March 29 - April 6, 2008 ~~~ Greater Portland
The theme for the 2008 Maine Jewish Film Festival, Labor, encompasses concentration camps, organized labor, and blacklisting. The nine theme-based films highlight the often-unheralded role of Jews within the enduring contest for universal equality and self-determination. Films will include “Clara Lemlich: A Strike Worker’s Diary,” the story of Clara Lemlich, who endured arrests and beatings as a result of her efforts to organize garment workers in Manhattan’s Lower East Side; and “Yoo-hoo, Mrs. Goldberg,” which profiles Gertrude Berg, star and producer of the 1950s sitcom “The Goldbergs,” who took a stand against McCarthyism. Film directors, producers, union organizers, Holocaust survivors, and scholars will participate in a series of forums and lectures throughout the nine days of the festival. In addition to the traditional venues, films will be screened in the Teamsters Local 340 union hall in South Portland and the North Dam Mill in Biddeford. This year’s festival opened on March 29 and runs through April 6; for a schedule of events, please visit www.mjff.org.
Back to the TopApril, 2008 ~~~ Portland
The Portland Public Library’s 2008 Poetry Festival consists of a series of public events that celebrates the place of poetry in our daily lives. Readings and panel discussions with local poets will take place throughout the month of April. A poetry workshop for teens will be held in collaboration with The Telling Room. Finally, Dr. David Kastan will deliver a lecture on Shakespeare and religion in Elizabethan England on April 28. Check the library’s website for details: www.portlandlibrary.com.
Back to the TopApril 6, 2008 ~~~ Waterville
In 2006, the nonprofit Hardy Girls Healthy Women initiated a poetry-writing project for seventh and eighth grade girls at Winslow Junior High School. Poetry workshops facilitated by Colby College creative writing faculty and students explored the power of writing in the lives of girls who struggle in school, both academically and socially. By validating the girls’ poetic voices, the workshops built on the success of the girls’ coalition groups run by Hardy Girls Healthy Women as part of From Adversaries to Allies: A Curriculum for Change. This pilot project ran during the fall semester of 2007, leading to a “Poetry Mash-Up” with spoken word performances by girls from Winslow Junior High and women from Colby College’s “Poets Rest at Dawn.” The event begins at 1 p.m. on Sunday, April 6, at Soup to Nuts in downtown Waterville. To learn more, please contact Megan Williams, Executive Director of Hardy Girls Healthy Women, at (207) 861-8131.
Back to the TopApril 6, 2008 ~~~ Farmington
Composer Nancy Gunn has set to music four poems by Wesley McNair about driving in rural Maine. The poems mention specific towns—Rumford, Thomaston, Mercer, and Presque Isle—and the music, for soprano and orchestra, attempts to evoke these places through sound images and musical moods. Gunn and McNair will appear at a pre-concert discussion before the premiere of the musical piece on April 6, 2008, at the Nordica Auditorium in Farmington.
Back to the TopApril 6 & 20, May 4 & 18, 2008 ~~~ Winter Harbor
Following its successful 2007 Downeast Maine Historic Film series, Schoodic Arts for All plans once again to join forces with Northeast Historic Film for a film series. Eight screenings, each followed by panel discussions, will celebrate the history of lobstering and the fishing industry in this region. Films will be shown bi-weekly, from March 9 to May 22, at Hammond Hall in Winter Harbor. They include “Fishing for the Future,” “The Ballad of the Purple Clam,” and “Closing the Circle: The Alewife Run in Damariscotta Mills, Maine.” For more details, call (207) 963-2569 or visit www.schoodicarts.org.
Back to the TopApril 7, 2008 ~~~ Portland
The second annual Douglas M. Schair Memorial Lecture on Genocide and Human Rights will take place at Hannaford Hall in Portland on April 7, 2008. Professor Judea Pearl, father of murdered reporter Daniel Pearl, and Professor Akbar Ahmed, a leading authority on contemporary Islam, will tackle sensitive issues in Judaism and Islam through a candid dialogue. Since 2003, the two have traveled across the United States to address the growing rift between Muslims and Jews. The 7 p.m. lecture is free and open to the public. For details, please contact the Academic Council for Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Studies at the University of Southern Maine, (207) 780-5331.
