GBH offers a wide variety of in-person and virtual events. From live music recordings, lectures and screenings to our virtual Book Club, tasting events and more, stay connected to our community. Whatever you’re interested in—news, history, the arts or music, we’ve got you covered. Fill your calendar with this rich diversity of events and be inspired, informed and entertained.
If you have questions about any of our events please reach out to Audience Member Services by phone 617-300-3300 or email info@wgbh.org
Featured Events
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VirtualBeyond the Page with Danzy Senna
Go beyond the page with acclaimed author Danzy Senna! Known for her works on race, gender, and American identity, Senna will talk about, her writing process, challenges, and more. She will answer your questions and will share insights into her new novel, Colored Television, which released on September 3, 2024.
Danzy Senna is the author of five works of fiction, including the bestselling Caucasia (set partly in Boston and Roxbury), New People, Symptomatic, and her forthcoming novel Colored Television, a collection of short stories, and a memoir. The recipient of numerous awards and honors, she teaches writing at the University of Southern California.
GBH News' Phillip Martin will moderate the conversation.
At Beyond the Page, we believe in the power of knowledge, the magic of stories, and the beauty of shared experiences. This event series features interactive sessions with renowned authors discussing their latest work and their writing process. Whether you're seeking profound discussions or heartfelt emotions, these events offer something truly special for everyone.
This event offers two ticket options:
Attend the event $0
Attend the event + receive a SIGNED copy of Colored Television + GBH membership $60
Please note that books will be shipped out following the event.
This event is presented with support from our sponsor Liberty Mutual Insurance.
Liberty Mutual Insurance Hand-out/Liberty Mutual Insurance Liberty Mutual Insurance
This event is presented by GBH with support from the Boston Book Festival which returns to Boston this October.
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Virtual
Paint Like Bob Ross with Nicholas Hankins
Spend an evening creating your very own masterpiece with step- by- step instruction from Nicholas Hankins, Bob Ross Certified Instructor and host of The Joy of Painting with Nicholas Hankins: Bob Ross’ Unfinished Season. Whether you’re an experienced painter or picking up the brush for the first time, this is your chance to paint like the myth, the legend ...Bob Ross!
See the canvas come to life as you spend three entertaining hours guided by Nicholas. You are the artist creating a beautiful Bob Ross- classic filled with those happy little clouds. Registration includes everything you need to create your masterpiece.
And it gets better – October 29 is Bob Ross’ birthday! Celebrate Bob by doing what he loved- painting!
About Nicholas Hankins
Nicholas Hankins began painting along with Bob Ross on his local public TV station in 1993. He was just eleven years old when he got his first Bob Ross paint kit, saying he felt “an indelible excitement that day which has grown exponentially over the past three decades.” Nicholas is a Certified Bob Ross Instructor and host of the new how-to painting series The Joy of Painting with Nicholas Hankins: Bob Ross’ Unfinished Season.
Ticket Includes:
- Access to the Zoom Webinar
- 3 hours of instruction by Bob Ross Certified Instructor Nicholas Hankins
- Art kit which includes
o (5) Bob Ross Oil Paints
o (1) Bob Ross 'Secret Formula' Liquid White
o (1) Bob Ross Landscape Brush
o (1) Bob Ross Fan Brush
o (1) Bob Ross Painting Knife
o (1) Bob Ross Canvas
o (1) Disposable Palette Paper
Please note: Each person who is painting will need their own ticket. For example, if two people will be painting together, please register for two tickets so we can send you two paint kits. Paint kits are provided by our friends at Bob Ross Inc..
Spread the joy of painting! You can add an additional kit (for an additional cost) and ship it to a separate address! Just purchase an additional kit and enter the shipping address for that person.
Don’t delay! Tickets are limited and registration will only be open until October 7, 2024 to allow for timely shipment of kits shipped within the continental U.S.. For kits needing to be shipped to Hawaii, Alaska, and Canada, ticket sales end September 16.
