Presented by Saint Albans Museum & Vermont Humanities this event is part of the series SAM Talks. These talks are free and open to the general public. Be sure to check out the Historic Paint & Sip just before the talk. Make a day of it and visit Downtown Saint Albans.

THE TALK

Between 1880 and World War II, painted theater curtains were artistic features of most New England villages and towns. In Vermont, painted curtains graced stages in town and grange halls, opera houses, and community theaters. A culture of local variety shows and traveling, professional talent flourished in front of those curtains in some very remote Vermont communities. In a tour of some of the curtains, Christine Hadsel, the Director of Curtains Without Borders, provides a glimpse into the world of talented and often sophisticated artists who were part of the rural cultural scene, illustrating the rich cultural history of small-town Vermont before World War I.

Curtains Without Borders is dedicated to documenting and preserving historic painted scenery. We focus on painted stage scenery found in town halls, grange halls, theaters and opera houses. The time frame is roughly 1890 and 1940, although on rare occasions, pieces painted after 1940 are also included in our inventory. Curtains Without Borders began in 1996 as a project of the Vermont Museum & Gallery Alliance.  Thanks to initial support from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

THE SPEAKER

Christine Hadsel was the first Executive Director of the Vermont Museum & Gallery Alliance.  During her 11-year tenure, she built the membership from 50 to over 200 collecting and exhibiting institutions in Vermont. She also raised funds for the Vermont Collections Care Program, and oversaw Vermont’s participation in the national “Save Outdoor Sculpture” program. In 1998, she began work on the painted theater curtain project. The collection of Vermont curtains was awarded the status of “National Treasure” by the National Trust for Historic Treasure, and the work to conserve them on-site has received national and international recognition. In addition to her supervisory duties, she works as a conservation assistant, especially when new support systems need to be created, and she gives talks and slide shows. She is currently on the board of the Vermont Humanities Council, the Vermont World Affairs Council, and the St. Johnsbury Athenaeum

Image: A Historic Theater Curtain from the library in Gardiner, Maine