Monica Byrne's The Actual Star (reading group) [Durham, NC]
**This course is in-person only. There is no virtual component. Participants must be age 21+
Full Tuition: $200 — Scholarship options are available in the drop-down enrollment menu for you to self-select.
Instructor: Lindsey Andrews | Wednesdays August 7 - September 4 (no class August 21) | 7:00-9:00 PM ET | In-Person, 719 N Mangum St, Durham, NC
*Free copies of the book will be available for registered participants starting July 10—pick up at the bar.*
What if, in the future, we could pick every aspect of our identity, from gender and sexuality to ethnicity? What if there were no status hierarchy, and capitalism was over? What conditions would it take to get us there? And what aspects of the past might make that possible? What beliefs—from ancient myths to contemporary science—would pave the way?
Monica Byrne’s The Actual Star imagines this future, linking it not only to our present day, but to the distant past, too. According to the publishers: “The Actual Star takes readers on a journey over two millennia and six continents —telling three powerful tales a thousand years apart, all of them converging in the same cave in the Belizean jungle. Braided together are the stories of a pair of teenage twins who ascend the throne of a Maya kingdom; a young American woman on a trip of self-discovery in Belize; and two dangerous charismatics vying for the leadership of a new religion and racing toward a confrontation that will determine the fate of the few humans left on Earth after massive climate change. In each era, a reincarnated trinity of souls navigates the entanglements of tradition and progress, sister and stranger, and love and hate—until all of their age-old questions about the nature of existence converge deep underground, where only in complete darkness can they truly see.”
Over the course of four weeks, we’ll read this epic novel together. Each week, we’ll also discuss various aspects of our culture and beliefs that inform the narrative: how do myths work and why have they been so important to different cultures? How do the language and concepts of science affect our day-to-day existence? What is gender? How does capitalism relate to climate change? Can we make a different future, or are we doomed to repeat the past? Hopefully we’ll come out of it with some sense of possibilities and power of fiction in our lives.
—
This class will take place in person at Night School Bar in Durham. Night School requires that students refrain from attending in-person classes when sick. For more on our class policies, see our FAQ. Instructors will also follow this policy. If your instructor is sick, class may be moved to online for a session or rescheduled to the week following the final scheduled session at the instructor’s discretion.
Sliding Scale: Night School Bar pays instructors and staff a living wage. We ask that people who make above the living wage threshold for their area strongly consider choosing 50% or higher tuition tiers in order to support our own living wage program. For Durham, NC, where we are located, the living wage threshold is $49,000 for an individual. All scholarship needs are self-assessed, and we will never request or require proof of need.
Scholarships: We are currently able to offer three full scholarships per class. Our full scholarship tier is a nonrefundable offering, limited to one per student per month.Because our scholarship funding is limited, selecting multiple full scholarships in a single month will result in disenrollment from all classes. If the scholarship tier you need is sold out please email us directly, and we will add you to a waitlist and notify you if additional scholarships become available. Please see our FAQ for more information, including installment plans and refund policy.
**This course is in-person only. There is no virtual component. Participants must be age 21+
Full Tuition: $200 — Scholarship options are available in the drop-down enrollment menu for you to self-select.
Instructor: Lindsey Andrews | Wednesdays August 7 - September 4 (no class August 21) | 7:00-9:00 PM ET | In-Person, 719 N Mangum St, Durham, NC
*Free copies of the book will be available for registered participants starting July 10—pick up at the bar.*
What if, in the future, we could pick every aspect of our identity, from gender and sexuality to ethnicity? What if there were no status hierarchy, and capitalism was over? What conditions would it take to get us there? And what aspects of the past might make that possible? What beliefs—from ancient myths to contemporary science—would pave the way?
Monica Byrne’s The Actual Star imagines this future, linking it not only to our present day, but to the distant past, too. According to the publishers: “The Actual Star takes readers on a journey over two millennia and six continents —telling three powerful tales a thousand years apart, all of them converging in the same cave in the Belizean jungle. Braided together are the stories of a pair of teenage twins who ascend the throne of a Maya kingdom; a young American woman on a trip of self-discovery in Belize; and two dangerous charismatics vying for the leadership of a new religion and racing toward a confrontation that will determine the fate of the few humans left on Earth after massive climate change. In each era, a reincarnated trinity of souls navigates the entanglements of tradition and progress, sister and stranger, and love and hate—until all of their age-old questions about the nature of existence converge deep underground, where only in complete darkness can they truly see.”
