Vermont Public Community Calendar

For gorgeous melody, spellbinding coloratura, and virtuoso vocal fireworks, Bellini's final masterpiece has few equals.

This is the first new Met production of "I Puritani" in nearly 50 years, with striking new staging by Charles Edwards and a world-beating quartet of stars for the demanding principal roles. Soprano Lisette Oropesa and tenor Lawrence Brownlee are Elvira and Arturo, brought together by love and torn apart by the political rifts of the English Civil War, with baritone Artur Ruciński as Riccardo, betrothed to Elvira against her will, and bass-baritone Christian Van Horn as Elvira's sympathetic uncle, Giorgio. Marco Armiliato takes the podium.

Join us January 14th for the first part of the NXT Rockumentary screening of 'No Direction Home'. Bob Dylan’s life has been studied and analyzed more than almost any other artist of the 20th Century. But Martin Scorsese still managed to create a revelatory documentary about his early days by fusing together never-before-seen footage from the Dylan vault along with new interviews with Joan Baez, Allen Ginsberg, Liam Clancy, Pete Seeger, Mavis Staples, Suze Rotolo, Dave Van Ronk, and many other key figures from his past.

Dylan himself even sat for a rare on-camera interview. “I had ambitions to set out and find…like an odyssey, going home somewhere,” Dylan says near at the beginning. “I was born very far from where I’m supposed to be, and so I’m on my way home.” The centerpiece of the film is thrilling footage from the 1966 tour with the Hawks where Dylan was booed most nights for playing electric music, including the fabled moment in Birmingham, England where a furious fan calls him “Judas.” — Rolling Stone

This will be screened over two nights:
Part 1: Wednesday, January 14 @ 7:00pm
Part 2: Wednesday, January 21 @ 7:00pm

Over the past fifty years, boys and young men have steadily disengaged from school, work, and broader society. They’re falling behind academically, struggling with loneliness and isolation, and facing rising rates of substance abuse and suicide.

This 45-minute documentary draws on the influential work of Richard V. Reeves’ “Of Boys and Men”, illuminating these challenges through powerful data and compelling personal stories. Many of us have experienced these issues first-hand, but it can be difficult to talk about them. It’s not zero-sum: caring more about boys and men does not mean caring less about women and girls.

Set in rural Vermont, the film brings national data to life with engaging animation accompanying lived experience featuring young men, educators, mentors, and trailblazing programs that are working to re-engage boys and young men in their communities and reshape their futures.
Content advisory: This film includes references to substance use, suicide, and mental health struggles.

For more information and to watch the trailer, visit: www.GoneGuysFilm.com. Presented by The Vermont Community Foundation and The Richard E. & Deborah L. Tarrant Foundation with support from the J. Warren & Lois McClure Foundation. A Well Told Films Production.

Set in Vermont during the turbulent period of the American Revolution, this action-drama features Ethan Allen and Lucy Terry Prince.

Intro and Q&A with the film maker Jay Craven.

Join or Die is a film about why you should join a club — and why the fate of America depends on it. In this feature documentary, follow the half-century story of America's civic unraveling through the journey of legendary social scientist Robert Putnam, whose groundbreaking "Bowling Alone" research into America's decades-long decline in community connections could hold the answers to our democracy's present crisis. Flanked by influential fans and scholars — from Hillary Clinton, Pete Buttigieg, and Surgeon General Vivek Murthy to Eddie Glaude Jr., Raj Chetty, and Priya Parker — as well as inspiring groups building community in neighborhoods across the country, join Bob as he explores three urgent civic questions: What makes democracy work? Why is American democracy in crisis? And, most importantly… What can we do about it?

Join or Die is a film about why you should join a club — and why the fate of America depends on it. In this feature documentary, follow the half-century story of America's civic unraveling through the journey of legendary social scientist Robert Putnam, whose groundbreaking "Bowling Alone" research into America's decades-long decline in community connections could hold the answers to our democracy's present crisis. Flanked by influential fans and scholars — from Hillary Clinton, Pete Buttigieg, and Surgeon General Vivek Murthy to Eddie Glaude Jr., Raj Chetty, and Priya Parker — as well as inspiring groups building community in neighborhoods across the country, join Bob as he explores three urgent civic questions: What makes democracy work? Why is American democracy in crisis? And, most importantly… What can we do about it?

