CHICAGO (March 26, 2007) - Summer 2007 at the Newberry Library is a perfect time to reflect on how Chicago came to be so diverse and dynamic in the 21st century. Authors will speak on urban planning, the rise of Bronzeville, and public housing. Soapbox debaters will once again grace Bughouse Square Park on Saturday, July 28 to discuss topics relevant to today's Chicago.
Or, pack your bags and spend the day with the Newberry this summer. On June 2, travel with Irving Cutler to see how ethnic neighborhoods evolved near Chicago's Loop. And, on June 16, ride along with Glennette Tilley Turner to north suburban sites associated with anti-slavery activism and the Underground Railroad.
The summer also marks the return of the popular Newberry Library Book Fair on July 26. Now 23 years in the making, this year's book fair spans four days and will have more than 100,000 books for sale - many priced at less than $2. Proceeds from the Book Fair go to support the Library's collections and free public programming.
General information:
Location: 60 West Walton Street, Chicago IL 60610
Public Information: Call (312) 255-3700 or visit www.newberry.org
Exhibit Hours: Monday, Friday, and Saturday, 8:15 am - 5:30 pm
Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 8:15 am - 7:30 pm
Admission is free unless otherwise noted.
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April 2007
Ninth Annual Workshop in Honor of Barbara Stenger Burditt: Maps and Genealogy
Friday, April 13, and Saturday, April 14,
9:15 am - 3:00 pm
A free two-day workshop will explore maps and other geographic tools for genealogy research. Melinda Kashuba, author of Walking With Your Ancestors: A Genealogist's Guide to Using Maps and Geography, will be the work-shop's featured speaker.
Admission is free, but reservations are required. For reservations, call (312) 255-3700.
Much Ado About Nothing
by William Shakespeare
Saturday, April 21, 10:00 am
Celebrate Shakespeare's birthday with The Shakespeare Project of Chicago's production of the romantic comedy Much Ado About Nothing. Young lovers, villains, and a constable prone to malapropisms, complete the cast of one of Shakespeare's most beloved comedies.
The Plan of Chicago: Daniel Burnham and the Remaking of the American City
Wednesday, April 25, 6:00 pm
Speaker: Carl Smith, Northwestern University
Daniel Burnham's 1909 Plan of Chicago is arguably the most influential document in the history of urban planning. Carl Smith's fascinating history reveals the Plan's central role in shaping the ways people envision the cityscape and urban life itself.
A book signing follows the talk.
May 2007
After Tony Blair: Constitutional Revolution or Revelation in Britain's Disguised Republic?
Wednesday, May 2, 6:15
Reception begins at 5:30 pm and includes snacks and refreshments ($9/$6 for Associates of the Newberry Library)
Speaker: Martin Meenagh, Worcester College, University of Oxford, and member of the Middle Temple, the Inns of Court (London)
During the Blair years, profound reforms to Britain's unwritten and monarchial constitution have included the human rights act, devolution, the reform of the House of Lords, and the virtual elimination of the mysterious Crown power known as the "Royal prerogative." Has the United Kingdom indeed become, as Walter Bagehot described it in 1873, "a disguised republic"? Do these changes simply ratify and bring into the open Britain's hidden republican settlement? What should foreign observers expect after Blair steps down as Prime Minister?
Newberry Consort: Imperial Entertainments: Music for the Holy Roman Emperors
Three generations of Habsburg emperors (Ferdinand II, Leopold I, and Joseph I) were not only lovers of music but composers themselves. Several special guests will join the Consort, along with David Douglass, Mary Springfels, and Richard Wistreich, for a spirited conclusion to the season. For tickets, call (312) 255-3700.
Thursday, May 3, 3:00 pm open rehearsal, Newberry Library
Friday, May 4, 7:30 pm concert, Newberry Library
Saturday, May 5, 7:30 pm concert, University of Chicago's Fulton Recital Hall
Sunday, May 6, 3:00 pm concert, Northwestern University's Lutkin Hall
Ticket prices vary; call (312) 255-3700 for more information.
Chicago's Progressive Alliance: Labor and the Bid for Public Streetcars
Saturday, May 5, 11:00 am
Speaker: Georg Leidenberger, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Mexico City
By the turn of the 20th century, Chicago was known as a bastion of labor unions and a laboratory of Progressive-era social reform. Chicago's Progressive Alliance is the story of a coalition of workers and reformers who fought for municipal control of streetcars.
A book signing follows the talk.
What's ‘Imperial' about Imperial Cartography . . . and what's ‘Cartographic'?
Thursday, May 10, 6:00 pm
Speaker: Matthew Edney, University of Wisconsin-Madison
The director of the History of Cartography Project explores the articulation of "empire" with "map" to reveal the ways in which these two concepts have reinforced each other in the modern world. In the process, he sheds light on how the ideologies of imperialism and cartography have turned maps into "natural" and unremarkable objects.
Shaw vs Shakespeare: A Meeting of the Minds
Thursday, May 24, 6:00 pm
Featuring Terence Gallagher and other members of ShawChicago Theatre Company
Two world class play-wrights square off in ShawChicago's adaptation of the rarely-produced Shakes vs Shav. Timeless issues of war and wooing, princes and pawns, empires and everyman are woven together from each author's canon. Written by Shaw in 1949 and originally intended to be a puppet show at the Malvern Marionette theatre in England, this mad farce has Bernard vying with William for the title of "World's Greatest Playwright."
