On Saturday, April 1st, support the French Cultural Center’s Mosaïque initiative for expanded and exceptional cultural programming by attending Le Bal Dada – a surrealist soirée complete with fabulous cocktails, French hors d’œuvres, a silent auction with alluring prizes, and much more! Get your tickets before they’re gone!
Discover All That the Center Has to Offer
C’est la rentrée! The French Cultural Center invites all French speakers, Francophiles and French-at-heart to join us for our annual Open House. Get a taste of their exciting offerings and take a sneak peek at the fall season. Sip on French wine and savor tasty treats while listening to live music. Come in, mingle, and discover a little piece of France right in the heart of Boston!
This event is free. No prior experience with French is necessary. An RSVP is requested but walk-ins are welcome.
About this Event
IN THE LIBRARY
Check out the latest arrivals, learn more about upcoming library programs and discover Culturethèque, the online platform available for free to members that contains hundreds of magazines, eBooks, comic books, and children’s picture books.
IN THE EDUCATION CORNER
Take a placement test and register for a fall class. Attendees will enjoy discounts on French courses if they register during the Open House. Interested in getting a taste for a class before registering? They’ll be offering 30 minute crash courses for B1 Coffee talk at 6pm and for A1 Beginner French Core Language at 6:30pm as well as a 45 minute crash course for B1/B2 Let’s Cook in French at 6pm.
Please RSVP at education@frenchculturalcenter.org if you want to attend a crash course. There is a limit of 10 students per class so act fast!
BECOME A MEMBER
Join or renew your membership, and learn about the French Cultural Center’s new membership program featuring new benefits and reduced pricing!
UPCOMING CULTURAL EVENTS
Learn about their fall line-up! With a variety of lively events featuring local and international artists, creative thinkers, innovators, and performers, our monthly programs include art exhibits, film screenings, debates, hands-on workshops, cooking classes and wine tastings, social evenings and holiday celebrations.
The European Conference
On its sixth annual occasion, this student-led conference, the largest of its kind in North America, will bring together a thrilling and unique combination of policy, academic and business leaders to explore what, going forward, the “European way” might be: its challenges, opportunities, and specifics.
Now that the European crisis seems largely passed, or so it would seem, where is the European Union headed? There are many reasons to be positive about the changes happening on the continent. Not only is growth back, but populism appears on the wane, pro-European leaders are elected, pro-European coalitions are structured, and overall confidence has made its way back within the European Institutions.
Where does the EU go from here? Societal, economic, defense and constitutional questions are quick to arise. The 2018 European Conference’s panels will investigate these issues from multiple perspectives and whenever relevant, disciplines. Each panel will feature world class speakers in their field, including Thomas Greminger, Secretary-General of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, DavidO’Suillivan, Ambassador of the European Union to the United States, and Professor Danuta Hubner, Member of European Parliament (Poland), Chair of the European Parliament Constitutional Affairs Committee, who contribute to shaping tomorrow’s EU and transatlantic relationships. Their kind participation is a unique opportunity to shed light on some of the prime questions facing Europe today with ways of analyzing and offering solutions that may cross-fertilize U.S. approaches.
This year’s program of events is our most diverse to date. It features a full-day negotiation simulation on Friday (sign up via this form, positions are limited), a black-tie Opening Reception on Friday at the Havard Art Museums featuring our opening Keynote Address by European Commission for Competition Margrethe Vestager, a full day of panels, and for the first time ever, the conference will conclude with a piano recital by virtuoso Simon Ghraichy.
For more information, please click here.
Migrating Colors – Opening and Cocktail Reception
Join us for an enlightening panel discussion and presentation on Haitian art and culture as we celebrate the Le Mois de la Francophonie 2018 and the opening of Migrating Colors, our March exhibit on view in our gallery.
Charlot Lucien, President of Haitian Artists Assembly of Massachusetts (HAAM), will introduce us to Haitian art, while several artists will lead a discussion regarding their origins and influences.
This panel discussion will be followed by a book signing and cocktail reception. All proceeds from the book sale benefit HAAM.
About Migrating Colors: This book is the result of 20 years of cultural advocacy and partnerships with cultural, state, city institutions, poets and storytellers throughout the New England area. It benefited from the support of professional photographers, editors and art partners from Rhodes Island to New Hampshire. The books contains foreword comments by Haitian American author Edwidge Danticat, recipient of the 2009 MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship, Massachusetts State Senator Linda Dorcena Forry and Edmund Barry Gaither, Director and Curator of the National Center of Afro-American Artists (NCAAA) who has since the Haiti earthquake helped curate various exhibitions of the Assembly.
Le Mois de la Francophonie continues with an evening of literature featuring Québécoise author Marie-Josée Duquette. We will learn about her two latest books; one that explores Boston through the eyes of a foreigner, while the other chronicles the difficult story of losing the father of her child to a cruel disease. This discussion will be led en français (in French).
About Marie-Josée Duquette: Marie-Josée Duquette is a Quebecer who has been living in Boston since 2010. Holder of a Master’s degree in Environmental Science and a DESS in communication-marketing from HEC, she writes articles on a blog that tells the different facets of American life.
Join Porto Boston all weekend long to gear up for the Marathon, and end on a high note with their 2nd Annual Marathon Monday Party!
April 13-15 (Friday through Sunday Night)
Stop by Porto for pre-run carbo loading! Porto will be serving a Jody’s Lasagna special, which is vegetarian-friendly. Porto will also be offering $1 oysters all weekend long!
