Long Wharf Theatre and the New Haven Free Public Library have announced the launch of a program through which theatergoers can borrow books whose themes complement current stage productions.
“We’re trying to encourage community conversations and literary discourse throughout New Haven, through the content that we curate,” the theater’s managing director, said Joshua Borenstein.
According to a joint press release issued last week, “Long Wharf Theatre patrons with a valid Connecticut (library) card will be able to check out books in the theatre’s lobby prior to performances. New Haven Free Public Library customers will be able to go to the Ives Main Library … to obtain free tickets to a Long Wharf Theatre production.”
Christopher Korenowsky, the library’s executive director, said, “We want the citizens of New Haven and Greater New Haven to recognize … what’s on their doorstep.”
The median age of New Haven residents, Korenowsky said, is 29.
It’s a generation, Korenowsky said, that doesn’t make up a large part of the library’s or the theater’s audience — a demographic that he and Borenstein want to engage and involve.
By making available in the theater’s lobby books that complement current productions, Korenowsky hopes to establish a “micro-branch of New Haven Free Public Library at Long Wharf.”
The above-mentioned press release indicates that “the partnership is being supported by the ‘Co-Creating Effective and Inclusive Organizations’ Project, or CEIO, a two-year pilot initiated by Bill Graustein and Niyonu Spann to increase inclusivity, justice and conscious co-creation in New Haven. The partnership began in April 2012.”
Borenstein said the initiative is funded by a $100,000 grant, which is divided equally between the organizations.
In addition to that financial investment, Borenstein said CEIO’s support has included access to consultants who’ve worked with the theater and the library to plan and implement the program.
Borenstein pointed out that CEIO’s mission (as stated on its website) “is to support New Haven community movements and organizations in building internal practices and external interactions that are co-creative, that embody social and economic justice and that increase effectiveness.”