June 2007
Chicago: Metropolis of the Mid-Continent: A Book Talk and Bus Tour
Saturday, June 2, 11:00 am - Noon
Bus tour, 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Speaker and tour leader: Irving Cutler, Chicago State University
Irving Cutler, professor emeritus of Geography, is renowned for his guided bus tours of Chicago. He will present a talk on the completely revised fourth edition of his popular overview of the geography of this city, emphasizing the many racial and ethnic groups of the "real Chicago" neighborhoods. Boarding at 1:00 pm from the front steps of the Library, the bus tour will visit neighborhoods surrounding the Loop, from Maxwell Street to Goose Island, Little Italy, Greektown, Pilsen, Ukrainian Village and more before returning to the Newberry at 5:00 pm.
Tickets are $45/$40 for Associates of the Newberry Library. Lunch is not included.
Waiting for Gautreaux: A Story of Segregation, Housing, and the Black Ghetto
Wednesday, June 6, 6:00 pm
Author Alexander Polikoff in conversation with James R. Grossman, the Newberry Library
Join historian James R. Grossman in a conversation with Alexander Polikoff whose unrelenting battle to end racial segregation in public housing is bearing fruit in Chicago today, as mixed income high rise and low rise housing replace vertical South Side ghettos such as the Robert Taylor Homes.
A book signing will follow the talk.
The Underground Railroad in Illinois: A Talk and Bus Tour
Saturday, June 16, 9:30 am - 5:00 pm
Speaker and tour leader: Glennette Tilley Turner
Join Glennette Tilley Turner, author of The Underground Railroad in Illinois, for an illustrated talk followed by a bus tour of centers of anti-slavery activity in Chicago's northern suburbs. The Mother Rudd House in Gurnee, the Millburn Congregational Church in Lake Villa, and Ivanhoe Congregational in Mundelein will be among the sites visited.
Tickets are $65/$55 for Associates of the Newberry Library. The fee includes a box lunch.
Meet the Author: Cold Running Creek
Wednesday, June 20, 6:00 pm
Speaker: Zelda Lockhart
In her second novel, the author of Fifth Born takes her readers through a seldom-explored world of black slaves and their Indian masters in the deep south. Raven, a Choctaw girl, survives the massacre of her parents, who refused relocation to Oklahoma from Mississippi. She marries the French-Choctaw master of LeFlore plantation, and adopts Lily, an infant slave of black and Choctaw heritage. Zelda Lockhart recounts these two women's struggles to be free during the tumultuous years before, during, and after the Civil War.
A book signing follows the talk.
Where Did You Come From?
Genetics and Genealogy
Thursday, June 28, 6:00 pm
Chair: Tony Burroughs, Chicago State University
Presenters: Rick Kittles, the University of Chicago; Ronne Hartfield, author, poet, and arts administrator; Christopher Rabb, social commentator, consultant, and genealogist
Genetic tests that may shed light on ethnic ancestry are becoming increasingly popular. What can genetics teach us about our ancestors? Can genetic genealogy help us recognize common ancestors and create connections between racial and ethnic groups? How do we pass down membership in a group - through genes or culture?
July 2007
It Was a Dark and Stormy Night: A Game of First Lines
Tuesday, July 10, 6:00 pm
Speaker and Gaming MC: Catherine Braendel, co-founder of Good Read Games, Inc.
Do you know all the answers in Trivial Pursuit? Are you Scrabbled out? Be among the first to play
a newly published board game. Many hours spent reading for pleasure have equipped you to compete with other readers to identify the author or title of a book with only the book's first line as a clue. It's that simple and that challenging. Catherine Braendel will give you the inside scoop on how
she and her husband developed the Dark and Stormy Night game, and cheer you on while you play.
Admission is free, but space is limited so reservations are required. Call (312) 255-3700 to make a reservation.
The Twenty-Third Annual Newberry Library Book Fair
Thursday, July 26, Noon - 8:00 pm
Friday, July 27, Noon - 8:00 pm
Saturday, July 28, 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
Sunday, July 29, 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
Feed your bibliomania at the Newberry's annual Book Fair! More than 100,000 donated books have been sorted into 50 categories for your browsing convenience. With many books priced under $2, it's easy to replenish your home library's holdings on subjects ranging from antiques to zoology.
Bughouse Square Debates
Saturday, July 28, Noon - 4:00 pm
Held in Washington Square Park across the street from the Newberry Library
Relive the days of soapbox oratory and public debates that immortalized Washington Square Park. Celebrate Chicago's long history as a hub of free speech with soap boxers and a compelling main debate. An open mic and musical entertainment complete the afternoon's participatory pleasures. For gustatory delights, Chase Root Beer's hot dogs, fresh squeezed lemonades, and root beer floats are highly recommended.
ABOUT THE NEWBERRY LIBRARY
The Newberry Library, a preeminent humanities research and reference institution, is home to a world-class collection of books, manuscripts, maps, music, and other printed materials related to the history and culture of Western Europe and the Americas. The collections span many centuries and feature items such as illuminated medieval manuscripts, rare early maps, rich genealogical resources, and the personal papers of Midwest authors. The Newberry offers exhibits based on its collections, musical and theatrical performances, lectures and discussions with today's leading humanists, seminars and workshops, and teacher programs. Visit www.newberry.org to learn more.