April 27, 2014 Public Events at the Library of Congress

Events subject to change. All telephone numbers are 202 area code. All events are free and opent to the public.

May 2015

Friday, May 1
FILM
“The Charge of the Light Brigade” (Warner Bros., 1936). 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

Saturday, May 2
CONCERT
Flutist Lorna McGhee and Curator of Musical Instruments Carol Lynn Ward-Bamford discuss and demonstrate a selection of the nearly 2,000 instruments in the Library’s Dayton C. Miller Flute Collection at 2 p.m. in the Coolidge Auditorium. Tickets are required. Contact: 707.5502.

Saturday, May 2
FILM
“The Thanhouser Studio and the Birth of American Cinema” (Thanhouser Company Film Preservation, Inc., 2014). 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

Monday, May 4
READING
Asian American Literary Review Fellows Cathy Linh Che, Eugenia Leigh, R.A. Villanueva and Ocean Vuong read from their work at 4 p.m. in the Mumford Room. Contact: 707.5394.

Tuesday, May 5
FILM
Filmmaker Joe Balass presents and discusses his film “Baghdad Twist” at 12:30 p.m. in the Mary Pickford Theater. Contact: 707.9897.

Tuesday, May 5
BENJAMIN BOTKIN LECTURE SERIES
Goffredo Plastino of Newcastle University discusses “Alan Lomax in Italy, 1954-1955” at noon in the Whittall Pavilion. Contact: 707.5510.

Wednesday, May 6
JOSEPH SOLKOFF ESKIN MEMORIAL LECTURE
Current Ambassador for Young People's Literature Kate DiCamillo and past ambassadors Jon Scieszka and Katherine Paterson discuss the position and how it affected their lives and honor the late Walter Dean Myers at 10:30 a.m. in the Coolidge Auditorium. Contact: 707.5221.

Wednesday, May 6
GALLERY TALK
Curator John Hessler of the Geography and Map Division presents “Reading Maya Natural History: Indigenous Books and Ancient Reading” at noon in the “Exploring the Early Americas” exhibition, Northwest Gallery of the Thomas Jefferson Building. Contact: 707.0185.

Wednesday, May 6
POETRY READING
Author and performance artist Tim Z. Hernandez reads and discusses his poetry and fiction at 6:30 p.m. in the Mumford Room. Contact: 707.5394.

Thursday, May 7
VARDANANTS DAY ARMENIAN LECTURE
Susan B. Harper, nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, presents a talk titled “Reflections on Failures and Successes of American Humanitarianism: A Case Study from the Armenian Crucible of 1915-1923” at noon in the Northeast Pavilion of the Thomas Jefferson Building. Contact: 707.5680.

Thursday, May 7
KLUGE CENTER LECTURE
Kissinger Chair Bradford Lee presents “Navigating the Blood-Dimmed Tides: Was U.S. Military Intervention in the First World War Worth the Cost?” at 4 p.m. in LJ 119. Contact: 707.0213.

Thursday, May 7
FILM
“Bob Hope on Television” (1953-1979). 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

Friday, May 8
DISPLAY
“Out of the Ashes: A New Library of Congress and the Nation” marks the 200th anniversary of the acquisition of Thomas Jefferson’s 6,487-volume library. The small display supplements the “Thomas Jefferson's Library” exhibition by highlighting Jefferson’s thoughts and actions when he decided to sell his personal collection of books to the Library of Congress, after it was burned by the British in 1814. Items on exhibit include Jefferson’s inventory list of his personal library and an 1815 letter to friend and former President John Adams saying “I cannot live without books.” The exhibition is on view from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Monday – Saturday in the Southwest Pavilion of the Thomas Jefferson Building until May 2016. Contact: 707.9070.

Friday, May 8
DISPLAY
“Display of Treasures From the Library of Congress’ Armenian Collections” highlights items from the Library’s Armenian-language collections and materials from Rare Book and Special Collections, Geography and Maps, Manuscript and Prints and Photographs. The display is on view from 10:30 a.m. – noon in the African and Middle Eastern Division. Contact: 707.5680.

