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Common Knowledge
By Liberty Common SchoolEducation
Common Knowledge episodes
- What's More Classical Than Musical Theater? with Becky Pollyea | Ep 5
In this episode, we explore the deep classical roots of musical theater, an art form widely recognized for its collaborative nature. While today’s Broadway musicals might seem like a modern invention, they owe much to the traditions of ancient Greece, where music, poetry, dance, and dramatic storytelling first came together in public performances.
We’ll delve into the historical origins of musical theater, beginning with the grand theatrical festivals of Athens, where playwrights competed to create the best combination of music, drama, and spectacle. We’ll also discuss how many theatrical conventions—like the chorus, special effects, and the orchestra—find their roots in Greek theater and how these ancient practices continue to influence the musicals we know and love today.
About Becky Pollyea
Becky is a music and theater instructor at Liberty Common School where she directs the junior-high and high-school theatrical productions. Her career in theater education spans three decades, and her focus has been on facilitating transformational learning experiences for young people through the performing arts.
Connect with Liberty Common School
Liberty Common School Website: www.libertycommon.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LibertyCommonSchool/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/libertycommonschool/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/libertycommonschool
36 min - Beyond Numbers: Why Math Matters for the Human Soul with Torgun Lovely | Ep 4
In this episode, we dive deep into the world of mathematics as more than just numbers and equations. Our guest, a passionate math instructor, shares his journey of discovering Plato’s Republic and explores how ancient philosophy can transform our understanding of math today. Through rich discussions, he explains why math is essential to human flourishing, offering insights into its power to shape minds and nourish the soul. From the concept of zero and its unique historical roots to the role of calculus in the church and beyond, he reveals how math has always intertwined with humanity’s deepest questions. Join us as we explore why studying math can be a path to personal growth and fulfillment, and why, as Plato believed, mathematics is truly a pursuit for the human spirit.
About Torgun LovelyTorgun Lovely has been with Liberty Common School for 16 years, working in various teaching and leadership capacities. He started as the school’s mathematics specialist, teaching classes while overseeing the school’s k-9 mathematics program. In 2010, as the school was expanding to offer grades 10-12, he helped orchestrate what was to become the State of Colorado’s top-performing high-school mathematics program. In 2013 he was promoted to serve as the school’s first assistant principal, and then was promoted into the high-school principal position in January of 2018. More recently he has resumed his role as a mathematics instructor and as the chair of the mathematics department. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics as well as a master's degree in business administration, both from Colorado State University. He and his lovely wife of 23 years, Kathy, have raised two lovely children, Hannah (21), and Mathias (19) – both of whom are proud graduates of LCHS.Additional ResourcesMath for English Majors by Ben Orlin
Math with Bad Drawings by Ben Orlin
Here's Looking at Euclid by Alex Bellos
Mathematical Mysteries by Calvin C Clawson
The Number Devil by Hans Magnus Enzensberger
Mathematics for Human Flourishing by Francis Su
A Most Elegant Equation by Stipp
Euclid in the Rainforest by Joseph Mazur
Zero by Charles Seife
The Republic by Plato
Connect with Liberty Common School
Liberty Common School Website: www.libertycommon.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LibertyCommonSchool/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/libertycommonschool/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/libertycommonschool
33 min - Magical Realism with Paulina Deitrick | Ep 3
LCHS Spanish Instructor Paulina Deitrick dives into the fascinating world of magical realism, a captivating genre that has profoundly influenced Latin American literature.
She will explore the works of celebrated authors such as Gabriel García Márquez, author of One Hundred Years of Solitude and how popular films like Disney's Encanto bring elements of magical realism to mainstream audiences.
Tune in to discover how magical realism transcends mere storytelling, offering a window into the soul of Latin America’s people and their complex relationship with reality, imagination, and history.
