Summer Film Series

With the weather that we've been having lately, it's impossible to presume what the summer will be like. What we do know for sure is that we'll be showing movies here every Friday night throughout July and August! Beginning July 3rd and ending on August 28th, our Summer Film Series will make the Library the hottest (and coolest) place in town!

SUMMER FILM SERIES - FRIDAYS - 7:30 P.M. - ADMISSION IS FREE

July 3

Confessions of a Shopaholic

Starring Isla Fisher, Krysten Ritter, and Joan Cusack; Rated PG; 104 minutes; 2009  

Based on the book by Sophie Kinsella, Rebecca Bloomwood is 25 years old and lives with her best friend Suze in a trendy part of town. She has a boring job that doesn’t begin to pay for her shopping addiction. When cutting back doesn’t work, she tries to make more money and, ironically, becomes a financial advice columnist in this comedy. 

July 10

Taken

Starring Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, and Xander Berkeley; Rated PG-13; 91 minutes; 2009
 
An ex-government operative's daughter is kidnapped while traveling in Paris. He has four days to find her, so he uses his special skills to get her back safe and also get his revenge.

July 17

Last Chance Harvey

Starring Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson, and Kathy Baker; Rated PG-13; 92 minutes; 2008
    
Harvey Shine is on the verge of losing his job as a jingle writer and only has one more chance to deliver a hit. He goes to London to attend his daughter's wedding and promises to be back in the office on Monday but when he misses his plane, he is fired on the spot. He then strikes up a conversation with a woman in a bar and the unexpected connection transforms both of their lives.  

July 24

Gran Torino 

Starring Clint Eastwood, Brian Haley; Rated R; 116 minutes; 2008
    
Walt Kowalski is a grumpy, tough-minded old man whose prize possession is a 1973 Gran Torino he keeps in cherry condition. When a neighboring teenager tries to steal it, Kowalski sets out to reform the youth. Drawn against his will into the life of the would-be robber’s family, Kowalski is soon taking steps to protect them from the gangs that rule their neighborhood.  
 

July 31

A Walk on the Moon

Diane Lane, Viggo Mortensen, Anna Paquin, Liev Schreiber; Rated R; 107 minutes; 1999

Pearl (Diane Lane), a thirty-year-old wife and mother who longs for a bit of passion spends every summer in the Catskills with her two children and interfering mother-in-law. When a hippie named Walker (Viggo Mortensen) shows up in his funky bus, Pearl falls for his rugged good looks. A steamy love affair follows, resulting in a family-shattering revelation at Woodstock in this drama set in upstate New York in the late 1960s.  

August 7

Grey Gardens

Starring Drew Barrymore, Jessica Lange; Not Rated; 104 minutes; 2009
    
In 1973, filmmakers Albert and David Maysles entered the strange world of "Big Edie" and "Little Edie" Bouvier Beale, two charming eccentrics who were relatives of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy. In this film we are taken behind the scenes of that famous documentary with a shocking and raw look into the lives of this reclusive mother and daughter who chose to live in squalor and almost total isolation in a decaying, 28-room mansion in East Hampton called Grey Gardens. 

August 14

The Great Buck Howard

Starring Colin Hanks, Tom Hanks, and Emily Blunt; Rated PG; 90 minutes; 2009
    
Troy Gabel is a law-school drop out who impulsively takes a job as an assistant to an aging but charismatic magician. The conjurer is definitely on the downward slope of his career, but the mystery surrounding him keeps Troy intrigued. The two embark on a journey across the country staging the comeback of a lifetime.  

August 21

The Soloist 

Starring Jamie Foxx, Robert Downey, Jr., and Catherine Keener; Rated PG-13; 109 minutes; 2009
    
This biographical drama tells the true life story of musical prodigy Nathaniel Ayers. He dropped out of Julliard after developing schizophrenia and became a homeless musician on the streets of Los Angeles. A reporter looking for an article finds Ayers one day and develops a close relationship with the troubled but gifted artist.  

August 28

Duplicity

Starring Julia Roberts, Clive Owen, and Tom Wilkinson; Rated PG-13; 125 minutes; 2009
    
CIA Officer Claire Stenwick and MI6 agent Ray Koval are two spies-turned-corporate operatives having a clandestine love affair. They have turned their skills to a high stakes espionage game where they are attempting to secure a product that corporations would do anything to patent. The pair try to stay one double cross ahead of the other, but find that that hardest thing to cheat is their love for one another. 

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).

 

This Monday at Seven

Our next "Monday at Seven" meeting will be on Monday morning, June 22.

We will open our doors from 7 to 9 a.m. to provide a resource and meeting center for residents of Darien and Darien Library members. 

