Proprietors Of The Salem Athenaeum

The salem athenaeum is a cultural resource for the north shore of massachusetts serving over 3,000 individuals annually with our library and programs, 4,500 visitors to our exhibitions, and over 2,000 views of our recorded content online. Offerings include a library of circulating and research collections, lectures and readings, writing groups and workshops, language and book discussion groups, concerts and theatrical productions, exhibitions, and the annual salem literary festival. The athenaeum expanded its arts, humanities, and cultural program offerings to in-person, virtual, and post-event video audiences. Off-site gatherings in the form of the salem literary festival, public readings, and member meetups also extended the library's reach into the community. A new reading program, one book, one salem launched in july with the featured book, how not to drown in a glass of water, culminating with an appearance by author angie cruz during the salem literary festival.grammy-winning jazz vocalist, nicole zuraitis, gave an intimate concert in the reading room while the garden featured performances of folk music, storytelling, actress julia butters interpreting the lives of influential women, and four shows of the secret garden.lecture topics in 2023-2024 included a special appearance by christo brand, former prison guard and friend of nelson mandela. Pulitzer prize-winning poet and literary critic, vijay seshadri, spoke on wallace stevens' "harmonium." rachel slade spoke about the challenges of manufacturing in the united states, and anna funder joined us online from australia to talk about her new book, wifedom: mrs. Orwell's invisible life.the athenaeum's dedication to inspiring and supporting local writers continued with writing workshops including playwriting, marketing your book, using role playing games as inspiration, a 6-week spring session and a one-week intensive session for teens and tweens, and a workshop for making an audio production for a book or podcast. Events featured new works by published local authors and poets including writers on reading: a panel discussion with local authors and poets.