Friday, May 8
FILM
“Hope: Entertainer of the Century” with author Richard Zoglin. 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

Saturday, May 9
LECTURE
Nicholas Brown of the Music Division explores the relationships between musicians and politicians at 11 a.m. in the Thomas Jefferson Building Studio. Tickets required. Contact: 707.5502.

Saturday, May 9
FILM
“My Favorite Blonde” (Paramount, 1942). 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

Tuesday, May 12
BOOKS & BEYOND
Mark R. Cheathem discusses and signs his book “Andrew Jackson, Southerner” at noon in the Montpelier Room. Contact: 707.5221.

Thursday, May 12
FILM
“Hava Nagila (The Movie),” Noon, Mary Pickford Theater. Contact: 707.9897.

Wednesday, May 13
BOOK TALK
Amy Riolo, award winning author and culinary consultant, presents “The Mediterranean Diet: Delicious Food Prescriptions for Curing Illness” at 11:30 a.m. in Dining Room A. Contact: 707.3956.

Wednesday, May 13
GALLERY TALK
Megan Harris of the Veterans History Project presents “Fighting on Two Fronts: Veterans’ Experiences Within the Segregated Military During WWII” at noon in the exhibition “The Civil Rights Act of 1964” located in the Southwest Gallery of the Thomas Jefferson Building. Contact: 707.0185.

Wednesday, May 13
LECTURE
Poet and essayist Mary Ruefle discusses her work with Ron Charles, editor of The Washington Post’s Book World, at 7 p.m. at the Hill Center at the Old Naval Hospital, 921 Pennsylvania Ave., S.E., Washington, D.C. Contact: 707.5394.

Thursday, May 14
CONFERENCE
Robert Clancy, author of “Mapping Antarctica: A Five Hundred Year Record of Discovery” (2014), and Michael Robinson, author of “The Coldest Crucible: Arctic Exploration and American Culture” (2006) are the keynote speakers for the first day of the “Finding the Antipodes: The Cartographic History of Polar Exploration from 1500 to the Present” conference, which looks at the cartography of the Arctic and Antarctic. The program begins at 9 a.m. in the Mumford Room. Contact: 707.7223.

Thursday, May 14
BOOK TALK
Thomas I. Faith, historian at the U.S. Department of State, talks about his new book “Behind the Gas Mask: The U.S. Chemical Warfare Service in War and Peace” at 11:30 a.m. in the West Dining Room. Contact: 707.3956.

Thursday, May 14
KLUGE CENTER LECTURE
Katrin Weller, one of two inaugural Kluge Fellows in Digital Studies, discusses “The Digital Traces of User-generated Content: How Social Media Data May Become the Historical Sources of the Future” at 4 p.m. in LJ 119. Contact: 707.0213.

Thursday, May 14
FILM
“Heart to Heart” (First National, 1928). 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

Friday, May 15
CONFERENCE
The two-day conference “Finding the Antipodes: The Cartographic History of Polar Exploration from 1500 to the Present” continues with panels and a speaker roundtable followed by an open house in the Geography and Map Division. The program begins at 9:30 a.m. in the Mumford Room. Contact: 707.7223.

Friday, May 15
FILM
“Battling Butler” (MGM, 1926). 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

Saturday, May 16
LECTURE
Solomon HaileSelassie of the Music Division presents “Fly Space: Inside the Minds of Theatrical Directors and Designers,” highlighting the scripts, director’s notes, costume designs and set designs of Bob Fosse, Oliver Smith, Peggy Clark, Florence Klotz and Tony Walton. The presentation is at 11 a.m. in the Thomas Jefferson Building Studio. Tickets required. Contact: 707.5502.

Saturday, May 16
PERFORMANCE
Composer Steve Antosca, music technologist William Brent and percussionist Ross Karre discuss the November 2013 National Gallery of Art premiere performance of “HABITAT” for percussionist and computer transformations. They will focus on composition processes and design elements and their integration with performance and technology. The presentation is at 2 p.m. in the Coolidge Auditorium. Tickets required. Contact: 707.5502.

