Jake Gyllenhaal and Colm Toíbín: In Conversation The Year of James Baldwin

Described by the Washington Post as "an almost unbearable, tumultuous, blood-pounding experience," James Baldwin's Another Country remains one of the most powerful novels about that tangle of conundrums (race, gender, class, and sexuality), which so dramatically organizes our culture. To launch Columbia University's installment of The Year of James Baldwin, Jake Gyllenhaal, acclaimed actor, Columbia alumnus, and Academy Award® and Golden Globe® nominee, will join Colm Toíbín, celebrated author and Irene and Sidney B. Silverman Professor of English and Comparative Literature, in a dynamic conversation about this remarkable novel and its enduring relevance. The evening will be introduced by Carol Becker, Dean of Columbia University School of the Arts, and Farah Jasmine Griffin, William B. Ransford Professor of English and Comparative Literature and African American Studies.


The Year of James Baldwin
April 2014 -- June 2015

In commemoration of the 90th anniversary of the birth of James Baldwin (1924-1987), Harlem Stage, Columbia University School of the Arts, and New York Live Arts have partnered to mount a citywide, multi-disciplinary slate of programming exploring his life and work. Other collaborators include: New York University; The New School and its Vera List Center for Art and Politics; The Poetry Society of America; The Harlem Book Fair; The National Black Theater; and others to be announced as the year progresses.