Watching the progress on our construction this past week was nothing short of amazing! The symbiosis of destruction and creation continues to work its magic.
Down came the kitchen and the interior modifications made years ago, namely to install visitor bathrooms near the Makeshift Theater, which resulted in a massive pile of rubble, seen in this photograph below. (From this pile, we extracted and saved beams of the original wooden structure, which we plan to cut and craft into souvenirs for faithful donors and supporters.)
“We Sing in Her Honor” was the perfect capstone to From the Porch, Hill-Stead’s inaugural performing arts series. Our beloved cultural institution and Opera Connecticut joined together to honor the life of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her great love of opera.
Timed to coincide with National Opera Day (October 25, 2020), Hill-Stead hosted our nation’s first-ever RBG memorial concert. International opera luminaries Ta’u Pupu’a, Thomas Cannon, Elizabeth Lyra Ross, and others sang Puccini, Verdi, and more. The dynamic performance included a live-stream option to reach a global audience, featuring Governor Ned Lamont and Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz.
The second woman appointed to the Supreme Court, the notorious RBG, spent her life fighting for the ideals of justice and equality to improve humanity. It was most fitting to honor her at Hill-Stead, founded by Theodate Pope Riddle, our nation’s fourth female architect and a visionary female leader in her own right.
The entire series of From the Porch events, composed of more than 30 performances, is the brainchild of Hill-Stead’s Executive Director, Dr. Anna Swinbourne. Hill-Stead’s initiative has united more than a dozen diverse partners across the performing arts sphere. The series resulted in over 100 artists and an audience of nearly 2,500 since its opening night on the summer solstice. One patron described the series as a “mini-Tanglewood;” another said it “made her feel alive again.” Due to its popularity and success, Hill-Stead plans to expand the summer series in 2021.
Dr. Swinbourne took the stage, donning a stunning jacket designed by her friends Barbara “Bobbie” and Peter Bartucca in Orvieto, Italy, with RBG fabric from Berlin. In her remarks, Dr. Swinbourne thanked Evelyn Daly, a probate judge for the Farmington Probate District in Connecticut, for her enthusiastic response to carrying through with the RBG memorial tribute as well as Hill-Steads dedicated staff and supportive sponsors. Dr. Swinbourne described RBG as one of her “personal heroes” and “a shining light who devoted her life towards working for the betterment of humanity.”
Concert headliner Ta’u Pupu’a opened the afternoon’s program with Giuseppe Verdi’s La donna è mobile (Rigoletto, Act III). He expressed his appreciation for Hill-Stead: “I am happy and blessed to be able to strengthen the vocal cords in this beautiful setting. It brings positive energy to have all the colors of Mother Nature surrounding me.”
Mr. Pupu’a was a gifted athlete who played professional football before embarking on a successful second career as an opera singer. The Polynesian tenor trained at the prestigious Juilliard School, receiving an Artist Diploma in Opera Studies program in 2011. A self-described “dream-catcher,” he goes after his goals—whether being drafted to the NFL or chosen for a lead role in an opera—and then tries to catch it and make it a reality.
Doris Lang Kosloff, Artistic Director of Opera Connecticut, accompanied the performers on a grand piano; special thanks to Falcetti Pianos! She regaled the audience with the stories behind each piece. The extraordinary event closed with America the Beautiful featuring the full cast of singers, and their voices rang like angels with hopes RBG could hear them from heaven.
Tour the museum filled with over 20 sparkling pieces from the Ballet Theatre Company’s Through the Tulle costume exhibition
Throughout Ballet Theatre Company’s 22 years, the company’s full-length classical ballet productions and intimate contemporary performances have not only been recognized for the quality of dancing and choreography, but also for their incredibly detailed costume designs. To pay tribute to the artists who have created BTC’s impressive collection of costumes, and to feature this crucial component of ballet production that is too often left out of the spotlight, Ballet Theatre Company is presenting a touring costume exhibition, Through the Tulle, in museums throughout New England. The presentation provides a rare opportunity to learn about costume creation under the direction of seamstress Tracy Dorman and examine some of BTC’s most valued costumes up-close.
