Welcome to Riseley WEA
Riseley WEA is an adult educational organisation where we offer two sessions of lectures per year on a variety of cultural subjects - a Spring Term and an Autumn term.
With a history going back nearly twenty seven years, we have covered a wide variety of subjects, from history, architecture, music, art, film and many more.
All our lectures are delivered by tutors with extensive knowledge of their subjects and a great deal of experience in teaching interested and enthusiastic adults.
Everyone is welcome.
We meet in the comfort of Riseley Village Hall Lounge where we start each meeting with a welcoming cup of tea or coffee and biscuits.
Autumn Course Riseley
We enjoyed an entertaining look at history through operettas and musicals – covering both the events depicted in them and the historical context in which they were written.
The course included France in the 19th century (Les Misérables, Orpheus in the Underworld); Weimar Germany (Cabaret, The Threepenny Opera); Belle Epoque Paris and Vienna (The Merry Widow); Depression-era America through Hollywood film musicals; racial tensions in America (Show Boat, West Side Story); the real story of the Trapp Family portrayed in The Sound of Music; pop musicals of the 1950s and 60s and the so-called “Sexual Revolution”; and what some of today’s blockbusters can tell us about our own time.
Illustrated with film clips and musical extracts, photos and cartoons from satirical magazines.
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| Typical lecture |
Our term ended with a splendid lunch and social at which 48 of us enjoyed discussing the course and future courses we hope to hold.
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Lunch and social after our last lect
Watch this space for next years programme!