Milton Quatercentenary
John Milton’s four hundredth birthday is being marked by celebratory events in England and beyond. See below for details of:
Exhibitions | Lectures | Performances | For Children | Miscellaneous
Exhibitions
CITIZEN MILTON: An Exhibition to celebrate the 400 th Anniversary of John Milton's Birthday
View the exhibition online at http://www.cems.ox.ac.uk/citizenmilton/
8 December 2007 to 26 April 2008, Bodleian Library, Oxford
The Bodleian Library's winter exhibition is a tribute to John Milton, one of the first advocates of civil liberties. Focusing on the ever current idea of ‘citizenship’, the exhibition tells a story through word and image of this great writer's abiding ideas, linking his artistic and political activities. The Exhibition is curated by the acclaimed Milton Scholar Dr Sharon Achinstein, Fellow of St Edmund Hall.
The display presents Milton's major works in important and beautiful editions from the Bodleian Library's collections including the rare first edition of Areopagitica and the first twelve-book edition of the greatest epic poem in the English language, Paradise Lost. Further details are available at http://www.ouls.ox.ac.uk/about/exhibitions
LIVING AT THIS HOUR: JOHN MILTON 1608-2008
15 January to12 July 2008 (closed 21-24 March 2008 inclusive), Cambridge University Library
The exhibition 'Living at this Hour' takes its title from Wordsworth's famous sonnet invoking the spirit of Milton, and explores the seventeenth-century poet's influence in his own lifetime and beyond. Treasures on display will include documents from the University Archives recording Milton's time as a student at the university; rare editions of his polemical pamphlets of the 1640s and '50s, including the Areopagitica and Tetrachordon; a first edition of Paradise lost, with later editions tracing developments in the annotation and illustration of the poem; and the extraordinary autograph Milton manuscript from Trinity College. Further details are available at http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/exhibitions/Milton/.
Milton in the Old Library
17 January to 18 December 2008 , The Old Library, Christ’s College, St Andrew’s Street, Cambridge
An exhibition based around the College’s extensive collection of Milton materials. Open to the public every Thursday, 2–4.45 pm, and for group visits at other times by appointment (library@christs.cam.ac.uk/01223 334950/334905). Admission free.
British Library: Milton commonplace book
The British Library in St Pancras is currently exhibiting a commonplace book of Milton in its ‘Treasures’ Gallery. The book was compiled by Milton between 1630 and 1650 and contains extracts copied from literary and historical works arranged under the headings Index Ethicus, Index Oeconomicus and Index Politicus. The pages shown are from the Index Politicus and contain passages relating to the nature and office of Kingship.
Further details are at http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/whatson/exhibitions/ritblat/literary.html
Victoria & Albert Museum, National Art Library Landing
Book of the Month, August 2008: The Paradise Lost of Milton, with illustrations, designed and engraved by John Martin (London: Septimus Prowett, 1827)
10.00 am – 5.45 pm daily during August
John Martin’s 1827 version of Paradise Lost, a superlative example of mezzotint, will be on display at the Victoria and Albert Museum during August. Martin was one of the first eminent artists to create original works in mezzotint, and his image of Satan viewing the ascent to Heaven achieves dramatic contrasts of light and shade, reflecting the core theme of the poem. Martin engraved each image twice, one in the large format (on display), the other smaller. The illustrations proved so popular that they were used in a further nine editions of the poem issued by four different publishers over the next forty years.
http://www.vam.ac.uk/nal/index.html
Milton Quatercentenary Display
Milton Quatercentenary display
Tuesday 9 December – Sunday 14 December 2008
Gallery 3, The Fitzwilliam Museum
The Museum marks the quatercentenary of the birth of John Milton with this special display of William Blake's illustrations for Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained. Milton was a continual source of inspiration to Blake (one of his illuminated books was called Milton). The dramatic watercolour of The Angel Michael foretelling the Crucifixion was made in 1822, based on an earlier design. Blake only made one set of illustrations for Paradise Regained, made c.1816-1818, and two of the twelve depicting scenes from the life and Passion of Christ will be shown, alongside an early printed copy of Milton's Paradise Lost dating from 1678.
