The Big Read is wrapping up in a Big Way

The Barnum Museum and its community partners (see the list at the end of this release) have been hosting many educational and fun events since early October for The Big Read celebrating Dashiell Hammett’s “The Maltese Falcon.” This popular reading program is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) designed to restore reading to the center of American culture. 

 

Bridgeport and Shelton’s Big Read for the fall of 2009 will conclude on Thursday, November 19 with a fabulous Live Radio Show Adaptation of “The Maltese Falcon” at 7:30 p.m. in the downstairs theater at The Watermark, 3030 Park Avenue in Bridgeport.  The program will be presented by Dandelion Productions/Connecticut Free Shakespeare and the show will be broadcast live on WPKN-FM 89.5 radio. The audience, both at the theater and those listening on the University of Bridgeport’s WPKN station will hear a story that employs Hammett’s knack for engaging dialogue and his understanding of the depths of the human soul. The radio performance directed by Connecticut Free Shakespeare’s Ellen Lieberman, replete with period music and real sound effects, will bring back old-time radio for a half hour. The talented cast includes actors from New York and Connecticut. Whether you attend the live broadcast at The Watermark in Bridgeport or tune in to WPKN at home, as the falcon circles in your imaginations, you might-well wonder why radio drama is no longer as popular as it once was. The experience will truly be “a theater of the mind” one!

 

A closing reception, with light refreshments courtesy of The Watermark, will be held immediately following the program in order to thank all the community partners and participants. To see a complete list of remaining events, scroll down, visit www.neabigread.org/events.php or www.barnum-museum.org or call 203-333-1104 ext. 100.  Reader’s Guides and a Teacher’s Guides to the novel are available electronically from www/neabigread.org.&nb sp;

 

In addition, there will be a preview performance for the press and residents at The Watermark at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday November 19.

 

Saturday, November 14

Mystery In Our Life, Memoir Writing Class

2:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m.

This is the second memoir class during this year’s Big Read.  Participants share and write about their personal and family memories of how the stock market crash of 1929 impacted their lives and how they made it through the years of the Great Depression. Examine how the crash of 1929 has influenced us today as American’s live through another challenging economic time

WHERE: Bridgeport Public Library Historical Collections, 925 Broad Street, Bridgeport  

 

Friday, November 13 and Saturday, November 14

The Rocky Horror Show

Each day: 8:00 – 10:30 p.m. & 12:00- 2:30 a.m.

It’s alive following last fall’s smash hit production, The Rocky Horror Show returns to the Playhouse Experience this tradition for the first time or do the time warp again! This cult classic by Richard O’Brien is a mysterious, campy, sci-fi rock musical and features the local band Greasewheazer and hilarious audience interaction.  Recommended for mature audiences.

WHERE: Playhouse on the Green, 177 State Street, Bridgeport

Cost: Adults $26 to $29

 

Tuesday, November 17

Big Read for Little Tykes

11:00 a.m. -12:00 p.m.

The mystery story will be “The 13^th Clue” by Ann Jonas and the children will create their own clues. Beginning with a diary entry of a child the book leads the protagonist (and readers) on a merry chase from the attic to the backyard, across the pond, through the woods and up a hill where a surprise birthday party awaits the child. Children will be captivated by the clever clues. “A guaranteed-to-please selection that deserves a spot in any collection," states the School Library Journal. This program is designed for toddlers three and under (little tykes) and is free with general admission to the museum.

WHERE: The Barnum Museum, 820 Main Street, Bridgepor

Cost:  Free with General Admission

 

Wednesday, November 18

Read the Book/See the Movie: The Maltese Falcon

Book Discussion 4:00 p.m. and Movie showing: 5:30 p.m.

This is the second memoir class during this year’s Big Read.  Participants share and write about their personal and family memories of how the stock market crash of 1929 impacted their lives and how they made it through the years of the Great Depression. Examine how the crash of 1929 has influenced us today as American’s live through another challenging economic time

WHERE: Newfield Branch Bridgeport Public Library, 1230 Stratford Avenue, 203-576-7413

 

Continues through November 21

Big Read Mystery Lab

The Big Read Lab will bring out your inner detective, whether you’re a puzzle-ponderer by nature ort not.  Visitors can gather clues and examine evidence to solve totally fictional, historically hokey “Crimes of Science.”

