FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 01, 2009
CONTACT:
Joe Krushinsky
(410) 581- 4297
JKrushinsky@mpt.org
MPT Teams Up With Frederick County for The Big Read
MPT and partners plan exciting events through October to celebrate writer Edgar Allan Poe
Owings Mills, MD— During the month of October MPT and its partners will pay tribute to the life and times of one of America’s most fascinating and prolific authors—Baltimore’s own Edgar Allan Poe—with a series of public events that will provide an intimate look inside the mind of one of the most misunderstood and influential literary figures of the last two centuries.
MPT has participated in The Big Read initiative for the last three years. This year, MPT’s primary partners for the project will be Frederick Reads, Frederick County Public Libraries, and the Weinberg Center for the Arts. MPT and its Frederick County partners are planning its Big Read project surrounding the statewide celebration of Poe in October 2009, during the bicentennial year of his birth.
On October 1 Mayor Holtzinger will kick off the celebration on the steps of Frederick City Hall where he will declare October “The Big Read – Edgar Allan Poe Month”. The kick off includes an official proclamation read by the Mayor, the historic bells of City Hall will be rung, and a reading of Poe’s poem “The Bells” by an actor from the Maryland Ensemble Theater.
Events that are planned include a Poe-themed dinner at VOLT in Downtown Frederick on October 29. A specialty menu will be created by Top Chef contestant, and Frederick County native, Bryan Voltaggio. The dinner will include two specialty menus honoring Poe’s birth in Boston and his death in Baltimore. A package will be offered to diners that include dinner, an Edgar Allan Poe book, tickets to other events, and optional hotel accommodations in Frederick.
The Weinberg Center will host a thrilling performance of Edgar Allan Poe’s Tell Tale Heart, Cask of Amontillado, and The Raven, and acclaimed actor Joshua Kane will also perform a one-man show honoring Poe. Other events includes a scavenger hunt in downtown Frederick for the Tell-Tale Heart, readings and discussions on Poe’s writings, writers workshops, radio trivia contests, and a film festival. Please visit MPT’s website at www.mpt.org/community, Frederick County Public Libraries’ “virtual library” at www.fcpl.org, or The Big Read website at www.neabigread.org for more information.
Frederick County Public Libraries’ has been coordinating the Poe events and the distribution of free Poe anthologies to literature lovers in Frederick County. Free copies of “Great Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe” are still available for interested book clubs, along with Poe Reader’s Guides provided by The Big Read. For information, contact Elizabeth Cromwell at ecromwell@fredco-md.net.
The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts Midwest. Frederick County is just one of hundreds of communities participating in The Big Read over the next eight months. The Frederick community will celebrate Edgar Allan Poe with over 25 stimulating and creative events.
For more information on MPT, visit mpt.org.
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