PARADISE LOST: Installations at St.Giles, Cripplegate, London
Until 12th December 2008. Monday - Friday 11am - 4pm.
Artist Mark Maxwell has created site specific installations at St.Giles Church,Cripplegate, London.
Inspired by Milton's poem 'Paradise Lost', lines of poetry have been laser cut from card and suspended above the Nave of the Church.
Appearing like a 'forest' of text, floating above the pews and the Altar, the first line reads..'Of Mans First Disobedience....'.
Dissolution I and II.
The second installation is a sculpture by the south wall of the church, which consists of two old fashioned printing trays. One tray contains white molten candle wax and the other, molten lead with an array of metal type. They are suspended off the ground and resemble a set of scales, with a bronze statue of Milton at its centre as if he were a fulcrum with the balance of power and responsibility resting on his shoulders.
City of London Libraries
October–December 2008
There will be displays on Milton in Guildhall Library from October to December 2008, and in the Barbican Library in November and December 2008. See www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/libraries for further details nearer the date.
John Milton - Illustration & Typography from the Milton Collection
A small exhibition on Floor 6 of Birmingham Central Library
6–31 December 2008, Monday–Friday 9 am–8 pm, Saturday 9 am–5pm
(24 December 9 am–5pm, 25 December Closed, 26 December Closed,
27 December Closed,
31 December 9am–6pm)
The Milton Collection was built around a core collection of about 160 volumes, presented to Birmingham Free Libraries by Frank Wright, a local politician, in 1882. It now contains about 1,500 volumes of works by and about the poet John Milton, including a number of early books and pamphlets, finely illustrated and private press editions of Milton’s works and books and periodicals about Milton. For more information visit www.birmingham.gov.uk/milton
Lectures
The Lady Margaret Lectures 2008
Wednesday 30 January 2008 , at 5.15 pm in Room 3, Mill Lane Lecture Rooms, 8 Mill Lane, Cambridge
Quentin Skinner – John Milton as a Theorist of Liberty
Admission free. All are welcome. Further information is available at http://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/milton400 or e-mail milton400@christs.cam.ac.uk
The Northcliffe Lectures in Literature
Tuesday 19 February 2008, at 6.00 p.m. in the Gustave Tuck Lecture Theatre (Wilkins Building), University College London, University of London
Jenny Uglow – Milton, Bunyan and the artists: epic and chap-book
Further details are available at http://www.sas.ac.uk/events/list/ies_lectures.
The Lady Margaret Lectures 2008
Wednesday 27 February 2008 , at 5.15 pm in Room 3, Mill Lane Lecture Rooms, 8 Mill Lane, Cambridge
Colin Burrow – Milton’s Singularity
Admission free. All are welcome. Further information is available at http://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/milton400 or e-mail milton400@christs.cam.ac.uk
EYELESS IN ISLINGTON: MILTON AND SAMSON AGONISTES
Friday 29 February, Cambridge University Library
Sophie Read, College Lecturer in English at Christ's College, Cambridge, will review the difficulties of understanding /Samson Agonistes/, and explore Samson’s unsettling end in the light of the political and biographical contexts that inform it; she will propose a reading that is not necessarily content to think of ‘all passion spent’ as entirely a good thing. This event is organised by the Cambridge Library Group, and will take place in the University Library's Morison Room at 5.30 p.m. All are welcome. Non-members of the Group: £3.00.
For further details of the Group's activities see http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/maps/clgh.htm
The Lady Margaret Lectures 2008
Wednesday 7 May 2008, at 5.15 pm in Room 3, Mill Lane Lecture Rooms, 8 Mill Lane, Cambridge
Sharon Achinstein – Milton: Poetry vs. Prose
Admission free. All are welcome. Further information is available at http://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/milton400 or e-mail milton400@christs.cam.ac.uk
MILTON IN CAMBRIDGE: A talk by Professor Gordon Campbell
Wednesday 11 June 2008, Cambridge University Library
John Milton's experience of Cambridge from 1625 to 1632 was very different from that of the modern undergraduate and postgraduate. Professor Campbell's talk will explore how Milton chose his college, how he was taught and how he lived. The talk will take place in the Library's Morison Room at 5.00 p.m. Friends of Cambridge University Library: £2.50. Others: £3.50. Junior members of Cambridge University: Free. Details of all Friends' events for 2007-2008 are available at http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/friends/programme.html.
