Schedule of Events:

Tuesday, April 18, 2023

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM: FILMMAKERS' PANEL

A talk with Matthew Galkin and Razelle Benally, the directors of Murder in Big Horn, and its editor David Mehlman, with acclaimed film editor Tim Squyres.

Directors Razelle Benally and Matthew Galkin craft a powerful portrait of tribal members and their communities within Big Horn County, Montana battling an epidemic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women that has been prevalent since colonization.

Matthew Galkin is the founder of Fairhaven Films, which produced the docuseries Murder in the Bayou, Murder in Big Horn, and Empires of New York. Galkin has directed three documentary films, and is currently in production on a film for HBO.

Oglala Lakota/Dine? film director and screenwriter Razelle Benally is in her thesis year of MFA candidacy of Film Production at Tisch School of the Arts. Murder in Big Horn is her most recent project. Her directorial narrative feature debut Winter in Black Mesa is in the works.

Maplewoodian David Mehlman is a documentary film and television editor. The films he’s worked on have won two Oscars, a SXSW Jury prize, a Cinema Eye Award and audience awards. He edited Murder in Big Horn.

Maplewoodian Tim Squyres has edited 26 feature films, including thirteen for director Ang Lee. His editing work has received two Oscar nominations.. He has also edited a wide variety of television and music video projects and documentaries.

Location: The Woodland - 60 Woodland Rd, Maplewood, NJ 07040

Wednesday, April 19, 2023

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM: AUDREY ROWE & NANCY GAGNIER: CAROL BUCHANAN AWARD

The 2023 Carol Buchanan Award for Outstanding Contribution to Civic and Intellectual Life will be presented to Audrey Rowe and Nancy Gagnier, for their work with the South Orange/Maplewood Community Coalition on Race.

Audrey Rowe is Program Director for the South Orange/Maplewood Community Coalition on Race, where she has worked for over twenty years to make racial integration, equity and inclusion a reality for Maplewood, South Orange and beyond. She has developed unique programs, has organized the Coalition’s Conversations on Race signature event; has conducted training on unconscious bias facilitating discussions about race; and has represented the Coalition on radio and TV.

Ms. Rowe lives in Maplewood with her husband, Abdul Alim Mubarak (Ronald) Rowe. They have two adult daughters, Solana Rowe (SZA) and Panya Rowe.

Nancy Gagnier has been the Executive Director of the South Orange/Maplewood Community Coalition on Race since 2008. Nancy develops pro-integrative strategies that help to build a community that is supportive of racial equity and inclusion. She has designed anti-racism trainings and has  led research to  inform areas of challenge and success in integration. Nancy is passionate about developing a racial equity ethos among residents and within institutions for the benefit of all.

Ms. Gagnier brings professional and academic writing, non-profit development, public relations, and teaching experience to her role. She has served on volunteer boards and strategic planning initiatives, and served on the South Orange/Maplewood School Board, where she focused on policy development.

Dr. Katherine McCaffrey is President of the Maplewood Memorial Library Board of Trustees and Professor of Anthropology at Montclair State University where she teaches classes on Latin America, the Twentieth Century, Refugees, and Building Sustainable Communities. Kate is honored to have served on the Library Board for ten years with Carol Buchanan who taught her the importance of infusing community building efforts with warmth and joy.

Location: Maplewood Town Hall - 574 Valley St, Maplewood, NJ 07040

Saturday, April 22, 2023

2:00 PM - 3:00 PM: IT'S ALL TAP! NEW JERSEY TAP ENSEMBLE

Celebrate the joy and artistry of the American art form of rhythm tap dancing! A fun-filled presentation with stories, history, performances, and a chance for the audience to dance along.

Artistic Director Deborah Mitchell, and the extraordinary dynamic artists of the award winning New Jersey Tap Dance Ensemble, will share the history, impact and joy of rhythm tap dancing with a fun-filled presentation that will have your feet tapping!  Don’t miss dance numbers perfected by the masters of tap dancing, the artists’ personal journeys with the art form, and your chance to tap with them.

An added treat of the day is an exhibit of Silent Taps, stunning black and white photographs of NJTAP artists at work by photographer and collaborator Vibecke Dahle.  Silent Taps photography takes you behind the scenes seeing the work that enables you to hear the magic. 

Location: The Woodland - 60 Woodland Rd, Maplewood, NJ 07040

Monday, April 24, 2023

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM: THE ACLU AND AMERICAN LIFE

Celebrate the joy and artistry of the American art form of rhythm tap dancing! A fun-filled presentation with stories, history, performances, and a chance for the audience to dance along.

