In this issue
-- It's Official: The Homestead Opens in April 2010
-- Join Us this Saturday for an "Afternoon of Domesticity"
-- The Belle of Amherst Reveals the Layers of Emily Dickinson "A Ribbon at a Time."
-- Emily Dickinson Museum Bus Trip to New York Botanical Garden -- Celebrate Emily Dickinson's Words on Saturday, April 10 -- Writing Workshops Offer an Opportunity to Celebrate National Poetry Month -- Coming Soon -- Your Chance to Become A Member! -- Save these Dates for our 2010 Programming -- Support the Emily Dickinson Museum -- Take Action! You Can Help Save America's Treasures -- About the Museum -- Are you on FacebookŪ? Join us!
"Dear March-
Program Note: The April 8 "An Evening of Guitar Music and Poetry" has been canceled due the artist's unexpected trip out of the country. |
|
|
It's Official: The Homestead Opens in April 2010 The repair project has improved our knowledge about how Emily Dickinson's home appeared during her lifetime. We look forward to sharing what we've learned with visitors to the Homestead and The Evergreens. For more information about the museum's hours visit our website.
To make a special donation
to support repair of the Homestead ceilings,
please mail a check to the Museum at the
following address:
|
|
|
Join Us this Saturday for an "Afternoon of Domesticity" 
On Saturday, March 27, at 2 p.m., the Emily
Dickinson Museum will host a free
lecture and discussion with authors Aife
Murray and Daneen
Wardrop, on Emily
Dickinson, Household Work and Poetry: An
Afternoon of Domesticity. The
program will be
held at
the Amherst Woman's Club,
35 Triangle Street, Amherst (next door to
the Homestead).
During the program, Murray and Wardrop will share highlights of their individual research and participate in a moderated discussion about the domestic and artistic spheres in which Dickinson lived. Several Dickinson poems, including "The Spider as an Artist," will be featured. Refreshments and a book-signing for both authors will follow. For more information, please contact the Emily Dickinson Museum at 413-542-8429 or 413-542-2034.
|
|
|
The Belle of Amherst Reveals the Layers of Emily Dickinson "A Ribbon at a Time." 
The Kirby Theater at Amherst College
blossomed with theatergoers, lovers of Emily
Dickinson's poetry, and supporters of the
Emily Dickinson Museum on Thursday, March 11, for
a benefit performance of William Luce's The Belle
of Amherst, with Barbara Dana in the title role.
Directed by Austin Pendleton, Ms. Dana deftly portrayed the poet's sharp wit, poetic genius, spiritual reflections, and most of all, her devotion and love for her family and friends. Ms. Dana exposed an Emily Dickinson beyond her poetry and myths. The audience laughed at Dickinson's wry humor and contempt for her sister Lavinia's beloved cats and fell silent as the poet revealed the pain of losing her father and nephew. Following the performance, Ms. Dana took questions from the audience about what it was like to portray the enigmatic poet and her emotional life. Throughout the evening, in the front row, sat a very special audience member, Julie Harris, who performed The Belle of Amherst on and off Broadway, brought the play to the Kirby Theater in 1976, and won a Tony award for her portrayal. The Emily Dickinson Museum acknowledges with gratitude the support of the following sponsors of this special performance: Blair Cutting and Smith Insurance, the Center for Cross Cultural Studies, the Daily Hampshire Gazette, Elite Home Health Agency, Jones Group Realtors, Jones Properties, Northampton Cooperative Bank, PeoplesBank. Proceeds from the evening directly support the Emily Dickinson Museum's tours, programs, and educational activities.
|
|
|
Emily Dickinson Museum Bus Trip to New York Botanical Garden 
Join the Emily Dickinson Museum on a Bus
Trip
to the New York Botanical Garden on
Tuesday,
May 11. We will be visiting the garden's new
exhibition Emily Dickinson's Garden: The
Poetry of Flowers.
The daylong excursion includes round-trip
transportation between Amherst and
the New York Botanical Garden, a guided tour
of the exhibit, and free time to explore the
garden on your own.
The exhibition runs from May 1 to June 13 and will include an interpretation of Dickinson's own mid-19th century flower garden in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. Space is limited. The cost is $55 per person if reservations are made before May 1; $65 per person on or after May 1. To reserve a place, or for more information, contact Nan Fischlein, program coordinator, at nfischlein@emilydickinsonmuseum.org or 413-542-2034. Visit the New York Botanical Garden's website at nybg.org for more information about the exhibition.
|
|
|
Celebrate Emily Dickinson's Words on Saturday, April 10 
"The library will be buzzing with poetic
energy on April 10," said Beth Girshman,
adult programs coordinator for the Jones
Library.
