How to use this Page

What an evening! On Wednesday, more than 100 people braved the heat to attend our New Voices Picnic. It was a fantastic event that showcased some of Ohio’s up-and-coming talent in musical and literary work.

The evening began with a performance by a string quartet of students from ProMusica Chamber Orchestra. The four Hilliard Davidson High School students opened with a piece by Mozart, followed by several duets and closed with a surprise piece by Lady Gaga! This was definitely an unexpected crowd-pleaser! Check out the video below of their performance.

Following the music, our three featured authors for the evening shared excerpts from their work and provided the “story behind the story” to give the audience an intimate look into their writing process. Amanda Flower and Lee Kravitz each read a chapter from their books, Maid of Murder and Unfinished Business, respectively, and Ellen Waddell read several short stories from her collection, She Said, Looking Forward.

Overall, despite the high temps, it was a memorable evening filled with good food, fun entertainment and new talent!

We only have one more picnic left for the year! You won’t want to miss out hearing Dispatch sports columnist, Bob Hunter share from his new book Chic on Aug. 3. Tickets are available now, click here for more information. We hope to see you there!

Summer is in full swing and so is our Summer Picnic series! We hope you’ll join us on Wednesday for the third annual New Voices picnic– an evening of literary and musical pieces from some of Ohio’s up-and-coming talent.

Students with ProMusica Chamber Orchestra will perform before the readings. Pictured from left to right is Paige Sibeveih, Alina Wungsirivesh, Jason Ng.

As an added bonus, we excited to collaborate with ProMusica Chamber Orchestra who will kick off the evening with a performance by a string quartet comprised of Hilliard Davidson High School students from ProMusica’s Student Advisory Board, and participants in the Musicians in the Schools program. The students will play Presto from Mozart’s String Quartet No. 4 in C Major as well as a few short duets.

The event will also feature the following emerging Ohio authors: Amanda Flower debuting her novel Maid of Murder; Ellen Waddell presenting from her book of essays, She Said, Looking Forward; and Lee Kravitz sharing a novel based on a year of his life called Unfinished Business.

The picnic begins at 6:15 pm on the Thurber House lawn. Tours of the house are available before and after dinner. Tickets are $15 for the reading. You’re welcome to bring some snacks and beverages. For more information about the New Voices Picnic and to purchase tickets, click here or call 614-464-1032.

We hope to see you there!