April 16 (Marathon Monday)
With Porto being just steps away from the finish line, what better place is there to cheer on the runners? Porto will be open from 11am-6pm on Marathon Monday with a patio lounge and an outdoor bar! There will also be a $1 Oyster Shucking Boat from Island Creek Oysters, cocktail specials, boozy sno-cones, a rose bar, and more!
Great company and great vibes just steps away from the finish line! No cover charge, just come on in to celebrate Marathon Weekend at Porto!
To read further, please click here.
A Mosaïque Benefit for the French Cultural Center
Dress Code: Revolutionary Black Tie. Black attire — with a single, revolutionary accessory — strongly encouraged.
Ticket Perks
Individual Tickets*: $175 | $95 is tax-deductible
*Under 40 ticket price changes to $225 on May 1, 2018
This special ticket price is designed for ascending philanthropists (under 40 years of age) this year. Perks include complimentary open bar and hors d’œuvres throughout the evening, and buffet.
Individual Tickets: $500 | $420 is tax-deductible
Perks include complimentary open bar and hors d’œuvres throughout the evening, and exclusive access to Private Seating with private buffet dinner.
Patron Sponsorship: $1,500 | 100% tax-deductible (less $80 per guest)
Perks include complimentary open bar and hors d’œuvres throughout the evening, and access to complimentary Private Seating with private buffet dinner. Name recognition on all Le Bal materials. As a Patron Sponsor, you and a guest are invited to join us for an exclusive pre-event cocktail party at a private residence on May 8, 2018. Details to follow.
Join the French Cultural Center for a series of cooking and wellness workshops for women.
Is living healthy at the top of your resolutions this year? Join physician and Certified Health and Wellness Coach Martine Vounatsos for a series of three cooking workshops. We will discuss ways to incorporate wellness into every aspect of a woman’s mental and physical health, from exercise and supplements to sleep habits and cooking methods.
Participants will craft and enjoy a traditional and healthy French meal with Martine in a convivial environment.
Each workshop will begin promptly at 11:10 AM. Aprons, ingredients, and will be kitchenware provided.
Please note, this event is intended for women only and in English.
About the Workshops
FRIDAY, JANUARY 11, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
Come learn about nutrients, water intake, and dietary habits, then enjoy preparing soupe de poireaux et pommes de terre avec une salade en vinaigrette (potato leek soup and salad with homemade vinaigrette).
FRIDAY, JANUARY 18, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
In this discussion, we will learn about sleeping better and exercising—how and when? For the cooking workshop, attendees will prepare velouté d’asperges et salade de carottes râpées (asparagus soup and homemade carrot salad).
FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
For our last discussion, we will learn about vitamins, supplements, and meditation. For the cooking workshop, attendees will prepare soupe et crème de champignons et salade frisée au vinaigre balsamique (mushroom soup and frisée salad with homemade balsamic vinaigrette).
Join the French Cultural Center for a series of cooking and wellness workshops for women.
Is living healthy at the top of your resolutions this year? Join physician and Certified Health and Wellness Coach Martine Vounatsos for a series of three cooking workshops. We will discuss ways to incorporate wellness into every aspect of a woman’s mental and physical health, from exercise and supplements to sleep habits and cooking methods.
Participants will craft and enjoy a traditional and healthy French meal with Martine in a convivial environment.
Each workshop will begin promptly at 11:10 AM. Aprons, ingredients, and will be kitchenware provided.
Please note, this event is intended for women only and in English.
About the Workshops
FRIDAY, JANUARY 11, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
Come learn about nutrients, water intake, and dietary habits, then enjoy preparing soupe de poireaux et pommes de terre avec une salade en vinaigrette (potato leek soup and salad with homemade vinaigrette).
FRIDAY, JANUARY 18, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
In this discussion, we will learn about sleeping better and exercising—how and when? For the cooking workshop, attendees will prepare velouté d’asperges et salade de carottes râpées (asparagus soup and homemade carrot salad).
FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
For our last discussion, we will learn about vitamins, supplements, and meditation. For the cooking workshop, attendees will prepare soupe et crème de champignons et salade frisée au vinaigre balsamique (mushroom soup and frisée salad with homemade balsamic vinaigrette).
Join the French Cultural Center for a series of cooking and wellness workshops for women.
Is living healthy at the top of your resolutions this year? Join physician and Certified Health and Wellness Coach Martine Vounatsos for a series of three cooking workshops. We will discuss ways to incorporate wellness into every aspect of a woman’s mental and physical health, from exercise and supplements to sleep habits and cooking methods.
Participants will craft and enjoy a traditional and healthy French meal with Martine in a convivial environment.
Each workshop will begin promptly at 11:10 AM. Aprons, ingredients, and will be kitchenware provided.
Please note, this event is intended for women only and in English.
About the Workshops
FRIDAY, JANUARY 11, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
Come learn about nutrients, water intake, and dietary habits, then enjoy preparing soupe de poireaux et pommes de terre avec une salade en vinaigrette (potato leek soup and salad with homemade vinaigrette).
FRIDAY, JANUARY 18, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
In this discussion, we will learn about sleeping better and exercising—how and when? For the cooking workshop, attendees will prepare velouté d’asperges et salade de carottes râpées (asparagus soup and homemade carrot salad).
FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
For our last discussion, we will learn about vitamins, supplements, and meditation. For the cooking workshop, attendees will prepare soupe et crème de champignons et salade frisée au vinaigre balsamique (mushroom soup and frisée salad with homemade balsamic vinaigrette).