Hill-Stead’s gorgeous grounds and garden remain open to the public daily from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm
Hill-Stead is now open for both in-person and online field trips. Book yours now!
Please review Hill-Stead’s extensive safety measures to keep its visitors safe via the reopening plan
Admission
Members | FREE Adults | $18 AAA & Seniors (62+) | $16 Students | $12 Children 6-12 | $10 Children under 6 | FREE
Museum Members are always FREE! Not a Member? JOIN NOW
We recommend that all visitors make reservations in advance RESERVE TICKETS
Special Admission Programs
As a Blue Star Museum, Hill-Stead offers active-duty military families FREE admission from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Blue Star Museums is a collaboration among the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense and museums across America.
Hill-Stead is a part of the Museums for All program and offers FREE admission for up to four people to with the presentation of a SNAP Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card. Museums for All is a cooperative initiative between Association of Children’s Museums and Institute of Museum and Library Services to offer a signature access program that encourages families of all backgrounds to visit museums regularly and build lifelong museum habits.
Hill-Stead is a member of the Connecticut Art Trail. Discover Connecticut’s artistic treasures with the Connecticut Art Trail Art Passport. The $25 Art Passport includes one admission to each of the 20 member museums per year. Explore diverse, quality collections rich in history and heritage, including European masterpieces, American Impressionism, ancient art and contemporary culture.
Please note:
There are no self-paced tours at this time.
There are no school group visits at this time.
Due to construction, we only have portable bathrooms available to the public onsite.
The safety of staff and visitors is our highest priority.
To ensure a safe, inspiring experience for all, we’ve adopted new health and safety protocols. You’ll find everything you need to know about your next visit below.
Social distancing best practices are in place. All persons entering the building will be required to wear a face mask covering at all times.
Always wear a facemask and make sure it fits over your nose and mouth
Practice safe social distancing. Please keep six feet between yourself and others (outside your party)
Please wash/sanitize your hands at our sanitizing stations
A limited number of visitors will be permitted at one time
A one-way flow of traffic will be required in the House
Contactless payment is available and encouraged
Please let us know if you or another member of your party have traveled outside of Connecticut in the past 14 days or experiencing fever, chills, cough, or any other symptoms
Mindful that none of us need another long email to read, I will this time be brief.
Hill-Stead has responded to the challenges of 2020 with adaptability and open-mindedness, keeping its grounds open to the public despite widespread closures. And our beloved Museum became much more than a place of refuge when we brought live experiences of art back into people’s lives with From the Porch. Since early summer, this incredible initiative united a diverse and dynamic group of partners across the performing arts sphere and brought an audience of more than 2,000 to the Museum’s front lawn. Continue reading →
Members | FREE Adults | $18 AAA & Seniors (62+) | $16 Students | $12 Children 6-12 | $10 Children under 6 | FREE
Museum Members are always FREE! Not a Member? JOIN NOW
We recommend that all visitors make reservations in advance RESERVE TICKETS
Special Admission Programs
As a Blue Star Museum, Hill-Stead offers active-duty military families FREE admission from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Blue Star Museums is a collaboration among the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense and museums across America.
Hill-Stead is a part of the Museums for All program and offers FREE admission for up to four people to with the presentation of a SNAP Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card. Museums for All is a cooperative initiative between Association of Children’s Museums and Institute of Museum and Library Services to offer a signature access program that encourages families of all backgrounds to visit museums regularly and build lifelong museum habits.
Hill-Stead is a member of the Connecticut Art Trail. Discover Connecticut’s artistic treasures with the Connecticut Art Trail Art Passport. The $25 Art Passport includes one admission to each of the 20 member museums per year. Explore diverse, quality collections rich in history and heritage, including European masterpieces, American Impressionism, ancient art and contemporary culture.
