Library of Congress to Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month 2016
The Library of Congress celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month, commemorated each year Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, with a series of lectures, concerts and book talks. The programs are being hosted by various divisions throughout the Library. All events are free and open to the public; no tickets or reservations are required.
Kicking off the month-long celebration will be a Spanish guitar recital by Maestro Francesc de Paula Soler on Friday, Sept. 16, at noon in the Whittall Pavilion on the ground floor of the Thomas Jefferson Building. The performance commemorates the 400th anniversary of the death of author Miguel de Cervantes.
To continue the festivities, the Library has planned an array of programs that celebrate the rich and long history of Hispanic identity, civilization and culture:
- Award-winning illustrator Juana Medina discusses her work and her artistic journey as a Colombian artist living in the United States on Wednesday, Sept. 21 at noon in Dining Room A, located on the sixth floor of the Library’s James Madison Building.
- “Tocar y Luchar” (2006): This musical documentary film will be screened on Wednesday, Sept. 21, at 1:30 p.m. in the Mary Pickford Theater, located on the third floor of the James Madison Building.
- Gabriel Muñoz and Melodías Borinqueñas present Puerto Rican Folk music from New Jersey on Thursday, Sept. 22, at noon in the Coolidge Auditorium, located on the ground floor of the Thomas Jefferson Building.
- The 2016 Américas Awards for Children’s and Young Adult Literature honors authors Pam Muñoz Ryan and Ashley Hope Pérez on Thursday, Sept. 22, at 2:30 p.m. in the Mumford Room, located on the sixth floor of the James Madison Building.
- Gerardo Piña Rosales, literary critic and director of the North American Academy of the Spanish Language, discusses his book “El secreto de Artemisa y otras historias” on Friday, Sept. 23, at noon in the Mary Pickford Theater.
- Artemio Posadas performs San Jarocho music from California on Wednesday, Sept. 28, at noon in the Coolidge Auditorium.
- Jim Byers, host of “Latin Flavor” on WPFW 89.3 FM radio, leads an introduction to salsa on Tuesday, Oct. 4, at 3 p.m. in the Mumford Room.
- Douglas LaPrade of the University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley, delivers a lecture on the WWI, Spanish and Cuban influences in Ernest Hemingway’s work on Wednesday, Oct. 5, at 2 p.m. in the Mary Pickford Theater.
- Mezzo-soprano Ana María Ruimonte presents “El carro del amor” (“The Cart of Love”) on Thursday, Oct. 6, at noon in the Whittall Pavilion, located on the ground floor of the Thomas Jefferson Building.
- American poet, memoirist and novelist Jon Pineda presents “Filipino Americans: The Other Asian Americans” on Thursday, Oct. 6, at 1 p.m. in the Mary Pickford Theater.
- Historian Franklin Knight presents a lecture on the history of rum on Tuesday, Oct. 11, at noon in the Mary Pickford Theater.
- Library of Congress curators and subject-matter experts deliver a tour of the Island of Cuba through some of the unique items in the Library’s collection on Wednesday, Oct. 12, at noon in the Hispanic Reading Room, located on the second floor of the Thomas Jefferson Building.
- Gregory S. Hutcheson of the University of Louisville and Josiah Blackmore of Harvard discuss their book “Queer Iberia: Sexualities, Cultures and Crossing from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance” on Thursday, Oct. 13, at noon in the Mumford Room.
Specialized and bilingual tours and gallery talks will also be offered to the public.
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