The Lady Margaret Lectures 2008
Wednesday 29 October 2008, at 5.15 pm in Room 3, Mill Lane Lecture Rooms, 8 Mill Lane, Cambridge
Geoffrey Hill – Milton as Muse
Admission free. All are welcome. Further information is available at http://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/milton400 or e-mail milton400@christs.cam.ac.uk
The Lady Margaret Lectures 2008
Wednesday 26 November 2008 , at 5.15 pm in Room 3, Mill Lane Lecture Rooms, 8 Mill Lane, Cambridge
Christopher Ricks – Milton and ‘the best criticism of any work’
Admission free. All are welcome. Further information is available at http://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/milton400 or e-mail milton400@christs.cam.ac.uk
John Milton of London
Friday 5 December, from 2.00 pm to 4.30 pm, Guildhall Library
Join us for a talk by Dr Gillian Spraggs about the life and times of John Milton in and around the City. Milton was born 400 years ago in Bread Street and the afternoon will explore aspects of the seventeenth century City and Milton's work. The afternoon will include some readings and a chance to see original documents held in the Guildhall collections. The afternoon will end with some seasonal refreshments!
£10 / £7.50. Bookings: 020 7332 3851 or email ask.lma@cityoflondon.gov.uk
Barbican Library, London
Monday 8 December, at 7.30 pm
Milton: Poet, Pamphleteer and Patriot
Anna Beer is the author of the latest biography on Milton, published by Bloomsbury in January 2008. She will talk about the writer’s life and draw on her research for the book to illustrate how his life as a writer was informed by his interest in the political and religious controversies of his time. Not only did he write, but he was also actively engaged with the business of government, working as Cromwell's international secretary. Refreshments served from 7.00 pm and after the talk until 9.00 pm. Tickets £5.00 (£3.50 concessions) available from the Barbican Centre Box Office on 020 7638 8891 or online at www.barbican.org.uk.
Performances
Comus
Christ’s College, St Andrew’s Street, Cambridge, in the Fellows’ Garden on 19, 20, 21 June, and in Hall on 22, 24 June 2008
Milton ’s masque performed together with an anti-masque newly written by John Kinsella and commissioned for the Milton 400th Anniversary. Performances at 8.30 pm (provisional). Performed by Christ’s College Amateur Dramatic Society in conjunction with Cambridge University Marlowe Society. Further information and ticket enquiries are available at http://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/milton400 or e-mail milton400@christs.cam.ac.uk
PARADISE LOST!
Saturday 5 July 2008, at 8.00 pm
Gethsemane Church, Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg (Stargarder Str.77)
An Oratorio Concert to Celebrate the Quatercentenary of John Milton (1608-1674)
The programme includes anthems and madrigals by John Milton the Elder; lute songs by Henry Lawes; the ‘Miltons Morgengesang’ of Johann Friedrich Reichardt; Friedrich Schneider’s ‘Das verlorene Paradies’; ‘Blest Pair of Sirens’, by Sir Hubert Parry; and the World Premiere of ‘On Time’ by Luke Bedford. Choir and Orchestra: Sing-Akademie zu Berlin, Men of the State- and Cathedral Choir Berlin, Kammersymphonie Berlin. Soloists: Yeree Suh, Judith Kamphues, Jan Kobow and Sebastian Noack. Speaker: Will Tosh. Directors: Kai-Uwe Jirka and Maren Glockner.
Entrance: 10/5 Euro. Tickets and Reservation: 030 - 20 91 28 30,
info@sing-akademie.de. Free entrance for each guest who knows 10 verses by John Milton from memory: ‘Of Man’s first disobedience, and the fruit/ Of that forbidden tree, whose mortal taste/ Brought death into the world, and all our woe,/ With loss of Eden…’ Further information:
www.sing-akademie.de.
St Giles Cripplegate, Barbican
Tuesday 8 July, at 7.30 pm
Milton and Music: a concert celebrating the 400th anniversary of Milton's birth in the church where he is buried.