Saturday, May 16
FILM
“The Absent-Minded Professor” (Disney/Buena Vista, 1961). 2 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

Monday, May 18
LECTURE
Historian and storyteller Tammy Hepps presents “In Search of a Usable Past: Reconstructing the Jewish History of Homestead, Pennsylvania” at noon in the African and Middle Eastern Division Reading Room. Contact: 707.3780.

Tuesday, May 19
LECTURE
LaManda Joy, the founder of Chicago’s Peterson Garden Project and a board member of the American Community Gardening Association, presents “How Community Gardens Can Save America” at 11:30 a.m. in the Mumford Room. Contact: 707.4751.

Tuesday, May 19
LECTURE
Leonard Schmieding of the BMW Center for German and European Studies, Georgetown University, presents “Breakin’ Around the Bloc: Hip-Hop in East Germany During the Cold War” at noon in the Whittall Pavilion. Contact: 707.5502.

Wednesday, May 20
LECTURE
Canadian prize-winning children’s author Rona Arato speaks about her book “Last Train: A Holocaust Story” at 10:30 a.m. in the Whittall Pavilion. Contact: 707.1950.

Wednesday, May 20
BOOKS & BEYOND
Sheila McCauley Keys, with Eddie B. Allen, Jr., discusses and sign her book “Our Auntie Rosa: The Family of Rosa Parks Remembers Her Life and Lessons” at noon in LJ 119. Contact: 707.5221.

Thursday, May 21
HOMEGROWN CONCERT
Bing Xia, director of the Washington Guzheng Society, presents traditional Chinese guzheng music at noon in the Whittall Pavilion. No tickets required. Contact: 707.5510.

Thursday, May 21
READING
Nigerian author Okey Ndibe reads selections from his work at noon in the African and Middle Eastern Reading Room. Contact: 707.5394.

Thursday, May 21
KLUGE CENTER LECTURE
Sociologist and Kluge Scholar-in-Residence William Julius Wilson presents a talk titled “Reflections on Issues of Race and Class in 21st Century America: Revisiting Arguments Advanced in The Declining Significance of Race (1978)” at 4 p.m. in LJ 119. Contact: 707.0213.

Thursday, May 21
FILM
“Far From Heaven” (Focus Features, 2002). 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

Friday, May 22
CONCERT
Violinist Jennifer Koh, cellist Anssi Karttunen and pianist Benjamin Hochman perform “Light and Matter,” a new piano trio by Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho, commissioned in part by the Library of Congress, plus works by Debussy and Ravel, at 8 p.m. in the Coolidge Auditorium. Tickets required. Contact: 707.5502.
*Preconcert Presentation at 6:30 p.m. in the Whittall Pavilion: The artists discuss their craft.

Wednesday, May 27
GALLERY TALK
Georgia Higley of the Serial and Government Publications Division presents “Reporting Civil Rights: Newspapers Tell the Story” at noon in the exhibition “The Civil Rights Act of 1964” located in the Southwest Gallery of the Thomas Jefferson Building. Contact: 707.0185.

Thursday, May 28
LECTURE
Paul Newman, chief scientist for atmospheric sciences in the Earth Sciences Division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, presents “A World Avoided: How Science and Policy Solved the Global Ozone Crisis” at 11:30 a.m. in the Mary Pickford Theater. Contact: 707.1192.

Thursday, May 28
HOMEGROWN CONCERT
Ara Dinkjian and Zulal perform traditional Armenia music and song at noon in the Whittall Pavilion. No tickets required. Contact: 707.5510.

Thursday, May 28
KLUGE CENTER LECTURE
Part two of the Kluge Center’s Blumberg Dialogues in Astrobiology convenes scientists, social scientists, humanities scholars and writers from across the country and around the world to investigate the intersection of astrobiology research with humanistic and societal concerns at 3:30 p.m. in LJ 119. Contact: 707.0213.

