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2026 Six Bridges Book Festival logo art

Register 306 Seats Remaining

Six Bridges Book Festival: Deesha Philyaw

Moderated by Jessica McDaniel

2026-09-30 19:30:00 2026-09-30 20:30:00 America/Chicago Six Bridges Book Festival: Deesha Philyaw Six Bridges Book Festival presents Deesha Philyaw (<i>True Confessions of First Lady Freeman</i>). Moderated by Jessica McDaniel. Ron Robinson Theater -

Wednesday, September 30
7:30pm - 8:30pm

Six Bridges Book Festival presents Deesha Philyaw (True Confessions of First Lady Freeman). Moderated by Jessica McDaniel.


Deesha Philyaw

Deesha Philyaw’s debut short story collection, The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, won the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, the Story Prize, the LA Times Book Prize: The Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction and was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction. Deesha is a Kimbilio Fiction Fellow, a Baldwin for the Arts Fellow, a United States Artists Fellow, and co-host of two podcasts, Ursa Short Fiction (with Dawnie Walton) and Reckon True Stories (with Kiese Laymon). She is currently at work developing TV shows based on her short fiction.

The wife of a popular and powerful megachurch pastor upends her charmed “rags-to-Rolex” life when her secretive past comes roaring into the spotlight—in this much-anticipated, splendidly unruly debut novel from Deesha Philyaw, author of the award-winning hit short story collection The Secret Lives of Church Ladies.

Sponsored by the Hendrix-Murphy Foundation


ASL interpretation will be provided for all Six Bridges sessions held in CALS Ron Robinson Theater. ASL interpretation for sessions at other CALS locations and Six Bridges venues (including CALS Main Library) will be provided by request. To request ASL interpretation, please submit an ASL Interpretation Request form.

CALS will validate parking in the CALS Library Square surface lot and the CALS Parking Deck. The entrance to the surface lot is located on 2nd Street near River Market Ave. The entrance to the parking deck is located on Rock Street and can be accessed from President Clinton Ave. Street parking is also available throughout the River Market District (free after 6pm and on weekends).

AGE GROUP: | Adults | Adult (40+) | Adult (25-40) | Adult (18-24) |

EVENT TYPE: | Literature & Language |

Ron Robinson Theater

Phone: 501.320.5715

Hours
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Ron Robinson Theater

Today's hours

We're open 9:00AM to 5:30PM


Address
100 River Market Avenue
Little Rock, AR 72201
Tel: 501.320.5715

About the branch

The Ron Robinson Theater is a 315-seat multi-purpose event venue. Part of the Central Arkansas Library System’s (CALS) Main Library campus, it is designed to provide programs for all ages including films, music performances, plays, readings, lectures, speakers, and children’s activities. The theater is equipped with a state-of-the-art DCI-compliant Barco digital cinema projection system and 32′ wide retractable screen; and, a versatile sound system capable of Dolby 5.1 surround audio for movies, with a CL3 digital mixing console with ample inputs for traditional music concerts.

Upcoming Events

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Wed, Sep 30, 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Six Bridges Book Festival presents Andrew Porter (The Imagined Life). Moderated by Jeff Condran.
Registration is now closed

Wed, Sep 30, 7:30pm - 8:30pm
Six Bridges Book Festival presents Deesha Philyaw (True Confessions of First Lady Freeman). Moderated by Jessica McDaniel.

Thu, Oct 01, 9:00am - 10:00am
Six Bridges Book Festival presents Governor Andy Beshear (Go and Do Likewise: How We Heal a Broken Country). Moderated by Coach John Calipari.

Thu, Oct 01, 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Six Bridges Book Festival presents Beronda Montgomery (When Trees Testify) and David Haskell (How Flowers Made Our World). Moderated by Karama Neal.

Fri, Oct 02, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
He will rock you. Register

Sat, Oct 03, 10:00am - 11:00am
Six Bridges Book Festival presents Beverly Gage (This Land is Your Land),Kathleen DuVal (Native Nations), and Robert Parkinson (Tyrants and Rogues). Moderated by Kelly Houston Jones.

Sat, Oct 03, 11:30am - 12:30pm
Six Bridges Book Festival presents Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney (The Lake Effect),Judy Batalion (The Last Woman of Warsaw), and Tolani Akinola (Leave Your Mess at Home). Moderated by Rebekah Lewis.

