University at The Oaks: Ancient Civilization

Guest Speaker: Cheryl White, PhD, associate history professor at LSUS Monday, March 5, 4 p.m. Franks Community Centre Cheryl White’s monthly University at The Oaks series focuses on the history of western civilization. Each month White selects diverse topics that offer an interesting survey that engages and intrigues guests. Cost: Free. Registration is required.

For Your Listening Pleasure: SOX Operatizers

Guest Performers: Spencer Reichman, baritone; Kameron Lopreore, tenor; Karina Brazas, soprano; Meghan Folkerts, mezzo-soprano; and pianist Ah Young Kim. Thursday, March 8, 3 p.m. Tower Ballroom Members of Shreveport Opera Xpress, the Shreveport Opera’s education and outreach touring program, will return to The Oaks of Louisiana for an hour of musical entertainment that, as always, will leave residents and community guests wonderfully satisfied. The group will perform selections from “Le Nozze di Figaro” and “Gianni Schicchi,” as well as Broadway tunes such as “Someone to Watch Over Me,” among others.

Cost: Free. Registration is required.

Tech Talk: Picture of Health at WK

Guest Speakers: Chris Sale, administrator of WK Heart & Vascular Institute; Greg Sonnenfeld, director of the Willis-Knighton Cancer Center; and Julie Cupp, MD, of Willis-Knighton Breast Health and Surgical Specialists. Tuesday, March 20, 3 p.m. Tower Oak Room Willis-Knighton Health System’s mission is “to continuously improve the health and well-being of the people we serve.” And, it is doing that through revolutionary technology at its Cancer Center, Heart & Vascular Institute and Breast Health Center, among others. Imagine the first compact proton therapy system in the world in your city and being able to get the most precise form of radiation treatment available today without having to go out of town or out of state. Or, undergoing TAVR, a less invasive procedure for aortic stenosis that does not require open heart surgery. Learn about these treatments and more at “Tech Talk: Picture of Health at WK.” Cost: $10, nonresidents. Registration is required.

Book Review

The Last Castle: The Epic Story of Love, Loss and American Royalty in the Nation’s Largest Home

Guest Speaker: Jacqueline Gore, retired teacher Tuesday, March 27, 3:30 p.m. Chapel at The Oaks Jacqueline Gore reviews Denise Kiernan’s true story of the Biltmore, the largest privately owned house in the United States. Built between 1889 and 1895 by George Vanderbilt II for wife Edith, the Biltmore is one of the most prominent remaining examples of the Gilded Age, an era of rapid economic growth in America. Kiernan’s intriguing book is the telling of one woman’s fierce devotion to save the home her late husband loved so much. Cost: Free. Registration is required.