The University of Wisconsin announced Wednesday an alumnus will be giving a series of lectures on campus and in the Madison area during November, marking the debut of a new program by the Wisconsin Alumni Association.
Fred Plotkin, a 1978 UW graduate, will be in Madison Nov. 9-15 as part of the Alumni in Residence program, and a few of the lecture topics will include Italian cuisine and opera.
“The program is designed to bring in accomplished alumni to interact with students, faculty, the community and other alumni through a series of special events that they would otherwise not have had the opportunity to,” WAA spokesperson Kate Dixon said.
While at UW in the mid-1970s, Plotkin majored in Italian Renaissance history with a focus on Venice and a minor in theatre and production. He was an honors graduate and his thesis was titled “How to Save Venice From Sinking.” He conducted part of his research while studying broad in Italy during his junior year.
Dixon said the new Alumni in Residence program is similar to residence programs in other UW departments, “such as when a journalist or scientist stays with the university for a certain period of time.”
“We know there is this same sort of interest in accomplished alumni,” Dixon said.
The topic of one of Plotkin’s lectures will focus on a biography of Michelangelo he is currently writing, the 10th of his books so far.
A native of Manhattan, Plotkin’s visit to Madison will mark his second trip back to the city since his graduation.
“I have a positive feeling about my time at the university, and that is why I will be returning,” Plotkin said.
Plotkin said he studied a broad range of topics while at the university, including literature, history and Scandinavian studies.
Plotkin said his main career is in opera, and one of his lectures will be titled “Opera with the Experts.”
“I do production, directing, design, everything but singing,” Plotkin said.
Some of the lectures will be free and others will require a registration fee.
“The lectures will not be all about me,” Plotkin said. “I will share my experiences, hoping my audience will draw from them and learn from them.”