Additional Resources:
Authors:
- Gabriel García Márquez (One Hundred Years of Solitude, Love in the Times of Cholera, No One Writes to the Colonel)
- Isabel Allende (The House of the Spirits, Eva Luna, Tales from Eva Luna, The Sum of our Days, The Infinite Plan, The Wind Knows my Name)
- Jorge Luis Borges (especially Fictions, The Library of Babel, Borges and I)
- Julio Cortázar (Hopscotch, Letter to a Young Lady in Paris, Cronopios, Famas)
- Laura Esquivel (The Law of Love, Like Water for Chocolate, Malinche)
Movies:
- Encanto
- Big Fish
- Pan's Labyrinth
- Inception
- Edward Scissorhands
- Midnight in Paris
- Amelie
- Chocolat
Art:
- Gonzalo Endara Crow
Connect with Liberty Common School
Liberty Common School Website: www.libertycommon.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LibertyCommonSchool/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/libertycommonschool/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/libertycommonschool
32 min - Participatory Remembrance with Jared Dybzinski | Ep 2
Imagination and creativity are popular words (rightly so), but words like remembrance are not so trendy.
Jared Dybzinski looks at what C.S. Lewis (specifically his Narnia series) and other authors have to say about the poetic imagination and the relationship between knowledge and participatory remembrance.
About Jared Dybzinski
Jared Dybzinski is an English Instructor and head of the English department at Liberty Common High School. He studied applied linguistics as an undergraduate at Moody Bible Institute and is currently in a graduate program at the University of Dallas, working on his masters degree in humanities, with a concentration in classical education.Mr. Dybzinski has been married to his wonderful wife Natalie for eighteen years. They love raising their four daughters and one son. Mr. Dybzinski enjoys most anything outdoors, but especially fly fishing and golf. He enjoys worshiping the Holy Trinity and coming under great works as a means to that great End.
Helpful Links
Liberty Common School Website: www.libertycommon.org
Festival of Ideas 2024: www.libertycommon.org/about/news-and-events/festival-of-ideas/speakers
Connect with Liberty Common School
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LibertyCommonSchool/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/libertycommonschool/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/libertycommonschool
43 min - Only An Irritated Oyster with Nancy and Gustav Hoyer | Ep 1
Is great art born of the person or their circumstances?
When great art is produced, does it flow primarily out of the genius of the artist or the difficult circumstances of their life? Using Ludwig van Beethoven's life and music as a guide, the Hoyers plumb the depths of the age old question, "Would the artist have produced such beautiful art if he hadn't had such a difficult life?"
About Nancy Hoyer
Mrs. Hoyer grew up in Massachusetts and has been singing and playing the flute for over 40 years. She has lived all over the country, including Florida, Connecticut, New York, California, and Colorado, where she has lived for the past 11 years. She and her husband Gustav have five children - all of whom were homeschooled until attending Liberty Common High School. A lover of educational philosophy, and especially Classical Education, Mrs. Hoyer enjoys reading, quilting, taking long walks, volunteering at church, and making music with her family. She is blessed to work at such an incredible school with such wonderful people.
About Gustav Hoyer
Gustav Hoyer was born in Denver CO in 1972. His musical pursuits began in high school following a life-changing encounter with the music of Beethoven and Mozart. He subsequently studied music theory, piano, and violin and pursued collegiate degrees in composition. He has written music for a wide variety of ensembles, media, and settings. His recorded music has been heard in film, on radio, and in performance around the world. He continues to create new orchestral music that draws on the tools of classical vocabulary while fully modern in their contemplations.
Rich in musical narrative, his works have been described as evocative, accessible, and powerfully emotional. He was the Artistic Director for Los Angeles-based Orchestra Unleashed, Artistic Director of contemporary classical ensemble NoCo Artists, and now serves as the Associate Director of the Loveland Opera Theatre. As a conductor he has performed over 20 new compositions by composers from around the world. He continues to record and release new works with recent album releases Witness (2018), The Gilded Age (2020), The Mental Cartographer (2021), A Winter Journal (2023), and Conversations (2023).
Helpful Links
Liberty Common School Website: www.libertycommon.org
Festival of Ideas 2024: www.libertycommon.org/about/news-and-events/festival-of-ideas/speakers
Gustav Hoyer: https://gustavhoyer.com/
Connect with Liberty Common School
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LibertyCommonSchool/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/libertycommonschool/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/libertycommonschool
32 min
About Common Knowledge
From the publisher's feed
Common Knowledge is a podcast from Liberty Common School in Fort Collins, Colorado.
In each episode, guests explore topics from classical literature and musical composers to great art and groundbreaking science aiming to connect with the community through shared intellectual interests.