Shipping Details:
- Ticket sales end October 7 for kits being shipped to the continental US, so sign up now!
- Ticket sales end September 16 for Alaska, Hawaii, and Canada.
- Select the right ticket! Note that there are two ticket types depending on where your kit will be shipped. Failure to select the right ticket will result in delay in shipping or even the possibility that your ticket will not be fulfilled.
- Make sure that your address is submitted correctly (no typos!)
- Tickets for kits shipped to Alaska, Hawaii, and Canada will incur an additional shipping fee
- Please note that kits shipped to Canada will come from the US and will incur customs and/or duty fees added by the Canadian Postal System
- Ticket holders will receive their paint kits approximately 3 weeks after purchase for the continental US and approximately 6 weeks after purchase for kits shipped to Hawaii, Alaska and Canada.
- Please open your kit when it arrives to ensure you are ready to paint on October 29! Upon the arrival of your kit, please open it up and ensure you have all the necessary materials before the event. If you have any questions regarding your paint kit, please let us know.
This event is presented by GBH with support from The Joy of Painting with Nicholas Hankins: Bob Ross’ Unfinished Season, American Public Television, Create TV and Bob Ross Inc..
Ticket purchases for this event support GBH programming.
How it works:
This virtual event will take place via Zoom Webinar. Zoom is free to the public but requires a computer download. You can download Zoom here. Your kit will arrive to you in the days before the event.
By RSVPing for this event, you agree to receive timely news and updates on events, films, and special offers from GBH. Your registration information will be shared with Bob Ross Inc. for the shipment of the art kits.
Photo of Bob Ross provided by Bob Ross Inc.. Graphic designed by GBH.
More GBH Events
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In PersonOctober Outspoken Saturdays
The GBH BPL studio will host Outspoken Saturdays, a spoken word poetry event for emerging artists. Every first Saturday of the month, the series will be created in collaboration with spoken word artist Amanda Shea. For October 2024, we will also have a panel of guests for Latin American Heritage Month. Join us!
Registration is encouraged for this free event. -
Virtual
Stopping Ecocide: Can International Law Prevent Mass Environmental Destruction?
Diverse ecosystems represent the greatest climate action technology at our disposal. But what recourse do we have when nature itself is under attack from the world's biggest political and economic powers?
The movement to codify ecocide, that is, the intentional (or negligent) mass destruction of an ecosystem, as an international crime is gaining traction, particularly in Europe and in nations disproportionately impacted by the effects of climate change. As a crime and an area of practice, ecocide law is reserved for the very worst of the worst. Think oil spills, deforestation, pollution, and war.
But what are the promises and limits of international law in meting out justice on behalf of the environment?
Join Biodiversity for a Livable Climate as Jojo Mehta, co-founder and executive director of Stop Ecocide International, makes the case for global ecocide law in a conversation guided by environmental journalist Judith Schwartz. They'll cover what exactly ecocide is, how enforcement and legal frameworks can act as deterrents, where they're gaining traction, and how legal teeth can help bolster other conservation and regeneration efforts.
Stop Ecocide International recently celebrated a number of milestones on the world stage; in September the island nations of Vanuatu, Fiji and Samoa officially petitioned the International Criminal Court to establish ecosystem destruction as a crime, and in February of this year Belgium became the first country in Europe to codify ecocide as an international crime. Several other countries on the continent are considering similar laws.Partner:Biodiversity for a Livable Climate -
Virtual
“Nat Turner, Black Prophet: A Visionary History” with co-author Gregory P. Downs & historian Vincent Brown
Join American Ancestors featured author and a guest historian-expert for an insightful discussion of Nat Turner, Black Prophet, a bold reinterpretation of the causes and legacy of Nat Turner's rebellion. This new, definitive account offers a fresh look at Black history.
