ACT’s Until the Flood: Beyond the Theatre

policACT (A Contemporary Theatre) presents UNTIL THE FLOOD by Dael Orlandersmith from June 8 to July 8, 2018. UNTIL THE FLOOD focuses on the social unrest following the fatal police shooting of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. Librarians at Seattle Public Library created this list of books and films to enhance your experience of the show: ACT’s UNTIL THE FLOOD: Beyond the Theatre  

The names and places, unfortunately, are tragically familiar: Ferguson, Trayvon, Baltimore, Philando, Tamir, Baton Rouge, and Charles Kinsey— the list goes on. How can we take it in? What does it mean? How can we comprehend?

Obie Award winning and Pulitzer Prize finalist playwright Dael Orlandersmith is bringing her work, UNTIL THE FLOOD, to ACT, with her quest of understanding how we got here and what it signifies. Focusing on Ferguson, Missouri, and the death of unarmed 18-year old Michael Brown, the one-act drama uses eight composite characters from the area to explore issues of race, social unrest, and political power. The characters all are working to find their standpoint with racial matters in our society, but from a personal level, ranging from teenagers to seniors, and from anger to reflection.

Don’t be afraid of the dark: Thrilling Tales just for you!

For several years now, audiences have been flocking to our twice monthly lunch hour program Thrilling Tales: A Storytime for Grownups, and every so often someone tells us they wish there were an evening version of these readings. Well, it’s finally happening!

Staring on June 18, we’ll be sharing some of our favorite suspenseful tales in monthly readings at the Central Library. We’re calling it Thrilling Tales After Dark. Written by a variety of master storytellers such as Ray Bradbury, Shirley Jackson and Truman Capote, the stories range from wondrous to eerie to truly terrifying, and are drawn from the early years of Thrilling Tales. All readings run from 7-8 p.m., at the Central Library’s Microsoft Auditorium, finishing in just under an hour, and they are free. Take a look at what’s coming up:

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#BookBingoNW2018: Author (or character) with a disability

Something special is happening in Seattle July 1 through the 6th: The USA Special Olympic Games! “More than 4,000 athletes and coaches representing 50 state Programs and the District of Columbia, along with the support of tens of thousands of volunteers and spectators, will compete in 14 Olympic-type team and individual sports.” –from Special Olympics USA.

Founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver

It’s also in it’s 50th year! Founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the Special Olympics movement has grown to more than 5.7 million athletes and Unified partners in 172 countries. With the support of more than 1 million coaches and volunteers, Special Olympics delivers 32 Olympic-type sports and over 108,000 games and competitions throughout the year.  In the United States, over 700 thousand athletes and Unified partners from 52 state Programs participate in sports offered at the national, regional, state, local and area levels. From Traditional (athletes with intellectual disabilities) to Unified Sports (athletes with and without disabilities competing together), Special Olympics offers activities every day of every year for people to get involved locally to globally. –from Special Olympics USA

In honor of that event Book Bingo this year features a square for an author or character that has a disability. Here are a few title suggestions to complete that bingo square:

Seattle Rep’s MAC BETH: Beyond the Theatre

Seattle Repertory Theatre presents MAC BETH, adapted from Shakespeare’s play and directed by Erica Schmidt, from May 18 to June 17, 2018. Librarians at Seattle Public Library created this list of books, music and films to enhance your experience of the show.

In MAC BETH, playwright/director Erica Schmidt reimagines Shakespeare’s classic tale of intrigue and poisonous ambition with an all-female cast, as seven young women gather after school to retell the story of Macbeth. Here are a few other books that reframe the story with a focus on female characters and perspectives.

May the 4th Be With You!

“May the 4th be with you.” What started as pun warmly shared by fans has become a full-fledged Star Wars holiday: Star Wars Day, a special once-a-year celebration of the galaxy far, far away.

One of the earliest known records of “May the 4th” used in popular culture is in 1979, as described here by author Alan Arnold while he was chronicling the making of The Empire Strikes Back for Lucasfilm:

FRIDAY, MAY 4

“Margaret Thatcher has won the election and become Britain’s first woman prime minister. To celebrate their victory her party took a half page of advertising space in the London Evening News. This message, referring to the day of victory, was ‘May the Fourth Be With You, Maggie. Congratulations,’ further proof of the extent to which Star Wars has influenced us all.”

Once the Internet allowed Star Wars fans around the world to connect with one another, May the 4th soon became a grassroots tradition each year, with fans online and offline proclaiming it “Star Wars Day.”

Celebrate Star Wars day with a few reads from your local library!