Reunions 2011: Highlights for this year's major reunion classes

 

Click the numbers to skip down to your class:

1946 - 1951 - 1956 - 1961 - 1966 - 1971 - 1976 - 1981 - 1986 - 1991 - 1996 - 2001 - 2006 - Graduate alumni 

 

 

The Class of 1946 is looking forward to reuniting and celebrating its 65th reunion with a theme of “Thanks for the Memories.” The costume will be the traditional reunion jacket from previous reunions, khaki pants, white bucks, white shirt, and 1946 reunion tie. Thursday dinner will be a buffet held at the Nassau Club, with Friday dinner at Springdale Golf Club. The Blawenburg Brass Band will accompany the class during the P-rade. Dinner on Saturday will be at Forbes College and feature a musical jam session—any musicians are welcome to bring their instruments.

 

 

The class theme is “Going Back ... Old Friends, New Vistas,” based on the premise that classmates come back to see old friends, the alumni-faculty forums, and what is going on at the University, and their conversations with friends open new vistas. Headquartered at Forbes with ’46 and the Old Guard, ’51 will be wearing its traditional orange-and-white seersucker jackets embellished this year with new black ’51 baseball caps and orange ties.

 

The well-known New York musician Dan Levinson will bring his jazz group to Forbes Thursday evening for a night of Dixieland and New Orleans jazz and his swing band on Friday night to play danceable music of the 1940’s, 50’s, and 60’s. On Saturday evening the class will have cocktails at the Lewis Library followed by dinner at Cap and Gown’s new dining facility that will provide a grandstand view of the fireworks.

 

 

The Class of 1956 celebrates “The Fullness of Time” with an extremely full schedule. On Thursday afternoon, the class will host “A Conversation on China,” between Stape Roy ’56, a former U.S. ambassador and assistant secretary of state, and Anne-Marie Slaughter ’80, who served as director of policy planning for the U.S. State Department in the first two years of the Obama administration. That night, there will be a buffet dinner and music provided by the Freund Family Trio. A class memorial service will be held Friday morning at the University Chapel, and a tour of Princeton Battlefield and a forum on Reach Out ’56-’81-’06 will take place in the afternoon.

 

Friday evening there will be a class reception at the Art Museum, with a welcome by director James Steward and greetings from President Tilghman. Dinner on Friday night will feature the introduction of new class officers and music by Stan Rubin ’55’s big band. On Saturday morning, there will be a reception for the artists who are part of the class art exhibit, which will run all weekend. Saturday night will feature a buffet dinner, accompanied by the Boilermaker Jazz Band and culminating with fireworks. Rounding out the schedule is a farewell Sunday brunch at the Class of 1956 Lounge in Princeton Stadium.

 

 

The 50th reunion for the Class of 1961 begins Thursday with a reception and dinner, followed by entertainment from the Neil Wright Trio. Friday is full of forums — those in the morning include the future of health care, civil rights and liberties, and the role of American power, while those in the afternoon will look at the new India, college admissions, and chemistry in action. In the evening, there will be a reception with the Footnotes, followed by dinner and entertainment. On Saturday, the class will participate in the P-rade, and the class memorial service will follow. The evening will feature a reception with the J.J. Keyser Trio, dinner, and the Party Dolls, followed by fireworks. The weekend will culminate in style, with Sunday brunch at Drumthwacket, the New Jersey governor’s residence, down the road from campus.

 

 

The Class of 1966’s credo this year is “Vintage ’66” – like fine vintage wine, the class just improves with age. The logo reflects this theme with a tiger toasting classmates, as they toast each other in “the overall class.” Entertainment will be provided by Stu and the Geezers (featuring Donnie Wilkins ’71) on Thursday and the fabulous Alex Donner (’75) Band on Friday. On Saturday, ’66ers decided that they want to spend more face time with each other, so there will be a two-person group, John and Carm, providing a quiet background for conversation. During the three-day weekend, three a cappella groups – the Katzenjammers, the Nassoons, and the Tigertones – will serenade the class.

 

 

The Class of 1971 is “Sharing the Wild Life” at its 40th reunion, with a full slate of class events and entertainment. Musical acts include the Z Jazz Group Thursday night, the Party Dolls on Friday, and Liquid Pleasure on Saturday. A handful of ’71 musicians also plan to share their talents: Peacock Crossing will reunite for the Battle of the Alumni Bands, and pianist Peter Robinson ’71 is the featured performer at a Saturday cocktail party at the Art Museum. Classmates will gather for a memorial service Friday at 1 p.m. in the University Chapel. The weekend concludes with Sunday brunch at the Boathouse.

 

 

Celebrating its 35th reunion, the Class of 1976 has several exciting events scheduled. Friday at 3:45 p.m. in the new Frick Chemistry auditorium, the class will host “Unleashing Innovation: Tackling Environmental Challenges,” sponsored by Spirit of Service ’76 and the Princeton Environmental Institute.

 

The class memorial service will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. in 101 McCormick. The class will be entertained throughout the weekend, with performances by Liquid Pleasure on Friday and the Mango Men on Saturday.

 

 

It may have rained at the Class of 1981’s graduation and 25th reunion, but classmates see sunshine ahead at the 30th as “’81 Reigns.”The celebration kicks off Thursday evening with jazz and wine tasting with Josh Greene ’81, Wine & Spirits Magazine editor. Friday features a “five-star” class dinner on the lawn of Frist Center, followed by high-energy sounds of the Voltage Brothers back at headquarters. Single reuners are invited to meet new friends at the multiclass Singles Mingle mixer. Saturday includes a memorial service at the Chapel, class picture at Blair Arch, and the P-rade with ’81ers carrying umbrellas to fend off the rays. Later, a fun evening begins with the a cappella group Roaring 20, followed by dinner and “funkadelic” dancing to the 10-piece Right-On Band.

