Monday, April 4, 2016

Monday Muse: Upcoming Poetry Festivals

Below is a brief selection of upcoming and future poetry and literary festivals across the country.

✦ The 2016 Massachusetts Poetry Festival in Salem is scheduled for April 29 - May 1. Highlights: Festival Student Day of Poetry, April 29, and Small Press and Literary Fair, April 30. Included in the lineup of poets are Sandra Beasley, Mark Doty, Marie Howe, Ada Limon, Greg Pardlo, David Rivard, Charles Simic, and Ocean Vuong.

Mass Poetry on FaceBook

✦ The 9th Biennial Skagit River Poetry Festival, La Conner, Washington, takes place May 19-22. Highlights: Poets Jeanann Verlee, Jamaal May, Tarfia Faizullah, and Rabbit Wilde participate in Thursday Night's "Wake Up! Speak Out!"; on Friday evening, all the festival poets gather for a reading. View the festival schedule

Skagit River Poetry Festival on FaceBook

✦ Colorado's 3rd Annual Telluride Literary Arts Festival begins May 20 and concludes May 22. Most of the LitFest is free; the Literary Burlesque is $15. Check the link for details.

✦ Chicago hosts an annual Haiku Festival on April 30.  To be held at the Harold Washington Library, the festival features workshops, juried competitions (cash prizes are awarded), and readings of work by children. The purposes of the festival are to promote childhood literacy and celebrate the art of poetry. Every participant receives a Certificate of Achievement. In past years, more than 17,000 children have attended. See the workshops schedule.

✦ Hill-Stead Museum's Sunken Garden Poetry Festival opens June 22 with poet Heather McHugh, winner of the Sunken Garden Poetry Chapbook competition. The outdoor event in Farmington, Connecticut, presents performances throughout the summer. Remaining dates are July 10, Brian Turner and Douglas Anderson; July 20, Edward Hirsch and Clare Rossini; August 7, U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera and Peg Boyers, plus a community reading of Latina/Latino poetry; and August 17, Young Poets Day, featuring Kwame Dawes and the Fresh Voices Student Competition winners.

Hill-Stead Museum on FaceBook

✦ More than 250 local poets across five boroughs attend the annual New York City Poetry Festival on Governors Island. This year's festival takes place July 30-31. Past featured events have included The Poetry Brothel, the Typewriter Project, comprising site-specific literary installations for linguistic exchanges, and a Children's Festival for ages 2-13. New York City's visual and immersive performance artists are encouraged to submit their event proposals by July 1. 

NYCPoFest on Twitter

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