WASHINGTON, May 2, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — ULYSSES, considered by many to be the greatest novel of all time, will be read aloud in its entirety at the Georgetown Neighborhood Library beginning June 9 and continuing through June 16, 2014. The library is located at 3260 R Street, NW, in Washington, D.C.
"ULYSSES is a great novel but it's also challenging," says reading producer Herb Guggenheim. "When you approach it on your own, it can seem strange and confusing. People find it much more accessible when they hear it read aloud. Joyce's characters and situations come to life. His wit and verbal pyrotechnics are fully revealed. Making ULYSSES immediate and accessible is what our reading's all about."
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 wife (Molly Bloom). Joyce seems to be saying that just as ULYSSES was a hero to the ancient Greeks so Leopold Bloom is 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 ULYSSES aloud. Among the featured readers are WETA-FM radio personality Robert Aubry Davis and internationally acclaimed opera singer Laura Baxter. Davis is the creator and host of "Millennium of Music," a program carried by more than 100 public radio stations nationwide. He can also be heard on Vox, XM Satellite Radio's opera and classical vocal music channel.
"We're thrilled 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 Molly to life," says Guggenheim.
Between 1984 and 2000, Herb Guggenheim staged fifteen marathon readings of James Joyce's ULYSSES. Now, after fourteen years, Guggenheim is "coming out of retirement" to stage one more marathon. He promises that this year's reading will be an event to remember.
The reading is free and open to the public. Times and dates are as follows:
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 information, the public can contact reading organizer Herb Guggenheim via email.