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The Lewes Public Library Spoken Word Society is proud to present the following performances this fall and winter.
All events are free and held at the Lewes Public Library (111 Adams Avenue, Lewes) unless indicated otherwise.
Registration is required and each individual attending must register.
The Lewes Public Library Spoken Word Society welcomes Delaware Shakespeare for 8th Community Tour production.
The Two Gentlemen of Verona follows devoted friends, Proteus and Valentine, whose loyalties are tested when their romantic interests overlap. With a love triangle, a band of outlaws, disguises, clowns, tomfoolery, a dog named Crab, and a revised ending that seals the fate of our anti-hero, this beautifully silly and sometimes poignant play tells the story of friendship, loyalty (or lack thereof), love, and growing up.
Delaware Shakespeare launched its Community Tour in Fall 2016. The productions travel throughout the state bringing thrilling, professional Shakespeare to audiences who may not have easy access to professional arts experiences. Community Tour productions play in non-theatrical settings and the production values are scaled for those spaces, with live music, minimal sets, and whatever lighting is available. The productions are performed with a cast of six actors and a musician.
Celebrating its twenty-third season, Delaware Shakespeare creates year-round professional theatre and educational programs for residents and friends of the State of Delaware. At Del Shakes, people from all walks of life celebrate and explore their shared humanity through the lens of Shakespearean work.
The performance runs 2 hours with a 15-minute intermission.
The Lewes Public Library Spoken Word Society welcomes Teatro de la Luna. It’s a guessing game… What instrument am I playing?
This family friendly program features singing and dancing with Gabo and Mate, and we’ll learn about various musical instruments!
Teatro de la Luna was founded in 1991 as a non-profit organization whose purpose is to provide the Washington capital area – both to its Spanish-speaking community and to its English-speaking community as well – with a source of high-quality theater as seen from a Latin American perspective. Today’s offering is created and performed by Gabriel Lora and Marcela Ferlito.
This event will take place in the library’s outdoor pavilion. In case of inclement weather, the program will be relocated to the large meeting room of the library.
Registration is not required.
The Lewes Public Library Spoken Word Society welcomes Delaware Shakespeare.
Celebrating the haunting thrill of the Halloween season, actors and musicians from Delaware Shakespeare bring you an evening of spooky stories and enchanting music. This will be a night of immortal texts with music composed specifically for this program delivered by the region’s finest performing artists. Sophisticated yet appropriate for all audiences.
Celebrating its twenty-third season, Delaware Shakespeare creates year-round professional theatre and educational programs for residents and friends of the State of Delaware. At Del Shakes, people from all walks of life celebrate and explore their shared humanity through the lens of Shakespearean work.
This program is co-hosted by the Lewes Public Library Spoken Word Society and Coastal Concerts.
This event is in the Lewes Elementary School auditorium (820 Savannah Road, Lewes, DE). At the Lewes Elementary School, please park on the side of the building facing Beebe Hospital and use entrance 12, by the flag pole.
Join us in-person in the library or online for a Fireside Chat in association with the Lewes Public Library Spoken Word Society.
Perhaps no woman had a greater impact on America in the 20th century than Eleanor Roosevelt. She gave a voice to the most neglected and desperate members of our country, while fighting for equal rights for all. Her influence started in the 1920s and ended only with her death in 1962. Perhaps her most famous and important speech took place during the 1940 Democratic presidential convention, when her husband, President Franklin Roosevelt, was running for an unprecedented third term in office. As the delegates fought amongst themselves, she took the stage and reminded them that “these are no ordinary times.” FDR went on to win a third term. Historian Paul Sparrow hosts the acclaimed actress Suzanne Savoy, in an exploration of the speeches and writings of Eleanor Roosevelt. Her words will be presented in dramatic monologue by Ms. Savoy with political and social context provided by the host.
Suzanne Savoy, a classically trained theatre artist, is also known for film roles and recurring TV appearances on How to Get Away with Murder, Full Circle, The Knick, House of Cards, Better Call Saul, and many others. Her most recent film, All of It, recently won “Best Comedy Feature” at the Marina del Rey Film Festival and has been submitted for the November 2025 Rehoboth Beach International Film Festival.
The Fireside Chat series is organized and moderated by Paul Sparrow, a writer, historical consultant, and the former Director of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum. Before moving to the FDR Library, he was the Deputy Director and Senior Vice President at the Newseum in Washington, DC. He is the author of the book, Awakening the Spirit of America: FDR’s War of Words With Charles Lindbergh—and the Battle to Save Democracy.
NOTE: this session is available to attend in-person or through Zoom. You MUST REGISTER and indicate which you prefer. If you have need assistance with registration or getting your Zoom invitation, please email the library.
The Lewes Public Library Spoken Word Society presents Suzanne Savoy and Jack Herholdt in a live reading of The Thanksgiving Visitor by Truman Capote, published in McCall’s Magazine in 1967. Savoy and Herholdt first performed this piece online for the library in 2020 and are back to kick off the holiday season with this perennial favorite.
Capote’s The Thanksgiving Visitor is an autobiographical tale that follows nine-year-old Buddy as he is bullied by classmate Odd Henderson. Buddy’s aged aunt and best friend, Sook, hatches a plan to help him. The results, played out during the extended family’s Thanksgiving dinner in 1930’s Alabama, are disastrous… or are they?
Suzanne and Jack, both native Delawareans, have made their careers on stage and screen in New York City and LA. Suzanne has played recurring roles on House of Cards, For Life, The Knick, Full Circle, and Better Call Saul, to name a few. Her solo show, Je Christine, tours nationally; her newest solo piece The Book of Poissy premiered as part of Lewes Public Library’s SummerScape 2025 series. Jack performs on many NYC and regional stages and in national touring shows. He appeared in the award-winning video series Celebrity Ghost Stories and in the TV series Lioness. His cabaret show, Falling in Love and Other Ridiculous Ideas, played repeat performances at NYC’s Don’t Tell Mamma and The Duplex. He now flies in yearly from Las Vegas to reprise his role as Buddy, to the delight of the library audiences.
The Lewes Public Library Spoken Word Society presents A Christmas Carol, performed by Gerald Dickens.
Gerald Dickens’ performance of A Christmas Carol has received standing ovations all over the world. Using his own adaptation of Charles Dickens’ classic Christmas tale, Gerald Dickens plays over 30 characters using vocal and physical talents to bring each scene vividly to life.
Gerald Dickens is an actor, director, and producer, and the great-great-grandson of the author Charles Dickens. In 1993 he created his first one-man show, a theatrical performance of A Christmas Carol inspired by Charles Dickens’ own energetic readings of the 1860s. A fascination with the life and works of Charles led him to write and direct further one-man shows including Mr. Dickens is Coming!, Nicholas Nickleby and Sketches by Boz. Dickens regularly performs in major theatres and arts centres, arts and literary festivals in the UK, as well as at hotels, stately homes, and on cruise ships.
Thank you to Byers’ Choice Ltd. for bringing Gerald Dickens to the United States.
The 1:00 PM performance is in the large meeting room of the Lewes Public Library.
The 7:00 PM performance is in the Lewes Elementary School auditorium (820 Savannah Road, Lewes, DE). At the Lewes Elementary School, please park on the side of the building facing Beebe Hospital and use entrance 12, by the flag pole.
These programs are brought to you by the library’s Spoken Word Society, which celebrates the tradition and artistry of oral storytelling through lectures, performances, discussions, demonstrations, and other publicly-shared experiences.
The LSWS is partially funded by the generous support of the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on DelawareScene.com.