Watch the story of one of the most unlikely social movements in American history: the struggle to convert thousands of miles of abandoned railroads into trails for cycling and walking. Featuring our very own Island Line Trail!

Q&A to follow at 7:30pm, featuring a panel that played key roles in the creation of the Island Line Trail and other Vermont rail trails.

Option to join virtually via livestream on Town Meeting TV

Join us January 21 for part 2 of the NXT Rockumentary screening of 'No Direction Home'. Bob Dylan’s life has been studied and analyzed more than almost any other artist of the 20th Century. But Martin Scorsese still managed to create a revelatory documentary about his early days by fusing together never-before-seen footage from the Dylan vault along with new interviews with Joan Baez, Allen Ginsberg, Liam Clancy, Pete Seeger, Mavis Staples, Suze Rotolo, Dave Van Ronk, and many other key figures from his past.

Dylan himself even sat for a rare on-camera interview. “I had ambitions to set out and find…like an odyssey, going home somewhere,” Dylan says near at the beginning. “I was born very far from where I’m supposed to be, and so I’m on my way home.” The centerpiece of the film is thrilling footage from the 1966 tour with the Hawks where Dylan was booed most nights for playing electric music, including the fabled moment in Birmingham, England where a furious fan calls him “Judas.” — Rolling Stone

This will be screened over two nights:
Part 1: Wednesday, January 14 @ 7:00pm
Part 2: Wednesday, January 21 @ 7:00pm

Over the past fifty years, boys and young men have steadily disengaged from school, work, and broader society. They’re falling behind academically, struggling with loneliness and isolation, and facing rising rates of substance abuse and suicide.

This 45-minute documentary draws on the influential work of Richard V. Reeves’ “Of Boys and Men”, illuminating these challenges through powerful data and compelling personal stories. Many of us have experienced these issues first-hand, but it can be difficult to talk about them. It’s not zero-sum: caring more about boys and men does not mean caring less about women and girls.

Set in rural Vermont, the film brings national data to life with engaging animation accompanying lived experience featuring young men, educators, mentors, and trailblazing programs that are working to re-engage boys and young men in their communities and reshape their futures.

Content advisory: This film includes references to substance use, suicide, and mental health struggles.

For more information and to watch the trailer, visit: www.GoneGuysFilm.com. Presented by The Vermont Community Foundation and The Richard E. & Deborah L. Tarrant Foundation with support from the J. Warren & Lois McClure Foundation. A Well Told Films Production.

Over the past fifty years, boys and young men have steadily disengaged from school, work, and broader society. They’re falling behind academically, struggling with loneliness and isolation, and facing rising rates of substance abuse and suicide.

This 45-minute documentary draws on the influential work of Richard V. Reeves’ “Of Boys and Men”, illuminating these challenges through powerful data and compelling personal stories. Many of us have experienced these issues first-hand, but it can be difficult to talk about them. It’s not zero-sum: caring more about boys and men does not mean caring less about women and girls.

Set in rural Vermont, the film brings national data to life with engaging animation accompanying lived experience featuring young men, educators, mentors, and trailblazing programs that are working to re-engage boys and young men in their communities and reshape their futures.

Content advisory: This film includes references to substance use, suicide, and mental health struggles.

For more information and to watch the trailer, visit: www.GoneGuysFilm.com. Presented by The Vermont Community Foundation and The Richard E. & Deborah L. Tarrant Foundation with support from the J. Warren & Lois McClure Foundation. A Well Told Films Production.

Cabin fever getting you down? It’s time to break the routine and get the kids out of the house! Join us in the Community Room for a fun, family-friendly morning kickoff.

We’ll start with a delicious build-your-own cereal bar, plus classic board games, card games, and Twister (about 30 minutes of play). Once everyone is fueled up and awake, we’ll turn up the volume for a high-energy sing-along of the famous K-pop–powered supernatural action film (95 minutes of action!).

Details & Pricing
Kids and Students: $5
Adults: Free

Note: All children under age 12 must be accompanied by an adult for the duration of the event.

Bring your characters to life by animating your own mini movie!

Do you have a story to tell? Do you like making up stories with legos or other toys? In this workshop led by JAM's Cedar O'Dowd, participants will learn how to create a short stop animation film using provided iPads.

