College bulletin: 17 February
This week we have waved goodbye to the temporary Buttery in First Court and we’ve said a disappointing hello to cigarette butts on the patio area outside the new Buttery. I could insert a pun about how we know the new social spaces are smoking hot but that would be too contrived so instead please just stick to where smoking is allowed and definitely don’t leave cigarette ends for other people to clean up. For anyone who isn’t already aware, smoking and vaping are only permitted in three designated areas: Forecourt, Cripps car park and behind the patio gates near Kitchen Bridge but only between 6pm and 10pm.
In this issue of the College bulletin you can read about Emeshe, the Café’s Head Barista, who likes coffee even more than me and has body art to prove it, and the forthcoming Ash Wednesday Evensong which will be broadcast live on BBC Radio 3 on 22 February.
College news
Coffee, cake and characters: meeting the team running the new College Café
The Café at the heart of St John’s as part of the new social hub is the first on the site in the 500-year history of the College. Three staff – all from different countries and with their own individual expertise – run the new eating and work space, serving everything from flat whites to home-baked focaccia sandwiches and French pastries.
Diversifying the Library
The Library team has launched a small project to improve diversity within its collections and they need your help.
Staff would like recommendations for books by authors and scholars of colour who may not currently be on reading lists, but who you think should be.
This can be for any subject or discipline, and can also include books by authors and scholars of colour that are already on reading lists but that we don’t currently have a copy of. All students, academic teaching staff, and Fellows are very welcome to participate, and if you have more than one book to recommend please do so – the more the merrier.
The recommendation form will remain open indefinitely, but if you would like your book to arrive by the end of the academic year please submit your recommendation by the end of Lent Term (17 March 2023).
If you have any further questions, email Katie Hannawin, Library Assistant.
What’s on
Chapel
Student communion – Sunday 19 February, 8.30am
Student Communion takes place every Sunday at 8.30am, followed by a subsidised cooked breakfast in Hall.
Sung Eucharist – Sunday 19 February, 10.30am
Open to all, admission free.
Organ recital – Sunday 19 February, 6pm
Edward Picton-Turbervill (London), will be performing works by Bach and Haydn.
Open to all, admission free.
Sunday Evensong with Sermon – Sunday 19 February, 6.30pm
This term’s sermon series invites the preachers to help our faith learn from the past. The preachers have chosen figures from the 16th and 17th centuries in order to suggest ways in which our faith might deepen through a closer encounter with their life and work.
The preacher this evening, who draws his subject from the title ‘Past tense, future perfect? Learning from the history of faith’, is Professor Peter McCullough of Lincoln College, Oxford, who will be preaching on Lancelot Andrewes.
Open to all, admission free.
Evensong – Monday 20 February, 6.30pm
Sung by St John’s Voices.
Open to all, admission free.
Morning prayer – weekdays, 8.30am
Taking place in Ante-Chapel every weekday morning, lasting about 15 minutes.
Ash Wednesday Evensong – Wednesday 22 February, 4pm
The service will be sung by the College Choir and broadcast live by BBC Radio 3. Members of the congregation are invited to be seated by 3.45pm.
Open to all, admission free.
Evensong – Thursday 23 February, 4pm
The service will be sung by St John’s Voices and recorded for broadcast on 12 April 2023 by BBC Radio 3. Members of the congregation are invited to be seated by 3.45pm.
Open to all, admission free.
The Meditation on the Passion of Christ – Saturday 4 March, 6.00pm
A Service of readings and music for Passiontide.
Deadline for applications has closed.
Follow the Facebook page, SJC Chaplain, for Chapel service updates; and Andrew is on TikTok @thedetoxpriest. The Chapel team is always keen to hear from more volunteers to read in services or assist in other ways: please contact Andrew.
Other events
Mathematics and Mathematicians at St John's – weekdays, 9am-5pm
St John’s College Library.
Exhibition which is open to all, admission free, no booking required.
Live lunchtime meditation – Monday to Thursday, 1.15-1.30pm
Via Zoom.
Spend 15 mindful minutes relaxing or meditating with the University’s mindfulness practitioner, Dr Elizabeth English, in these weekday sessions, free to students and staff.
Open Orchestra – Monday 20 February, 7.30pm
New Music Room.
The St Johns College Open Orchestra (SJCOO) meets, usually fortnightly, on a Monday evening during term time. The orchestra is always happy to have more musicians who want to meet for relaxed and fun rehearsals, and sight read through some fun numbers from a wide variety of genres from classical to film. Brass and string players are particularly needed.
Open to all University members (Grade 4/5 minimum, no auditions required).
Further details and to register or email the SJCOO Director, Daniel Livermore.