Back to the TopApril 9, 2008 ~~~ Portland
The new edition of a 19th century Penobscot book, Joseph Nicolar’s The Life and Traditions of the Red Man (Duke University Press, 2007), sheds light on Eastern Algonquian history and culture. On April 9, 2008, Nicolar’s grandson, Charles Shay, will join the editor of the new edition, Annette Kolodny, for a presentation at the University of Southern Maine in Portland. The free event starts at 7 p.m. For more information, please call Professor Lorrayne Carroll at (207) 780-4324.
Back to the TopApril 10 & 13, 2008 ~~~ Portland
SPACE Gallery’s Philosophy Symposium Film Festival moves the study of philosophy out of the academy and into a venue accessible to all. At each of the screenings, professors from the University of Southern Maine’s philosophy department will investigate the films’ subjects in post-screening discussions. The first event, on March 6, involved Jeremiah Conway discussing “Ister.” The second, on March 20, featured Joseph Grange and the film “Words of My Perfect Teacher.” Two screenings remain in the series: “Derrida’s Elsewhere” on April 10 and “Society of the Spectacle” on April 13. For more details, call SPACE at (207) 828-5600 or visit www.space538.org.
Back to the TopApril 10, 17, 24, and 29 ~~~ Presque Isle and Portland
This poetry series will bring poets of distinction to the state in celebration of National Poetry Month in 2008. Three readings will be hosted by the Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance at the Edmunds Center in Presque Isle. Anne Britting Oleson reads on April 10, Kasey Grieco McNeally on >April 17, and Heather Hepler on April 24. A fourth reading by April Ossman will take place on April 29 at the Portland Public Library. For details, please call (207) 228-8263.
Back to the TopApril 16, 2008 ~~~ Farmington
The Wilton Free Public Library’s Hands On PAH! initiative is intended to make the library more accessible to the local and larger deaf community through collection development, technical services, and programming. In April 2008, nationally renowned deaf storyteller Peter Cook will visit Maine with his interpreter, Keith Wann. Cook will give a workshop on ASL storytelling and visual communication in the Nordica Auditorium at the University of Maine in Farmington from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 16. At 7:30 p.m., in the same location, he will give a storytelling performance. For further details, call the library at (207) 645-4831.
Back to the TopApril 12 & 26, May 10 & 17, 2008 ~~~ Kennebunk and Hinckley
Many of Maine’s small museums and historical societies are staffed by volunteers who are enthusiastic about the work, but cannot attend professional development workshops aimed at the paid employees of larger institutions. This spring, some of these volunteers will receive basic training in museum operation and governance during two-day workshops coordinated by the New England Museum Association (NEMA), in partnership with Maine Archives & Museums. Registration is closed for the April workshop in Kennebunk; to register for the May workshop in Hinckley, please call NEMA at (781) 641-0013.
Back to the TopApril 17 & May 8, 2008 ~~~ Berwick
For the past 15 years, Claudia Updike has brought over 100 Maine children’s book writers and illustrators to York County schools. As director of the K-6 library program in SAD #60, Updike recognizes the inspirational impact that meeting a working author or illustrator can have on young writers and artists in elementary schools. She started the Maine Authors in Our Schools program in 1993, and has kept the program running in spite of limited school budgets and rising author fees. This spring, Updike plans to bring Cathryn Falwell and Sarah L. Thomson to the Vivian E. Hussey Primary School in Berwick. Cathryn is an author/illustrator who lives in Gorham; she will visit the 2nd graders on April 17. Sarah is a prolific writer of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction; on May 8, she will talk to 3rd and 4th graders about information books (nonfiction).
Back to the TopApril 29, 2008 ~~~ Vinalhaven
Slam poet Hashim Allah will visit Vinalhaven School for a day of workshops and performance on April 29, 2008. Students will work with Allah to write their own slam poetry for a performance at a local restaurant. The workshops will be part of Vinalhaven School’s annual Poetry Week. For more information, please call Keely Felton of Partners in Island Education, (207) 863-4573, or visit www.vhpie.org.
Back to the TopMay 7, 2008 ~~~ Freeport
In 2005, the Freeport Performing Arts Center (PAC) brought a folk art ensemble from the southeast Indian province of Rajasthan to Freeport. The Rajasthani ensemble consists of eight young people who use music and dance to promote good will and understanding. Their 2005 visit was a positive experience for all, but the PAC is determined to build on their previous success when the ensemble returns to Freeport on May 7. The musicians’ daytime visits with high school students will still be limited to Freeport, but their 8:00 p.m. concert at the PAC will be promoted to students at eight area high schools, with a discounted ticket price. Furthermore, all of the day’s activities will be documented by members of Freeport’s student radio program for future viewing and discussion. For more information, please contact the Freeport PAC at (207) 865-4706, or visit www.freeportpac.org.
