Sunday, December 8th at 5 p.m.
In a candlelit, darkened sanctuary decked out in the finery of Christmas, author Natalie Dykstra and the music program of Hancock Church will whisk you back over 100 years to Fenway Court in Boston in Christmas with Isabella: Scenes and Songs with Isabella Stewart Gardner.
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Dykstra, author of the recent biography Chasing Beauty: The Life Of Isabella Stewart Gardner (Mariner Books) will present readings from her book related to Gardner’s love of Christmas. Accompanying the readings will be selections of music connected to Gardner performed by the Hancock Chancel Choir, violinist Aija Reke, flautist Agita Arista, and pianist Marilyn Becker. Projections of artwork and photographs will further enhance this journey into the season accompanied by one of Boston’s most notable residents.
Gardner had a special fondness for the holiday season, beginning as a schoolgirl in Europe when she attended a Christmas morning Mass at the Vatican, seeing the Pope adorned in the finest robes of white satin. At her eponymous museum, she liked to host holiday dinners in the Dutch Room and midnight services in her third-floor chapel.
Chasing Beauty has been widely praised, with the New York Times calling it “an exquisitely detailed and perceptive biography.” London’s Times Literary Supplement writes that the “immersive new biography is … a propulsive and seductive story,” and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Stacy Schiff says that “Isabella Stewart Gardner has found the ideal biographer in Natalie Dykstra.”
The music for the evening will be drawn from composers and pieces known to be beloved of Gardner, or that would have been heard by her. “She had a fantastic love of music” says Mark Morgan, Director Music at the church, “and put on many concerts at Fenway Court (now the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum). She championed and supported many musicians and composers, especially violinists.” The Choir will sing selections by Brahms, Berlioz, Saint-Saens, and more, while violinist Aija Reke and flautist Agita Arista will perform selections by Bach, Faure, and Mendelssohn. “I think this will be a magical evening, really drawing people into the spirit of the season and giving people a new appreciation for this remarkable woman.”
Thanks to a generous donation there is no charge for this event, however donations on the door are greatly appreciated. Tickets can be reserved in advance here.
Free parking is available in the rear of the church and on Mass. Ave. An elevator is located through the front entrance, and a stair lift is located off of the parking lot. Hearing assist devices are available.