After animating your story, join us for a screening of "The Gruffalo". Based on the beloved children's book, The Gruffalo tells the tale of a mouse who is in search of a nut while encountering numerous predators–Fox, Owl and Snake. To face their fears, the mouse imagines a terrifying monster to frighten away the predators. What happens when the mouse meets the Gruffalo in real life?

10:30 a.m.: Join us in the Nearburg Gallery and Art Forum for the Stop Animation Workshop.
11:30 a.m.: Head into the Loew Auditorium for the-27 minute film screening.

Still North will be selling copies of "The Gruffalo".

Registration is encouraged but not required. This workshop is best suited for youth ages 6 and up.

Over the past fifty years, boys and young men have steadily disengaged from school, work, and broader society. They’re falling behind academically, struggling with loneliness and isolation, and facing rising rates of substance abuse and suicide.

This 45-minute documentary draws on the influential work of Richard V. Reeves’ “Of Boys and Men”, illuminating these challenges through powerful data and compelling personal stories. Many of us have experienced these issues first-hand, but it can be difficult to talk about them. It’s not zero-sum: caring more about boys and men does not mean caring less about women and girls.

Set in rural Vermont, the film brings national data to life with engaging animation accompanying lived experience featuring young men, educators, mentors, and trailblazing programs that are working to re-engage boys and young men in their communities and reshape their futures.

Content advisory: This film includes references to substance use, suicide, and mental health struggles.

For more information and to watch the trailer, visit: www.GoneGuysFilm.com. Presented by The Vermont Community Foundation and The Richard E. & Deborah L. Tarrant Foundation with support from the J. Warren & Lois McClure Foundation. A Well Told Films Production.

This new production of Wagner's classic is an unmissable event, with soprano Lise Davidsen and tenor Michael Spyres as the titular star-crossed lovers.

After years of anticipation, the electrifying Lise Davidsen tackles one of the ultimate roles for dramatic soprano: the Irish princess Isolde in Wagner's transcendent meditation on love and death. Heroic tenor Michael Spyres stars opposite as the love-drunk Tristan. The momentous occasion also marks the advent of a new, Met-debut staging by Yuval Sharon, hailed by "The New York Times" as "the most visionary opera director of his generation."

Mezzo soprano Ekaterina Gubanova reprises her portrayal of Isolde's maid Brangäne, alongside bass-baritone Tomasz Konieczny as Tristan's friend Kurwenal and bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green as Tristan's uncle, King Marke, whose betrothal to Isolde sets up one of opera's most intense love triangles. Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts his first Met production of this Wagner classic.

Baritone Igor Golovatenko stars as the title character opposite soprano Asmik Grigorian in Tchaikovsky's lyrical Pushkin adaptation.

Following her acclaimed 2024 Met debut in Puccini's "Madama Butterfly," soprano Asmik Grigorian stars as Tatiana, the lovestruck young heroine in this ardent operatic Pushkin adaptation. Baritone Igor Golovatenko reprises his portrayal of the urbane Onegin, who realizes his affection for her all too late.

Stephanie Blythe sings the role of Tatiana's nurse, with mezzo-soprano Maria Barakova playing Tatiana's sister Olga and baritone Satnislas de Barbeyrac portraying the ill-fated poet Lenski. The Met's evocative production set in nineteenth-century Russia, directed by Tony Award–winner Deborah Warner, "offers a beautifully detailed reading of … Tchaikovsky's lyrical romance" ("The Telegraph"). Timur Zangiev conducts.

This vibrant Met premiere of Gabriela Lena Frank's magical-realist opera about Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera features a stunning libretto by playwright Nilo Cruz.

Fashioned as a reversal of the Orpheus and Euridice myth, the story depicts Frida Kahlo, sung by leading mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard, leaving the underworld on the Day of the Dead and reuniting with Diego Rivera, portrayed by baritone Carlos Álvarez. The famously feuding pair briefly relive their tumultuous love, embracing both the passion and the pain before bidding the land of the living a final farewell. Countertenor Nils Wanderer as a young actor trapped in the underworld and soprano Gabriella Reyes as the Keeper of the Dead round out the cast.

The vibrant new production, taking enthusiastic inspiration from Frida and Diego's paintings, is directed and choreographed by Deborah Colker. Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts the Met-premiere staging of Frank's opera, a "confident, richly imagined score" (The New Yorker) that "bursts with color and fresh individuality" (Los Angeles Times).