The Maplewood Memorial Library’s 6th Annual Ideas Festival celebrates the talent and creativity of our community. The Festival will begin on Saturday, March 23 and end on Saturday, April 6 with Tina Kelley receiving the Maplewood Literary Award. Below is this year’s lineup! Except for Makers Day, all programs will be held at the Main Library.
Full Schedule:
Saturday, March 23, 10 AM - 1 PM at the Hilton Branch. NJ Maker’s Day. High-and low-tech activities for kids, teens and adult will include stereoscopes, CD spinners, spool knitting, vorpal robotics, and a project with Maplewoodshop.
Wednesday, March 27, 7 PM. Rachel Braun Scherl, Jennifer Weiss-Wolf and Candice Davenport: From Policy to Practice: Stripping Down the Language, Business and Complexity of Women’s Sexual Health. Braun is a Vagipreneur® and Managing Partner of SPARK Solutions for Growth. She is the author of Orgasmic Leadership: Profiting from the Coming Surge in Women’s Sexual Health and Wellness. Weiss-Wolf is Vice president of the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law and author of Periods Gone Public:Taking a Stand for Menstrual Equity. Davenport is the Maplewood Public Health Nursing Supervisor and Health Educator.
Thursday, March 28, 7 PM. Taffy Brodesser-Akner with Ilena Silverman. Brodesser-Akner is a staff writer at the New York Times Magazine and writes for the newspaper’s Arts & Leisure section. Silverman is the Features Editor of the New York Times Magazine.
Saturday, March 30, 3 PM. Chad Hunt, Photographer, Art & Music Reception. Hunt has a long career as a photographer, documenting people and the world around us through award-winning photography. Live music with the James White Band. Artists talk at 3:45.
Monday, April 1, 7 PM. Alison Stewart: The Art of the Interview, with Nancy Solomon. Alison Stewart, host of WNYC’s All of It changes roles and answers the questions. We’ll hear about the secret sauce of great interviewing and what happens when live radio goes badly. Solomon is the managing editor of New Jersey Public Radio and WNYC.
Tuesday, April 2, 4 PM. Devising Dastardly Plots with Christopher Healy. Learn how little ideas can turn into big stories with best-selling author Healy. Kids ages 8-12 will learn how to craft stories from scratch in a create-your-own-adventure experience.
Wednesday, April 3, 7 PM. Dr. Khadijah Costley White: What Even Was the Tea Party? Right-Wing Activism, Media, and Politics Pre-Trump. White is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Journalism and Media Studies at Rutgers and an activist and community organizer.
Thursday, April 4, 7 PM. Fred R. Profeta Jr. and Paul Profeta. Two brothers, who grew up in Maplewood in the 1940s and 50s, discuss the evolution of the town over 8 decades, and how their experiences in the Maplewood of their youth led to their contributions in local leadership, philanthropy, sustainability, and organic agriculture.
Saturday, April 6, 2 PM. Tina Kelley, Journalist, Poet, Author, will be interviewed by Library Director Sarah Lester, and will receive the 2019 Maplewood Literary Award.
All events are free and open to the public. More information is available here.