In August 1831, a group of enslaved people in Southampton County, Virginia, rose up to fight for their freedom. They attacked the plantations on which their enslavers lived and attempted to march on the county seat of Jerusalem, from which they planned to launch an uprising across the South. After the rebellion was suppressed, well over a hundred people, Black and white, lay dead or were hanged. The uprising was the idea of a single man: Nat Turner. An enslaved preacher, he was as enigmatic as he was brilliant. He was also something more—a prophet, one who claimed to have received visions from the Spirit urging him to act.
With co-author Gregory P. Downs and moderator-historian Vincent Brown of Harvard, we’ll unpack how and why Nat Turner inspired the largest enslaved people’s rebellion in the US between 1811 and 1861 and became an enduring icon of resistance. Nat Turner, Black Prophet, a narrative history by the late historian Anthony E. Kaye and Downs, his collaborator, provides a new understanding of one of the nineteenth century's most decisive events.Partner:American Ancestors Boston Public Library Ford Hall Forum -
Virtual
The Narragansett Pacer: The Finest Riding Horse in 18th-Century New England
Join the Paul Revere House for the second event in their 2024 Lowell Lecture Series. This three-part series focuses on the lesser-known express assignments Paul Revere completed. Speakers will share the importance of his courier work as part of a communications system that involved complex overlapping networks of leaders of all stations. The series will also explore the very practical aspects of long-distance horse journeys and the local colonial politics in key communities Revere interacted with.
Horses first appeared in New England in 1629, when Francis Higginson shipped approximately 25 mares and stallions from Leicestershire, England to the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Horses were central to survival in terms of work, travel, communication, and leisure. However, for New Englanders, horses were also a staple exportation commodity, and by the mid-eighteenth century New England led the way in shipping horses to the sugar colonies. Amongst the diverse types of horses that were raised in New England, the Narragansett Pacer was exceptional in many ways. The Pacer’s easy gait made it suitable for both long-distance travel and racing. The Pacer was the first “truly” American breed of horse, and it was in high demand all around the Atlantic World. However, from such promising beginnings, the Pacer was extinct by the next century. The talk will examine how the Narragansett Pacer emerged in Rhode Island in the 17th century, what made it so special as riding horse, how the breed is connected to well-known people including Paul Revere and George Washington, and how it has been memorialized in literature and art.
Presented in partnership with GBH, the Suffolk University History Department, Milton Historical Society/Suffolk Resolves House (Milton, MA), Carpenters’ Hall (Philadelphia, PA), Fraunces Tavern Museum (New York, NY), and the Portsmouth Athenaeum (Portsmouth, NH), with funding from the Lowell Institute. For more information, please contact staff@paulreverehouse.org or visit paulreverehouse.org.Partner:Paul Revere Memorial Association -
In Person
Getting Into Opera with Carol Vaness
GBH Music will introduce new listeners to opera in a video series produced in collaboration with Boston Lyric Opera (BLO) and New England Conservatory (NEC). Designed for newcomers and seasoned enthusiasts, “Getting into Opera” aims to ignite a passion for the genre by showcasing how powerful performances are shaped by vocal coaching and stage direction. The innovative multi-platform video series will be filmed in front of a live audience in GBH’s acoustically acclaimed Fraser Performance Studio.
This event features renowned soprano Carol Vaness leading a masterclass for BLO Jane & Steven Emerging Artists and New England Conservatory students. By pulling back the curtain on how great vocal performances are made, the masterclass will draw in new opera lovers while delighting fans of the genre.
“Getting into Opera” will be hosted by Anthony Rudel, author of “Tales from the Opera,” “Classical Music Top 40,” and “Imagining Don Giovanni.” Joshua Major, Chair of Opera Studies at NEC and Bradley Vernatter, BLO’s Stanford Calderwood General Director & CEO, will also share perspectives on producing operas as part of the series.
“Getting into Opera” will be available free of charge on YouTube and other platforms.
