Lecture on Good and Evil in Film

In cooperation with Commonweal Magazine’s Speakers Program, St.Thomas Aquinas Chapel at the University of Connecticut will host two Aquinas Lectures by Richard Alleva, Commonweal Film Critic, on Sunday, April 15 at 5:30 PM and Monday, April 16 at 7:30 PM. The talks are titled “A Divine Comedy at the Movies: Sunday, Hell: Some Infernal Problems; Monday, Heaven: Some Celestial Limitations.” Both will take place at the Aquinas Student Center, 46 North Eagleville Road on the Storrs Campus. They will focus on the age-old dramatic conflict between good and evil, alternately examining how the motion-picture medium has portrayed each side of this struggle. The presentations are free, and the public is cordially invited to share the insights of this distinguished speaker.

Richard Alleva, a native of Waterbury, earned a Bachelor of Arts in Drama from UConn and a Master of Fine Arts in Playwriting at the Catholic University of America. His interest in film analysis began at an early age, through a chance reading of in-depth reviews by Esquire Magazine’s film critic, the late Dwight Macdonald. The responsive chord they struck eventually led him to consider a career in acting and playwriting. He toured nationally with Catholic University’s National Players repertory company, performed in summer stock in the Washington DC area, and authored a series of stories, stage plays and screenplays. He also served on the writing team for the Maryland PBS series Footsteps about the challenges of parenting.