Sometimes the difference between a good library and a great library is a pair of wandering minstrels.
If you were here on Sunday you may (or may not depending on your familiarity with Princeton Public Library) have been surprised to be welcomed into our lobby by John Burkhalter on recorder and Jon Orluk on lute. These two exceptional musicians, quite capable of drawing a crowd in their own right, were here as a part of a collaboration between the library and McCarter Theatre Center to celebrate the birth of William Shakespeare.
We made masks, painted faces and hands, learned to write with quills, colored Shakespearean pictures, jumbled sonnets,learned how actors enacted tug of war and swordplay on stage, created puppets, folded crowns, made a community collage, held Shakespearean storytimes, a Sonnet Slam AND two workshops where kids learned how to rap Shakespeare’s words and how to insult others a la Shakespeare. That does not include the look-a-like contest and birthday cake. I spent much of the day running hither and thither taking photos and helping wherever I could and still I learned that Shakespeare died ON his birthday and that he would be 449.
It was pretty incredible.
The entities that came together for this three-hour event were our community, the library, McCarter Theatre, Princeton Origami Club, the Practitioners of Musick, and our own Teen Advisory Board (TAB). I am proud to report it is just one example of how wonderful, educational, community-building things can happen when groups collaborate, especially in a town like ours.
Other examples that happened in just the last two weeks:
Nano Day PPL + Princeton Center for Complex Materials (and TAB) 3/30
Princyclopedia PPL + Go Between Club +Cotsen and many others @ Dillon Gym 4/6
The Last Shop Standing PPL +Princeton Record Exchange 4/12
Local Author Day PPL + Local Authors + TAB 4/13