Courses in Valley

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Courses are listed alphabetically by title. Titles beginning with quotation marks (“”) appear first.
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Shakespeare: Our Modern Contemporary NEW!

Instructor: Shelley Bryant

Hover over an Instructor's name above and their biography will appear.

Day of the Week: Th

Times: 1:30 PM - 3:00 PM

Dates: 10/29/2026 - 12/10/2026

This instructor is teaching this course in Charlottesville and Staunton. This is the course offered in Staunton.

Number of class sessions in this course: 7

Fee: $84.00

Course Location: VPAS-Valley Program for Aging Services. (opens in new tab) - Conference Room

Location Address: 325 Pine Ave Waynesboro, VA 22980

Limit: 12

Number of seats available: 4

Course Description:

Great art bestows the ability to find in the past aspects of human experience that sheds light on the meaning of our own times. This was particularly the case for the intellectuals living in post World War II Eastern Europe, who had not only experienced first hand the horrors of concentration camps, totalitarianism, and the threat of nuclear annihilation, but subsequently had also found themselves allied against the reality of everyday life under Stalin. These intellectuals found in Shakespeare’s plays a profound parallel in the playwright’s own proximity to civil war, brutality, ideology, conspiracy, and bloody repression. While seeing in Shakespeare what was termed “universal truth,” they, unlike any of the prominent Shakespearean critics in earlier eras, also found in Shakespeare’s plays the essence of modern consciousness. What was this particular essence that drew them to Shakespeare in a way no other prior critics had glimpsed? We will answer this question by discussing five plays: Richard II and Richard III, Hamlet, Macbeth, and Othello to discover what qualities of modern experience they found.

America and the World In the Age of Jefferson

Instructor: James Sofka

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Day of the Week: Tu

Times: 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM

Dates: 10/27/2026 - 11/17/2026

*SCHEDULE HAS BEEN CHANGED

Number of class sessions in this course: 4

Fee: $48.00

Course Location: R.R. Smith Center for History and Art (opens in new tab) - Upstairs Lecture Room

Location Address: 22 South New St Staunton, VA 24401

Limit: 35

Number of seats available: 9

Course Description:

This course will examine America’s role in international relations from the Revolutionary War through what some historians have termed the “second war of independence,” the War of 1812. World politics was both a source of great opportunity as well as grave dangers to the Founding Fathers, and most believed isolationism to be impractical. Managing the realities of wars, territorial disputes, and trade rivalries was a constant preoccupation of the Founding generation. In this course, we will examine the critical issues facing early American leaders and the competing strategies they designed to secure American independence in a volatile world. As we honor the nation’s 250th birthday, we will examine the stakes of international relations in its Founding period, the role they played in shaping our Constitution, and the political cleavages they helped create in the new American nation.

Thanks for your interest in ‘Your Life As A Work Of Art.’ with Albert Moore!

This opportunity begins 9/22/2026.

Online registration for this program is currently closed.

Online registration closes one week before the start date to allow time for preparation, and/or
Registration remains closed once the program has begun.
Osher Online courses close earlier so that enollment information can be shared with Osher National.

You may still be able to participate.
Call the OLLI Office at 434‑923‑3600 to register. Office hours: Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
There are 14 seats available. (A positive number indicates the number of seats still available, 0 indicates the course is full. A negative number indicates a waitlist. For example, -3 means three people are currently on the waitlist.)

Dates: 9/22/2026 - 11/3/2026
Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Days: Tu
Fee: $98.00
Course Location: OLLI at UVA (opens in new tab) - Terrace Level
Location Address: 1 Morton Drive, Terrace Level Charlottesville, VA 22903
This instructor is teaching this course in Charlottesville and Staunton. This is the course offered in Charlottesville. Scroll down to view and register for the course in Staunton.

Description:

Your Life As A Work Of Art is a refinement of a previous class: Applying The Creative Process To Your Life, offered at OLLI UVA and The Center in 2025. Your Life As A Work Of Art focuses directly our inherent creative tools and the Seven Phases of Creation of manifesting/experiencing our intended creations. Albert presents each topic with a dash of humor and the promise of lively discussion.

‘Your Life As A Work Of Art.’ has been cancelled.

Thanks for your interest in The Healing Narrative: Perception, Memory, and Integration in Autobiography with Ruth Ellen Porter!

This opportunity begins 10/27/2026.

Online registration for this program is currently closed.

Online registration closes one week before the start date to allow time for preparation, and/or
Registration remains closed once the program has begun.
Osher Online courses close earlier so that enollment information can be shared with Osher National.

You may still be able to participate.
Call the OLLI Office at 434‑923‑3600 to register. Office hours: Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
There are 21 seats available. (A positive number indicates the number of seats still available, 0 indicates the course is full. A negative number indicates a waitlist. For example, -3 means three people are currently on the waitlist.)

Dates: 10/27/2026 - 11/24/2026
Times: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Days: Tu
Fee: $60.00
Course Location: VPAS-Valley Program for Aging Services. (opens in new tab) - Conference Room
Location Address: 325 Pine Ave Waynesboro, VA 22980

Description:

Given the contemporary interest in therapeutic writing, this course offers insight into why it works and how to apply it to your own life experiences. Through an interdisciplinary lens of philosophy, art, psychology, and writing, the student explores the fascinating world of personal narrative.

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