Humanities events
Our humanities program brings nationally recognized authors and world-class scholars to the library community through events that focus on music, art, local history, religion, literature, and culture.
Programs are often developed in partnership with our many local arts and humanities organizations, nonprofits, and institutions.
Humanities programming is funded by the Durham Library Foundation.
2024-2025 Humanities Events Calendar
Upcoming Events
Nature Writing Workshop
Saturday, April 26, 2025 • 10:00am - 11:30am
Main Library (300 N. Roxboro St) (Meeting Room #4347)
Nature has inspired countless pieces of poetry and prose over the course of time and space. Nature writing puts us in intimate touch with our own inner landscapes, while filling us with awe and reverence for our natural world. If you have ever been...
Ages: Adult, Emerging Adult: 18-24 Year Olds, Senior Citizen
Only Soldiers and Only At The Frontline: Soviet Women of WWII in Combat & Memory
Wednesday, April 30, 2025 • 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Main Library (300 N. Roxboro St) (Main Auditorium)
Join Durham County Library for a special lecture on the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two in Europe. Dr. Anna Krylova of the Duke University History Department will deliver a presentation on women of the Soviet Union in active service on...
Ages: Adult, Emerging Adult: 18-24 Year Olds, High School, Senior Citizen
Director's Cut
Saturday, May 10, 2025 • 1:00pm - 3:00pm
Main Library (300 N. Roxboro St) (Main Auditorium)
Director's Cut...
Ages: Adult, Emerging Adult: 18-24 Year Olds, High School, Intergenerational, Senior Citizen, Tweens: 9-12 Year Olds
AfroFuturism Fest
Saturday, May 17, 2025 • 10:00am - 5:30pm
Main Library (300 N. Roxboro St) (Main Auditorium)
Save the date!...
Ages: Adult, Emerging Adult: 18-24 Year Olds, High School, Intergenerational, Senior Citizen
The End Of The World: A History of Apocalypse
Wednesday, June 04, 2025 • 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Join Durham County Library for a special event exploring the history of apocalyptic thought through the ages, featuring a lecture by Duke Department of History professor John J. Martin and musical guests Doomsday Profit. More details to be announced...
Small is All Productions Presents: Circle & Square @ Southwest
Saturday, June 07, 2025 • 10:00am - 10:30am
Southwest Regional Library (3605 Shannon Rd) (Southwest Meeting Room)
Join Small is All Productions for Circle and Square, a play designed for ages 2-5 and their parents/caregivers to attend and enjoy together. In this interactive, mostly nonverbal story, audiences meet the free spirit Circle, followed by highly...
Ages: Kindergarten, Middle School, Toddler
Small is All Productions Presents: Circle & Square @ Southwest
Saturday, June 07, 2025 • 11:15am - 11:45am
Southwest Regional Library (3605 Shannon Rd) (Southwest Meeting Room)
Join Small is All Productions for Circle and Square, a play designed for ages 2-5 and their parents/caregivers to attend and enjoy together. In this interactive, mostly nonverbal story, audiences meet the free spirit Circle, followed by highly...
Ages: Kindergarten, Middle School, Toddler
Mallarmé Music: Space Pants
Saturday, June 28, 2025 • 2:00pm - 3:30pm
Main Library (300 N. Roxboro St) (Main Auditorium)
Come join us in the Main Library Auditorium for Space Pants: Intergalactic Music & Multi-media Storytelling, featuring Jen Beattie's vocals and Diane Wade on the Viola.
Get in touch!
Celeste
Email: choltzmann@dconc.gov
Celeste is a North Carolina native from the small town of Ridgeway. A winding road of customer service jobs and volunteer opportunities fed her passion for serving community and the various members of it. A graduate of UNC Asheville (BA) focusing in the art of printmaking and from NCCU (MLS) focusing in public libraries, she is thrilled to now take on the role of Humanities Coordinator for the exceptional community of the Durham County Library system. If you could only know one thing about her, she’d want you to know that she wants to HEAR FROM YOU! The humanities and libraries share the common thread of community and sharing voices, so please share yours! There may not be enough days in the year to do it all, but your ideas, interests, and suggestions matter!
Pronouns: she/her