Readings from the poet's works and musical settings by Lawes (from ‘Comus’), Handel (from ‘Samson’ and ‘L’Allegro & Il Penseroso’), Charles Ives, Gerald Finzi and Edmund Rubbra. Presented by Poems on the Underground (readers Gerard Benson & Cicely Herbert) and the Apollo Chamber Orchestra, conducted by David Chernaik, with Lorna Anderson, soprano and Richard Edgar-Wilson, tenor. Tickets £15 (£12 concessions) available from the Barbican Centre Box Office on 020 7638 8891 or online at www.barbican.org.uk.
St Giles Cripplegate, Barbican
Wednesday 9 July 2008, at 2.15 pm
Samson Agonistes
A semi-staged reading of Samson Agonistes, presented by Poems on the Underground. Directed by Tom Cornford. With Edmund Kingsley (Samson); Caroline Martin (Dalila); Gerard Benson (Manoa); and Richard Hollis (Harapha). Tickets £8 (conc. £6) on the door from 2 pm.
St Giles Cripplegate, Barbican
Friday 11 July 2008, at 7.45 pm
Father and Son: The Miltons of Bread Street
Trio Literati teams up with Concert Bites to celebrate Milton’s 400th anniversary in the church where both he and his father are buried. The young John Milton was a battleground of conflicting ambitions, aspirations and self-doubts. Using clues from his lesser known works we look at the Miltons’ domestic life in Bread Street and beyond to paint a colourful picture of the influences on the poet. Perhaps the strongest of these was his father, John Milton senior, a scrivener by profession but also a highly-respected composer. Concert Bites brings five young professional singers to join Trio Lit in a feast of words and music!
Tickets £14.00 (conc. £11.50) on the door.
For group bookings or further information contact info@trioliterati.org.uk
St Giles Cripplegate, Barbican
Saturday 12 July, at 11.00 am
Organ Music in the time of Milton
A celebrity workshop for students of St. Giles International Organ School, with Terence Charlston.
Until the mid 18th century all organists practised their organ repertoire on the clavichord, a touch-sensitive domestic instrument. Now organ students can discover through working on two clavichords and the new Mander organ at St.Giles how preparing on a clavichord affects their performance. The workshop features English 17th century music including Bull, Orlando and Christopher Gibbons, Tomkins, Byrd, Locke, Blow and Purcell. We also visit the music of Europeans who influenced 17th century English music: Frescobaldi, Cabezon, Froberger, and music from Holland and France. Terence Charlston is a towering figure in early music and an experienced teacher of organ and clavichord.
For details of cost, content and timings please contact Anne Marsden Thomas
admin@organschool.com or 020 7638 8285
Live performances every Sunday at 2:00 pm at The Buttonwood Tree, in Middletown, CT.
John Basinger performs Paradise Lost from memory every Sunday at 2:00 PM at The Buttonwood Tree.
His performances always astound and keep getting better as he mixes in asides of insight and wit.
No mere recitation, John Basinger has single handedly made Paradise Lost come alive for
hundreds of audience members. These events are free and open to the public.
The Buttonwood Tree is located at 605 Main Street in Middletown, CT www.Buttonwood.org
Lance Pierson
Entertainer Lance Pierson will be giving performances based on Milton throughout the autumn. The one-man shows include ‘John Milton: Pre-eminence Lost’ and ‘John Milton: The Paradise of Paradise Lost’. For further details visit www.lancepierson.org.
