Ben Brantley is an American theater critic, journalist, editor, publisher and writer. He joined the staff of The New York Times as a drama critic in 1990 and became the paper’s chief theater critic in 1993, stepping down from the post in October 2020. In his 27 years as critic, Brantley wrote more than 2,500 reviews. Prior to joining The Times, Brantley was a writer for The New Yorker magazine, Vanity Fair, and Elle, and worked as European editor, publisher and Paris bureau chief for Women's Wear Daily. He is the editor of “The New York Times Book of Broadway: On the Aisle for the Unforgettable Plays of the Last Century.”

George Q. Daley, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Caroline Shields Walker Professor of Medicine, and Professor of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology at Harvard Medical School, is an internationally recognized leader in stem cell science and cancer biology. His groundbreaking research into the mechanisms behind blood disorders and cancer has led to the development of breakthroughs in chemotherapy treatment. In March 2020, to confront the global health crisis, Dean Daly spearheaded the development of a Boston-based consortium that brought together scientists to address the immediate implications of the pandemic and the long-term needs for enhanced preparedness for the future.

​ARCHIVES 2021 SPEAKERS​

July 8 - Michael Sandel
The Tyranny of Merit: What’s Become of the Common Good?
This presentation will only be on Zoom.

Jake Tapper, CNN Anchor and chief Washington correspondent, hosts the weekday television news show, The Lead with Jake Tapper, and co-hosts the Sunday morning public affairs program, State of the Union. Before joining CNN, Tapper worked for ABC News as Senior White House Correspondent, where he received three Merriman Smith Memorial Awards from the White House Correspondents' Association. In 2017, he was awarded the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Television Political Journalism. In addition to his reporting, Tapper has also authored five books, and has been active in bringing attention and support for veterans’ issues.

Michael Sandel, Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Professor of at Harvard University, is an American political philosopher. His writings on justice, ethics, and democracy have been translated into 27 languages. His legendary course “Justice” was the first Harvard course to be made freely available online and has been viewed by tens of millions of people around the world. Sandel’s lectures have taken him across five continents and have packed such venues as St. Paul’s Cathedral (London), the Sydney Opera House (Australia) and an outdoor stadium in Seoul (S. Korea) where 14,000 people came to hear him speak.

August 12 – Michael Eric Dyson 
Long Time Coming: Reckoning with Race in America

July 22 – Jake Tapper
Fiction, Facts, and Lies: On Writing Novels and Covering Politics in 2021 

Danielle Allen is the James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University, and Director of Harvard’s Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics. A political theorist who has published broadly in democratic theory, political sociology, and the history of political thought, she is widely known for her work on ethics and citizenship. She is a MacArthur Foundation Fellow, former Chair of the Mellon Foundation Board and past Chair of the Pulitzer Prize Board. Earlier this year Allen was named the 2020 recipient of the Kluge Prize from the Library of Congress, an international award for scholarly achievement in disciplines not covered by the Nobel Prize.

August 5 – Ben Brantley
 Theater, Now and Forever: Why the Fabulous Invalid Isn't Dying 

July 29 – George Q. Daley
 Massachusetts Consortium on Pathogen  Readiness's Response to Covid 

Michael Eric Dyson is an academic, author, ordained minister, radio host, and contributing opinion writer for The New York Times. He is a professor in the College of Arts and Science and in the Divinity School at Vanderbilt University. His scholarship has spanned a wide range of topics including race, religion, politics, hip-hop, popular culture and contemporary issues in the African American community. Dyson has authored or edited more than twenty books dealing with subjects such as Martin Luther King Jr., Barack Obama and Hurricane Katrina. Former President Barack Obama has noted, “Everybody who speaks after Michael Eric Dyson pales in comparison.”

July 15 - Danielle Allen
Our Common Purpose: Reinventing Democracy for the 21st Century