How it works:
Event timeline:
7-9:15pm Performance in Fraser
9:15-10pm Dessert Reception in the Atrium
This event is FREE but registration is required.
Photo credit: GBH Creative
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Virtual
Beyond the Page with Danzy Senna
Go beyond the page with acclaimed author Danzy Senna! Known for her works on race, gender, and American identity, Senna will talk about, her writing process, challenges, and more. She will answer your questions and will share insights into her new novel, Colored Television, which released on September 3, 2024.
Danzy Senna is the author of five works of fiction, including the bestselling Caucasia (set partly in Boston and Roxbury), New People, Symptomatic, and her forthcoming novel Colored Television, a collection of short stories, and a memoir. The recipient of numerous awards and honors, she teaches writing at the University of Southern California.
GBH News' Phillip Martin will moderate the conversation.
At Beyond the Page, we believe in the power of knowledge, the magic of stories, and the beauty of shared experiences. This event series features interactive sessions with renowned authors discussing their latest work and their writing process. Whether you're seeking profound discussions or heartfelt emotions, these events offer something truly special for everyone.
This event offers two ticket options:
Attend the event $0
Attend the event + receive a SIGNED copy of Colored Television + GBH membership $60
Please note that books will be shipped out following the event.
This event is presented with support from our sponsor Liberty Mutual Insurance.
Liberty Mutual Insurance Hand-out/Liberty Mutual Insurance Liberty Mutual Insurance
This event is presented by GBH with support from the Boston Book Festival which returns to Boston this October.
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In Person
Poetry Days Presents: An Evening with Camille Dungy
Camille T. Dungy is the author of four collections of poetry, most recently Trophic Cascade, which won the Colorado Book Award. She is also the author of the essay collections Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden and Guidebook to Relative Strangers: Journeys into Race, Motherhood and History, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. Dungy has also edited anthologies including Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry and From the Fishouse: An Anthology of Poems that Sing, Rhyme, Resound, Syncopate, Alliterate, and Just Plain Sound Great. A 2019 Guggenheim Fellow, her honors include NEA Fellowships in poetry (2003) and prose (2018), an American Book Award, two NAACP Image Award nominations, and two Hurston/Wright Legacy Award nominations. Dungy’s poems have been published in Best American Poetry, The 100 Best African American Poems, the Pushcart Anthology, Best American Travel Writing, and over thirty other anthologies. She is University Distinguished Professor at Colorado State University.
Cosponsored by the Boston College Poetry Days Series, American Studies Program, and English Department.Partner:Boston College -
Virtual
Kick Off At the Ballot Box
With the General Election fast approaching, Massachusetts’ top law enforcement official — Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell — discusses the importance of voting in 2024, and her efforts to promote voter access and participation, and ensure voter protection in the Commonwealth.
Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell will be in conversation with Celia Johnston Blue, President & CEO of the Massachusetts Women of Color Coalition (MAWOCC).
This talk is a partnership between MassINC and GBH Forum Network supported by
the Massachusetts Women of Color Coalition (MAWOCC).Partner:MassINC -
In Person
GBH Jazz Nights featuring Kristalis Sotomayor
GBH Music and JazzBoston are co-hosting a new series to showcase the breadth of incredible jazz talent in the Greater Boston area. The event is held on the second Thursday of every month through February.
This month, hear Latin rhythms fused with a modern jazz concept, led by acclaimed Puerto Rican flutist Kristalis Sotomayor.
Courtesy of the Artist -
In PersonVirtual
Diane Dimond with 'We're Here to Help: When Guardianship Goes Wrong'
The state-run guardianship system, called conservatorship in some states, is largely unregulated, ill-understood, and increasingly populated by financially motivated predators. Just how guardianship works and its real-life effects remained a mystery to most until the very public case of pop star Britney Spears. It suddenly became clear that those conscripted into the system lose all their civil rights in the process. Currently, there are an estimated 1.5 to 2 million Americans under court control, but no one can say for sure how many are affected because no government entity keeps track of citizens who have lost the right to determine their own fate.