For more details about our "Monday at Seven" program for Job Seekers and Networkers, click here

The speakers for Monday, June 22:
Mandell L. Crawley, Executive Director, Director of Field Sales, National Sales, Global Wealth Management Group, Morgan Stanley

Brian T. Kelley, Jr., General Management and Consulting, The Buffkin Group, New York/Connecticut 

(To read more information about the speakers, please open the attachments below.)

Last week, The TODAY Show presented a feature on the changing role of libraries in today's challenging economic enviroment. You can view that segment by clicking on the image below.

“Monday at Seven” Schedule

7 a.m. – Library open for participants. Resources are available, and Library                  
staff available. Coffee and bagels will be provided.
8 a.m. – Speaker or speakers in the Conference Room.
9 a.m. – Library opens.

To view Monday at Seven Resources, click here.

For a list of upcoming Job Seeker and Networking Events in our area, click here.

To view Darien Library's Career and Education Resources, click here.

“Monday at Seven” will be at no cost to the taxpayers of Darien; it is fully supported by Darien Library Trustees, and Darien Library staff time will be volunteered.

Actors/Playwrights Workshop Presents...

On Sunday, June 14 at 2:30 p.m., the Actors/Playwrights Workshop will present the first public-staged reading of selections from the plays in the Library’s Community Room.

 

Now in its 17th year, the Actors/Playwrights Workshop offers local and regional playwrights and actors the opportunity to work together to produce original theatrical works in a supportive and creative environment. Co-founded by the late Catherine Lindsey and her husband Robert, the goal of the workshops is to encourage collaborative efforts in developing new plays, culminating in staged readings of scenes from full-length, one-act plays, musicals, and monologues before an audience. Catherine Lindsey was a beloved friend of Darien Library and director of the Darien Library Theater for over 25 years.  

 

Featuring:

Reverend Lisa Brown by Robert Lindsey

Final Copy by Mary C. Charest

A Little Nudge by Bridget Cusack

In Memory Of… by Kathleen Rinaldi

Reunion by Mary Ellen Murphy

A New Beginning by Empress Makeda 

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).

(Image courtesy of flickr user zen)

A Welcome Sight!

The Heron is Home!

After several months in storage, the Great Blue Heron sculpture, by Elliot Offner returns to welcome visitors to Darien Library!

The sculpture and its dedication plaque were installed this morning in the Courtyard fountain at the Library. (Click here to see photos of the installation.)

The Great Blue Heron Bronze was dedicated to the Darien Community on May 31, 1987 and stood in the entry courtyard at the old Library for more than 20 years. Today, it takes its perch at its new home.

It's sure to bring a smile to your face! Please stop by soon.

Exploring "A Midsummer Night's Dream"

On Thursday, June 4 at 7 p.m., Mark Schenker of Yale University will lead a discussion of A Midsummer Night’s Dream here at the Library. A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be the summer production of Shakespeare on the Sound, now in its 14th year. Mr. Schenker will discuss the play both as an individual work and with respect to its place in the Shakespeare canon.  Long considered one of Shakespeare’s finest comedies, A Midsummer Night’s Dream presents a world capable of being transformed by magic, by love and by art. The play combines elements of music, dance, and pageantry with the comic misadventures of two pairs of star-crossed lovers and the comic prose of the “rude mechanicals,” common tradesmen who labor to create and perform a drama that serves as counterpoint to the sophistication and formality of the larger comedy that encompasses it. 

Mark J. Schenker has been at Yale College since 1990.  He is currently an associate dean of the College and dean of academic affairs.  Born and raised in New York City, he received his Ph.D. in English Literature from Columbia University and has taught at Columbia, New York University, and Trinity College (Hartford).  He has led book discussion series in public libraries in Connecticut for over twenty years through programs sponsored by the Connecticut Humanities Council and lectures frequently on literary topics for public audiences. He was the recipient of the 2001 Wilbur Cross Award for Outstanding Humanities Scholar, presented by the Connecticut Humanities Council. (Pictured above: Mark Schenker)
 
Shakespeare on the Sound’s 2009 summer production schedule is as follows:
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Rowayton, Pinkney Park: June 16-28
Greenwich, Baldwin Park: July 4-12
No performances Mondays.
 
(Copies of A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be available during the lecture. It is not necessary to read the play in advance.)  

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).

In the Art Gallery

This Land is Your Land

Artists' Reception: Friday, June 5 at 6:30 p.m. 

