To celebrate the upcoming Harry Potter: A History of Magic, a British Library exhibition, the New-York Historical Society has put together a packed line-up of exciting events for Harry Potter fans of all ages, including trivia nights, art workshops, creative writing classes, social meet-ups, open mics, book clubs, and engaging courses that explore the Hogwarts curriculum.
Get tickets now for programs that begin a dragon’s breath after the exhibit opens on Oct. 5th.
Unique programs include an onstage conversation with illustrators Mary GrandPré and Brian Selznick and a special evening with Jim Dale.
The exhibition in NYC includes a selection of objects not featured in the London presentation that are on view to the public for the very first time, and it’s all sponsored by Audible, the world’s largest producer and seller of downloadable audiobooks and other spoken word entertainment.
The full slate of programming and their dates includes:
Harry Potter Talks and Social Events
Illustrating Harry Potter with Mary GrandPré, Brian Selznick, and David Saylor, an unprecedented conversation between the two artists on their different approaches to illustrating the series, and Scholastic’s Creative Director about the process of translating prose into pictures (October 25);
An Evening with Jim Dale, featuring the narrator of all seven Harry Potter books, as he shares how he created the voices for over 200 characters, his hilarious first day experience in the recording studio, excerpts from his Drama Desk Award-winning show Just Jim Dale, and his disastrous experiences playing the many clowns of Shakespeare (January 9);
The Harry Potter Effect, an in-depth look at the Harry Potter phenomenon and its astonishing impact on popular culture with a panel of journalists, editors, and booksellers (January 23);
Curating Harry Potter, an evening with the British Library’s curators as they discuss how they transformed Hogwarts curriculum into their most successful exhibition ever (October 2);
Hogwarts, Poudlard, Rokfort: Translating Harry Potter, a fascinating discussion about the rewards and challenges of translating Harry Potter from British to American English and many languages beyond (December 11);
The Epic Tale of Children’s Literature, a colorful examination of a century of writing and illustrating for young people (January 16);
Sorcery Saturdays, magic-filled evenings at the Museum, complete with crafts, activities, socializing, and treats (October 13, November 17);
Magic for Muggles, an enchanting exploration of all things Harry Potter for longtime fans and those new to the books led by The Leaky Cauldron’s Melissa Anelli (October 18);
Halloween: An Evening of Magic, an unforgettable celebration featuring Halloween-themed magical crafts and activities (October 30);
Growing up with Harry Potter, an open mic for professional and amateur storytellers about their personal experiences growing up with Harry and his friends, moderated by the Story Studio (January 7);
Harry Potter Book Club – First-Timers, a welcoming bagel brunch book club for those brand new to the Wizarding World (October 14, November 4, January 6);
Harry Potter Book Club – Old Friends, a morning of sharing fond memories with fellow longtime readers of the series, over a bagel brunch (October 21, November 11, December 16);
Potions and Painting, an entertaining, evening painting workshop complete with wine and cheese (October 12, November 9, December 4, January 8);
Magic at the Library, a night to remember spent behind the scenes at New-York Historical’s Library (January 10);
Monthly trivia nights, which put fans’ knowledge of the Wizarding World to the test, with a wide slate of outstandingprizes provided by Scholastic, Audible, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, BBC, and the NYHistory Store, along with special themed cocktails (October 5, November 2, December 7, January 18);
Harry Potter Workshops and Courses
Creating Magical Worlds: From Folklore to Fiction, a mesmerizing creative writing workshop held over the course of six sessions that focuses on creating fantastic worlds with rich settings, characters, and plot (beginning October 29);
Picturing Magic, a multi-session course that uses the exhibition as inspiration for participants to explore and create magical works of art (beginning October 13);
International History of Magic, a spelling-binding six-session course that explores magical traditions from around the world and across time, framing them within historical, cultural, and social contexts (beginning October 16);
Illustrating Heroes, a two-day art course in which participants create and illustrate their own fantasy-based hero (November 17 and 18);
Illustrating Villains, a two-day course for artists looking to be inspired by the work of Harry Potter illustrators as they create their own villain (December 1 and 2);
Storytelling 101: Oral Traditions, an interactive workshop about the fundamentals of storytelling, including crafting a narrative and public speaking tips (January 5 and 6);
History of Magic in America, a one-day course that explores magic in American culture (January 19);
History of Magic in Europe, a one-day course that considers where and how magic manifested across Europe, from classical antiquity to early modern witch hunts (December 15);
History of Folklore, a fascinating evening lecture on the intersection of history, myth, and folklore, with public folklorist Kay Turner (December 6);
Alchemy, a captivating, interactive conversation about the science and philosophy of early modern Europe that fueled the quest for the Sorcerer’s Stone with Donna Bilak, Columbia University (November 15);
Defense Against Monsters, a gripping exploration of historical monsters in Latin America—from Amazons to zombies and beyond—with scholar Persephone Braham (December 12).
Harry Potter Family Programs
Family programs include History of Magic family days with hands-on activities and crafts, like decorating Hogwarts House badges and tracing the origins of historical incantations; a Harry Potter family book club; a writing workshop for young authors; a historical Hallowe’en celebration; and trivia for families. Harry Potter: A History of Magic birthday experiences are also available.
