Art + Design Faculty Showcase.

September 16
Artist Talk - 12:30-1:30 pm
Reception - 1:30-3 pm

September 18
Evening Reception - 6-8 pm

This annual exhibit features the work of faculty from within Salem State University’s nationally accredited art + design department. Works by both full-time and adjunct studio faculty in printmaking, painting, design, sculpture, photography and various other media are exhibited.

Exhibition
September 2-October 2, 2026.
Mondays-Fridays
10am-4pm

Winfisky Gallery, Ellison Campus Center, 1 Meier Drive

09/15/2026

Busy week at SSU Arts!

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16

Art + Design Faculty Showcase
Artist Talk - 12:30 pm
Reception - 1:30 - 3 pm

Soundings East Release Party
7:30 pm
MLK Room, Ellison Campus Center

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18

Art + Design Faculty Showcase
Opening Reception - 6 - 8 pm
Winfisky Gallery, Ellison Campus Center

ScreenDance RoadShow
7:30 pm
Sophia Gordon Center
356 Lafayette Street

Visit our complete calendar at salemstate.edu/arts.

09/15/2026

Join us at the Sophia Gordon Center forCreative and Performing Arts on Friday, September 18 at 7:30 pm for Season 9 of ScreenDance RoadShow.

See short dance films from around the world, currently touring throughout New England. The evening features five films including: "kom terug"

Follow us on an ordinary bike ride as we wind through the country lanes. Our daily reality evolving into something more abstract, where our strong connection is the source for our movement.

Directors/Choreographers/Performers: Maira Renee & Saraï Martens

ScreenDance RoadShow is produced by Motion State Arts.

A suggested donation of $10 at the door supports the Dance Honor Society at SSU. Under 18 and students with ID always free. Visit salemstatetickets.com for additional information.





Salem State University Music & Dance Department