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Dr. S. Stevan Dweck Center for Contemporary Culture
Dr. S. Stevan Dweck Center for Contemporary Culture
About the Dweck
Conveniently located at BPL's Central Library on Grand Army Plaza, the auditorium seats 189 people - nearly twice the capacity of the Second Floor Meeting Room, the Library's next largest space - and is fully accessible. The Dweck features an elevated stage (25 feet wide and 10 feet deep) and wood and perforated acoustic wall and ceiling panels that make the space particularly well suited to musical performances. Other essential modern amenities include a control room, adjustable stage lighting, a movable "smart" podium equipped with a control panel, removable seating to accommodate wheelchairs, and an assistive listening system to improve auditory access.
The Dweck Center's inaugural year was a great success, with the presentation of an ambitious roster of 200 educational and cultural programs, including literary series, scholarly lectures, film screenings and discussions, and musical performances. The new space enables BPL to better accommodate our expanding audience for public programs, which had enjoyed steady growth over the past several years and swelled as a result of the Dweck. FY08 saw a 116% increase in attendance at PED programs conducted at Central Library, the majority of which were held in the auditorium. Attendance at Dweck programs alone totaled 17,000.
Contact library for reservations and policy. Central Administration Office: 718.230.2198.
All events are free unless stated otherwise.
Highlights from the Dweck
Somi, "African Lady"
Musette Explosion
Will Holshouser, accordion; Matt Munisteri, guitar; Marcus Rojas, tuba
Poets Alexander Stessin and Vladimir Druk join writer Pavel Lembersky and Mark Kopelev for a reading from their recently published books.
Space is limited so please RSVP for tickets by calling 718-230-2222. Limit two per person.
This even is in Russian.
Drawn In Brooklyn Panel Discussion: My Inspiration
Children's book author and illustrator John Bemelmans Marciano, the grandson of Madeline creator Ludwig Bemelmans, discusses the world of children's literature and illustration with fellow illustrators R. Gregory Christie (Bad News for Outlaws, The Champ), Sophie Blackall (Big Red Lollipop, Meet Wild Boars) John Rocco (Fu Finds the Way, Moonpowder), and Melanie Cecka, Bloomsbury's editorial director for children's literature.
Saturday Family Program: Jon Samson presents...Co-Creative Music
Original songs for kids of all ages. Co-Creative Music is a highly adaptive program with a multifaceted design involving sing alongs, interactive music making and improvisation.
Oster is a children's writer and poet, most famous for his "Bits of Harmful Advice" poetry series for children. "Fairy Tale in Minor Detail" is a postmodernist children's novel, and his work is celebrated for its role in the development of post-totalitarian children's literature. He also scripted the animated films "38 Parrots" and "A Kitten Named Bow-Wow".
Space is limited so please RSVP for tickets by calling 718-230-2222. Limit two per person.
This event is in Russian.
GRANDMA'S BOY (1922) 56 Min.
In Lloyd's first, and favorite, feature-length film, poor Harold plays a painfully, hopelessly timid and cowardly young man who must finally grow up. Help may come from his grandma who, like a fairy godmother, gives him a magical family talisman, in a slapstick-comedy with an emphasis on heart.
Directed by Fred Newmeyer.
Plus a Lloyd short comedy:
FROM HAND TO MOUTH (1919) 22 Minutes
Live piano accompaniment by Stuart Oderman. Curated and hosted by Ken Gordon.
Hungarian violinist Katalin Vszmeg and Taiwanese pianist Pi-Hsun Shih present a program that fuses classical and ethnic Eastern European music. The duo performs works by Dvorak, Bartok, Miklos Rozsa and Bedrich Smetana.
No Kidding: International Films About Children - Billy Elliot - England 2000
This feel-good British film follows 11-year old Billy as he comes of age amid a miner's strike that embroils his family and neighbors in intense social unrest. Billy's father wants to toughen up the lad in preparation for the hard life that waits him by sending him to boxing lessons. But Billy finds that he's better at expressing himself with his feet than his fists, and he overcomes his family's disapproval to shine as a ballet dancer.
110 Minutes
The Los Angeles-based a cappella sextet delivers stunning harmonies, percussive vocal acrobatics, and some seriously danceable music. Their contemporary repertoire includes unique renditions of music by Radiohead, Fleet Foxes, Bjork, Imogen Heap, and The Jackson 5.
Saturday Family Program: Celebrate Hispanic History Month - The Bad Birthday: A Mexican Fable
A twin brother and sister decide to bake themselves a birthday cake. When they ask their neighbors for help, the greedy neighbors agree to donate the ingredients in exchange for pieces of the cake. Soon, all of the cake is promised
to other people. But before the twins' birthday is over, everyone in town learns the value of cooperation.
Martin L. and Rona Schneider lecture: Immigrants "R" Us: The Browning of America
Has the motto inscribed in the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty - Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free - been betrayed by the current climate of fear toward immigrants? Is a colored America still a land of opportunity?
Ilan Stavans, the Lewis-Sebring Professor in Latin American and Latino Culture at Amherst College, discusses the changing America. His numerous books include Growing up Latino and Spanglish.
No Kidding: International Films About Children - Forbidden Games - France - 1952
This 1952 French film depicts the horrors of World War II through the eyes of two children. Young Paulette loses her parents and beloved pet dog in a Nazi air raid outside of Paris. Orphaned, she is taken in by a peasant family whose 11 year old son, Michel, she befriends and with whom she begins a cemetery for animals and insects. Their attempt to make sense of the destruction around them carries unintended consequences for Michel's family.
86 Minutes
This cyber-thriller was released in Russia as two separate films; the director's cut - which includes both episodes - will be presented at the library. In a departure from his earlier films, which were based largely on autobiographical material, "Game", both written and directed by Pavel Sanaev, narrates a story of young computer gamers who unexpectedly gain powers for which they may not be prepared.
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Acknowledgments
Brooklyn Public Library gratefully acknowledges the many donors who have provided generous support for public programs at the Dr. S. Stevan Dweck Center for Contemporary Culture, including:
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Circle Apartments LLC, Con Edison, The Fund for Brooklyn History, Herman Goldman Foundation, Cheryl and George Haywood Endowment for Cultural Diversity, The Hearst Foundation, Inc., The Kahn Endowment for Humanities Programs, The Miriam Katowitz and Arthur Radin Fund, Mapleton Endowment, National Endowment for the Arts, New York Council for the Humanities, New York State Council on the Arts, Martin L. and Rona Schneider, Sandra and Peter Schubert Endowment Fund, The Shen Family Foundation and the Joseph S. and Diane H. Steinberg Charitable Trust.
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