October 24, 2025 6:30 pm
Town Hall Seattle
Peter Sellars
The arts offer a protected and empowered public space for civic imagination, collective courage, exhilaration, and moral renewal. Their insight, compassion, and creativity provide vital tools for addressing the complexities of divided times. In institutions as varied as hospitals, prisons, schools, courts, businesses, international diplomacy—and within the fabric of our own families—the arts bring shared ideals and imaginative problem-solving to the forefront.
Human and humane, the arts open space for rethinking through visceral, participatory, and immersive experiences grounded in sound, movement, light, and revelation. They foster mutual trust and deeper understanding through emotional and sensory engagement.
Registration opens September 10, 2025.
Peter Sellars will share real-world examples drawn from a lifetime of cross-cultural, cross-disciplinary artistic collaborations around the globe—demonstrating how art responds to crisis and catalyzes social transformation in an era of profound stakes.
About the speaker
Peter Sellars
American Theatre Director
MacArthur Fellow Peter Sellars is a distinguished professor in UCLA’s Department of World Arts and Cultures/Dance, where he has taught since 1988. Known for his bold explorations of complex moral issues—including race, war, poverty, and the global refugee crisis—he has shaped transformative courses such as Art as Moral Action and Art as Social Action.
Sellars has earned international acclaim for his groundbreaking interpretations of artistic masterpieces and his visionary collaborations with a diverse range of creative artists over three decades. His work consistently pushes boundaries, using the arts as a vehicle for social and cultural dialogue.
Sponsoring Departments: Meany Center for the Performing Arts, College of Arts and Sciences, The Graduate School