Celebra t ing S hakesp eare

i s m a de p os s i b l e t h an k s to t he

F r i e nd s o f t he Li bra r y

Th a n ks a l so t o o ur p a rt ne rs :

Books on t he Commo n

Founders Ha l l

Prospec tor T heat er

Ridgef i e ld P layhouse

Wednesday, May 18

6 - 7:30 PM @ Ridgefield Library

Reading Is a Family Affair

Shakespeare’s Secret by Elise Broach

Reading Is a Family Affair is a

popular book discussion group for

children in grades 3-5 and an adult

family member. In celebration of

William Shakespeare, we will

discuss Shakespeare’s Secret by

Elise Broach. Register in person in

Children’s Services and receive a

free copy of the book. The books

will be available for pick up at the

Library beginning April 11th. A pizza dinner will

precede the book discussion. This event is sponsored by

the Friends of the Library.

Ridgefield Library, 472 Main Street, Ridgefield, CT 06877

203-438-2282, ridgefieldlibrary.org

Special Thanks

Celebrating Shakespeare

400 Years of

William Shakespeare

April & May 2016

This spring the Library, along with other community

partners, will commemorate the 400th anniversary of

William Shakespeare’s death with a series of lectures,

performances, screenings & more!

For more information or to register for

programs visit ridgefieldlibrary.org or

call 203-438-2282

Ridgefield Library & Partners Present

“All the world's a stage, and all the men and

women merely players.”

“There is nothing either good or bad but thinking

makes it so.”

“To be, or not to be, that is the question.”

Programs for Children

Sunday, April 3, 2 PM Ridgefield Folk: The Edna Project

with Liz Queler, Seth Farber and

Joey Farber

Sunday, April 10, 2 PM It Could Be Verse with Ira Joe Fisher

Friday, April 15, 1 PM Poetry Discussion Group: New and Selected Poems

by Samuel Menashe with Dr. Alan Holder

Wednesday, April 20, 7 PM Poetry Reading: Sky Gazer with Dr. Alan Holder

Sunday, April 24, 1 to 4 PM Workshop: Dare You See a Soul at the White Heat?

What a Poet Can Learn from Emily Dickinson

with Dr. Joanne Dobson

April Is Also National

Poetry Month!

Wednesday, April 6

7 PM @ Ridgefield Library

Lecture: Shakespeare’s Major Tragedies

with Dr. Mark Schenker

Shakespeare wrote four plays

between 1600 and 1606 that are

considered the height of his

achievement in

tragedy: Hamlet, Othello, King

Lear and Macbeth. In April— 400

years to the month after the

playwright’s death— Mark

Schenker of Yale College will lecture on this quartet

of plays, both as a group and with some attention to

the distinctiveness of each. Among the topics he will

consider in his presentation: the tragic view of life,

the nature of the tragic hero, the interconnectedness of

good and evil, and the ways in which Shakespeare

employs theater as symbol and metaphor.

Participants do not have to have read the plays in

advance, but reviewing the plots in advance of

the lecture will enhance your appreciation of the talk.

Register at ridgefieldlibrary.org.

Wednesday, April 13

3 PM & 7 PM @

Ridgefield Playhouse

Hamlet - National

Theatre Encore in

HD starring Benedict Cumberbatch

As a country arms itself for war, a family tears itself

apart. Forced to avenge his father’s death but

paralyzed by the task ahead, Hamlet rages against the

impossibility of his predicament, threatening both his

sanity and the security of the state.

Academy Award® nominee Benedict Cumberbatch

(BBC’s Sherlock, The Imitation Game) takes on the

title role of Shakespeare’s great tragedy. The film is

directed by Lyndsey Turner and produced by Sonia

Friedman Productions.

$10 Adults/Students Free - Information

and tickets at ridgefieldplayhouse.org

Thursday, April 14

3 PM @ Founders Hall

Founders Hall Book Discussion:

Shakespeare: The World as Stage

by Bill Bryson

William Shakespeare, the most

celebrated poet in the English

language, left behind nearly a million

words of text, but his biography has

long been a thicket of wild

supposition arranged around scant

facts. With a steady hand and his

trademark wit, Bill Bryson sorts

through this colorful muddle to

reveal the man himself.

Facilitated by Assistant Director Mary Rindfleisch, this

session is open to members of Founders Hall.

No registration.

Saturday, April 23

11:30 AM @ The Prospector Theater

ShakeSPHERE’s Romeo and

Juliet

SPHERE, whose mission is to

improve the quality of life for adults

with developmental disabilities,

has written, produced and released a

film of Romeo and Juliet starring its

developmentally disabled actors.

Romeo and Juliet, who both have Down Syndrome, and

22 supporting actors fill various roles of Montagues and

Capulets. This movie showcases what adults with

developmental disabilities can achieve and accomplish.

In 38 minutes, it tells the tragic story of Romeo and Juliet

and remains true to the original. SPHERE's goal is to

share its film with as many people as possible to

highlight the abilities of its members, and the special

people in communities throughout the world.

Tickets $5 - Information and tickets at

prospectortheater.org

Saturday, April 23

2 PM @ Ridgefield Library

Shake-Scene with actor Stephen Collins

Actor and teacher Stephen

Collins will bring

Shakespeare's tragedies,

comedies, histories, and

sonnets to life as he performs

as King Lear, Edmund, Iago,

Prospero, Bottom and many

others.

Collins will begin his performance with a celebration

of Shakespeare’s lasting effect on the English

language. Shakespeare created over 1700 common

words that before him were either used in a different

manner or didn't exist at all. He did this by changing

nouns into verbs, changing verbs into adjectives,

connecting words never before used together, or just by

creating entirely new words. Join us to hear

Shakespeare’s wonderful inventiveness in action!

Register at ridgefieldlibrary.org.

Saturday, April 30

2 PM on the Library Lawn

Beatrice and Juliet - Vignettes from Much

Ado About Nothing and Romeo and Juliet

with the Barefoot Shakespeare Company

Meet Beatrice and Juliet,

two of Shakespeare's

women in different

stages of life and love.

Founded in 2012 by

Emily Gallagher,

Courtney Moors and Rob Sniffin, Barefoot

Shakespeare Company is a new group with an

engaging and modern outlook on the works of the

Bard. Barefoot Shakespeare Company is dedicated to

bringing Shakespeare's work to a wide, diverse

audience. The company strives to create work that is

grounded, accessible and applicable, dissolving the

divide between spectator and performer.

No registration.