You might not expect to find such a wide array of arts and culture offerings in an off-the-beaten-path setting like Gambier, Ohio. But make no mistake: the world comes to our campus via an abundance of world-class lectures, film screenings, concerts, art exhibits, and other cultural activities throughout the year. And Kenyon students are more than a captive audience—they serve as engaged and active participants in the planning and execution of many of our spirited events.

"The conundrum of a writer’s life, particularly that of a poet, is learning to embody a paradox. One has to be fierce and tender at the same time, loud and quiet, brash and introspective."

Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Rita Dove
Kenyon Review Award for Literary Achievement recipient

Reading Goes Viral

Even during a global pandemic, the Kenyon Review Reading Series lives on! Normally a live in-person event, the now-virtual series continues to celebrate some of the most exciting and diverse voices in literature.

Professor Kora Radella’s Contact Improvisation dance class performs scores within Meg Cranston’s exhibition Hue, Saturation, Value: The Archer Paintings.
 Acclaimed writer T.C. Boyle, recipient of the Kenyon Review Award for Literary Achievement.
  Jad Abumrad, creator and co-host of the public radio show Radiolab, shared his storytelling process in his address at Kenyon titled “The Miracle of Indoor Plumbing.” 
Kenyon's classical female a cappella group, Colla Voce, rehearses in Brandi Recital Hall.
The Dirty Dozen Brass Band brought the sounds of New Orleans to our campus.
Shopping Bag, the recently acquired work by acclaimed Dutch photographer Hendrick Kerstens, is now on view in the Gund Gallery.
New York Times writers Maureen Dowd and Carl Hulse led a livestream discussion at Kenyon about the 2016 presidential election. 
Boston-based artist Ally Schmalling '14 documents the expansive queer and nonbinary communities in her city. Their portrait work appeared in the 2019 exhibit, Gender Bending Fashion, at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston.
An audience member asks questions during a Kenyon-sponsored event featuring Michelle Alexander, author of "The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness."

  • 40The average number of theatrical productions held on campus every year.

  • 13instrumental groups perform each semester, including the the Sundanese gamelan degung ensemble.

  • 8student a capella groups warble regularly on campus—some tour during winter and spring breaks.

  • 1spring exhibition in the Gund Gallery featuring works by senior studio art majors in their final step towards graduation.