Poetry Fest at Harold Washington Library April 30, 2011

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POETRY FEST IS COMING

Early warning. Mark you calendar for Saturday, April 30, because that is when the annual Chicago Public Library Poetry Fest will take place at Harold Washington Library, 400 S. State Street, from 10am until 4:30pm. Once again, ChicagoPoetry.com will be in the lobby all day giving away free copies of Poetry Cram Volume 11 (interested in being part of it? Check out PoetryCram.com). There will also be many other local presses representing in the lobby all day, and I have the heads up on some of the programming that will be offered for free as part of this National Poetry Month event.

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Dear You: A Poetry Writing Workshop with Rachel Javellana
Time: 10:00 am - 11:30 pm

Letter poems--or epistolary poems--speak a message that may be addressed to the living or the dead, cities, children, presidents, police or other poets. These letters can reach across the boundaries that separate us. We, as readers, are allowed to peek inside the 'letters' and see what they reveal. In this workshop, participants will read and discuss various approaches to the letter poem by diverse authors. We will explore the power of written letters and what the convention of letter writing has to offer to poetry and to us today. We will then create our own letter poems, drawing on our discussion. Please bring your own writing supplies. Writers of all levels are welcome and no experience is necessary.

Rachel Javellana is a poet and award-winning teaching artist in the Chicago community. Her poems have appeared most recently in The MacGuffin and Buffalo Carp.

Attendance is limited to the first 20 attendees.

Program will take place in Multi-Purpose Room A, located in the lower level.

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Haiku Festival: Reading and Awards Ceremony
Time: 10:00 am

The awards ceremony of the 7th annual Haiku Festival will feature readings by the winning poets, ages 8 to 14, and comments from this year's special guest, teacher and poet John S. O'Connor. The reading and ceremony are open to the public and appropriate for all ages.

To enter the Haiku Festival, students in grades 4-8 should submit one haiku poem to the event's coodinator by March 19. Instructions can be found on the event's website, http://www.haikufest.com.

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The Digital SpeakEasy
Time: 11:00 am - 12:00 pm

iRemix Spoken Word presents some of the best teen poets featured at YOUmedia's Lyricist Loft. Teens will showcase original works of poetry that bridge traditional spoken word with multimedia pathways. Come check out how teens are exploring and presenting poetry in the 21st Century.

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Marrying the Verse: The Poem in the Body: A Writing Workshop with Roger Bonair-Time: 12:00 pm

Learn how to draw upon your body and your voice when writing poetry. Using poems by Rachel McKibbens, Patricia Smith and Yusef Komunyakaa as examples, this workshop will explore the relationship between your written poetry as it exists on the page and your body's voice as it speaks from the stage. Two-time National Slam Champion Roger Bonair-Agard is a Cave Canem fellow, and has appeared on Def Poetry Jam and 60 Minutes; his latest book, Gully, is published by Peepal Tree Press.

Attendance is limited to the first 20 attendees.

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Nikki Giovanni
Time: 2:00 pm

Free admission; first-come seating begins at 1:30 PM.

Nikki Giovanni is the author of more than 30 books for adults and children. She published her first book of poetry, Black Feeling, Black Talk, in 1968. Her autobiography, Gemini, was a finalist for the National Book Award. One of Oprah Winfrey’s 25 “Living Legends,” Giovanni has received dozens of honorary degrees, and the Langston Hughes Medal for Poetry.

Co-sponsored by The Poetry Foundation.

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Open Mic Hosted by Brother Mike
Time: 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm

We are calling on the diverse body of poets from the Chicagoland area to represent their work or re-present the works of their favorite poets. We encourage the community to share new work and discover the works of poets contemporary and traditional.

This event will be held in the Reception Hall on the Lower Level.

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Haiku and Other Forms Writing: A Workshop with Regina Harris Baiocchi
Time: 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Haiku - a traditional form of poetry developed over three centuries in Japan - has been written and published in English since at least the 1930s. Learn more about this brief form and its relatives, and try your hand at other types of formal poetry, giving your writing shape and structure. Regina Harris Baiocchi is a composer and author whose works have been performed by the Chicago Symphony and around the world; Urban Haiku & Other Selected Poems was published by Susaami Books in 1994.

This workshop is open to the first 20 attendees.

Located in Multipurpose Room A, lower level.

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More events may be added to the Poetry Fest schedule.