SPEAKERS FOR THE 2026-2027 SEASON

October 21, 2026 Elliot Engel

"The Dickens Nobody Knows"

Elliot Engel is a longtime favorite at Livonia Town Hall. He has retired from academia but still continues to provide fascinating literary programs throughout the world. This program will showcase the exuberant world of Charles Dickens, a man who might be the greatest English novelist. Elliot will explain the surprising roots of Dickens' imagination and demonstrate that the author's life was far more astonishing than any of his novels.

Six Decades of Speakers

November 18, 2026 Caroline Winterer

"The Genius of Benjamin Franklin"

Caroline Winterer is an America historian and author. She enjoys opening up history to the general public by showing how the past is both exciting and relevant. This lecture takes us on an illustrated tour of Ben Franklin inventions and unique ideas. We'll see how Franklin was very much a man of his own time; a genius of his era.

1964-1974

1974-1984

March 17, 2027 Jane Oneail

"Fierce Females:

Women in Art"

Jane Oneail is an independent scholar specializing in entertaining art appreciation programs. Women have long been the subject of art, often depicted as objects of desire. How do these images change when a woman is the creator? This program will briefly examine the history of women in art. Then it will explore the careers and works of several major women artists from the Renaissance to the twentieth century.

1984-1994

1994-2004

April 21, 2027 Tom Santopietro

"Audrey Hepburn: A Life in 63 Scenes"

Tom Santopietro is a biographer American cultural legends. His most recent book is about the life of Audrey Hepburn. She was a beloved star, an Academy Award winning actress, a fashion icon, a wife, a mother and a WWII resistance activist. He will describe her life from a troubled childhood to her rise as an actress, demonstrating that she always had a fierce determination to chart her own course.