Free Screening & Talk: GLORY

 

The Umbrella Arts Center is proud to partner with the Town of Concord DEI Commission and Concord Visitor Center to celebrate the sacrifice of Concord’s native son, George Washington Dugan, who served in the Massachusetts 54th during the Civil War.

On Friday, July 14 at 7pm, join us for a free public screening of the Oscar-nominated film Glory, about one of the Union Army’s earliest African-American regiments in the American Civil War. It stars Matthew Broderick as Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, the regiment’s commanding officer, and Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes, and Morgan Freeman. The screening will be followed by a talkback guest historian, author and living history interpreter Marvin Alonso Green.

Free and open to the public. The Umbrella is ADA accessible and offers free parking.

This screening is part of “Glory for George,” a townwide, weekend-long celebration of the life and legacy of George Washington Dugan, with events at the Concord Free Public Library, Monument Square, the Old North Bridge at Minute Man National Historical Park, The Robbins House, and Concord Armory.

 

See https://theumbrellaarts.org/performing-arts/films-umbrella

Points of Return Closing with Final Curator Tour & Film Screening

On June 25, The Umbrella Arts Center will host a final curator-led tour of the expansive “Points of Return” multimedia art exhibition (on view May 1-June 25, 2023), followed by a free companion screening of the documentary film, “Call of the Orcas”.

At 3PM, environmental artists and curators Gonzaga Gómez-Cortázar Romero and David Cass (collectively known as A La Luz) will be in Concord for the final weekend to provide a personalized narrative of the exhibition’s journey from an pandemic-era online exhibition to this first-ever large-scale physical exhibition. Comprising indoor and outdoor installations, sculpture, sound, photography and video art, the exhibition has transformed two floors of gallery space, converted lobby space, and the Black Box Theater to create a journey through themed “rooms” from Eclipse to Return, from environmental crisis to optimism. Each room allows visitors to experience the work of diverse international artists who have immersed themselves in a wide range of global environments undergoing different stages of the climate crisis.

Orca photo by Katy Foster for NOAA

The tour will be immediately followed by a free private screening of a new short film, “Call of the Orcas,” about the life quest of Ken Balcomb to save an endangered Pacific species of Orcinus Orca, the southern resident killer whale. The documentary will be introduced by Brian Rosborough, Concord resident and founder of OriginalPursuit.com, who conceived the program. The curators and Mr. Rosborough will facilitate discussion after the film. Light refreshments will be served.

Free with RSVP at https://secure.theumbrellaarts.org/overview/84223

 

(Photos: Umbrella tour by Joseph Donica; Orca photo by Katy Foster for NOAA)

Pandemic: Changes & new offerings we have embraced and liked

We all want the Pandemic to come to an end… But what about things that have come about or were started due to the Pandemic that we don’t want to end? Here are some thoughts…

One Concord resident wrote this: “Overall, I think people are much more friendly and kind, here and elsewhere. Seems the ‘We are all in this together’ idea is bringing out best in so many.”

Living Concord followers sent us some of their favorite things:

Curbside pick-up at Concord Library

Messages on staircase leading to Nesting shop

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Outdoor classrooms

Eating Lunch outside at schools

Birthday Parades

 

Small, social distance concerts at your home. Some local musicians can come to your home to perform for you and small group.

Mobile ordering @ Haute Coffee

Curbside pick-up options at so many shops & restaurants

 

Al fresco dining, more outdoor seating options

Seeing many more people walking & biking

Library lawn cafe tables and chairs set up for safe social distance small gatherings

Free parking in town

Easier commutes (b/c less traffic) or no commute

No business travel

Graduation Parades & CCHS Administration stopping by each Graduate’s home in the Graduation Celebration School Bus

Drive-in movies at CCHS, from Concord Recreation

Concord Ag Week (not just Ag Day)

Less activities has allowed for more family dinners, more free time, more game nights

Zoom calls with family & friends

Concord-Carlisle Community Chest Driveway Project

Celebratory take out dinner options offered by local businesses

Chalk messages & more messages of gratitude and kindness around town

Playing games like Kahoot or Risk with friends and family

Being in your pajamas longer and having more leisurely mornings

All the new library offerings

Special take-out dinner offerings / “celebration dinners” from local restaurants

Sidewalk sales / sidewalk displays

Outdoor town meeting (with no presentations)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Umbrella’s productions you can watch via Zoom

Summer Quest

Concord Together, Concord Solstice and Fall In Love with Concord

Paperless menus  – just scan QR code with your phone.

All the new Umbrella offerings

More options to sit around town

Go Out Doors along the Rail Trail

People seem less in a hurry, kinder.

These are just a few of the good things that we have learned, started and liked during this trying time. Thank you to all of you who have worked so hard to make these things happen.