Palaeography for beginners – Tuesday 21 February, 3pm
Zoom.
Weekly ‘have-a-go’ sessions for anyone interested in reading handwriting c. 1500 – c. 1700, using documents from the College’s institutional archives. Sessions are informal and aimed at beginners, or those with a little experience who wish to practise their skills. Meetings are held online, using photographs of the documents which will be emailed out in advance along with the Zoom link.
Open to all, attendance free. If you would like to join in, please contact the archivist, Dr Lynsey Darby.
Pre-Dinner Lecture Series talk: Bishop Colenso, Proudly Johnian – Tuesday 21 February, 6.15pm
Boys Smith Room, Fisher Building.
Dr Paul Murray, Diocesan College, and Colenso Visiting Fellow at St John’s, will examine aspects of the Bishop Colenso’s life relative to his time at St John’s, drawing on archival sources at the Special Collections at St John’s College to show the links Colenso had with the College and how these experiences here were processed in aspects of his life.
The Bishop came to St John’s in 1833, and remained directly associated with the College until 1853 when he went as the inaugural Bishop of Natal, to South Africa. He is known for his controversial approach to the religious doctrine of the time in mid-C19 England and elsewhere, as well as a campaigner for human rights in South Africa until his death in 1883.
The lecture will last 20-30 minutes and be followed by audience questions and drinks.
Open to Fellows, affiliates and postgraduate students. Admission free.
Footlights Spring Revue 2023: No More Funny Business – Tuesday 21 February – Saturday 26 February, 7.45pm, with a matinée on the Saturday
ADC Theatre.
This year’s Footlights Spring Revue, performed each year by the graduating Footlights, features St John’s student Barnaby Evans, and is directed by Lewis Roberts. The show features two hours of original sketch comedy, and is one of the highlights of the Cambridge theatre calendar.
Open to all. Tickets Tuesday-Thursday £11-£14, Friday and Saturday, £13-£16.
Further information and tickets
UniVox rehearsals – every Wednesday during term, 5.15pm-6.30pm
Palmerston Room, Fisher Building.
UniVox is a non-auditioned contemporary choir for students across the University run by the new Centre for Music Performance (CMP) and hosted by St John’s.
Places are limited so must be booked via the UniVox page of the CMP website.
Special collection display – Wednesday 22 February, 2pm-4pm
Old Library.
The Old Library will be open on a drop-in basis for people to view a display of items from the special collections. Every Wednesday during full term.
Open to College members and their guests, admission free, no booking required.
St John’s Book Group for postgraduates, English Faculty and College staff – Wednesday 22 February, 5.45pm
Merton Hall Cottage.
Postgraduates, English Faculty and College staff are invited to join Vona Groarke, St John’s Writer-in-Residence, for the second book group meeting of Lent Term. This month’s book is Julian Barnes' 2011 novel, The Sense of an Ending.
If you are interested in joining this or the book group for undergraduate students, email Vona.
Rainbow Superhall – Wednesday 22 February, 6.45pm
Celebrating LGBTQIA+, with a drinks reception at 6.45pm followed by dinner at 7.30pm.
Open to St John’s students, two guests per student. £21.90 for College students, £26.25 for guests. Tickets available via Upay until Tuesday 21 February, 9am.
David and Absalom – Wednesday 22 February, 7.30pm
Main Lecture Theatre, Old Divinity School.
Directed by St John’s Fellow Professor Patrick Boyde this is a semi-staged performance in the original Hebrew, dramatised from the Second Book of Samuel. Watch unfold a 3000 year old story of adultery and ambition, rape, rebellion and retribution, love and loyalty. With images and original music. Surtitles translating the Hebrew into English will be projected on to a screen during the performance.
Open to College postgraduate students, Fellows, visiting Fellows and their guests as part of this term’s Sans Frontières events programme. Attendance free.
Please note that this event replaces the previously advertised dramatisation from Isaiah.
St John's College Music Society (SJCMS) lunchtime recital – Thursday 23 February, 1.15pm
New Music Room.
Clara Sherratt (piano) plays works by Bach, Schumann and Scriabin.
Open to all, admission free, booking is not required.
Drop-in dissertation support group – Thursday 23 February, 2pm-5pm
Via Zoom.
Weekly online group run during term time by the Library, offering a structured study space, support and encouragement for any undergraduate student who is currently working on a dissertation.
Email Rebecca for the Zoom link or if you have any questions.
Mozart’s The Magic Flute – Thursday 23 February – Saturday 25 February, 7.45pm and Saturday 25 February, 1pm
West Road Concert Hall.
