Special Events

Each year, Essex Meadows hosts a series of events for residents, their friends and family members, and those who have expressed interest in our community and have become part of our extensive mailing list.

Past events have included lectures, art show openings, golf tournaments, garden parties, a wine tasting, and numerous concerts. Sky divers landed at Essex Meadows in 2007, which could only be topped by a visit from American writer, investigative journalist and Hollywood producer Dominick Dunne.

The 2011 Art and Exploration Lecture Series at Essex Meadows

Finding the Magic: Celebrating the Things that Inspire Us

"I happen to believe the glass is full, that there is magic in everything if you're open to it."

—Ann Nyberg

Social Media: Using it for good

Ann Nyberg has spent her entire professional life in the media, primarily in front of the camera. Most often recognized as the popular anchor of WTNH-TV's evening newscasts, she is also gaining notoriety for what you might call her unofficial day job, using social media — tools like Twitter, Facebook, and the blog she writes under the moniker Annie Mame — to connect people and help them help each other. We have all heard about the perils of social media; discover how Ann Nyberg is using it to effect positive change.

Music and the Mystery of Life: The Maestro and Mahler's Resurrection

As music director of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, William Boughton's occupation is the same as his calling: to share the music that inspires him with audiences all over the world. This is something he has done all his life, first as a cellist playing with the Royal Philharmonic, and later as founding conductor of the English Symphony Orchestra. "Music is one of the answers to the mystery of life," Mr. Boughton says. "It is the most profound of all the arts; it expresses the deepest thoughts of life and being." Join Maestro Boughton as he explores the deepest thoughts of life and being in Mahler's famous Resurrection.

Family lore: The Khrushchevs

Every family has a narrative. Few have narratives as rich as the Khrushchevs. Join Dr. Nina Khrushcheva, a Russian American professor in the graduate program of international affairs at The New School, for an insightful talk about her great-grandfather, former Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev. Dr. Khrushcheva, a senior fellow of the World Policy Institute, is also the author of numerous articles, including "The Case of Khrushchev's Shoe" from the New Statesman, in which she focuses on of her family's most celebrated stories: the infamous shoe banging incident.

Sustaining Beauty: Preservation Green

Philip Logan is one half of the dynamic husband–and–wife team who founded Preservation Green LLC of New York City. Dedicated to providing sustainable beauty, Preservation Green is a landscape architecture and consulting service for public and private properties in the United States, South America, and Europe. Mr. Logan, an architect, and his wife, Barbara Pac, a celebrated academic and landscape architect, have worked all over the world on gardens, green roofs, and parks. Learn about their favorite projects and how, together, Mr. Logan and Ms. Pac are making the world more beautiful — in a way that will last.

The Cosmic Song: A life in music

Susan Von Reichenbach tells a story about how, at age 5, she suddenly announced at one of her parents' cocktail parties that she would grow up to become an opera singer. The announcement surprised her parents, and even Ms. Von Reichenbach herself, but it turned out to be true. "In retrospect, I realize that announcement was the moment when my soul revealed that I was to live in music and the healing power of sound and to experience a lifetime devoted to discovering the meaning and implications of the ideas — that music is a gift of Spirit and that sound has healing properties." Ms. Von Reichenbach went on to enjoy an internationally acclaimed career as an opera and concert singer. She has also become a spiritual teacher, guiding individuals and classes in a metaphysical approach based on Metapsychiatry that she calls The MetaWay™.

Making, Teaching and Preserving Art: An art historian’s view

As executive director of the Mark Twain House & Museum, Debra Petke's job was to commemorate and celebrate the creative achievements of an American legend. In 2007 she made the leap to the Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts, where, as president, her focus is on those who may one day become legends. An art historian specializing in 19th and early 20th century American art, Ms. Petke has taught art history at several colleges and served as an educator, curator, and museum administrator at a variety of art institutions including the Wadsworth Atheneum. Join Ms. Petke as she talks about the priorities of museums and colleges in art education. Get a behind the scenes look at museum work, the challenges of teaching young people "old art", and training the next generation of artists.

Dates and times coming soon!

Watch the mail for further details and reminders about the 2011 Art and Exploration Lecture Seriers.