WHERE:  The Discovery Museum, 4450 Park Avenue, Bridgeport CT 06604

Tuesday – Saturday, 10:00am – 5:00 p.m.

Cost: Free with General Admission

 

Continues through November 22

Art of Deception, Special Exhibition

A special exhibition presented in the historic Blue Parlor period room at The Barnum Museum. Art of Deception will present the extraordinary moment in time just at the edge of America’s Black Tuesday; the day the Stock Market crashed on October 24, 1929. Examining the carefree days of the pre-depression epoch, the exhibition will focus on the unbridled, frivolous attitude that captured much of society’s imagination. Breaking free of strict ‘Victorian’ styles, the emergence of urban living, votes for women, automobiles, and radio, the exhibit will take you on a journey of society’s self exploration and self indulgence. From Jazz to prohibition, flappers to gangsters, the age of the ‘Roaring Twenties” set the stage for a modern America.

WHERE:  The Barnum Museum, 820 Main Street, Bridgeport CT 06604

Tuesday – Saturday, 10:00am – 4:30 p.m.

Sunday, 12:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Cost: Free with General Admission: Adults $7, seniors and students $5, children 4-17 $4, children under 4 free.

 

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The NEA presents the Big Read in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and in cooperation with Arts Midwest. The Big Read brings together partners across the country to encourage reading for pleasure and enlightenment. 

 

Contributing sponsors allow the programs to be offered mostly free of charge and include the following organizations: Bank of America, Barnum Financial Group, The Barnum Museum, Bridgeport Regional Business Council, Center Stage of Shelton, Dr. DeJesus & Associates,  City of Bridgeport, City of Shelton, Connecticut Post, Duchess Restaurants, Food World, Greater Bridgeport Transit, HealthNet, People's United Community Foundation, SportsCenter of Connecticut, Stockbridge's Gourmet Cheesecakes, The Edge Fitness Club, The Watermark at 3030 Park, Tremont & Sheldon, University of Bridgeport, Valley Community Foundation, Star 99.9 and WPKN-FM.  

 

The following local organizations are also partnering with The Barnum Museum for The Big Read: Bridgeport Board of Education, Bridgeport Health Department, Bridgeport Public Library, Burroughs Community Center, City Lights Gallery, Connecticut Free Shakespeare, Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo, The Discovery Museum, Downtown Cabaret Theater, Fairfield Historical Society, MACH, Playhouse on the Green, Ralphola Taylor Center, Shelton Library System and Written Words Bookstore.

 

The Barnum Museum Big Read initiative is just one of 269 nonprofits--including arts, culture, and science organizations; libraries; and municipalities--to receive a grant to host a Big Read project between September 2009 and June 2010. The latest Big Read grantees represent 44 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Since the 2006 pilot program with ten participating organizations, the NEA has given more than 800 grants to support local Big Read projects. This year, Bridgeport and Shelton received $20,000 from the NEA.

 

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The National Endowment for the Arts is a public agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts—both new and established—bringing the arts to all Americans, and providing leadership in arts education. Established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government, the Arts Endowment is the nation’s largest annual funder of the arts, bringing great art to all 50 states, including rural areas, inner cities, and military bases. For more information, please visit www.arts.gov.

 

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. The Institute’s mission is to create strong libraries and museums that connect people to information and ideas. The Institute works at the national level and in coordination with state and local organizations to sustain heritage, culture, and knowledge; enhance learning and innovation; and support professional development. For more information, please visit www.imls.gov. 

Arts Midwest connects people throughout the Midwest and the world to meaningful arts opportunities, sharing creativity, knowledge, and understanding across boundaries. Arts Midwest connects the arts to audiences throughout the nine-state region of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. One of six non-profit regional arts organizations in the United States, Arts Midwest’s history spans more than 25 years. For more information, please visit www.artsmidwest.org.