Today we hear from the Northfield Public Library, who partnered with the Minnesota Opera to bring music and art education to families in Northfield, MN this summer. Thanks to Leesa Wisdorf, Reference and Youth Services Manager at Northfield Public Library, for putting this together for us! ~Laura
by Leesa Wisdorf
The Northfield Public Library’s children’s librarian, Kathy Ness, was contacted this summer by Alisa Magallón, a new Teaching Artist for the Minnesota Opera, to see if we would be interested in a story time program that would bring stories to children sung by trained opera singers with a related craft time at the end. Alisa had run a similar and very successful program in Houston, Texas and was hoping to bring this program to new audiences in Minnesota.
Here is Alisa’s program description: “The program is simple and effective. We prepare storybooks to be read and sung by trained opera singers and have art and craft project that coincide with the story. Children and adults are taught and shown creative ways to read and engage with books as well as learn about opera! It’s a new perspective on storytelling that is exciting and intriguing for all ages.”
This is exactly the kind of collaborative programming we love to engage in. Since we are in the midst of a renovation project in our home library and currently in temporary quarters at City Hall, we asked our local arts organization – The Northfield Arts Guild – if they would be interesting in hosting one of the 2 opera programs in their larger space downtown. With three partners working together our goal was increase audience interest, and we were able to offer the program at 2 locations, with one evening and one morning performance.
The evening performance at the Arts Guild saw an older audience of seniors and families, while the program on Friday morning in the City Hall Council Chambers was primarily comprised of families with young children. It was such fun to hear Alisa’s lovely voice ring through rooms at City Hall on Friday morning. Talk about reaching a new audience!
As part of a vibrant college community, library staff have been encouraged to develop relationships and partnerships with other community organizations. With the aim of reaching new and wider audiences the library hosts or co-hosts programs that have grown out of these partnerships. Our most popular programs involve music, gardening, writing, and author visits. Recent examples include a “Save the Monarchs” program and a memoir writing program. Funding support comes from the Friends & Foundation of the Northfield Public Library and grants.
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