The Cambridge University Opera Society, including 17 College members in the cast, orchestra and production teams, showcase The Magic Flute, one of Mozart’s final masterpieces where childlike adventure collides with fantasy, satire, and comedy. Underpinned by Mozart’s kaleidoscopic score, the music captures the timeless themes of love and deception whilst presenting some of the most popular music in the classical repertory, with show-stopping arias and fast paced ensemble numbers.
Open to all. Tickets: students, under 18s and jobseekers: £8.00; concessions (over 60s): £14.00; full price: £16.00.
Further details and to book tickets
Social tennis sessions – Friday 24 February, 3.30pm
St John’s tennis courts, behind the College playing fields.
Hour long social tennis sessions run by St John’s Tennis Club, every Friday during term time. No prior experience is needed, the games are intended for all students of all ages and all abilities. There is no need to come with a partner or tennis balls. If you need a racquet or have any queries please contact Jonny Fox.
Open to all St John’s students, admission free, no booking required.
St John’s Book Group for undergraduates – Monday 27 February, 7pm
Merton Hall Cottage.
Undergraduates are invited to join Vona Groarke, St John’s Writer-in-Residence, for the second undergraduate book group meeting of Lent term. This month’s book is Grief is the Thing With Feathers by Max Porter.
If you are interested in joining this or the book group for postgraduates, English Faculty and staff, email Vona.
Pre-Dinner Lecture Series talk – Tuesday 28 February, 6.15pm
Castlereagh Room, Fisher Building.
Presented by Dr Anna Florin, Research Fellow at St John’s. Details to be confirmed.
The lecture will last 20-30 minutes and be followed by audience questions and drinks.
Open to Fellows, affiliates and postgraduate students. Admission free.
Postgraduates Dine with Fellows – Wednesday 1 March, 7.30pm
Hall.
Open to College postgraduates. Postgraduates can attend one Dine with Fellows dinner per academic year.
Free of charge, limited places, register via Upay after 1 February. Booking closes at 9am on 28 February.
Greek Dialogues - Anthologising the Muse of the Greeks: Poetry Anthologies and the Cultural Transfer of Modern Greece in Britain (1821-1900) – Friday 3 March, 6pm
Room 1.11, Faculty of Classics, Sidgwick Avenue.
Professor Georgia Gotsi, Professor of Modern Greek & Comparative Literature at the University of Patras, Greece and Lewis-Gibson Visiting Fellow at St John’s, examines the extent to which collections of Greek poetic texts reflected prevailing social and political attitudes in 19th century Britain as well as the personal motivations of the anthologists. Professor Gotsi also analyses the impacts of these anthologies on Greek cultural development.
Also available via Zoom.
Open to all members of the University. Admission free. Further details
Pre-Dinner Lecture Series talk – Tuesday 7 March, 6.15pm
Boys Smith Room, Fisher Building.
Presented by Dr Ann Benson, Leverhulme Emeritus Fellowship, and Beaufort Visiting Fellow at St John’s. Details to be confirmed.
The lecture will last 20-30 minutes and be followed by audience questions and drinks.
Open to Fellows, affiliates and postgraduate students. Admission free.
How Cambridge works – Wednesday 8 March, 8pm
Main Lecture Theatre, Old Divinity School.
A talk by Richard Partington, Senior Tutor.
Open to College postgraduate students, Fellows, visiting Fellows and their guests as part of this term’s Sans Frontières events programme.
Attendance free, booking not required.
Johnian Society Virtual Interview with Professor Peter Nienow (1984) – Thursday 9 March, 6.30pm
Online.
The Johnian Society is delighted to continue to host virtual interviews with alumni in 2023. Guests may participate in the event for as long or short a time as they like, staying just for the interview or also engaging in friendly conversation with fellow alumni during the Q&A session.
In this interview Professor Peter Nienow (1984) will speak with Mark Wells (1981) about his memories of St John’s, climate change and his research on glaciers and ice sheets. Peter is Professor of Glaciology at the University of Edinburgh and he was awarded the Polar Medal by Queen Elizabeth II in 2018 in recognition of his research activities in the Arctic.
Open to students at St John’s College, admission free.
Limited spaces, registration closes on Monday 6 March. The link for the session will be sent by email a couple of days ahead of the event. Further information and to register
Botanic Gardens tour – Sunday 19 March, 2pm
Join Professor Tim Bayliss-Smith for a tour of the Cambridge University Botanic Gardens to see the spring flowers.
Open to College postgraduate students, Fellows, Visiting Fellows and their guests as part of this term’s Sans Frontières events programme. Students should bring their University cards for free entry.
Further details to be confirmed.
And finally
The temporary Buttery and Bar have been dismantled in First Court and the aftermath is a salutary warning about what happens if we don’t all keep off the grass like requested.
