The Walton Arts & ideas Series is made possible through an endowment by the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation. All WAIS events are open to the public and there is no cost for admission. Please join us for the 2024-25 Walton Arts & Ideas Series.
2024 – 2025 Schedule:
joe castillo
artist, author, storyteller and “sandstory” performer
Thursday, September 5
7 P.M.
Seay Theatre (Walton Fine Arts Center)
Joe Castillo is an artist, pastor, author and storyteller. Castillo’s latest adventure in creative expression is called SandStory. Drawing in sand on a light table, he is able to create a powerful, fluid way of doing illustrations for large audiences. Powerful, visceral, are just a few of the words that have been used in attempting to describe what Castillo does. He has performed in over 20 countries, for Fortune 500 companies, Presidents, Kings, World Leaders, TED, CBS, NBC, BBC and reached the finals on America’s Got Talent. Castillo is not only a performing artist he is also a gifted speaker in both English and Spanish, entertaining and captivating hundreds of thousands of people over a period of 32 years. He has mastered the ability to share his art stories in a way that inspires, motivates and touches the heart. Speaking to corporate events, churches, and conferences has made him a much-requested entertainer, storyteller and motivational speaker.
Pat burke
former nba player and hoopslife founder
**EVENT RESCHEDULED**
Due to Hurricane Milton and his family’s location in relation to the storm, Pat Burke is having to cancel his WAIS event at University of the Ozarks. The event was originally scheduled for Thursday, October 10th.
It has now been rescheduled for: January 22, 2025 at 7:00 pm in the Seay Theatre.
Wednesday, January 22
7 P.M.
Seay Theatre
Born in Dublin, Ireland, Pat Burke’s family moved to the United States from Ireland when he was 4 years old. He later became Ireland’s first NBA player and had a professional basketball career spanning a 12 years playing all over the world. His experience with NBA and FIBA leagues overseas and Ireland’s senior men’s team with great success having acquired six championships. A virtual long shot in making it to the profession’s pinnacle, Burke became the first Irish-born player to make it to the NBA in 2002 when he signed with the Orlando Magic. His career provided an opportunity to work alongside some of the world’s greatest players and coaches and grow in understanding how to overcome challenges and prepare for life opportunities. Today, Burke has taken on a new role that involves youth development. He spearheaded a group of leaders to develop transformative programs that share an introduction to leadership and Life skills. The experience in his career allowed Burke to identify what creates a strong team, community, and family. The HOOPSLife program extends that experience to youth, allowing them to identify how their choices impact their lives and those around them.
AFRIQUE AYA DANCE COMPANY
AFRICAN DANCE AND DRUM GROUP
Tuesday, November 19
7 P.M.
Seay Theatre (Walton Fine Arts Center)
The Afrique Aya Dance Company will perform traditional West African dances, drawing on a rich tradition of storytelling and earth-based, lyric movement and music that convey a vibrant, universal narrative. Angelo Yao, master drummer and dancer, was born in Bouaké, Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), West Africa. He was invited to Yale University in 1997 by choreographer Ralph Lemon to create “Geography,” a fusion of post-modern movement and traditional African dance. That production went on tour to several states in the United States. Angelo moved to Burlington, Vermont in 1998, where he formed Afrique Aya. The company performed and taught residencies and workshops in colleges and schools around the New England area. He moved to Arkansas in 2000, first to Eureka Springs and then to Fayetteville, where he lives now.
Dewey Bozella
Wrongly Imprisoned former boxer
Wednesday, February 12
7 P.M.
Rogers Conference Center (inside Seay Student Center, 2nd Floor)
Dewey Bozella is a former professional boxer who spent 26 years behind bars for a murder he did not commit. His story of courage, strength, faith, and perseverance began in the late 1970s, when he was wrongfully accused of murdering Emma Crapser, a 92-year-old resident of Poughkeepsie, New York. Sentenced to 20 years to life in prison, Bozella fiercely maintained his innocence throughout his ordeal at Sing Sing, and even refused the prosecutor’s offer of instant freedom in exchange for admission of guilt. But in 2009, more than a quarter century later, Bozella would reclaim his identity and his humanity when his conviction was vacated. He was the recipient of the 2011 Arthur Ashe Courage Award and is the author of the 2016 book, “Stand Tall: Fighting for My Life, Inside and Outside the Ring.”
celtic breeze band
celtic folk band and dancers
Wednesday, March 19
7 P.M.
Seay Theatre (Walton Fine Arts Center)
The Celtic Breeze Band is a Celtic folk band and dance troupe. Founded in Arkansas in 2005, Celtic Breeze performs traditional Irish and Scottish tunes along with American folk songs. The group has performed at venues as varied as the Scottish Festival at Lyon College in Batesville, Ark., and Celtic in the Caverns at Blanchard Springs Caverns in Mountain View, Ark. In 2014, the group was chosen for inclusion on the Artist on Tour roster of the Arkansas Arts Council. Dancers from the McCafferty School of Irish Dancers in Little Rock will also take part in the performance.
Dr. kathryn conrad
artificial intelligence (ai) technology and culture specialist
Thursday, April 3
7 P.M.
Rogers Conference Center (inside Seay Student Center, 2nd Floor)
Dr. Kathryn Conrad is a professor of English at University of Kansas and an AI technology and culture specialist. AI is appearing seemingly everywhere now — in music, text, video, presentation, translation, social media, education, and other applications as well in hundreds of bespoke apps. AI-generated material is also showing up in work emails, social media posts, advertisements, textbooks, and political ads. What is it? And why is it so controversial? Conrad talk is titled, “Pandora’s Bot: The Ethics of Generative AI,” and will explore the world of generative AI and the ethical issues that it entails from development to deployment, asking us to consider how we think about technological change and what we value about human work.