Monday 22nd September – St Peter’s, Vere Street (London)
Tuesday 14th October – Chester Literature Festival
Wednesday 15th October – Wellington Town Council Literary Festival
Thursday 28th October – Arts Alive Festival, Leatherhead Theatre
Thursday 30th October – Edinburgh University (University Members only)
Friday 7th November – St Ebbe’s Church, Oxford
Thursday 4th December – St Giles-in-the-Fields (London)
Sunday 7th December – Westminster Abbey (provisional)
Tuesday 9th December – Mansion House Tube Station (guided walk around Milton’s London)
Saturday 13th December – Mansion House Tube Station (guided walk around Milton’s London)
Paradise Lost
Thursday 23 October 2008 , The Drama Studio, Faculty of English, 9 West Road, Cambridge
A reading of Milton's poem
Paradise Lost, starting at 9 am, with live relay online. Admission free. Drop in and out at any point. Performance ends at around 8 pm, with drinks. Further information and ticket enquiries are avaibale at
http://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/milton400 or e-mail
milton400@christs.cam.ac.uk
John Milton Anniversary Event
Monday 24 November 2008, at 7.00 pm
King’s place, the new Guardian building, 90 York Way, London N1 9AG (just north of King’s Cross Station)
Arranged jointly by Poet in the City and the Friends of Milton’s Cottage, this celebration of the life and works of one of the UK’s greatest poets will be presented by John Waite (Radio 4) and feature Andrew Motion (Poet Laureate) and Gordon Campbell (Milton biographer), with readings of Milton’s poetry by Claire Tomalin (biographer), Lance Pierson (actor) and Helen Mort (poet). The event will include a drinks reception.
Tickets £9.50; bookings via
www.kingsplace.co.uk
Milton at Christ’s
Saturday 6 December 2008 , 8 pm, The Hall, Christ’s College, St Andrew’s Street, Cambridge
A concert of music of Milton's time and readings of his poetry and prose. Readings by Sam West (subject to availability). Music performed by Fretwork, David Rowland, and the Choir of Christ’s College. Further information and ticket enquiries are available at http://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/milton400 or e-mail milton400@christs.cam.ac.uk
Handel – L’Allegro, Il Penseroso ed Il Moderato
Sunday 7 December 2008 , 6 pm, Trinity College Chapel, Trinity Street, Cambridge
The Essex Baroque Orchestra conducted by Peter Holman in a performance of Handel’s oratorio based on Milton’s poems. Tickets and further information are available at http://cambridgeearlymusic.org
December 9th - Wesleyan University, Russell House, Middletown CT
Performance of Paradise Lost in honor of John Milton's 400th Birthday!
11:00-12:15 Book I; 1:30-3:00 Book II;...
The performance if free and open to the public.
The Russell House is located at 350 High Street in Middletown, CT 06457
For more information go to website at www.ParadiseLostPerformances.com
or email: JBASe484@Gmail.com
Samson Agonistes
Tuesday 9 December 2008, 2.30 pm, Southwark Cathedral, London SE1
The Milton Consort will performing Milton’s final poem Samson Agonistes in Southwark Cathedral. Further details of this event are available at http://www.southwark.anglican.org/cathedral/whats_on.htm and http://www.london-se1.co.uk/whatson/event/5817/samson-agonistes. Tickets are available from Shakespeare's Globe Box Office, telephone 0207 401 9919.
For Children
Milton and the English Civil War
Wednesday 24 September, from 10.00 am to 12.30 pm, Guildhall Library, London
On the 400th anniversary of the birth of John Milton this history walk and discussion looks at the social upheavals in which he was involved and the ways in which beliefs and attitudes changed during his lifetime. Meet at Guildhall Library.
The event links to the new Key Stage 3 History Unit 8, ‘The Civil War’. Participation is free, but bookings are required: 020 7332 3851 or email ask.lma@cityoflondon.gov.uk
Happy Birthday John Milton!
Saturday 18 October, from 2.00 pm to 4.00 pm, Barbican Children’s Library
Come and join in an exciting creative event for the whole family exploring the life and times of John Milton, poet and rebel! What would it have been like for John growing up in the City of London in the seventeenth century? Discover more about what John would have eaten, the games he would have played, the music he would have listened to and the lessons he would have had at home and at school. Find out about Roundheads and Cavaliers and what John thought about King Charles I with the help of stories, games, art and craft activities and some dressing up!
Admission free for ages 6+
Milton Family Day
Happy Birthday John Milton!
Tuesday 9 December, from 10 am to Noon, Barbican Children’s Library
Come and join in an exciting creative event for the whole family exploring the life and times of John Milton, poet and rebel! What would it have been like for John growing up in the City of London in the seventeenth century? Discover more about what John would have eaten, the games he would have played, the music he would have listened to and the lessons he would have had at home and at school. Find out about Roundheads and Cavaliers and what John thought about King Charles I with the help of stories, games, art and craft activities and some dressing up!