 

The class also is giving back. The classes of ’56, ’81, and ’06 are collaborating on an intergenerational community-service program consisting of three projects benefiting the Princeton YWCA, Isles, Inc., and the Prison Teaching Initiative.

 

 

The ’86ers say “Veni, Vidi, Vava!” – “we came, we saw, we went to WaWa!” The 25th-reunion theme is inspired by the creation of the campus residential college system in its freshman year, 1982. Like the athletes in the Olympic March of Nations, the class marches under the banners of the original five residential colleges – Princeton Inn (now Forbes), Wilson, Rockefeller, Mathey, and Butler.

 

Every night will feature live entertainment. On Thursday, the class will be entertained by Melvern Taylor and on Friday night by the Dexter Lake Band. Saturday night will feature two bands: Unforgettable Fire, providing a U2-inspired concert; and Rubix Kube, which will play music from the ’80s in a tribute to the class’ graduation year.

 

Dinner on Friday will be at the Graduate College and will feature President Tilghman and a special dessert presentation from Carlo’s Bakery, home of reality TV’s “Cake Boss.” The class also will be sponsoring the second Princeton University Reunions Run, a 5-kilometer charity race.

 

 

Breaker, breaker 1-9, 9-1.  There’s big news in P-town for the Class of 1991’s 20th reunion.  On Friday night, Southpaw from Charlottesville, Va., will make its Reunions debut at the ’91 tent. The band’s specialties are classic rock, jam bands, roots and modern rock, country, bluegrass, and Americana.  On Saturday night, the class will dance the night away with the Breakfast Club from Atlanta, Ga., always a huge draw and a crowd favorite with songs like “Come on Eileen” and “Shook Me All Night Long.”

 

Join fellow classmates all weekend and enjoy organic food grown on farms near Princeton. The menu includes locally grown seasonal fruits and vegetables and even the famous Nomad Pizza truck’s organic wood-fired brick-oven pizza. Trucker jean jackets, vests, and aviator glasses promise a P-rade look to remember, and for the younger kids, carnival games, arts and crafts, and airbrush tattoos will keep everyone entertained for the long haul.

 

 

The Class of 1996 will be “Back in Our Element” this year, with classmates tapping into their inner mad scientists as they celebrate the chemiluminescence of “P,” the 15th element of the periodic table and the inspiration for their toxic fun. The ’96ers will be mixing concoctions in the class “lab” and mixing it up on the dance floor with amazing music: D.J. Kelly Silver on Thursday and Friday; Rubix Kube on Friday; and the Tigressions, Footnotes, and Spazmatics on Saturday night.

 

During the day Friday, the class will keep busy building a community garden.  The class cocktail party will be held in the Icahn Atrium Friday evening followed by a class dinner at the tent in Wilson Courtyard. The class’s little lab assistants will be busy in the children’s area with a variety of crafts, movies, and an a cappella sing-a-long.  The children also will enjoy a special performance Saturday at 11:30 a.m., when Mad Science will perform “Fire & Ice,” a 45-minute show for kids or those who want to find their inner child. Slime-making will be involved.  

 

Class of 2001

 

For the Class of 2001, it’s “’01st and 10, Goin’ Back Again.” The gridiron-themed festivities kick off Thursday, as ’01ers are issued their retro classic Tigers football jerseys and embroidered gym bags to tote around their equipment for the weekend.  The class may have had to suffer through its freshman year without a football stadium, but that didn’t dampen its spirit. This year, classmates will be listening to college songs from the Princeton University Band and breaking out an old favorite, the General Lee, for the P-rade.

 

Throughout the weekend, the class will fuel up at an athletic awards banquet dinner, a tailgate lunch with a cookout and ice cream cart, and a midnight snack of stadium eats.  Nighttime entertainment includes reliving the glory days with Giants of Science and D.J. Bob, and children of classmates will receive a visit from the Music Man on Saturday. Stay tuned for Saturday night’s mystery entertainment. The class is “calling an audible.”

 

Class of 2006

 

The Class of 2006 promises “the weekend of an after-lifetime,” as classmates, now ’06 feet under for five years, will haunt Old Nassau during Reunions. No voodoo is needed to find them: Just follow the screams to the orange-skeleton crew. The party starts with a rollicking cocktail hour and class dinner on Friday night. On Saturday night, classmates will shake their bones to the music of Foreverland (a 14-piece Michael Jackson cover band) and Hey Champ. Other headliners include Character Zoo and the Breakfast Club Friday night and the Sensemaya AfroBeat All-Stars and D.J. Bob Thursday night.

 

The graveyard shift promises to reach a fever pitch at the P-rade, with class ghouls making their way down Elm Drive with dance moves from the “Thriller” video. (A dance lesson is scheduled for Friday night.)

 

During the day Friday, the class will be collaborating with its parent and grandparent classes of ’81 and ’56 on a trio of community-service projects.

 

 

The Association of Princeton Graduate Alumni is celebrating the International Year of Chemistry at Reunions 2011 with lab coats, goggles, and a full schedule of festivities. The “Princetonium” weekend will kick off Friday afternoon with the Chemistry in Action Alumni-Faculty Forum and a tour of the new Frick Chemistry Laboratory.  Returning graduate alumni will spend Friday evening at the APGA tent mingling over drinks and hors d’oeuvres at a welcome reception.

 

Alumni will return to the APGA tent Saturday for exciting chemistry experiments, good food, lively music, and the famous P-rade. Alumni and their families will finish off the weekend by enjoying the Princeton University Orchestra concert and spectacular fireworks display. The APGA will be collecting math and science books for local New Jersey public schools. Donations can be dropped off at APGA headquarters in Whig Hall throughout the weekend.