Photo by Scott Suchman
As a haven for storytelling, The Study at Morrison House Old Town Alexandria is partnering with the Virginia Library Association to fill its shelves — and cocktail menu — with a variety of banned books to celebrate the power of literature on the heels of over 10,000 book bans during the 2023-2024 school year.
The Banned Books Speakeasy will be open April 23-26 from 5-10 p.m. at The Study, 116 S. Alfred St., and conclude on Sunday, April 27 during the Old Town Book Fair: Adult Edition from 10 a.m.-3 p.m., when attendees can purchase banned books from the speakeasy, with Morrison House donating 50% of the banned book sales to the Virginia Library Association.
Here's a look at what's in store at the speakeasy:
- A banned book-inspired cocktail menu, featuring cocktails based on commonly banned books such as "The Handmaid's Tale," "The Color Purple," "To Kill a Mockingbird" and more.
- The speakeasy will be guarded by a Morrison House Librarian and hidden behind bookshelves.
- Get ready for a creative ordering experience using your “library checkout card” to handwrite your cocktail order, with drinks to be discreetly delivered through a stack of books by The Study’s expert mixologists.
Each $1 of every cocktail sold from the Banned Book Speakeasy menu will go directly to the Virginia Library Association to provide scholarship funds for librarians, support Friends and Foundations of targeted libraries, and augment book budgets for libraries who’ve had their funds shrink as a retaliation for refusing to remove certain books from their shelves.
The Study is a Modern American craft cocktail bar and a luxe, intimate gathering place and live piano bar for locals and hotel guests to escape the bustle of King Street. Like a book, The Study tells a story through the lens of its main characters – classic cocktails inspired by literature, complemented by a menu of Modern American dishes inspired by Mesoamerican culinary traditions.
