Planetarium At Glastonbury East Hartford Magnet School Offering Fall Programs
By PETER MARTEKA
The Glastonbury East Hartford Magnet School is offering new planetarium shows in the fall. (Peter Marteka)
GLASTONBURY — — The popularity of the planetarium at the Glastonbury East Hartford Magnet School has been out of this world.
The planetarium in the state-of-the-art elementary school opened in April and the summer programs offered to the public sold out in minutes, according to Glastonbury school officials. The planetarium is now scheduling events for the fall, including new dome shows, a music series and a lecture series.
"We had a successful debut of planetarium programming this spring and summer — absolutely every show was sold out," said Brian Czapla, Glastonbury's director of technology and information services. "We're hoping to continue that success with our fresh dome show offerings and, at the same time, stimulate the community's interest with dynamic music and lecture programming."
The summer series of 22 shows generated $4,906 in revenue for the school system. New fall series available to the public include: "Flight Adventures"; "IBEX: Search for the Edge of the Solar System"; and "Seasons of Light — the story of how our holiday traditions are connected to the sky above." Superintendent Alan B. Bookman said recently hired planetarium director Jason Archer has brought unbridled enthusiam to the position.
"He has the knowledge and vision to start developing his own planetarium shows," Bookman said. "He's been training teachers and he's really gung-ho about the planetarium. He's a good showman and puts on a very entertaining show."
Also debuting in the fall is a music series with local artists performing in the planetarium dome with multimedia planetarium programming overhead. Artists will include Glastonbury music teacher and guitarist Steve Nystrup; former Glastonbury music teacher and pianist Greg Colasalle; jazz vocalist Janine DiNatale; and acoustic guitarist Paul DeMaio.
A lecture series is also scheduled in the fall with local and regional experts speaking on astronomy topics of interest. Lecturers include Fred Myers, Glastonbury's director of science, and Dr. Kristine Larsen, a professor of physics at Central Connecticut State University.
The planetarium is also available for private events as a venue for parties, organizational events and fundraisers. Guests will experience full dome shows and night sky presentations with music customized for the occasion. The school's spacious gallery, glass-walled cafeteria, tables and chairs are also available for rent.
"It's such a beautiful facility," Bookman said, "Regional businesses, organizations, non-profit groups and individuals that book the planetarium will be able to entertain and inform their members and friends in unexpected and creative ways. ... This is a really unique experience in Connecticut and New England."
Visit http://www.glastonburyplanetarium.org to learn more about the shows, to reserve tickets and for information on private rental fees and reservations. Advanced ticket purchases are required for shows and performances.