From the Community

Free Doc About Dominican Republic Traditions, Culture at Connolly Library on April 1

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There will be a free screening of the documentary "Hay un país en el mundo" at the Jamaica Plain Connolly Branch Library on April 1. José Pintor directed this documentary, which takes its name from the famous Dominican poem by Pedro Mir. It is a walk through the natural landscape of the Dominican Republic, describing the country’s historic, cultural and social values as explained by experts in specific areas of interest. It is a project that was made by a collaboration by historians, anthropologists, folklorist and journalists of the Dominican Republic. It also gives a musical tour of the country and utilizes music from more than a dozen musicians from different times in the history of merengue and bachata.

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Arts

BLO Brings ‘Barber of Seville’ for Kids to JP Libraries

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Artists from Boston Lyric Opera recently visited an ennead of public libraries, including Jamaica Plain's two branches, to perform kid-themed excerpts from "The Barber of Seville." Boston Lyric Opera artists performed one-hour participatory programs that were free and open to kids and families, ideally for ages 6 to 12. The program featured two professional singers, and a pianist. Held during February school vacation week, the pianist also acted as a teaching artist who introduced opera to the young audiences through a melodic, engaging and theatrical presentation. This is the third year that the BLO has part This is the third year the BPL has partnered with the BLO to present how opera tells a story.

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Arts

JP Novelist Decides How She’ll Transition to Dust

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What should be done with this body of mine when, as the saying on many old New England tombstones goes, I have departed this life? Over the years I spent writing a novel starring a gravedigger, this question crept gradually from the back of my mind to the fore of it. My protagonist, Ben, champions green burials at a graveyard inspired by Forest Hills Cemetery (more on that later), and he devotes a share of his free time to creating a burial suit laden with mushroom spores, designed to turn his remains into “some really nice compost.”

Through several drafts of the novel, Ben both reflected and inspired my burgeoning plans for making an environmentally friendly transition from flesh to dust. Though I wasn’t up for engineering my own burial suit, I started to picture myself being lowered, free of a casket and embalming chemicals, into a hole in some conservation land, a possibility that an episode of the HBO series “Six Feet Under” first brought to my attention. Then my father died.

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Connolly Branch Library

Dreams of Chonta Workshop

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Join filmmaker Monica Cohen and musicians Isaac Matus and Juan Tello to learn about music from the Pacific Coast of Colombia and the story of Diego Obregon, an Afro-Colombian musician and undocumented immigrant who is willing to sacrifice everything for his dreams.

Excerpts of the film Dreams of Chonta will be shown and participants will have the opportunity to touch and play traditional Colombian instruments.  Join us on September 18th from 6:00-7:30 pm at the Connolly Branch of the Boston Public Library!

Connolly Branch Library

Story Walk

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As a part of Latino Heritage Month, participate in a neighborhood Story Walk! Start by picking up a map from the Connolly Branch of the Boston Public Library. Then use the map to follow the story Welcome to my Neighborhood: A Barrio ABC page by page through the neighborhood. Return the completed map to the Connolly Branch of the Boston Public Library or Hyde Square Task Force for a prize! The Story Walk is a collaboration between the Connolly Branch of the Boston Public Library and Hyde Square Task Force’s ¡Viva el Latin Quarter!