Admission free
Miscellaneous
ST GILES CRIPPLEGATE: Events throughout 2008
Our most famous parishioner
Many visitors, students and academics regularly visit the beautiful mediaeval church of St Giles Cripplegate nestling amidst the Barbican complex. Milton lived in the parish and he is buried in the church. A simple stone by the chancel step marks his burial place. Other memorials survived the bombing of 1940 including a large metal statue based on a bust made about 1654.
We will be hosting events throughout 2008 including music, poetry, drama, art workshops and the Milton sermon.
Milton was himself a keen organist, so it is appropriate that 2008 sees our installation of two additional new pipe organs for St. Giles International Organ School, one of which features a carving of Milton in profile and words from Paradise Lost. Further details are available at http://www.stgilescripplegate.com/.
International Milton Symposium
7-11 July 2008, Institute of English Studies, University of London, Senate House
The Ninth International Milton Symposium will be celebrating the quatercentenary of Milton's birth in London—the city in which he lived and worked for most of his life—with a five-day conference under the auspices of the Institute of English Studies of the University of London. Further details are available at http://ies.sas.ac.uk/events/conferences/2008/Milton/index.htm.
Darkness Visible
A web resource for school and university students studying Milton's Paradise Lost: http://www.christs.cam.ac.uk/darknessvisible
John Milton: His Life & Times
Chalfont St Giles and Jordan’s Literary Festival
Monday 12–Sunday 18 May
The 2008 Chalfont St Giles and Jordan’s Literary Festival will be celebrating John Milton’s Quatercentenary with a large and varied set of events, including talks, readings, discussions and workshops. For details of the full programme and a link to a downloadable Festival brochure, visit http://www.chalfontstgilesliteraryfestival.org.uk/2008/quatercentenary.htm.
Poems on the Underground
June and July 2008
Poems on the Underground is featuring two Milton posters on the London Tube in June and July: ‘Sabrina fair,’ from Comus, with the autograph of Henry Lawes’s setting from the British Library; and the final lines of Paradise Lost, with the etching by Gustave Doré. Posters are available from the London Transport Museum and the Poetry Society.
St Giles Cripplegate, Barbican
Wednesday 17 September, at 6.00 pm
The Most Revd and Rt Hon. Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, will preach the Milton Sermon at Evensong on Wednesday 17 September at St Giles Cripplegate; sacred music by Milton’s father John Milton (1563–1647) will be sung by the choir of Selwyn College, Cambridge. Reception afterwards by the kind invitation of the Worshipful Companies of Barbers’ and Salters’. Tickets are required for the service and reception.
Rebel! Rebel!
John Milton History Walk
Tuesday 14 October 6pm – 7.30pm, Barbican Library, London
Guided Walk (age 14+)
John Milton, poet and political campaigner was one of the most important figures of the seventeenth century. He was born in Bread Street in the City of London and in time attended St Paul’s School. He was buried in St Giles Cripplegate in November 1674. This evening walk around the City will explore key sites linked to Milton, his work and the turbulent times through which he lived. The walk will begin and end at Barbican Library.
Tickets £5.00 (£3.50 concessions) available from the Barbican Centre Box Office on 020 7638 8891 or online at www.barbican.org.uk
Barbican Library, London
Sunday 7 December, 2.00 pm – 5.00 pm
Workshop on Milton and Handel's Samson Agonistes
Handel’s dramatic oratorio Samson is doubly unique: we have to thank not only the composer for re-creating Milton’s voice in the concert-hall and theatre, but also Milton for bringing the character of Samson to life in his 1671 dramatic poem ‘Samson Agonistes’. By also setting Milton’s 1645 poems ‘L’Allegro’ and ‘Il Penseroso’, Handel opened up a new perspective on Milton at two crucially different stages of his writing life, which Graham Fawcett, lecturer with the Poetry School, will explore using the texts of all three poems and Handel’s music. Tickets £25.00 (£15.00 concessions) available from the Barbican Centre Box Office on 020 7638 8891 or online at www.barbican.org.uk.
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