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The Porter House Museum at 401 West Broadway in Decorah is again offering its After Dark series this month.
David Faldet will present “Knocks and Voices in the Dark: Seances, Spiritualism, and Decorah” Thursday, Oct. 19, at 7 p.m. Pre-registration is required due to limited seating. Go to porterhousemuseum.org and click on “Events” to register.
Richard Merritt will present “Transmutation of Spirits: The Mindreading Craze in the Porter Era” Friday, Oct. 20, at 7 p.m. This program is full.
Free-will offerings will be accepted at the door and refreshments follow both programs in the museum dining room.
Faldet’s talk on Thursday looks at the wide public interest in contact with the world of the dead in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, including leading public figures, significant popular movements, stage shows, movies, infamous hoaxes–and at least one prominent Decorah family. David Faldet is Professor Emeritus of English, Luther College, and has presented several programs on Decorah’s early and natural history at the museum where he also serves on the board of directors.
Merrit’s presentation on Friday introduces nineteenth and early twentieth century mind-reading performance and psychological spectacles in historical perspective. He will also perform some of the experiences/illusions of mind-to-mind communication using showmanship and techniques of “parlor magic and mentalism.” Richard Merritt is Professor of Art and Visual Communication at Luther College and is a trans-disciplinary artist whose work sits at the crossroads of aesthetic object, social practice arts, and scholarship. He notes that he is “a rational skeptic and that no spirits will be harmed” in his performance.
Both presentations are suitable for adult audiences. For more information, or with questions, contact John at info@porterhousemuseum.org
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