Back to the TopMay 8, 2008 ~~~ Bethel
The Bethel Historical Society’s 2008 Lecture Series, “Maine History: Varied and Vivid,” begins May 8 with a lecture on Benedict Arnold by Thomas Desjardin of the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands. On June 12, Neil Rolde will speak on the subject of his most recent biography, James G. Blaine. Donna Cassidy will profile the subject of her biography, Marsden Hartley, on August 8. On September 11, Earle Shettleworth, Jr. will address how political memorabilia reflect historic Maine presidential and senate election campaigns. Ben B. Conant, curator for the Paris Cape Historical Society, will welcome fall with a lecture on marketing Maine apples on October 9. Finally, Barry Mower of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection will address the history and future of the Androscoggin River water quality on November 13. For details, please call (207) 824-2910 or visit www.bethelhistorical.org.
Back to the TopMay 15 - 17, 2008 ~~~ Portland
The second annual Maine Festival of the Book‹a three-day extravaganza of reading and writing in downtown Portland‹is scheduled for May 15-17, 2008. Celebrating our rich contemporary literary scene and its heritage, the festival presents literature in all its’ forms, aiming to appeal to a range of tastes, audiences, and reading abilities. The festival is sponsored by Maine Reads, in cooperation with community organizations statewide, and spearheaded by First Lady Karen Baldacci. This year’s keynote speaker is David Baldacci; other speakers include Elizabeth Strout, Amy Sutherland, and Ron Currie. For an up-to-date schedule, please visit www.mainereads.org.
Back to the TopMay 18, 2008 ~~~ New Gloucester
The Merriconeag Waldorf School will host the culminating event in a poetry competition for public and private high school students in Cumberland, Androscoggin, and Sagadahoc Counties at its new campus in New Gloucester. On May 18, twenty students whose original poems are recognized by poet and teacher Annie Finch will read their work and participate in a seminar on poetry as a tool for social change. For details, please contact David Sloan at (207) 688-8989 or dmsloan@gwi.net.
Back to the TopJune 21, 2008 ~~~ South Portland
Portland Harbor Museum will convene a full-day conference, “Defending the New United States in a Time of Turmoil: The 1808 Fortification Program in the District of Maine,” to acknowledge the 200th anniversary of Forts Preble and Scammell. Historians, archaeologists, and preservationists will discuss the legacy of the forts and consider the challenges to the forts’ survival. The conference will include walking tours of both forts. For details or to register, please call (207) 799-6337 or visit www.portlandharbormuseum.org.
Back to the TopJune 25 - 28, 2008 ~~~ New Gloucester
The first music festival of Maine’s summer season celebrates American music at the historic Shaker Village in New Gloucester. This year’s festival includes two chamber music concerts and a day of workshops for amateur ensembles. Among the composers represented will be Mendelssohn and Hayden; performers include the Portland String Quartet and the carbon-fiber cellist Luis Leguia. An evening devoted to Shaker culture and history will feature performances of Shaker hymns and a tour of the art exhibit “The Human and the Eternal.” For tickets or details, please call (207) 926-4597.
Back to the TopJuly 22 - 25, 2008 ~~~ Lewiston
During this year’s Bates Dance Festival, filmmaker/dance scholar Joan Frosch will conduct a one-week residency including a lecture on choreographers Gregory Maqoma and Nora Chipaumire (July 25) and a screening of her award-winning film “Movement (R)evolution” (July 24). Frosch will also contribute contextual program notes about Maqoma, who is from South Africa, and Chipaumire, who is from Zimbabwe. Finally, Frosch will moderate the Festival’s Global Exchange Panel Discussion (July 22), which brings together participating artists from Africa, Asia, and Latin America. For more information on the Bates Dance Festival, please visit www.batesdancefestival.org.
