Ring in the Chinese Lunar New Year with Family Puppet Program!

Note time change for this event: performance begins at 6:30pm

 

In anticipation of the Chinese lunar new year,  Vineyard Haven Public Library will present an exciting free family event on Thursday, February 8th at 6:30 pm. Behind the Mask Studio will perform "Monkey King Makes Mischief in Heaven", the tale of a boisterous and unlikely hero in search of immortality, who causes havoc in Heaven and Hell. Boston-based puppeteers Eric Bornstein and Margaret Moody will use a combination of masks, music, storytelling, and dance to tell the story.

Bornstein received his MLA from Harvard, studied mask-making in Bali and Italy, and founded Behind the Mask Studio in 1990. Over the past thirty years, his masked characters have appeared in a variety of venues including the Museum of Fine Arts, the Boston Ballet, the Peabody/Essex Museum, the Boston Lyric Opera, the Windsor School, and Young Audiences of Massachusetts, and, for fifteen years, were a highlight of Boston’s First Night celebrations. Bornstein explains that “mask-making is about rich storytelling and fascinating characters—human, animal, magical. When I create a mask, I celebrate the depth and diversity of the stories I love, the natural and the mystical worlds we inhabit, and my very own soul.”

Puppeteer and voice actress Margaret Moody will also be adding her talents to the program. Margaret loves old stories and the characters that inhabit them. She studied traditional puppetry in Taiwan, and often uses traditional Chinese choreography and small puppets in her work. Margaret’s multitude of characters, hand, rod and life-sized puppets, act as windows into folktales, fantasies, and historical stories and bring history and heritage to her performances.

This free family event is made possible by a grant from the New England Roundtable of Children’s Librarians and the Massachusetts Library Association. The Jordan Miller Storytelling Grant is awarded bi-annually to a New England library to bring storytelling to its patrons. The award is named for Alice M. Jordan (1870-1960) who was the first Supervisor of Work with Children at the Boston Public Library, serving from 1900 to 1940. In 1906, Jordan founded NERCTL to provide a meeting ground for the profession. Since 1960, NERTCL and the MLA have sponsored the Jordan-Miller Grant in recognition of her commitment to storytelling.

The hour-long program is suitable for ages 4-94 and begins at 6:30 pm. Seating is limited.

Massachusetts State Tax Forms Now Available

A limited number of Massachusetts state resident tax form booklets are now available at the library.

Federal tax forms are not yet available. This year, the IRS will only provide the 1040, 1040EZ, and 1040A forms and instruction booklets. If you need additional forms, you can request that they be mailed to you. Most forms are also available online.

To obtain tax forms not available at the library:

Order forms be delivered by mail:
https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/forms-and-publications-by-us-mail
or Call 1-800-829-3676

Download from the IRS website:
https://www.irs.gov/forms-instructions

Art in the Stacks: Photographs by Benjamin McCormick

Sand Pennies by Benjamin McCormick

The Friends of the Vineyard Haven Library are pleased to present an exhibit of photographs by Benjamin McCormick, on display on the lower level of the library during regular library hours from January 14th through February 15th, 2018.

The series featured in Mr. McCormick's show at the library represents the current direction of his work, shooting from the macro perspective, mostly underwater, with ample light, to bring out the maximum natural color available. The subjects are all things found here on the island as he combs the beaches.

The artist has said of his work, "My love of fish and fishing has been a constant and defining characteristic throughout my life. The ocean has always amazed me with its power, mystery, and infinite lessons. Noticing the rhythms of the sea has given me a broader appreciation of nature, and the endless variety of forms, color, and design therein. The art is always there for the taking, whenever you look with interested eyes."

The Vineyard Haven Public Library's "Art in the Stacks" space features rotating monthly exhibits and is managed by the Friends of the Library. The library also has a permanent collection of artworks that are displayed throughout the year, including 12 paintings by Vineyard artist Captain John Ivory. Artists interested in showing their work may contact the library at (508) 696-4210.

More information about the artist available at http://benjaminmccormick.com/.

Vineyard Haven Public Library Closed Due to Weather

Vineyard Haven Public Library will be closed for the day and all programs and meetings cancelled.

Martha's Vineyard Photography Club Meeting has been rescheduled for Thursday, January 11th at 6pm (meeting topic to be announced).

Sunday with Friends: Peter H. Luce Play Readers

On Sunday, January 21st 5:30pm, the Peter H. Luce Play Readers will perform a free reading of the one-act play "Face to Face" by David Williamson. The reading is presented by special arrangement with Cameron's Management, Sydney. This free performance is co-sponsored by the Friends of the Vineyard Haven Public Library and the Martha's Vineyard Mediation Program, and refreshments will be served. Doors will open at 5pm for the 5:30pm performance at the library.

"Face to Face" is a moving and powerful play about lies, betrayal, sex and bullying in the workplace. This dramatic and character-driven play takes its format in a realistic setting of 'community conferencing,' an alternative method of justice which celebrates the strength of community over our "rigid and often seemingly unfair court system." When young construction worker Glen rams into the back of his boss’s Mercedes in a fit of anger, he is given the opportunity to discuss his actions in a community conference, rather than going straight to court. This face-to-face confrontation between the young man, his boss, his boss's wife, co-workers, and others lifts the lid not only on his dysfunctional life but on their workplace dirty laundry.

David Williamson is Australia’s most enduringly popular social comedy writer. As one of Australia's best-known dramatists and playwrights, he has been the recipient of four Australian Film Institute Awards for Best Screenplay. His play "Face to Face" was adapted into a film in 2011, directed by Michael Rymer. Reviewers for the Daily Telegraph have said "The emotional twists and turns the script takes to reach the end point are alternately subtle, disturbing and occasionally hilarious as Williamson takes us into an exploration of conflict in the workplace and the humanity and compromise required to overcome it."

For more than 15 years, the Peter H. Luce Play Readers have met every Wednesday of the year at the Vineyard Haven Senior Center from 9AM to Noon to read plays of every era and of every genre, from the Greek and Roman classics to the cutting-edge works of contemporary playwrights... and everything in between: Shakespeare, Shaw, Checkov, Moliere, Miller, Ibsen Albee, O'Neil, Pinter and Neil Simon. The group is named for its founder, Peter Luce, who died in 2007. This reading will be directed by John Brannen, and cast includes Mike Adell, Bob Aldrin, Sophia Anthony, Joe Corbo, Paul Doherty, Marianne Goldsmith, Roberta Hurtig, Kathy Hochberg, Louis Pashman and Jay Sigler.

The Friends of the Vineyard Haven Public Library encourage public understanding of the Library's vital role in the community, support activities for both adults and children, and provide various other volunteer services. Their mission is to support the Library, to build a partnership between the Library and the community and to advocate for exemplary library service. All volunteers and those who are interested in knowing more about the Friends meet at 10:30am on the first Saturday of every month at the library.

Late Opening at 2pm Tuesday January 9th

The library will open late at 2pm on Tuesday, January 9th so staff can attend offsite training. Storytime will be cancelled for the day.The library will be open from 2pm to 8pm.