Bang Arts Festival, 1964-1967

This section contains materials related to the fourth and final Bang Arts Festival, held at RPI from April 25-29, 1967.

The festival started with a symposium entitled “Be In the New York Scene” featuring Village Voice columnist Howard Smith, alongside NYC paraphernalia and head shop owners Susan Smith, Jean Mercier, and Jeff Glick. The second night’s event was a film festival of films from the Ann Arbor Film Festival. The following performance was of contemporary dance from Twyla Tharpe, joined by Sara Rudner, Marjorie Tuppling, and Theresa Dickinson, coming from the Judson Theatre. A music performance from the Virginia Choral Ensemble and George Winn and the Blue Grass Partners occurred. Another event was an electronic music performance from the Sonic Arts Group, consisting of Gordon Mumma, Robert Ashley, Alvin Lucier, and David Behrman. A follow up to the previous year’s faculty performance of “Bird Park Lake” featured Jonathan T. Bowie, Willard D. Pilchard, Bernard M. Martin, and Eleanor R. Carlyon. The festival ended with "Firraggo,” a student dramatic performance directed by Darla Sue Deskins.

Alongside newspaper articles and a feature in the RPI yearbook Cobblestone, this section contains correspondence between RPI faculty and visiting artists. Also included is a letter from the Richmond Municipal Airport manager to the Dean of the School of Art regarding a student caravan that greeted artists arriving at the airport.