Philosophize The Night Away At The Brooklyn Public Library

BROOKLYN, NY — Tired of the bar scene? No movies you're interested in seeing this weekend? Consider, then, exploring the life of the mind at an all-night philosophy, art and ideas bender being hosted on Saturday, Jan. 28 by the Brooklyn Public Library.

"A Night Of Philosophy And Ideas" will run from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. at the BPL's main Grand Army Plaza branch. The event is being jointly produced by the BPL and the Cultural Services department of the French Embassy.

Before things get underway, there will be a 5:30 p.m. "fireside chat" at the Lefferts Historic House in Prospect Park focused on the nature of what makes a home and led by Casey Burke of homeless advocacy group Breaking Ground (and yes, it will literally take place by a glowing hearth).

The rest of the evening's conversations and events will take place inside the library. From 7 p.m. to midnight, a virtual reality experience known as "Notes On Blindness" will run in 30-minute loops. At 7:30 p.m., you can discuss the future of democracy with professor Achille Mbembe. There will be calligraphy classes from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., a performance from the Trisha Brown Dance Company, a conversation on the nature of borders, an exploration of asylum seekers in Europe, a chat on "Yoga and Philosophy," repeated showings of Simon Bouisson's film "Tokyo Reverse," and a session titled, "To what extent should we care about future generations?"

And that's just the start of it. The entire, voluminous schedule is available online. And of course, since this is a library event, it goes without saying that it's free of charge.

Pictured at top: BPL's Grand Army Plaza branch. Photo by John V. Santore