Events
Shakespeare On Transformation
Written by Erin S on 10/13/2012
Wednesday, January 16 at 7 p.m.
As the New Year begins, join Emily Bryan, Shakespeare Scholar and Director of Education for Shakespeare on the Sound, in a lively discussion of some favorite Shakespearean moments as she provides insight into some of the most riveting transformations that take place in Shakespeare's plays and characters.
Bring your favorite Shakespearean text on your idea of Transformation as well (2 lines, 10 lines, a scene or a sonnet) and we will invite you to share and open up discussion about the moments that stand out most for you!
Emily Bryan is a Darien native and a former Shakespeare professor. She has taught at Dominican College, West Point, Northwestern and Brown. Prior to writing her dissertation on the lives of boy actors on the Shakespearean stage, Emily worked for the Public Theater / New York Shakespeare Festival as the assistant to the Executive Producer and as a Casting Assistant. She has also worked as a dramaturg for the Lincoln Center Director’s Lab and gave pre-show lectures for the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. MA, The Shakespeare Institute, Stratford-Upon-Avon; PhD, Northwestern.
Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).
A Night of Jazz with the Jim Clark Quartet
Written by Erin S on 10/12/2012
Darien Library Music Series Presents
JIM CLARK QUARTET
Thursday, January 17 at 7 p.m.
Jim Clark is a world-class saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist. He performs and records in a wide variety of musical settings and styles. Whether he is in the recording studio, performing in a small local venue or on stage at Carnegie Hall, his goal is the same – to play from the heart with the highest level of musical excellence.
The Jim Clark Quartet features Tracey Marble on vocals, Chris Coogan on keyboards and John Mobilio on upright bass. Their ongoing Memory Lane Concert Series has featured shows such as: Great American Songwriting Teams, Songs from Classic American Films, Songs from the Broadway Stage, as well as entire shows giving tribute to a single composer or songwriting team: Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen, Cole Porter and George & Ira Gershwin. Through themed performances of story and song, the quartet pays tribute to those who created the Great American Songbook.
Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).
Cruising Long Island Sound—Tracing Its Early Families with a Regional View
Written by Sally on 10/12/2012
Saturday, March 16, 2013 at 2:00 p.m.
Please join us in welcoming Fred Hart as he explores the background of the earliest settlers of coastal Fairfield County. Darien Library and The Middlesex Genealogical Society Present, Cruising Long Island Sound—Tracing Its Early Families with a Regional View. Hart's talk will include beautifully illustrated maps, depictions of various migrations throughout the region, and much, much more. Don't miss out on this wonderful opportunity to learn about the people who first inhabited our little neck of the woods!
In addition to being a charter member of the Middlesex Genealogical Society, Mr. Hart is also a member of Connecticut Ancestry Society, the Connecticut Professional Genealogists Council, and several other historical and genealogical organizations. Fred has been a Certified Genealogist since 1993 and was elected a Fellow of the American Society of Genealogists in 2007.
The ABCs of Writing a Great College Application Essay
Written by Erin S on 10/12/2012
Tuesday, February 12 at 7 p.m.
What do colleges want in an application essay? How should students begin the writing process? What's a good topic? A bad topic? How can students make their essays unique and memorable? During this presentation, we'll find out the answers to these questions and more.
Presented by:
Sharon Epstein, an award-winning writer and college consultant. Her background includes 20 years in communications, two Emmy nominations, and a Writers Guild Award.
Matthew Dempsey, Assistant Director of Admission at Fairfield University, will share a first-hand account of the role of the admission counselor, read examples of essays that have and haven't worked, and talk about how essays are viewed in the context of the entire application.
This program is intended for high school students and their families.
Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs on Thorndal Circle (behing Nielsen's).
Film Screening - "Gun Fight"
Written by Erin S on 10/12/2012
On Sunday, February 3 at 2 p.m., Darien Library, in co-sponsorship with the League of Women Voters, will present the film Gun Fight.
There are an estimated 250 million guns in the United States today. Over the past dozen years, a string of deadly shootings has pockmarked the nation as guns – licensed and unlicensed – have found their way into the wrong hands. Blending archival and original footage, two-time Oscar®-winning filmmaker Barbara Kopple (“Harlan County, U.S.A.,” “American Dream”) investigates the complex issues surrounding guns and the heated debate over how best to reduce gun violence in the U.S., telling stories of citizens and activists on different sides in Gun Fight.
Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen’s).
The Catherine Lindsey Actors/Playwrights Workshop
Written by Erin S on 10/12/2012
Thursday, April 18 at 7 p.m.
You've submitted your play to the Catherine Lindsey Actors/Playwrights Workshop but now what?
The workshops will allow the playwrights to refine their scripts. Playwrights are not required to attend these sessions in order to have their play considered.
Co-founded by the late Catherine Lindsey and her husband Robert, the workshop introduces original plays in progress to be developed in a workshop environment with the goal of the public-staged readings. Catherine Lindsey was a beloved friend of the Library and director of Darien Library Theater for over 25 years. The memorial workshops will offer actors and playwrights the opportunity to work together to create original theatrical works in a supportive and creative environment.
Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs on Thorndal Circle (behing Nielsen's).
Friday Night Feature - 'Playing for Keeps'
Written by Erin S on 10/11/2012
Friday, April 19 at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. – Playing for Keeps (2012) Starring Gerard Butler and Jessica Biel; Rated PG-13; 105 minutes; Closed captioned for the hearing impaired.
This romantic comedy follows a charming, down-on-his luck former soccer star who returns home to put his life back together. Looking for a way to rebuild his relationship with his son, he gets roped into coaching the boy’s soccer team. But his attempts to finally become an adult are met with hilarious challenges from the attractive soccer moms who pursue him at every turn.
For more information, please watch the film's trailer. Check out the rest of our Friday Night Features in April.
Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).
Friday Night Feature - "To Rome with Love"
Written by Erin S on 10/11/2012
Friday, January 18 at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. – To Rome with Love (2012) Starring Woody Allen, Alec Baldwin, Jesse Eisenberg, Roberto Benigni, and Penelope Cruz; Rated R; 112 minutes; Closed captioned for the hearing impaired.
Set in the romantic city of Rome, this movie features intertwining stories. There is the worker who wakes up to find himself a celebrity, an architect who takes a trip back to the street he lived on as a student, a young couple on their honeymoon, and a frustrated opera director who has a talent for discovering talented singers.
"Allen's story moves along quite wonderfully, primarily because of his nuanced casting." --Ricardo Baca, Denver Post
For more information, please watch the film's trailer. Check out the rest of our Friday Night Features in January.
Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).
Video of Richard Ford
On Sunday, February 10, 2013, Richard Ford, author of Canada, was our featured speaker.
For more information, please visit the event's page.
Documentary Film Screening followed by Q&A with the Filmmaker
Written by Erin S on 10/11/2012
Monday, March 18 at 6:30 p.m. - My Perestroika (2010); Documentary Feature; Not Rated; 87 minutes.
When the USSR broke apart in 1991, a generation of young people faced a new realm of possibilities. An intimate epic about the extraordinary lives of this last Soviet generation, Robin Hessman’s feature documentary debut tells the stories of five Moscow schoolmates who were brought up behind the Iron Curtain, witnessed the joy and confusion of glasnost, and reached adulthood right as the world changed around them. Through candid first person testimony, revealing verité footage, and vintage home movies, Hessman, who spent many years living in Moscow, reveals a Russia rarely ever seen on film, where people are frank about their lives and forthcoming about their country.
"...playful, insightful, hypnotic, and, ultimately, superb." -- Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine
The film will be followed by a Q&A with the Director/Producer/Cinematographer Robin Hessman.
This event is co-sponsored by the Brown Club of Fairfield County.
About the Filmmaker
Robin Hessman graduated from Brown University with a dual degree in Russian and Film. She received her graduate degree in film directing from the All-Russian State Institute of Cinematography (VGIK) in Moscow (with a “red diploma” of honors). She received an Academy Award® in 1994 – with co-director James Longley – for their student film, Portrait of Boy with Dog. During her eight years living in Russia, Robin worked for the Children’s Television Workshop as the on-site producer of Ulitsa Sezam, the original Russian-language Sesame Street.
Robin is also an Associate of Harvard University’s Davis Center for Russian Studies and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Since 2006, Robin has served as the Director of documentary programming for Amfest, the American Film Festival in Moscow.
Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs available on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).
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