Wed. Jun. 13th, 2012 | Rosenbach Museum and Library

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Public Program

Bloomsday Festival

(All day)

June 16, or “Bloomsday,” is celebrated around the world as the day Leopold Bloom made his “odyssey” through Dublin in James Joyce’s modernist masterpiece Ulysses. Home to the only complete manuscript for the novel written in Joyce’s own hand, the Rosenbach uses its Joyce-related collections to mount exhibitions and programs, including one of the world’s largest Bloomsday celebrations.

Over the course of two decades, the Rosenbach’s version of Bloomsday has grown from a small gathering of dozens to a weeklong community festival celebrated by thousands of people. These days, the festival culminates on Bloomsday - our largest public program of the year - during which we see people of all ages, from a variety of backgrounds, come together to listen to live readings from the novel and to be inspired by literature.

Thanks to the support of Rosenbach members and contributions from those in our community, we have been able to maintain Bloomsday as a free event for 20 years.

Get Involved

Attend Bloomsday in person
Help us get the word out and stay up-to-date by liking us on Face Book or following us on Twitter
Make a gift to help us keep Bloomsday a free event for everyone

Resources

Bloomsday Central: use this tool to ﬁnd Bloomsday events to attend, Joyce-related places to visit, and as a portal to the world of Ulysses online
Need help getting to the end of the book? Our full-year Ulysses Reading Group. We typically announce registration via our e-news in August. Click here to sign up for the Rosenbach’s e-news
Why Read Ulysses?: An Essay by Vicki Mahaffey, Professor of English Literature, University of Illinois
Ulysses Plot Summary. James Joyce’s Ulysses, published in 1922, remains one of the most challenging and rewarding works of English literature
The Rosenbach Manuscript of Ulysses FAQ

Hands-On Tours

Hands-On Tour

James Joyce & Irish Authors

3:00PM - 4:00PM

The Rosenbach is well known for the works of James Joyce and Bram Stoker, but the “English Literature” collections include many other notable Irish authors as well. In addition to Ulysses and Dracula we’ll read and handle works by some of these others, and look at their connections and inﬂuences extending from Thomas Jefferson to Moby Dick to the Internet.

Family

Go Ulysses!

A Puppet Show

6:00PM - 7:00PM

Stroll the streets of James Joyce’s Dublin as you never have before…led by puppets! This 30-minute theatrical adaptation captures the wit of Ulysses, while introducing the novel to the next generation of Ulysses lovers. Produced by Drama of Works, twice-over winners at the World Festival of Puppet Art, Go Ulysses! offers a refreshing and charming take on an often-misunderstood masterpiece. Fun and appropriate for children of all ages.

Free for members! Included in general admission. Reserve your seat in advance by calling (215) 732-1600, ext. 123 or e-mailing rsvp [at] rosenbach [dot] org.

Click here to learn more about all Bloomsday events at the Rosenbach.

About Drama of Works

Drama of Works (DOW) brings people together through art, performance and education. As a leading theater company in cutting-edge stage performances, DOW partners with national and international puppetry artists, offers puppet classes for the community, and is dedicated to assisting aspiring theater artists in their home town of Brooklyn, New York. Experts in adaptations of unexpected subject matter, DOW’s recent shows include Puppet Kafka, Sleepy Hollow, How the Earth Got Its Color and Little Mermaid. Click here for more information about their work.