Artistic Director Deborah Mitchell, and the extraordinary dynamic artists of the award winning New Jersey Tap Dance Ensemble, will share the history, impact and joy of rhythm tap dancing with a fun-filled presentation that will have your feet tapping!  Don’t miss dance numbers perfected by the masters of tap dancing, the artists’ personal journeys with the art form, and your chance to tap with them.

An added treat of the day is an exhibit of Silent Taps, stunning black and white photographs of NJTAP artists at work by photographer and collaborator Vibecke Dahle.  Silent Taps photography takes you behind the scenes seeing the work that enables you to hear the magic. 

Location: Maplewood Town Hall - 574 Valley St, Maplewood, NJ 07040

Tuesday, April 25, 2023

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM: ELIZA MINOT: MAPLEWOOD LITERARY AWARD

Eliza Minot is the author of the critically acclaimed novels The Tiny One and The Brambles, published by Knopf/Vintage. Knopf will publish her third novel, In The Orchard, on the day of the program.

Her work has appeared in magazines and anthologies, and her books have been named to various lists, including The New York Times Notable, Booksense 76, Nancy Pearl's, and Oprah's Top Ten Summer Picks. She went to Barnard College (’91) and received her MFA from Rutgers-Newark, where she was a Presidential Fellow, in 2017. She has taught at Rutgers-Newark, Barnard College, and NYU. She is a recipient of a New Jersey State Artist Fellowship and was on the shortlist for the £20,000 Notting Hill Editions Essay Prize.

She grew up the youngest of seven children in Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts. She lives in Maplewood, NJ, with her family.

Eliza will be in conversation with Susan Minot, award-winning novelist, short-story writer, poet, playwright and screenwriter. She is the author of the novels Monkeys and Evening, and wrote the screenplay for Bernardo Bertolucci’s Stealing Beauty. She currently teaches in the graduate writing program at Stony Brook University.

Location: Maplewood Town Hall - 574 Valley St, Maplewood, NJ 07040

Wednesday, April 26, 2023

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM: SETH ABRAMSON & TODD ABRAMSON: JAZZ VS ROCK

Brothers Seth Abramson and Todd Abramson will discuss their life's work in these genres. They will also talk about helping to launch the careers of many well known artists.

Seth Abramson, Grammy Award-winning producer, is the President and founder of Rabbit Moon Productions, Inc. a full-service, live music presentation and production company. He has recently been appointed Director of Jazz Awards for The Gilmore, where he also advises on jazz artist programming.

He was founding Artistic Director for Jazz Standard, produced the 2008 New York City visit of Pope Benedict XVI, served as the Artistic Director and Music Producer for The Big Apple Barbecue Block Party’s music stage, and produced an ongoing concert series in Madison Square Park.

Seth has programmed and produced thousands of concerts and musical events, and has helped launch the careers of award-winning artists. He received his first Grammy Award in 2012.

Todd Abramson has been booking concerts since the mid-80s. His career began at the legendary Greenwich Village club Folk City. He began booking Maxwell's in 1986 and was involved in the Hoboken institution until it closed in 2013. Todd is the head talent buyer for White Eagle Hall  in Jersey City, and has promoted shows in many other venues. For over eight years, he has hosted a  weekly Saturday afternoon radio show on WFMU as "Todd-O-Phonic Todd".

Location: Maplewood Town Hall - 574 Valley St, Maplewood, NJ 07040

Saturday, April 29, 2023

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM: MICHELLE MILLER: CONVERSATIONS WITH COOKIE

Real Talk on Life, Loss, Longing and Belonging

Michelle Miller is an Emmy, Gracie, DuPont, and Murrow award-winning journalist who co-hosts CBS Saturday Morning. Her work is also regularly featured on CBS This Morning, CBS Sunday Morning and CBS Evening News, and she has appeared as a correspondent on 48 Hours.

Miller’s New York Times bestselling biography, Belonging: A Daughter’s Search for Identity Through Loss and Love is a candid memoir of her search for the Chicana mother who deserted her at birth and her subsequent struggle to make sense of who she was and was meant to be. This lifelong quest would shape her voice as a Black woman in white newsrooms. Her complicated family story and her racial identity resonates with the nation’s ongoing, imperfect racial reckoning.

Carolyn “Cookie” Minick Mason is a media host, philanthropist, and activist. Her mission is to provide children with access to arts education and culture. As a board member of the Apollo Theater Foundation & co-chair of the Nominating & Development committee, she works to honor the influence of African American artists and advance creative voices.

Location: Maplewood Town Hall - 574 Valley St, Maplewood, NJ 07040

Date: April 18-29, 2023

Click Here For More Information