How did America’s most iconic food holiday come to include green bean casserole? What did the Wampanoag people and the Pilgrims really eat in 1621? Susan Evans McClure, executive director of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, serves up the story of Thanksgiving foods and how they help us understand our American identity. (Registration required.) Read More »

Olympic fencer and author Geza Tatrallyay draws on his writing across multiple genres and his varied life experiences to explore the nature of creativity. Referencing his short stories, poetry, memoirs, and thrillers, he shows how deeply an author’s life is interwoven with the works they create. (Registration required.) Read More »

Fritz Lang, Billy Wilder, Ernst Lubitch, and Josef von Sternberg were all extraordinary film directors who fled from Germany during the rise of the Nazis. Natalie Neuert, director of UVM’s Lane Series, explores how these filmmakers profoundly influenced Hollywood and made movies that altered the American cultural landscape. (Registration required.) Read More »

19th century Americans often saved or exchanged locks of hair, constructing jewelry or keepsake wreaths of their kinship networks. In more recent decades, hair has become a powerful political medium. Middlebury professor Ellery Foutch shares the research about hair-based works in local collections and explores the meanings of hair in American culture, past and present. Read More »

People gather in public spaces for many reasons, including expressing pride in their community, celebrating major milestones, and protesting. Jay Wahl, executive director of the Flynn, considers how the arts can rewrite the cultural memory of public spaces and help overcome barriers of access and equity. Read More »