Celebrating Bloomsday - Marathon Reading of Joyce's ULYSSES

The Georgetown Library will host a marathon reading of James Joyce's ULYSSES.  Considered by many to be the greatest novel of all time, ULYSSES will be read aloud in its entirety at the Georgetown Neighborhood Library beginning June 9 and continuing through June 16, 2014. Herb Guggenheim, local poet and author, will facilitate the event.

ULYSSES is set in Dublin, Ireland, and takes place on a single day: June 16, 1904. The protagonist is Leopold Bloom, an ordinary man, a man of no great distinction. "He's the ultimate outsider," says Guggenheim, "and he's forced to contend with every conceivable social indignity, including fierce anti-Semitism and the infidelity of his own wife. Joyce seems to be saying that just as ULYSSES was a hero to the ancient Greeks so too is Bloom a hero for our own times."

For the reading, Herb Guggenheim has assembled a group of thirty actors and scholars who will take turns reading all 738 pages of ULYSSES aloud. Among the featured readers are Robert Aubry Davis of WETA-FM and Laura Baxter, internationally acclaimed opera singer and voice coach. "We're excited to feature Laura Baxter as Molly Bloom in this year's reading. The end of ULYSSES, Molly Bloom's soliloquy, is the most dramatic part of the book and Laura Baxter is the perfect performer to bring her to life," says Guggenheim.

Reading Dates and Times:

Monday, June 9, 2014, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Tuesday, June 10, 2014, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Wednesday, June 11, 2014, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Thursday, June 12, 2014, NO READING
Friday, June 13, 2014, 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Saturday, June 14, 2014, 10 AM – 5:00 PM
Sunday, June 15, 2014, 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM
                                          Monday, June 16, 2014, 10:00 AM – 9:00 PM
 
For more information, contact reading organizer Herb Guggenheim at 301-367-6742 or herb@herbguggenheim.com