Five Free, Fun Things at Duke in September

The Duke Events Calendar is packed with free offerings during the month of September, from a tour of the newly renovated David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library and its gallery spaces to an orchestra concert of Broadway hits on the East Campus quad. Working@Duke brings you five, free fun things to do at Duke at the start of every month, so check back the first week of October and throughout the academic year for this monthly series. Sept. 3  – Discover the Foundry House Gross Hall’s ground level recently underwent a transformation, turning a room of air handling units into 7,600 square feet of project space called The Foundry, to be used by Duke student teams, faculty and staff focused on engineering, energy, entrepreneurship and sustainability. From 4:30 to 6 p.m. Sept. 3, Duke community members can attend an open house and dedication with refreshments, self-guided tours and demonstrations by current Foundry groups, including Duke Electric Vehicles, DukeMakers and Duke Robotics.Sept. 6  – Enjoy an outdoor pops concert on East CampusTo celebrate Labor Day weekend and the beginning of its 2015-16 concert season, the Duke Symphony Orchestra will perform music from Broadway, popular movies and lighter works by American composers. The free concert will be 6 to 7:30 p.m. on the East Campus quad, and families and friends can bring picnics, blankets and lawn chairs. Parking for the event will be free and available in East Campus ungated lots. In case of rain, the concert will be moved to Baldwin Auditorium. Sept. 10 – Visit Rubenstein Library exhibitsAfter nearly three years of renovations, West Campus’ David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library is celebrating its reopening with a Sept. 10 open house  when the Duke community and public can view the library’s new gallery and exhibition spaces. The Rubenstein exhibit “American Beginnings ” will be on display through Nov. 30 and shares artifacts and documents from early American history, such as one of America’s first books, The Whole Booke of Psalmes, from 1640. The “Sidney D. Gamble in China” exhibit, which will be on display through Nov. 1, brings photos out of the Rubenstein collection that show life in China in the early 20th century. Both of these exhibits are located on Rubenstein’s first floor and are open during regular Rubenstein Library hours. More information on these and additional fall exhibits can be found on the Duke Libraries website. Sept. 15 – See free films during the N.C. Latin American Film FestivalThis year’s N.C. Latin American Film Festival will explore the relationship between life, sports, music, history and politics in the Americas. The festival kicks off Sept. 15 with “Paradise,” a film that follows childhood sweethearts, their move to Mexico City, and their struggles with body image and confidence. The film will be shown at Nelson Mandela Auditorium at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill at 7 p.m. The festival is organized by The Consortium in Latin American and Caribbean Studies, a partnership between UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke, and films are scheduled through Oct. 13. Sept. 17 – Meet Center for Documentary Studies artistsDuke’s Center for Documentary Studies (CDS) will offer artist talks and documentary screenings at the end of September. From 6 to 9 p.m. Sept. 17, photographer Jessica Ingram will talk about her journey through the American South and taking present-day photos of historical civil rights, Ku Klux Klan and slave trade sites. Her photos will be on display at CDS through Oct. 17. CDS will also present a free screening of the documentary “Raising Bertie” at Full Frame Theater on Sept. 25. CDS photographer Chris Sims will give a free talk about his visit to Guantanamo Bay on Sept. 30.