Literary Salon

3rd Thursday of the Month, 10am-12pm 

Facilitated by Andrea Markowitz, join other enthusiasts as we open discussion on a new topic each month! Choose any book, or other medium (film, music, stage play, podcast, art, etc.) that you feel really represents or relates to that month’s topic. We’ll discuss how the theme plays a significant role in the work you’ve selected, as well as anything else you’d like to share about it with the group. See below for topics and descriptions of the upcoming discussions! 

A voracious reader and writer of fiction and nonfiction, Andrea earned degrees in English, music and psychology, and explored a variety of careers in education and writing. After “retiring” she discovered her true calling is to write plays and musicals. Her dedication to writing for the stage was acknowledged recently with an ariZoni Award for best new script for “Fair Game,” a musical satire based on a true story about fake news! 

Andrea Markowitz 
Playwright, Lyricist, Composer
www.feedingthefuries.com

Winner, Zoni Award for Original Script, 2021-2022
Nominated, Zoni Award for Original Score, 2021-2022

Playwright in Residence, Desert Foothills Theater
www.DFTheater.org

Read her plays on the New Play Exchange
https://newplayexchange.org/

January - Myths and Legends

Some sources use the words “myth” and “legend” interchangeably. Others distinguish them by the kinds of characters and topics they feature. While both are categorized as “traditional” tales, myths might be distinguished by featuring gods, involve supernatural phenomena, have no historical basis, be set in a distant, unfamiliar past, and teach how or why a certain natural or social phenomenon came to be. Legends might be distinguished by featuring unauthenticated historic stories about leaders, people and events that serve to teach a lesson.

Choose a myth, legend, or any other similar genre that is either rooted in the past (as in the tales about ancient Greek gods, or the legends of King Arthur), or that has more recent origins, such as tales about vampires and werewolves. We’ll discuss what drew you to that particular tale and its relevance to today’s world.

February - Different Types of Love

We say the word “love” in a myriad of contexts, such as loving a person, product, experience, type of food or art, a specific place, everything! But when we say we love something, what do we really mean? 

Psychologists have identified more than a dozen different kinds of love, including Eros, Storge, Agape, Philia, Ludus, Pragma, Romance, Self-love, Infatuation, Consummate, Fatuous, Companionate,  Platonic, Passionate, Obsessive and Unconditional.

Choose a book, film, play, or piece of music about love, and let us know what type(s) of love it deals with, and what you love about it.

March - Lies and Liars in Literature

Literary liars are manipulative antagonists who disrupt or change the protagonist’s trajectory. Iago’s lies to Othello cause Desdemona’s demise. Unreliable narrators such as Dr. James Sheppard in “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” lead the protagonist and reader astray. Sometimes liars get caught. Sometimes they don’t.

Choose a fiction or nonfiction book, film, play, or piece of music about a liar, and tell us what the lie is, why the liar lies, how the lie disrupts the status quo, whether or not the liar gets away with it, and how you feel about the outcome.