Over the course of four weeks, we’ll read this epic novel together. Each week, we’ll also discuss various aspects of our culture and beliefs that inform the narrative: how do myths work and why have they been so important to different cultures? How do the language and concepts of science affect our day-to-day existence? What is gender? How does capitalism relate to climate change? Can we make a different future, or are we doomed to repeat the past? Hopefully we’ll come out of it with some sense of possibilities and power of fiction in our lives.
—
This class will take place in person at Night School Bar in Durham. Night School requires that students refrain from attending in-person classes when sick. For more on our class policies, see our FAQ. Instructors will also follow this policy. If your instructor is sick, class may be moved to online for a session or rescheduled to the week following the final scheduled session at the instructor’s discretion.
Sliding Scale: Night School Bar pays instructors and staff a living wage. We ask that people who make above the living wage threshold for their area strongly consider choosing 50% or higher tuition tiers in order to support our own living wage program. For Durham, NC, where we are located, the living wage threshold is $49,000 for an individual. All scholarship needs are self-assessed, and we will never request or require proof of need.
Scholarships: We are currently able to offer three full scholarships per class. Our full scholarship tier is a nonrefundable offering, limited to one per student per month.Because our scholarship funding is limited, selecting multiple full scholarships in a single month will result in disenrollment from all classes. If the scholarship tier you need is sold out please email us directly, and we will add you to a waitlist and notify you if additional scholarships become available. Please see our FAQ for more information, including installment plans and refund policy.
**This course is in-person only. There is no virtual component. Participants must be age 21+
Full Tuition: $200 — Scholarship options are available in the drop-down enrollment menu for you to self-select.
Instructor: Lindsey Andrews | Wednesdays August 7 - September 4 (no class August 21) | 7:00-9:00 PM ET | In-Person, 719 N Mangum St, Durham, NC
*Free copies of the book will be available for registered participants starting July 10—pick up at the bar.*
What if, in the future, we could pick every aspect of our identity, from gender and sexuality to ethnicity? What if there were no status hierarchy, and capitalism was over? What conditions would it take to get us there? And what aspects of the past might make that possible? What beliefs—from ancient myths to contemporary science—would pave the way?
Monica Byrne’s The Actual Star imagines this future, linking it not only to our present day, but to the distant past, too. According to the publishers: “The Actual Star takes readers on a journey over two millennia and six continents —telling three powerful tales a thousand years apart, all of them converging in the same cave in the Belizean jungle. Braided together are the stories of a pair of teenage twins who ascend the throne of a Maya kingdom; a young American woman on a trip of self-discovery in Belize; and two dangerous charismatics vying for the leadership of a new religion and racing toward a confrontation that will determine the fate of the few humans left on Earth after massive climate change. In each era, a reincarnated trinity of souls navigates the entanglements of tradition and progress, sister and stranger, and love and hate—until all of their age-old questions about the nature of existence converge deep underground, where only in complete darkness can they truly see.”
Over the course of four weeks, we’ll read this epic novel together. Each week, we’ll also discuss various aspects of our culture and beliefs that inform the narrative: how do myths work and why have they been so important to different cultures? How do the language and concepts of science affect our day-to-day existence? What is gender? How does capitalism relate to climate change? Can we make a different future, or are we doomed to repeat the past? Hopefully we’ll come out of it with some sense of possibilities and power of fiction in our lives.
—
This class will take place in person at Night School Bar in Durham. Night School requires that students refrain from attending in-person classes when sick. For more on our class policies, see our FAQ. Instructors will also follow this policy. If your instructor is sick, class may be moved to online for a session or rescheduled to the week following the final scheduled session at the instructor’s discretion.
Sliding Scale: Night School Bar pays instructors and staff a living wage. We ask that people who make above the living wage threshold for their area strongly consider choosing 50% or higher tuition tiers in order to support our own living wage program. For Durham, NC, where we are located, the living wage threshold is $49,000 for an individual. All scholarship needs are self-assessed, and we will never request or require proof of need.
Scholarships: We are currently able to offer three full scholarships per class. Our full scholarship tier is a nonrefundable offering, limited to one per student per month.Because our scholarship funding is limited, selecting multiple full scholarships in a single month will result in disenrollment from all classes. If the scholarship tier you need is sold out please email us directly, and we will add you to a waitlist and notify you if additional scholarships become available. Please see our FAQ for more information, including installment plans and refund policy.