Thursday, May 28
FILM
“Love, Betty: A Betty White Retrospective” (1957-2015). 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

Friday, May 29
FILM
“The Parallax View” (Paramount, 1974, *R-rated). 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994. * No one under the age of 17 will be admitted without a parent or guardian.

Friday, May 29
CONCERT
Trumpeter Etienne Charles explores the musical connections among Afro-Caribbean, Creole, New Orleans and American traditions at 8 p.m. in the Coolidge Auditorium. Tickets required. Contact: 707.5502.
*Preconcert Presentation at 6:30 p.m. in the Whittall Pavilion: Chef David Guas of Bayou Bakery in Arlington, Va., discusses “Creole Soul Food.”

Saturday, May 30
FILM
“Ali: Fear Eats the Soul” (New Yorker Films, 1974). 7:30 p.m., Packard Campus Theater, Culpeper. Va. Contact: 707.9994.

June 2015

Wednesday, June 3
SYMPOSIUM
“Tyre at the Library of Congress” brings together international scholars from Europe, the Middle East and the United States to discuss different aspects of the history of the ancient city of Tyre in Lebanon. The program is from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. in the Northeast Pavilion of the Thomas Jefferson Building. Contact: 707.1221.

Wednesday, June 3
POETRY READING
Pacific Islander poets Brandy Nālani McDougall, Craig Santos Perez and Lyz Soto read from their work and participate in a moderated discussion with Lawrence-Minh Bùi Davis, founding director and co-editor-in-chief of The Asian American Literary Review, at 6:30 p.m. in the Mumford Room. Contact: 707.5394.

Thursday, June 4
EXHIBITION OPENING
“First Among Many: The Bay Psalm Book and Early Moments in American Printing” tells the story of American printing as it evolved from a colonial necessity to the clarion of freedom. The exhibition features iconic treasures and for the first time displays two copies of the first book to be printed in what is now the United States, known as the Bay Psalm Book. The exhibition is on view from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Monday - Friday, in the South Gallery of the Thomas Jefferson Building, through Jan. 2, 2016. Contact: 707.3822.

Thursday, June 4
SYMPOSIUM
A panel of scholars and folklorists discuss the innovative contemporary approaches to fieldwork during the symposium “Documenting and Collecting Culture in the 21st Century.” The event is from 1:30 – 5 p.m. in the Montpelier Room. Contact: 707.5510.

Wednesday, June 10
BENJAMIN BOTKIN LECTURE SERIES
Nathan Salsburg of the Association for Cultural Equity presents “‘Listen to Our Story’: Alan Lomax, Folk Producer/Folk Promoter” at noon in the Whittall Pavilion. Contact: 707.5510.

Thursday, June 11
SCHOLARFEST
Seventy top scholars, including winners of three past John W. Kluge Prizes, participate in rapid-fire dialogues, panels and scholarly conversations on a series of thought-provoking topics beginning at 9 a.m. in the Thomas Jefferson Building. For a complete schedule, visit www.loc.gov/loc/kluge/news/scholarfest-2015.html. Contact: 707.0213.

Thursday, June 11
LECTURE
Lynnae C. Quick, a scientist with the Sciences and Exploration Directorate at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, presents “Icy Volcanism in the Outer Solar System” at 11:30 a.m. in the Mary Pickford Theater. Contact: 707.1192.

Wednesday, June 17
BOOKS & BEYOND
Laura Auricchio discusses and signs her new book “The Marquis: Lafayette Reconsidered” at noon in the Montpelier Room. Contact: 707.5221.

Wednesday, June 24
LECTURE
Dalia Kirschbaum, a scientist in the Hydrological Sciences Lab at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, presents “Finding the Slippery Slope: Detecting Landslides from Space” at 11:30 a.m. in the Mary Pickford Theater. Contact: 707.1192.