The Fairfield County Plein Air Painters and other local artists painted the beautiful vistas of open spaces of Darien Land Trust's land held in preservation for Darien. The paintings will be on display in the Art Gallery on the Lower Level through June 7th. You won't want to miss this great exhibit, nor will you want to miss the Artists' Reception on June 5th! 

"This Land is Your Land” features paintings by Pam Abear, Britt Bair, Betty Ball, Donna Collins, Carol Conze, John Coots, Mindy Daly-Green, Amy Danielson, Kathy Draper, David Dunlap, Chris Filmer, Vicki French Smith, Merion Frolich, Hanneke Goedkoop, Dana Goodfellow, Jeanne Greaves, Kathleen Erin Lee, Joan Manning, Mary Morant, Madeliene Mueller, Phyllis Padro, Chet Saur, Lisa Thoren, and Meg Tweedy.

The Art Gallery is located on the Library's Lower Level.

A Termite That Won't Bore

A 17-year-old girl living in West Virginia and her disabled younger brother. What stories lie trapped in the boy's head and how did all of the layers of their past combine to create their present? Jayne Anne Phillips slowly reveals long-kept secrets as new forces threaten to separate the brother and sister in this stunnning novel...a work of fiction that defies easy description but remains absolutely engrossing at every level.

We'll be discussing Lark & Termite on Sunday afternoon, May 17 at 2:30, and welcome your comments, insights, discoveries...anything you'd like to share about this book (even if you don't get to finish it in time!). Our Sunday afternoon book discussions are open to all and full of ideas for similar reads and great new authors. The facilitator is Jordon Pecile, who has taught at numerous colleges and universities, most recently the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. He's been a favorite here for many years and always sparks lively conversations! This is our final spring session and promises to be a special one. Please join us!
 

Art on View!

In the Art Gallery
Darien Land Trust Art Show - This Land is Your Land

May 15 - June 7

Recent paintings of Darien Land Trust properties will be exhibited in the Art Gallery on the lower level. The show is entitled “This Land is Your Land”  and will be on display until June 7th.

The Fairfield County Plein Air Painters and other local artists painted the beautiful vistas of open spaces of Darien Land Trust's land held in preservation for Darien. 
 
(Plein Air painter Pamela Riley-Abear at work on a painting of the Land Trust peninsula on HollyPond.)

 

 (above, l-r: Holly Pond by Britt Bair, Contentment Island by Chris Filmer)

“This Land is Your Land” features paintings by Pam Abear, Britt Bair, Betty Ball, Donna Collins, Carol Conze, John Coots, Mindy Daly-Green, Amy Danielson, Kathy Draper, David Dunlap, Chris Filmer, Vicki French Smith, Merion Frolich, Hanneke Goedkoop, Dana Goodfellow, Jeanne Greaves, Kathleen Erin Lee, Joan Manning, Mary Morant, Madeliene Mueller, Phyllis Padro, Chet Saur, Lisa Thoren, and Meg Tweedy. It's a beautiful exhibit. Please be sure to stop by.

There will be an artist's reception on Friday, June 5th at 6:30 p.m. Please join us!

What do you think of the Library's Children's Programs?

 

Now that we're moved in, and you've attended some children's programs...what do you think? 

Which programs would you like to continue?

In the new Library, what has your program experience been for children in their First Five Years?

James Collins to Speak at the Library!

Update: Please note that this author event has been cancelled. This event will be rescheduled in the future. Please check back on our website for details.

On Thursday, May 14 at 7 p.m., author James Collins will be speaking here at the Library. His novel Beginner’s Greek, a national bestseller, will be coming out in paperback that week and we look forward to welcoming him to Darien!

Upon its publication in hardcover, the author drew comparisons to Jane Austen and like one of her novels, this story of love found, love lost, and the role fate plays in our lives provides an intersection of literary wit and thoughtful levity. “A comedy of manners” might be an apt description of “Beginner’s Greek,” which is about the complicated world of its main character Peter Russell. Peter meets Holly on a plane during a flight from New York to the West Coast. She is the woman of his dreams and they share a powerful connection. Holly writes her phone number on a page torn from “The Magic Mountain” by Thomas Mann. Later, he discovers that the paper is gone. What follows is a romantic comedy with a distinct literary vein running beneath its surface.
            “A satire of modern love that will charm both sexes equally.” – Vanity Fair
            “Beginner’s Greek is, from start to finish, delicious.” – New York Times Book Review
 Collins is a former editor for Time and Spy Magazine and has contributed to The New Yorker and other magazines. He grew up in New York City and now lives in Virginia with his family. “Beginner’s Greek” is his first novel.
A book signing will following the presentation and books will be available for purchase.
Refreshments will be served.

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen's).

Syndicate content