Back to the TopAugust 2, 2008 ~~~ Kittery
The Kittery Art Association will host a day-long symposium on the early 20th century artists of southern Maine to complement exhibitions of Kittery artist Russell Cheney’s paintings at the Portsmouth Athenaeum and Portsmouth Historical Society. Speakers will explore Yankee Modernism in Maine through the artistic careers of Russell Cheney and his contemporaries: Marsden Hartley, F.O. Mattiessen, and the Ogunquit School painters. Special components of the symposium include a tour of the Cheney studio in Kittery and a new website devoted to the artist, www.russellcheney.com. To register for the symposium, please call the Portsmouth Athenaeum at (603) 431-2538.
Back to the TopSeptember 28, 2008 ~~~ Lewiston
A symposium on Maine Folk Art, bringing nationally known scholars to engage the public in an exploration of the place of folk art in Maine history and culture, will serve as the culminating event in the statewide Maine Folk Art Trail project. Speakers will cover such topics as scrimshaw, quilts, redware, and hooked rugs. The symposium takes place on September 28 at Bates College; proceedings will be captured on video for future reference. For more information on the Maine Folk Art Trail and its participating institutions, please visit www.mainefolkarttrail.org.
Back to the TopMay - October, 2008 ~~~ Hinckley
“Some Homes,” a new exhibit at the L.C. Bates Museum in Hinckley, Maine, will stimulate thinking about the meaning of Home through contemporary art and historical context. The project goal is to promote discussion, knowledge, and interpretation that focuses on the experience of Home, specifically Maine homes and the related philosophy of home at Good Will-Hinckley. The exhibit runs from May through October. Accompanying events include a lecture by Earle Shettleworth on domestic architecture in Maine, a panel with artists and representatives from Waterville Main Street and the Margaret Chase Smith Library, and a film screening at Railroad Square Cinema. For details on these events, please call the museum at (207) 238-4250.
Back to the TopJune - October, 2008 ~~~ Peaks Island
The artifacts on display in Found Treasures, the 2008 exhibit at the Fifth Maine Regiment Museum (located at 45 Seashore Avenue), were “rescued” from the island transfer station or unearthed from basements and attics. They include diaries, documents from island businesses, and an 1879 bible full of mementoes from the life of its owner. Each grouping of artifacts will be connected by provenance or theme, and accompanied by interpretive text. The exhibit is on view from June through October, 2008. To learn more, contact the museum at (207) 766-5514 or fifthmaine@juno.com, or visit www.fifthmainemuseum.org.
Back to the TopJune - October, 2008 ~~~ Vinalhaven
The Bodwell Granite Company Store operated on the island of Vinalhaven from 1858 until 1919. The Vinalhaven Historical Society maintains an extensive collection of receipts, correspondence, payroll tickets, and other documents from the store, as well as glass plate negatives of images of quarry operations, workers, and managers. Based on census, payroll, and union records, the historical society has built a database of quarry workers employed by Bodwell. Public access to this database will soon be available at www.vhhis.org. In addition, the historical society is planning an exhibit that examines the influence of the Bodwell Granite Company and their company store on the history and economy of Vinalhaven through the lives of ten representative workers. The exhibit will be on view during the museum’s 2008 summer season, from June through October. A public lecture will also take place during the summer at the Smith-Hokanson Memorial Hall. For more information, please call (207) 863-4410 or visit the aforementioned website.
Back to the TopJuly - August, 2008 ~~~ Thomaston
This summer, the General Henry Knox Museum in Thomaston will mount an exhibit of armaments and weapons, centered on a cannon on loan from Fort Ticonderoga, NY. During the exhibit, two lectures will highlight Henry Knox’s career as Chief of Artillery and the nation’s first Secretary of War. On July 1, firearms expert John D. Bottero will speak at the museum, while author Mark Puls will speak on July 22 at the Hutchinson Center in Belfast. For more information, please call (207) 354-0858.
Back to the TopNovember 13, 2008 - January 11, 2009 ~~~ Portland
In conjunction with the exhibition “Textiles/Translations,” featuring the work of Alice Spencer, the University of New England’s Gallery of Art will hold a series of five educational programs. Each program will approach textiles from a different perspective: their cultures of origin, their common themes and symbols, the role of women in their creation, and their ability to inspire artists like Spencer. In addition to the general public, students from the Maine College of Art and local high schools will be encouraged to attend the exhibition and related programming. For more information, please call (207) 221-4499 or visit www.une.edu/artgallery.
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Notes from an Open Book welcomes feedback from its readers. Please contact Diane Magras by email at diane@mainehumanities.org or by phone at (207)773-5051 ext. 208 (toll-free 1-866-637-3233, ext. 208) to respond.