Victoria Mansion to Spotlight Dickens

Portland, Maine - As part of its annual Christmas festivities, Victoria Mansion, a National Historic Landmark in Portland, will present Dickens: An Evening with the Master on Saturday and Sunday, December 14 and 15 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. Hosted by Victoria Mansion Trustee Carlene Magno and Artistic Director Andrew Harris of Deertrees Theater in Harrison, this performance will emphasize Dickens's life experiences and how they influenced his writings. It will also explore the celebrity status Dickens enjoyed during the Victorian era.

In addition to entertaining, the event helps advance the Mansion's educational mission as well. "With its original interiors, the Mansion affords us such an opportunity to bring literature, history, and art together in events like this," says the Mansion's Director of Education and Visitor Services Lucinda Hannington. "When these different disciplines intersect, people get a more complete vision of how cultural, economic, and political history influence each other."

During its Christmas season, the Mansion expects to welcome nearly 10,000 visitors, most of them from Maine. "Christmas is a time to welcome the community and to show off an amazing piece of history right here in Portland," says Executive Director Tom Johnson. "That's why special events are such an important part of our Christmas season; it gives us a chance to reach people who live locally and engage them in a different way. Since Dickens is so associated with Christmas and with the Mansion's period, this is a great complement to our annual Christmas tours."

Before the performance, attendees are invited to tour the Mansion, which is decorated for the Christmas season by local designers on the theme Joy to the World. A reception will follow in the adjacent Carriage House. Tickets are $25 or $20 for Victoria Mansion members, and may be purchased by calling Lucinda Hannington at (207) 772-4841, ext. 104 or by visiting www.victoriamansion.org.

Constructed between 1858 and 1860, Victoria Mansion is one of America's finest surviving examples of architecture and interior design from the mid-nineteenth century.  Its opulent original interiors and furnishings by renowned designer Gustave Herter remain more than ninety percent intact.  The house has been open to the public as a non-profit museum since 1941 and was named a National Historic Landmark in 1971.

Victoria Mansion is grateful to the following sponsors of Christmas at Victoria Mansion: Down East Magazine, 98.9 WCLZ, WPFO FOX 23, Bangor Savings Bank, Verrill Dana LLP, WEX, and Mister Sparky.