Jacaranda tree at Caltech campus (Photo – Wafic Khalil).
Kicking off Monday, April 20, and running through Sunday, April 26, this full week of public, performance-driven events on Caltech’s science-focused campus highlights the human connections that make life possible.
By Melanie Hooks
– Monday, April 20: Birthday Party & Documentary – Transcending Fear: The Story of Gao Zhisheng
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Location
Chen Building, Room 130
California Institute of Technology
1200 E. California Blvd.
Pasadena, CA 91125
Amnesty International Group 22 and Caltech Women in BBE will host a birthday celebration honoring two internationally prominent human rights lawyers. Chinese human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng has been forcibly disappeared since 2017; he would turn 62 on April 20. Iranian human rights lawyer Narges Mohammadi, recipient of the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize, will turn 54 on April 21 while in detention.
The evening will include cake and tea, followed by a screening of Transcending Fear: The Story of Gao Zhisheng.
This event is free and open to the public. RSVP to reserve your seat. For more information, contact Dr. Wen Chen at wenchenspeaker@gmail.com.
– Tuesday, April 21: The Heat of the Suns Rays: – An Earth Week Theater-Science Conversation with Caltech Climate Dynamics
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Location
Resnick Sustainability Center, Lobby
between Beckman Institute & Braun Laboratories
S. Wilson Ave.
Pasadena, CA 91125
The Heat of the Sun’s Rays by Katherine Vondy, directed by Jessie Lee Mills, with science advisors Olivia Alcabes and Zhaoyi Shen.
In ancient Greece, Cassandra foresees events of the Trojan War. In 19th-century London, academics gather to discuss the latest scientific discoveries. In 2024 Phoenix, a young woman and her grandmother confront a historic Arizona heat wave. What connects these distant people, places, and times? The answer lies in the groundbreaking work of early American climatologist Eunice Newton Foote.
For more information, visit tacit.caltech.edu/mach33 or contact Brian Brophy at Caltech at brophy@caltech.edu.
– Wednesday, April 22: Movies That Matter’s Earth Day Screening – The Spectrum of Life
7:30 pm – 9:00 pm
Location
Chen Building, Room 130
California Institute of Technology
1200 E. California Blvd.
Pasadena, CA 91125
In celebration of Earth Day 2026, Caltech’s Movies That Matter, in collaboration with the campus Sustainability Project, will present a free screening of The Spectrum of Life, a short documentary about NASA’s first biodiversity airborne campaign in South Africa, BioSCape.
The film explores local biodiversity, NASA’s role in conservation, and how next-generation remote sensing may transform ecosystem monitoring worldwide. A post-screening discussion will feature JPL scientist Phil Brodrick and other experts, followed by audience Q&A.
Admission is free; reservations are strongly encouraged. For more information, contact Michael Alexander at (626) 395-4652 or Michael.Alexander@Caltech.edu.
– Thursday – Sunday, April 23-26: Three Sisters by Anton Chekov
Thursday, Friday, Saturday: 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm
Sunday: 2:30 pm
Location
Ramo Auditorium
Donald E. Baxter M.D. Hall of the Humanities and Social Sciences
1200 E. California Blvd.
Pasadena, CA 91125
This bold, updated reimagining of Anton Chekhov’s Three Sisters relocates the Russian tragicomedy, centered on unfulfilled dreams, social decline, and the tension between aspiration and reality, to 1950s California.
As the sisters long for a more vibrant life, stagnation slowly overtakes them. This experimental production blends Chekhov’s original themes with reflections on past, present, and imagined futures.
Tickets are available online ($5–$26). For more information, contact Hyesung Park at (626) 808-2641 or hschoe@caltech.edu.
– Saturday, April 25: In Nomine Terra Calens – Free Earth Week Concert
2:00 pm – 3:30 pm
Location
Zipper Hall
200 S. Grand Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Note: Date and venue change.
As part of Earth Week, Caltech and the Colburn School will co-host In Nomine Terra Calens, a program blending scientific insight and live performance to explore the climate crisis.
Researchers from Caltech’s Linde Center for Global Environmental Science will discuss the causes and projected impacts of climate change, along with evidence-based solutions at individual, community, and policy levels. The Colburn Baroque Ensemble will offer a musical response, creating space for reflection.
The program features music by seismologist and composer Dr. Lucy Jones, whose work translates global temperature changes from 1880 to 2017 into sound.
Admission is free; reservations are recommended. Parking is available at the Disney Hall Garage, located across the street. The Metro A Line’s Bunker Hill station is one block away.
For more information, contact Michael Alexander at (626) 395-4652 or events@Caltech.edu.
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