Event archive
2026
"At Home Abroad"
Talk with Susanne Beyer, Ciani-Sophia Hoeder and Dr. Kai Hinrich Müller, moderated by Andreas Platthaus
Re-Opening Villa Aurora
Villa Aurora's doors are finally open again!
From Competition to Collaboration: How Can Cities Build Partnerships for the Planetary Age?
With Thomas Mann Fellow Grégoire Roos, Prof. Stephanie Pincetl, Jonathan Blake & Erin Bromaghim, co-Presented with The Berggruen Institute.
Can the Energy Crisis Finally Unite Us?
With former Florida U.S. Representative Carlos Curbelo, New America Planetary Politics director Heela Rasool-Ayub, climate change journalist Kate Yoder, and Thomas Mann Fellow Uwe Jean Heuser. Co-presented by Zócalo Public Square, in partnership with ASU Global Futures Laboratory and Palisadian-Post.
Breaking the Silence
A Literary and Musical Evening with Ukrainian Author Margaryta Surzhenko, Luis RosaLebron, and Andrew Krastins.
Villa Aurora X Lookout FM Radio - Episode 19 of "if the house could speak"
Episode 19 of if the house could speak - a special broadcast series presented by Villa Aurora & LOOKOUT FM airing every two weeks on KFQM, 101.5 FM in the Pacific Palisades and online.
How Religion Shapes Society
Sociologist Sanyu A. Mojola & Theologian Michael Seewald in Conversation.
Villa Aurora. Exile, Art and Freedom in Los Angeles
Book Launch of Villa Aurora. Exile, Art and Freedom in Los Angeles with Donna Rifkind, E. Randol Schoenberg, Birgit Kreipe, Claudia Gordon, Jakob Scherer, and Friedel Schmoranzer.
By Invitation only
Book Talk: The Emperor Incognito
Book talk with author Monika Czernin, highly acclaimed author of The Emperor Incognito: Joseph II’s Journey Through Enlightenment in conversation with Claudia Gordon.
„Deutschland, höre!“ - Thomas Mann's Radio Addresses
To mark the 150th anniversary of Thomas Mann’s birth, the BBC radio addresses have been newly recorded by actress Sandra Hüller. Voices from politics, scholarship, and culture comment on them and enter into a dialogue with Mann’s texts.
Saskia Warzecha at the Galka Scheyer House
In honor of Galka Scheyer's birthday, we are publishing the film portrait of writer Saskia Warzecha from her time as a resident in the house of the legendary German-American art collector in the winter of 2025/26.
Art on Common Ground
From May 29 to June 8, 2026, Art on Common Ground transforms the city center of Halle (Saale) into a public gallery. The works will be displayed at diverse locations, forging a connection between art, society, and international perspectives.
With works by: Fern Liberty Kallenbach Campbell, Marc Fromm, Christine Matzke, and Klaus Pockrandt.
Journalism in Trying Times – A German-American Exchange
Talk with Journalists Susanne Beyer (DER SPIEGEL) and Sandra Kegel (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung), moderated by Deborah Cole (The Guardian).
Villa Aurora X Lookout FM Radio - Episode 18 of "if the house could speak"
Episode 18 of if the house could speak - a special broadcast series presented by Villa Aurora & LOOKOUT FM airing every two weeks on KFQM, 101.5 FM in the Pacific Palisades and online.
Villa Aurora | Exile, Art, and Freedom in Los Angeles
Book Launch of "Villa Aurora. Exile, Art and Freedom in Los Angeles" with Shelly Kupferberg, Steven Lavine, Sharon Dodua Otoo, Claudia Gordon, Jakob Scherer, Markus Klimmer and Sven Lehmann.
Book Launch: The California Camera Club - Collective Visions in the Making of the American West
2023 Thomas Mann Fellow Carolin Görgen will discuss her new book about the California Camera Club at the LA Public Library.
Villa Aurora X Lookout FM Radio - Episode 17 of "if the house could speak"
Episode 17 of if the house could speak - a special broadcast series presented by Villa Aurora & LOOKOUT FM airing every two weeks on KFQM, 101.5 FM in the Pacific Palisades and online.
Transatlantic Feedback: A Listening Session with Thomas Meinecke & Lauren Goshinski
A transatlantic sonic exchange between Thomas Meinecke & Lauren Goshinski.
Ruhe.punkt - Hanno Leichtmann
The Berlin-based composer and sound artist Hanno Leichtmann presents his album Outerlands, created for the Mühleisen organ—an instrument whose integrated percussion elements align seamlessly with his distinctive, rhythm-driven sonic language.
Villa Aurora X Lookout FM Radio - Episode 16 of "if the house could speak"
Episode 16 of if the house could speak - a special broadcast series presented by Villa Aurora & LOOKOUT FM airing every two weeks on KFQM, 101.5 FM in the Pacific Palisades and online.
Émigré vs Exile Modernism and Architecture in L.A.
Volker M. Welter & Alex Ross in Conversation
Oliver Polak & Friends: One Night Only
A Comedy Show with Thomas Mann Fellow Oliver Polak & Friends at the iconic Comedy Store! Featuring internationally renowned comedians Sarah Silverman & Nikki Glaser.
Villa Aurora X Lookout FM Radio - Episode 15 of "if the house could speak"
Episode 15 of if the house could speak - a special broadcast series presented by Villa Aurora & LOOKOUT FM airing every two weeks on KFQM, 101.5 FM in the Pacific Palisades and online.
"Sliced Realities"- Solo exhibition by Ukrainian artist Zhanna Kadyrova
In collaboration with Kyiv to LA, the Thomas Mann House presents a solo exhibition by Ukrainian artist Zhanna Kadyrova in February 2026.
The Truth of Populism: Facts, Fiction, and Truisms in Contemporary Politics
A Conversation with Adrian Daub und Nils Kumkar.
Freud and the History of Psychoanalysis: Beyond the Biographical Illusion
A Lecture by Andreas Mayer
Villa Aurora X Lookout FM Radio - Episode 14 of "if the house could speak"
Episode 14 of if the house could speak - a special broadcast series presented by Villa Aurora & LOOKOUT FM airing every two weeks on KFQM, 101.5 FM in the Pacific Palisades and online.
Exhibition "Democracy Will Win!" at University of Nevada
The traveling pop-up exhibition 'Thomas Mann: Democracy Will Win!,' created by the Thomas Mann House, will be shown at the University of Nevada in collaboration with the Department of World Languages and Cultures.
Villa Aurora X Lookout FM Radio - Episode 13 of "if the house could speak"
Episode 13 of if the house could speak - a special broadcast series presented by Villa Aurora & LOOKOUT FM airing every two weeks on KFQM, 101.5 FM in the Pacific Palisades and online.
Can We Still Be Saved? On Conflicts and How to Address Them More Objectively
Talk with Sandra Kegel and Patrick Cramer, moderated by Shelly Kupferberg
One Year after the Fires: Remembering, Rebuilding, Healing
An afternoon community gathering of remembrance, community, and hope.
In Search of a Common Cause
A Conversation with Krista Tippett and Navid Kermani.
Navid Kermani: In Search of a Common Cause. Conversations Across the U.S.
A conversation series with Navid Kermani that explores how we can build and maintain solidarity in a polarized world marked by war, displacement, and political division. Organized by the Goethe-Institut in North America and the Thomas Mann House Los Angeles.