Wednesday, Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. — RUTLAND — UVM professor Tony Magistrale will discuss how literature is adapted to film, particularly with the popular movie “The Shawshank Redemption,” in a talk at Rutland Free Library on Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. His talk, “The Shawshank Experience,” is part of the Vermont Humanities Council’s First Wednesdays lecture series and is free and open to the public.
In 1994, Frank Darabont adapted Stephen King’s 1982 novella, “Rita Hayworth and The Shawshank Redemption,” into a motion picture that has, according to the Internet Movie Data Base, become the most popular film of all time. In his talk, Magistrale will discuss how literature is adapted to film and explore why Darabont’s film has enjoyed such enormous success.
Magistrale is Chair of the English Department at the University of Vermont. His areas of expertise include the works of Edgar Allen Poe, Gothicism and horror films. He received his B.A. from Allegheny College and both his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh. His most recent book is “Stephen King: America’s Storyteller.”
The Vermont Humanities Council’s First Wednesdays series is held on the first Wednesday of every month from October through May in nine communities statewide, featuring speakers of national and regional renown. Talks in Rutland are held at Rutland Free Library unless otherwise noted. All First Wednesdays talks are free and open to the public.
Upcoming talks in Rutland include “America’s Challenges in a New World Order” with distinguished veteran diplomat George Jaeger on March 2; “An Evening of George Gershwin” with pianist Michael Arnowitt on April 6 (at Trinity Episcopal Church of Rutland); and “Joseph Pulitzer and the American Republic” with Boston College professor Heather Cox Richardson on May 4.
For more information, contact Rutland Free Library at 802-773-1860, or contact the Vermont Humanities Council at 802-262-2626, info@vermonthumanities.org, or visit www.vermonthumanities.org.