Visit harrypotter.nyhistory.org to purchase exhibition and program tickets and to learn more about the programs. (Tickets for An Evening with Jim Dale go on sale to the general public at the end of August.) These programs have been designed with Harry Potter fans in mind to further spur their excitement and curiosity for the Wizarding World through unique, compelling programs. Many of the events include a visit to the exhibition.
Support
Harry Potter: A History of Magic is proudly sponsored by Audible. Exhibitions at New-York Historical are made possible by Dr. Agnes Hsu-Tang and Oscar Tang, the Saunders Trust for American History, the Seymour Neuman Endowed Fund, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. WNET is the media sponsor.
Publication
A complete hardcover exhibition catalog, published by Scholastic simultaneously with the opening of the exhibition, invites readers to explore the extraordinary subjects of the Hogwarts curriculum—Potions & Alchemy, Divination, Care of Magical Creatures, and more—and examine the more than 150 items on display, including incredible historical artifacts, pieces from J.K. Rowling’s personal archive, early letters between J.K. Rowling and American editor Arthur A. Levine, and stunning original artwork from Harry Potter series artists Mary GrandPré, Jim Kay, and Brian Selznick. This special publication is an essential volume for Harry Potter fans, history buffs, and bibliophiles, and a fascinating exploration of the history of the magic at the heart of the Harry Potter stories. An enhanced ebook edition will also be published simultaneously by Pottermore Publishing. The exhibition catalogue, Harry Potter: A History of Magic, will be available for purchase from the NYHistory Store and wherever books are sold to coincide with the opening of the exhibition in October.
20th Anniversary
September 2018 marks the 20th anniversary of the U.S. publication of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, and Scholastic kicked off its year-long celebration in January 2018. The Wizarding World will have one of its busiest years ever in the U.S., with Harry Potter and the Cursed Child now on Broadway; the British Library’s exhibition Harry Potter: A History of Magic, opening at the New-York Historical Society in October; and the film Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, opening in cinemas in November.
The Harry Potter books have sold more than 180 million copies in the U.S. alone and more than 500 million copies worldwide. The books are published in more than 200 territories in 80 languages.
About the New-York Historical Society
The New-York Historical Society, one of America’s preeminent cultural institutions, is dedicated to fostering research and presenting history and art exhibitions and public programs that reveal the dynamism of history and its influence on the world of today. Founded in 1804, New-York Historical has a mission to explore the richly layered history of New York City and State and the country, and to serve as a national forum for the discussion of issues surrounding the making and meaning of history.
DiMenna Children’s History Museum at the New-York Historical Society explores 350 years of New York and American history through character-based pavilions, interactive exhibits and digital games, and the Barbara K. Lipman Children’s History Library. DiMenna Children’s History Museum encourages families to explore history together through permanent installations and a wide range of family learning programs for toddlers, children, and preteens. New-York Historical is also home to the Patricia D. Klingenstein Library, one of the oldest, most distinguished libraries in the nation—and one of only 20 in the United States qualified to be a member of the Independent Research Libraries Association—which contains more than three million books, pamphlets, maps, atlases, newspapers, broadsides, music sheets, manuscripts, prints, photographs, and architectural drawings.
About the British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and one of the world’s greatest research libraries. It provides world class information services to the academic, business, research, and scientific communities and offers unparalleled access to the world’s largest and most comprehensive research collection. The Library’s collection has developed over 250 years and exceeds 150 million separate items representing every age of written civilization and includes books, journals, manuscripts, maps, stamps, music, patents, photographs, newspapers, and sound recordings in all written and spoken languages. Every year, up to 10 million people visit the British Library website―www.bl.uk―where they can view up to four million digitized collection items and more than 40 million pages.
About Scholastic Corporation
Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) is the world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books, a leading provider of core literacy curriculum and professional services, and a producer of educational and entertaining children’s media. The Company creates quality books and ebooks, print and technology-based learning programs for pre-K to grade 12, classroom magazines, and other products and services that support children’s learning both in school and at home. With operations in 14 international offices and exports to 165 countries, Scholastic makes quality, affordable books available to all children around the world through school-based book clubs and book fairs, classroom collections, school and public libraries, retail and online. True to its mission of 97 years to encourage the personal and intellectual growth of all children beginning with literacy, the Company has earned a reputation as a trusted partner to educators and families. Learn more at www.scholastic.com.
About Pottermore Publishing
Pottermore Publishing is the global digital publisher of the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts series as well as other audiobooks and eBooks from the Wizarding World. It aims to lead the way in innovative digital publishing and to bring new generations of readers together with long-standing fans, celebrating and bringing to life the stories that first began with the Boy Who Lived.
About Audible, Iinc.
Audible, Inc., an Amazon.com, Inc. subsidiary (NASDAQ:AMZN), is the leading provider of premium digital spoken audio content, offering customers a new way to enhance and enrich their lives every day. Audible was created to unleash the emotive music in language and the habituating power and utility of verbal expression. Audible content includes more than 425,000 audio programs from leading audiobook publishers, broadcasters, entertainers, magazine and newspaper publishers, and business information providers. Audible is also the provider of spoken-word audio products for Apple’s iTunes Store.
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