The beloved characters from the “Peanuts” comic strip will come to life when College of Central Florida Visual and Performing Arts students present the musical “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” April 7-10.

Performances times are 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, April 7-9, and 3 p.m. Sunday, April 10, at the Dassance Fine Arts Center, 3001 S.W. College Road, Ocala.

“Audiences have been enjoying these iconic characters and the show’s universal themes of friendship, fun and finding happiness for decades,” said Nonalee Davis, CF Theatre instructor and the play’s director. “Our production features 12 CF students performing more than a dozen Tony Award-winning musical numbers. It will be a fun experience for theatregoers of all ages.”

Tickets are $12 for adults and $6 for non-CF students and can be purchased at CF.edu/Musical or by calling 352-873-5810. Tickets are free for CF students, faculty and staff with valid I.D.

For more information about CF events, visit CF.edu.

In the Balcony Gallery for Florida Artists, Benson explores the world and what it means to be human through his meditative black-and-white photographs of everyday people and scenes.

“There is something extraordinary about finding magic in things, places, people and processes never intended to carry any grand significance,” Benson said. “It’s long been known that photographing something places importance on the subject — even the mundane.” Taken throughout the world, his photographs are influenced by the existentialist writings of Camus, Kafka and Dostoevsky.

Benson is a professor of Photography and Video and chair of the Southeast Center for Photographic Studies, School of Photography at Daytona State College. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the College for Creative Studies and Master of Fine Arts from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts/ArtsMidwest Fellowship. His work is represented in numerous collections, including the Museum of Fine Art-Houston; Detroit Institute of Arts; Centre Georges Pompidou; and the Museet for Fotokunst in Denmark. His works have been displayed worldwide in Argentina, South Korea, Syria, Poland and China.

The Appleton Museum, Artspace and Store are open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday, noon-5 p.m. A campus of the College of Central Florida, the Appleton Museum of Art is located at 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, east of downtown on SR 40 (exit 352 east off I-75 or exit 268 west off I-95). Parking is free. For more information, call 352-291-4455 or visit AppletonMuseum.org.

John Ash, associate professor of music and department chair for Visual and Performing Arts at the College of Central Florida, will be honored with the American Association of Community Colleges 2022 Dale P. Parnell Faculty Distinction Recognition at their annual conference in New York City in May. Ash directs the college’s bands and wind symphony, teaches music classes and recently served as the Faculty Senate president for two years.

The award, named after former AACC President and CEO Dale P. Parnell, recognizes individuals making a difference in the classroom.

“Professor Ash always puts our students first and has been a great asset to the College of Central Florida,” said Dr. Mark Paugh, vice president for Academic Affairs. “Throughout the pandemic, he has led his department to safely offer musical and theatrical instruction and performances for our students.”

For more information about the College of Central Florida, visit CF.edu. For more information about the AACC, visit aacc.nche.edu.

Are you an Emergency Medical Technician who’s ready to take your career to the next level? The College of Central Florida is now accepting applications for the next Paramedic class at our Citrus Campus, which will begin May 11.

“There is a huge need for certified paramedics in Citrus County, and our graduates are in high demand,” said Rod McGinnes, associate dean of Health Sciences and EMS program manager. “CF is the only nationally accredited Paramedic program in Marion, Citrus and Levy counties. Our 12-month, hands-on program was designed to accommodate EMTs’ shift schedules so they can continue to work as first responders while we train them in advanced treatment skills such as medication administration, airway skills and management of critical trauma, and prepare them to pass the state and national certification exams.”

Prospective Paramedic students must be currently licensed Florida EMTs and must first apply to the College of Central Florida at CF.edu/Apply. Prospective students are encouraged to view the virtual EMS information session at CF.edu/EMS. Paramedic program applications, available at CF.edu/Paramedic, are due by April 15.

For more information, visit CF.edu or call 352-873-5800.

On Sunday, Feb. 27, at 2 p.m., Eady will speak at the Appleton on how history has informed his creative process. This talk is free and open to the public; no RSVP required. (Regular admission fees apply if you also plan to visit the galleries.)

Born in South Carolina, he currently lives in Ocala and teaches in the Marion County Public Schools. A contemporary artist and author who uses art to examine long-held beliefs about the South, his emphasis for the past decade has been on the lives of those living in the South before the Civil War. His unique artistic language layers art into history, and his paintings open dialogues into little-known facts about Southern history. Through his work, Eady endeavors to improve social conflict by disrupting mainstream imagery and gives voice to a population silenced from history.

His book, “Hidden Freedom: The South Before Racism,” is a compelling story about a free Black family seeking equality in South Carolina before the Civil War. Signed copies are available in the Appleton Store for $12.