Please note:
There are no self-paced tours at this time.
There are no school group visits at this time.
The safety of staff and visitors is our highest priority.
To ensure a safe, inspiring experience for all, we’ve adopted new health and safety protocols. You’ll find everything you need to know about your next visit below.
Social distancing best practices are in place. All persons entering the building will be required to wear a face mask covering at all times.
Always wear a facemask and make sure it fits over your nose and mouth
Practice safe social distancing. Please keep six feet between yourself and others (outside your party)
Please wash/sanitize your hands at our sanitizing stations
A limited number of visitors will be permitted at one time
A one-way flow of traffic will be required in the House
Contactless payment is available and encouraged
Please let us know if you or another member of your party have traveled outside of Connecticut in the past 14 days or experiencing fever, chills, cough, or any other symptoms
As we all know, sometimes one has to take things apart to create something new and beautiful!
We are delighted to share that we are now at that exciting stage at Hill-Stead. The exterior fencing—in our favorite shade of green—has gone up and been decorated with colorful renditions of the renovated spaces to come. And, the interior demolition has begun. In these photographs, you can see the transition that is occurring in the museum’s entryway. The paneling on the north wall has come down, revealing a first look at the ticket desk and gift shop! For the moment, the shop serves as central command for our site supervisor, Carl (pictured above in red coat here). Continue reading →
It was the second week of June when we began our preliminary plans for an outdoor summer art program for local children. Governor Lamont set forth policies for what day camps would like in Connecticut during the pandemic. Undoubtedly, these were unprecedented circumstances, but we felt confident we could create an educational, fun, and, most of all, safe program for our youth.
Our Director of Education, Kate Ebner, and I brainstormed the lesson plans and worked out the logistics. Then, we lovingly named our new creation “Summer on the Hill.”
On Sunday, September 20, the trees around Hill-Stead were tinged with orange and red. With a slight chill in the air, it was a perfect day for painting. En Plein Air is the French term for creating art “outdoors,” and was popularized by the Impressionists.
Historically, the studio was the setting for most painting endeavors. Materials were not suitable for long hikes along the countryside. The “box easel” came into being in the mid 19th century, and artists ventured outdoors more frequently to paint, especially the Impressionists. They wanted to create art at the very moment they were looking upon a scene. They were capturing the essence, the impression of that moment.
From left to right: Dave Perbeck, Operations Director at Hill-Stead; Lavell Thompson, President of Hill-Stead’s Board of Governor’s; Frank Giordano and Chuck Mueller of Centerbrook Architects.
After a decade in the making, Hill-Stead launched our highly anticipated strategic endeavor to enhance our sustainability. As you can see from the photos, the construction phase of our Carriage Barn renovation kicked off this past Friday, September 18 with work on the Entry Hall, Gift Shop, and Media Space now underway.
Please stop by Hill-Stead to check on progress or visit these pages every two weeks as we continue to post project updates.
In the meantime, please read our Case Statement validating the importance of this renovation to the future of Hill-Stead for generations to come!
The entire series of From the Porch events, composed of more than 30 performances, is the brainchild of Hill-Stead’s Executive Director, Dr. Anna Swinbourne. Hill-Stead’s initiative has united more than a dozen diverse partners across the performing arts sphere. The series resulted in over 100 artists and an audience of nearly 2,500 since its opening night on the summer solstice. One patron described the series as a “mini-Tanglewood;” another said it “made her feel alive again.” Due to its popularity and success, Hill-Stead plans to expand the summer series in 2021.
Concert headliner Ta’u Pupu’a opened the afternoon’s program with Giuseppe Verdi’s La donna è mobile (Rigoletto, Act III). He expressed his appreciation for Hill-Stead: “I am happy and blessed to be able to strengthen the vocal cords in this beautiful setting. It brings positive energy to have all the colors of Mother Nature surrounding me.”
Hill-Stead is a member of the 