Wednesday, June 24
KLUGE CENTER LECTURE
Ed Ayers, president of the University of Richmond, presents “The Shape of the Civil War” at 4 p.m. in LJ 119. Contact: 707.0213.

Monday, June 29
HOMEGROWN CONCERT FILM SCREENING
Director Alfredo DiNatale presents his film “Marinera, testimonio de diversidad y tradición” at noon in the Mary Pickford Theater. Contact: 707.5510.

Tuesday, June 30
HOMEGROWN CONCERT
Marinera Viva!!! presents the national dance of Peru at noon in the Coolidge Auditorium. No tickets are required. Contact: 707.5510.

July 2015

Monday, July 13
HOMEGROWN CONCERT
Brian Peters and Jeff Davis present “Sharp’s Appalachian Harvest,” a special multimedia folk-music presentation featuring the collection of songs and music made by English collectors Cecil Sharp and Maud Karpeles in the Southern Appalachians from 1916-1918, at 7 p.m. in the Mumford Room. No tickets required. Contact: 707.5510.

Tuesday, July 14
BENJAMIN BOTKIN LECTURE SERIES
Scottish radio broadcaster Fiona Ritchie, best known as the producer and host of “The Thistle & Shamrock” on NPR, participates in an open-mic conversation at noon in the Mumford Room. Contact: 707.5510.

Tuesday, July 21
BOOKS & BEYOND
James McGrath Morris discusses and signs his new book “Eye on the Struggle: Ethel Payne, The First Lady of the Black Press” at noon in the Mumford Room. Contact: 707.5221.

Wednesday, July 29
HOMEGROWN CONCERT
Creole United presents African-American creole music from Louisiana at noon in the Coolidge Auditorium. No tickets are required. Contact: 707.5510.

Information

The Library of Congress occupies three buildings on Capitol Hill. The Thomas Jefferson Building is located at 10 First St. S.E., across from the U.S. Capitol. The John Adams Building is directly behind the Jefferson Building to the east on Second St. S.E. The James Madison Memorial Building, at 101 Independence Ave. S.E., is just south of the Jefferson Building.

Jefferson Building: Coolidge Auditorium, ground floor; Whittall Pavilion, ground floor; Bob Hope Gallery of Entertainment, ground floor; Young Readers Center, ground floor; LJ 119, first floor; Great Hall, first floor; Southwest Gallery and Southwest Pavilion, second floor; South Gallery, second floor; Northwest Gallery, second floor.

Madison Building: Madison Hall, first floor; LM 139, first floor; Pickford Theater, third floor; Mumford Room, sixth floor; Montpelier Room, sixth floor; West Dining Room, sixth floor; Dining Room A, sixth floor.

When attending events at the Library, allow extra time to pass through Library security. Request ADA accommodations five days in advance at 707.6362 or ADA@loc.gov.

Packard Campus Film Screenings: All screenings are at 7:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted. Call 202.707.9994 during business hours. Seating at the screenings is on a first-come, first-serve basis. The Packard Campus Theater is located on the ground floor of the Packard Campus of the National Audio Visual Conservation Center, 19053 Mount Pony Rd., Culpeper, Va. For current schedule and more information, visit the theater’s website at www.loc.gov/avconservation/theater/. In case of inclement weather, call the theater information line no more than three hours before showtime to confirm cancellations.

Concerts at the Library of Congress: All concerts are at 8 p.m. in the Coolidge Auditorium, unless otherwise noted. Tickets are distributed by TicketMaster at 202.397.7328, 410.547.7328 and 703.573.7328. Various ticketing service charges apply. Tickets are also available at TicketMaster outlets and online at TicketMaster.com External. Although the supply of tickets may be exhausted, there are often empty seats at concert time. Interested patrons are encouraged to come to the Library by 6:30 p.m. on concert nights to wait in the standby line for no-show tickets. Pre-concert presentations are at 6:30 p.m. in the Whittall Pavilion and do not require tickets. For more information, visit www.loc.gov/concerts/. Contact: 202.707.5502.