The Appleton Museum, Artspace and store are open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday, noon-5 p.m. A campus of the College of Central Florida, the Appleton Museum of Art is located at 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, east of downtown on SR 40 (exit 352 east off I-75 or exit 268 west off I-95). Parking is free. For more information, call 352-291-4455 or visit AppletonMuseum.org.

CF invites prospective students to learn more about the Bachelor of Applied Science in Business and Organizational Management program at a virtual information session on Monday, Feb. 28, from 6-7 p.m.

Join advisors, administrators and faculty to learn about bachelor’s degree specializations in Accounting, Agribusiness, Equine Studies, Management Information Systems, Health Care Management, Public Safety Administration, and Logistics and Supply Chain Management. Find out about program design, affordability and the admissions process.

Visit CF.edu/BusTechEvents to register for this Zoom event. To learn more about CF, visit CF.edu.

The CF Ira Holmes International Film Series continues its 60th anniversary season with “Ivan’s Childhood” on Tuesday, Feb. 22.

The World War II film is Andrei Tarkovsky’s debut feature and remains one of the most unforgettable depictions of the impact of war on children.

The film will be shown at 2 p.m. at the Appleton Museum of Art, 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., and at 7 p.m., at the CF Ocala Campus, 3001 S.W. College Road, Building 8, Room 110. Films at the Ocala Campus are free and open to the public. Films at the Appleton are free to all museum and film series members; nonmembers pay museum admission. Films may contain mature content.

Special guest Peggy Dates will introduce the film at the 2 p.m. showing. An extensive world traveler and international film screening devotee, Dates has assisted the film series for more than nine years and is integral to the series’ success.

On Wednesday, Feb. 23, at 12:30 p.m., Del Jacobs, author of “Interrogating the Image: Movies and the world of Film and Television” and “Revisioning Film Traditions: The Psudo-Documentary and the New-Western,” will host an online film talk and question and answer session on Zoom.

For more details, visit cf.edu/filmseries.

The CF Ira Holmes International Film Series will screen Italian comedy classic “Boccaccio ’70” on Tuesday, March 8, and beloved American drama “To Kill a Mockingbird” on Tuesday, March 29.

Starring Sophia Loren and European leading ladies Romy Schneider and Anita Ekberg, “Boccaccio ’70” is an anthology film made up of four tales of love in modern times, directed by Italian cinema legends Vittorio De Sica, Federico Fellini, Mario Monicelli and Luchino Visconti. “To Kill a Mockingbird,” starring Gregory Peck, is the film adaptation of Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of racial injustice in the segregated South.

Both films will be shown at 2 p.m. at the Appleton Museum of Art, 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., and at 7 p.m., at the CF Ocala Campus, 3001 S.W. College Road, Building 8, Room 110. Films at the Ocala Campus are free and open to the public. Films at the Appleton are free to all museum and film series members; nonmembers pay museum admission. Films may contain mature content.

On Wednesday, March 9, at 12:30 p.m., Silvio Gaggi, professor emeritus of Humanities at the University of South Florida, will host an online “Boccaccio ’70” film talk and question and answer session on Zoom. On Wednesday, March 30, university professor, author and book editor Dr. Gilbert B. Rodman will host an online “To Kill a Mockingbird” film talk and question and answer session on Zoom.

For more details, visit cf.edu/filmseries.

The College of Central Florida will showcase the talent of its Visual Arts and Digital Media students in the annual show that provides student artists an opportunity to present their work in a professional environment.

The exhibition will be on display at the CF Webber Gallery March 28-May 5. The Webber Gallery is located at the CF Ocala Campus, 3001 S.W. College Road.

“Our student art exhibition is an annual tradition,” said Dr. Mark Paugh, vice president for Academic Affairs. “In this juried show, we present awards for best in show and first through third places with honorable mentions. Student works will be selected for purchase awards, and one student artist’s work will become part of CF’s permanent art collection through the People’s Choice Purchase Award, which is voted on by the CF student body.”

The exhibition will be judged and juried by Carla Poindexter, professor of studio art at the University of Central Florida, where she teaches intermediate and advanced painting, advanced drawing and foundations design, as well as upper-level classes in experimental book arts and studio concentration. Poindexter leads seminars for UCF’s Studio Art Master of Fine Arts program and has served as chair of several undergraduate and graduate-level thesis committees.

An opening reception will be held Wednesday, March 30, at 12:30 p.m. in the Webber Center.

The Webber Gallery is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Thursday and admission is free. For more information, call 352-854-2322, ext. 1664.