Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway
“Mrs. Dalloway said that she would buy the flowers herself.“
Bristol BookFest is an annual public humanities program designed to inspire readers, promote life-long learning, and build community in welcoming and sociable environments. This year, Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway is the centerpiece of BookFest 2026. The novel’s themes of identity, time, and the complexity of human consciousness remain as resonant in the 2020s as they were in the 1920s, inviting readers to reflect on their own inner lives and connections to others.
The festival begins with a winter seminar series at Rogers Free Library, running weekly beginning on January 20, exploring the novel’s cultural and literary significance. The event culminates in a weekend of lectures, discussions, and community engagement on April 10 and 11, 2026.
Calendar of Events
All events take place at Rogers Free Library and are free unless otherwise noted.
All events require registration. Links are provided below.
We look forward to seeing you!
Every Tuesday, January 20 to February 24
6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
in the Herreshoff Community Room
Mrs. Dalloway Reading Group
Bristol Bookfest’s annual, weekly Winter Seminar Series at the Rogers Free Library will explore Mrs. Dalloway and Virginia Woolf’s novel writing style. Led by Steven Calvert, each session will include historical and contextual background, analytical insights, a deep dig into the text, and a question and answer period. The seminar will conclude with a special “Bloomsbury Salon” on Feb. 24th.
WEEK 1: WHAT Virginia Woolf wrote: writing style in the novels, beginning with that famous opening line in Mrs. Dalloway
WEEK 2: WHO Virginia Woolf was: A woman born to take center stage
WEEK 3: HOW Virginia Woolf wrote: A novel filled with characters taken from life, including herself
WEEK 4: The 4 Loves of Mrs. Dalloway—but are we supposed to love her back?
WEEK 5: Is Mrs. Dalloway a great book?
WEEK 6: “A Bloomsbury Salon”
Monday, January 26
6:00-8:00 PM
in the Herreshoff Community Room
Cake Decorating
The symbolic flowers of Mrs. Dalloway are the inspiration for this craft event led by Paul Sousa from The Cake Gallery. Learn from a pastry expert how to decorate your own flowers.
All materials will be provided.
Monday, February 23
6:00-8:00 PM
in the Herreshoff Community Room
Paper Flowers
Learn to make paper flowers out of book pages in a Clarissa Dalloway-inspired craft night! This Bristol BookFest free event is hosted by Jillian DeLong of Blanket Fort Creative.
All materials will be provided.
Opening on February 23
Bookmark Design Contest
More information coming soon.
Saturday, February 28
2:00-4:30 PM
in the Herreshoff Community Room
“Mrs. Dalloway” Movie Screening
Vanessa Redgrave stars in the 1997 film adaptation of “Mrs. Dalloway” which will screen at 2 pm on Saturday, February 28. How does the film compare to Virginia Woolf’s vision?
Sunday, March 1
4:30-6:00 PM
on Zoom
Online Lecture: “WWI British Poets and the Creation of Modernism”
Dr. Mark Schenker presents an online session considering the rise of literary Modernism with special attention given to Virginia Woolf and “Mrs. Dalloway.”
Click here to register for the Online Lecture: “WWI British Poets and the Creation of Modernism” .
Thursday, March 5
6:00-7:30 PM
in the Herreshoff Community Room
“The Hours” Movie Screening
The Bristol BookFest and Rogers Free Library present the Academy Award-winning 2002 film “The Hours,” with an introduction and discussion hosted by local filmmaker and educator, Katie Reaves. “The Hours” is based on the novel by Michael Cunningham and is a tribute to Virginia Woolf’s “Mrs. Dalloway.”
Tuesday, March 10
6:00-7:30 PM
in the Herreshoff Community Room
RWU Lecture on the Great War
RWU Dean of the School of Humanities, Arts, and Education, Jeffrey Meriwether will present a a lecture focused on Septimus Warren Smith, the companion character to Clarissa Dalloway, and the experience of military service during the Great War.
Click here to register for the RWU Lecture on the Great War.
Sunday, March 15
4:00-6:00 PM
at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church
This is a fee-based event.
Aurea Ensemble/The Alchemy of Words and Music presents “Anthem”
Deeply moving, Anthem, is part of our centennial remembrance of the onset of the Great War. The performance is inspired by Wilfred Owen’s iconic poem, Anthem for Doomed Youth, published posthumously in 1920. Weaving together poems, diary entries, letters to loved ones, and music from the era of The Great War, we trace the tremendous worldwide outpouring of emotional and philosophical response from soldiers, composers, and poets who were so deeply impacted. The poignant and fervent words and music of Owen, Sassoon, Brooke, Thomas, Apollinaire, Debussy, Hindemith, Ives, Stravinsky, Elgar, Britten, Milhaud, Ravel, Bartok and Webern find harmonic resonances with the passionate letters of the soldiers, proof of the universal and profound pathos of the turbulent era.
Click here to register for the Aurea Ensemble Concert. This is a fee-based event.
Wednesday, March 18
5:00 PM-8:00 PM
in the Herreshoff Room
Readers’ Theatre Rehearsal
Play a part in a live Readers’ Theater of Mrs. Dalloway!
For anyone 14 and older!
Join the community in bringing a section of Virginia Woolf’s classic novel to life.
Saturday, March 21
1:00 PM-2:30 PM
in the Herreshoff Room
Readers’ Theatre Performance
Come see the Readers’ Theater performed by the Bristol Community!
We will be bringing sections of Mrs. Dalloway to life!
Click here to register as an audience member for the Readers’ Theatre Performance.
Information about the Keynote, Reception, and Saturday Programming coming soon! Visit https://www.bristolbookfest.com/ for more information.
Bristol BookFest is a public humanities program supported by the generosity of their founders, sponsors, and various private donors.