“Rob Velella as Nathaniel Hawthorne” at the Leach Library

On Thursday, November 10 at 7:00 p.m., the Londonderry Leach Library will host the living history program, “Rob Velella as Nathaniel Hawthorne.”

Rob Velella is an independent literary historian and playwright specializing in American literature of the nineteenth century. As a scholar, he has published articles and presented academic papers on figures such as Margaret Fuller, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and Walt Whitman. Additionally, he has lectured at various historical sites, libraries, and colleges from Pennsylvania to Maine on the topic of American literature. He also performs dramatic readings in character for several literary figures, including the young Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Edgar Allan Poe, and Nathaniel Hawthorne.

In this theatrical portrayal, Mr. Velella will bring to life the reclusive New England author Nathaniel Hawthorne. Well-known for his novels, including The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne began his writing career as a writer of short tales which explore human nature and history. Born in Salem, Massachusetts and raised partly in Maine, he made his permanent home in Concord, Massachusetts, but he breathed his last breath in New Hampshire attended by his closest friend Franklin Pierce. Join Hawthorne as he reads “Young Goodman Brown” and other short stories and answers questions from the audience.

The event is being sponsored by the Friends of the Londonderry Leach Library. It is free and open to the public, and will be held in the library’s lower-level meeting room. Light refreshments will be served.