In honor of National Poetry Month, the Emily
Dickinson Museum and the Jones
Library will
join together for "Celebrating
Emily Dickinson's Words" on Saturday,
April 10,
from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the library. The
day includes a poetry discussion with poet
Marilyn Nelson, a children's craft and story
time, a community poetry banner, a poetry
open mike, and tours of the Jones Library
Special Collections department and downtown
Amherst. Programs are free and open to the
public.
Highlights of the day include "The Power of Dickinson's Poetry," a discussion of Dickinson's poetry with poet Marilyn Nelson at 2 p.m. and a Community Poetry Banner. Individuals can contribute their own favorite poem, word or poetic thought to the banner that will hang at the Jones Library through out National Poetry Month and will then be moved to the Emily Dickinson Museum. "Celebrating Emily Dickinson's Words" is supported in part by a grant from the Amherst Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency, and by the Friends of the Jones Library System. For more information, please call the Museum at 413-542-8429 or 413-542-2034 or the Jones Library Reference Desk at 413-259-3096. Visit our website for the all of the day's events and times.
|
|
|
Writing Workshops Offer an Opportunity to Celebrate National Poetry Month Poet Hannah Brooks-Motl will lead a workshop for adults that examines "obsession." Poet Henk Rossouw will help adult participants "Loose the Flood" by working with specific lines from Dickinson's poetry. In "The Soul has Bandaged Moments," a special workshop for youth ages 13-18, poet Gale Thompson will help participants explore the emotional side of being a poet. For the adult workshops, a $10 advance registration fee is required (scholarships are available). The youth workshop (geared for ages 13-18) is free, but pre-registration is required. For more information or to register for one of the workshops, contact the Reference Department at the Jones Library at reference@joneslibrary.org or 413-259-3096. Workshops are sponsored in part by a grant from the Friends of the Jones Library System and the Amherst Cultural Council.
|
|
|
Coming Soon -- Your Chance to Become A Member! 
The Emily Dickinson Museum is excited to
announce that it will launch a new membership
program in the summer of 2010. This program
will give fans of Emily Dickinson an
opportunity to join in the celebration of all
that is Dickinson all year long! Members
will receive free admission to the Museum,
discounts at the gift shop and opportunities
to attend unique programs. Look for more
information to follow in the coming months on
how you can join.
|
|
|
Save these Dates for our 2010 Programming
Join us for lively and informal discussions on Emily Dickinson's work. Each month a different theme will be examined. The Poetry Discussion Group meets on Fridays once a month from noon to 2 p.m. at different locations, March 26, April 23 and May 28. Check the web page for topic and facilitator information.
|
|
|
Support the Emily Dickinson Museum 
The Emily Dickinson Museum is a vibrant literary
landmark, honoring of one of the world's
greatest poets. The museum has grown
dramatically
in its programs, audience, and impact in the
short
years since its creation in 2003, and attracts
worldwide attention. It owes its success in
large
measure to the generous encouragement of its
many
dedicated friends and supporters.
In these times of economic challenge for non-profit cultural organizations, we especially need your help to maintain the tours, programs, and connection with the poet's world at the Emily Dickinson Museum. Read a compelling message about the Museum's needs and goals offered by Cullen Murphy, editor-at-large for Vanity Fair magazine and a member of the Emily Dickinson Museum's Board of Governors.
Make your gift now via PayPal!
Or mail your contribution to:
|
|
|
Take Action! You Can Help Save America's Treasures 
The ceiling repairs at Emily Dickinson's home
speak volumes about the challenges and
importanct of preserving our nation's
historic sites. The Save America's Treasures
program, which helped to fund the exterior
restoration of the Homestead, the Museum's
Master Plan, and infrastructure improvements,
is threatened by proposed budget cuts that
would eliminate this important preservation
funding. The National
Trust for Historic Preservation recently
featured the Emily Dickinson Museum as an
example of protecting out national heritage
on its blog. You can read more about this program
and what you can do to help protect it at the website www.preservationnation.org/treasures.
|
|
|
About the Museum 
The Emily Dickinson Museum: The Homestead and
The Evergreens is dedicated to educating diverse
audiences about the poet's life, family,
creative work,
times, and enduring relevance, and to
preserving and
interpreting the Homestead and The Evergreens as
historical resources for the benefit of
scholars and the
general public. The Emily Dickinson Museum is owned by the Trustees of Amherst College and has its own Board of Governors, which is responsible for raising the Museum's operating and capital funds. The Museum is a member of Museums10, a collaboration of ten museums linked to the five colleges in the Pioneer Valley. The Tour Center may be reached at 413-542-2947, Wednesday through Sunday, during museum hours.
|
|
|
Are you on FacebookŪ? Join us! 
The Museum has created a presence on Facebook to share information and tools with the Facebook commmunity. Become a fan today! Just Click on the Facebook Icon.
|
|
|
Quick Links... |
|
|
For general information, contact the Museum at
Recorded Information:
413-542-8161
Website:
http://www.EmilyDickinsonMuseum.org
|
