‘Transatlantic’ creators to speak in Blue Hill
BLUE HILL — Aug. 3 and 4 will be a miniature version of Word, the Blue Hill literary arts festival. Early Word, in fact.
This past spring, the Netflix series “Transatlantic” introduced viewers to the little-known story of American journalist Varian Fry and the Emergency Rescue Committee, which conducted some of Europe’s greatest artists and intellectuals – including Hannah Arendt, Marcel Duchamp, and Claude Lévi-Strauss – from Nazi-occupied France in the early 1940s. The series, created and directed by Anna Winger, was based on “The Flight Portfolio,” Julie Orringer’s fictionalized account of the ERC’s exploits.
Winger and Orringer, both regular visitors to the Blue Hill area, will discuss the adaptation in a Thursday, Aug. 3, conversation hosted by Word, the Blue Hill literary arts festival, and by Blue Hill Books. The conversation will start at 7 p.m. in Emlen Hall, 17 Bay School Drive, Blue Hill, moderated by journalist Alicia Anstead.
The next night, Friday, Aug. 4, the bookstore and Word will host Ann Patchett, celebrated author of “Bel Canto” and eight other novels. Patchett, now launching her ninth novel, “Tom Lake,” will talk with Lynn Boulger, executive director of The Authors Guild Foundation, at 7 p.m. in Emlen Hall.
In addition to “The Flight Portfolio,” Orringer is the award-winning author of “How to Breathe Underwater” and “The Invisible Bridge.” She teaches at New York University and lives in Brooklyn, NY, when she’s not in Blue Hill.
Winger is the American-British creator, writer and executive producer of Emmy and Peabody award-winning hit series such as “Deutschland 83” (Amazon) and “Unorthodox” (Netflix). She founded her production company, Studio Airlift, in 2016. Winger lives in Berlin, Germany, with her family and often spends summers with her parents, Bob and Sarah LeVine, on Toddy Pond in Surry.
In addition to her novels, Patchett has written four nonfiction books and two children’s books and was the editor of “Best American Short Stories 2006.” Her many honors include a National Humanities Medal, the PEN/Faulkner Award, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. Her novel “The Dutch House” was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Confronted with a dearth of independent bookstores in her hometown of Nashville, TN, she co-founded Parnassus Books and has become a national spokesperson for independent booksellers.
Word’s October festival will feature a conversation with novelist Jennifer Egan and a reading of T.S. Eliot’s “Four Quartets” by John Farrell, co-founder of Freeport’s Figures of Speech Theatre, along with a full complement of poetry readings, workshops and conversations.
The festival has funding from the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation and other generous donors. Word’s media partner is WERU-FM. Its fiscal sponsor is Blue Hill Community Development.
Information: http://www.wordfestival.org or 207-374-5632.