Sat, Oct 03, 1:00pm - 2:00pm
Six Bridges Book Festival presents James McCommons (Feather Wars) and Ragan Sutterfield (Watch and Wonder: Birding as a Spiritual Practice). Moderated by Jodi Morris.

Sat, Oct 03, 2:30pm - 3:30pm
Six Bridges Book Festival presents Ayana Gray (Hawk and Sparrow) and Alix Harrow (The Everlasting). Moderated by Danielle Afsordeh.

Sat, Oct 03, 4:00pm - 5:00pm
Six Bridges Book Festival presents Jordan Harper (A Violent Masterpiece) and S.A. Cosby (King of Ashes). Moderated by Eli Cranor.

Sat, Oct 03, 5:30pm - 6:30pm
Six Bridges Book Festival presents Christina Lauren (The Romance Revival). Moderated by Regina Black.

Sun, Oct 04, 5:00pm - 8:30pm
Spend an unforgettable evening with Ariel Lawhon, visiting Little Rock while on book tour for her forthcoming novel The Pirate Queen, which will be published on September 8, 2026.Register

Tue, Oct 06, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Join us all October long for a celebration of Alfred Hitchcock!Register

Wed, Oct 07, 11:00am - 1:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
"It's pronounced Fronkensteen!"Register

Thu, Oct 08, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Welcome to the witching hour. Register

Fri, Oct 09, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
They’re here to save the world.Register

Sat, Oct 10, 12:30pm - 2:30pm
Ron Robinson Theater
See Corpse Bride the way it was meant to be seen: BIG, beautiful, and delightfully spooky on the Ron Robinson Theater screen!Register

Sat, Oct 10, 4:00pm - 5:30pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Heir to Velázquez, a hero to Picasso. Discover Spain’s celebrated artist with this cinematic tour de force based on the National Gallery’s must-see exhibition Goya: The Portraits.Register

Sat, Oct 10, 8:00pm - 10:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Presented as part of Dinner and a Movie with Be Mighty, this is a FREE EVENT. Come enjoy a take-away dinner, a cult classic, and a magical night at the movies!Register

Tue, Oct 13, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Join us all October long for a celebration of Alfred Hitchcock!Register

Wed, Oct 14, 6:00pm - 7:30pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Since becoming law in 2023, the Arkansas LEARNS Act has brought major changes to classrooms across the state. What have those changes meant for Arkansas students, families, teachers and schools?

Thu, Oct 15, 6:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Started in 1979, Mountainfilm is one of America’s longest-running film festivals. Each year after the festival, Mountainfilm on Tour hits the road sharing the year's most inspiring short films with communities worldwide.

Fri, Oct 16, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Be afraid. Be very afraid.Register

Sat, Oct 17, 3:00pm - 5:30pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Olivier Award-winner Jack Lowden (Slow Horses, Dunkirk) is joined by Emmy and BAFTA-winner Martin Freeman (The Hobbit, The Responder) in the critically acclaimed and subversively funny new play by David Ireland.Register

Sat, Oct 17, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Tired of scaring humans every October 31 with the same old bag of tricks, Jack Skellington, the spindly king of Halloween Town, kidnaps Santa Claus and plans to deliver shrunken heads and other ghoulish gifts to children on Christmas morning. Register

Tue, Oct 20, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Join us all October long for a celebration of Alfred Hitchcock!Register

Wed, Oct 21, 11:00am - 1:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Great Scott! Fire up the DeLorean for one of the greatest adventure films ever made. Register

Thu, Oct 22, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
For two sisters from a family of witches, falling in love is the trickiest spell of all.Register

Fri, Oct 23, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Something almost beyond comprehension is happening to a girl on this street, in this house… and a man has been sent for as a last resort. This man is The Exorcist.Register

Sat, Oct 24, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
It’s just a bunch of hocus pocus!Register

Tue, Oct 27, 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Join us all October long for a celebration of Alfred Hitchcock!Register

Thu, Oct 29, 6:30pm - 7:30pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Candlelight concerts bring the magic of a live, multi-sensory musical experience to awe-inspiring locations like never seen before in Little Rock.

Thu, Oct 29, 8:30pm - 9:30pm
Ron Robinson Theater
Candlelight concerts bring the magic of a live, multi-sensory musical experience to awe-inspiring locations like never seen before in Little Rock.

Fri, Oct 30, 9:00pm - 11:00pm
Ron Robinson Theater
It's astounding. Time is fleeting. Madness takes its toll.Register