Established in the late 1800s, the guardianship system was designed to assist the most vulnerable citizens: the elderly and the physically or intellectually disabled. While guardianship has been beneficial to many “wards of the court,” this little-understood process can be a judicial rollercoaster from which there is seldom an escape, and which often leads to financial devastation for the ward. Each year, fifty billion dollars belonging to wards are placed under the control of court appointees, tempting bad actors. As investigative journalist Diane Dimond discovers, the number of exploitive and abusive guardianship cases nationwide demands our urgent attention.
Explosive and compelling, We're Here to Help tells the human stories behind the headlines and shows how to avoid the risks of voluntary or involuntary guardianship.Partner:Ford Hall Forum -
Virtual
The God of AI
Cambridge Forum continues its series AI: Servant or Master with Greg Epstein
exploring the global worship of technology and discussing what prompted him to write Tech Agnostic. Epstein contends that technology has overtaken religion as the chief influencer in 21st Century life and community. He questions whether technology is deserving of our trust, and who profits from our uncritical faith in it? Epstein argues for tech agnosticism, not worship, and encourages us all to exert a critical freethinking perspective toward innovation, until it proves itself worthy of our faith.
Registration is open.Partner:Cambridge Forum -
In Person
Inside the Mind of a Genius: A Conversation with Ken Burns on Leonardo da Vinci
This event is SOLD OUT. Please join the waitlist. We will be in touch with you if tickets open up.
Explore the life and prolific works of artist, scientist, and engineer Leonardo da Vinci in Ken Burns’s latest film LEONARDO da VINCI. Following a sneak peek of clips from the film, GBH President and CEO Susan Goldberg will moderate a conversation with filmmakers Ken Burns and his co-director and Sarah Burns. The Museum of Fine Arts’ Senior Curator of European Sculpture & Phillips Curator of Judaica, Marietta Cambareri, will also join the panel to discuss the unique genius of this Italian Renaissance polymath.
About the film
LEONARDO da VINCI follows the artist’s evolution as a draughtsman and painter, scientist and engineer, who used notebooks to explore an astonishing array of subjects including painting, philosophy, engineering, warfare, anatomy, and geography, among many others. Though he intended to publish his writings, he never did, but the film delves into those he left behind to get inside his mind as he strove to master the laws of nature and apply them to his endeavors.
LEONARDO da VINCI looks at how the artist influenced and inspired future generations, and it finds in his soaring imagination and profound intellect the foundation for a conversation we are still having today: what is our relationship with nature and what does it mean to be human.
LEONARDO da VINCI will air November 18 and 19, at 8-10pm ET (check local listings) on GBH, PBS.org and the PBS App.
About Ken Burns
Ken Burns is an award-winning documentary filmmaker who has directed and produced numerous acclaimed historical documentaries over the past fifty years, including the Academy Award nominated Brooklyn Bridge in 1981, The Civil War, The Vietnam War, and Country Music. He has been honored with multiple Emmy Awards, Grammy Awards, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
About Sarah Burns
Sarah Burns is an author and documentary producer, best known for her work on The Central Park Five and Jackie Robinson. Her documentaries have won several awards and nominations, including a Peabody Award and Writers Guild of America award.
About Marietta Cambareri
Marietta Cambareri, Ph.D., is Senior Curator of European Sculpture and Phillips Curator of Judaica at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. She curated and wrote the publications accompanying the exhibitions Della Robbia: Sculpting with Color in Renaissance Florence (MFA, Boston and the National Gallery of Art, 2016-17) and Strong Women in Renaissance Italy (MFA, Boston, Fall 2024), and was lead curator on the recent installation of two galleries of Italian Renaissance art.
This event is presented by GBH and Bank of America.
By RSVPing for this event, you agree to receive timely news and updates on events, films, and special offers from GBH. -
