The 2012 People’s Poetry Festival takes place Friday, August 17 to Sunday, August 19 in Kensington, Calgary. Our complete 2012 schedule of events is now available, and we’ve got a host of fantastic things lined up for you! You can find a detailed write up on all our events on our Facebook page.
2012 Festival Kickoff: Under the Influence of Poetry (Part 1)
Friday, August 17, 2012
6:00pm to 8:30pm
Pages Books on Kensington, 1135 Kensington Road NW
FREE (though, as a volunteer-run not-for-profit, donations are gratefully accepted!)
*Snacks will be served
**Cash bar
Some of our favorite poets–The People’s Poetry Festival’s 2012 Poet of Honour, Jen Kunlire, and Calgary’s Sheri-D Wilson, Dave Eso, Weyman Chan, Richard Harrison and Bob Stallworthy–will share poetry with you: not theirs, but the poems they love. The poems that inspired them to be a poet in the first place!
18+ Under the Influence of Poetry (Part 2): Drunken Poets Night
Friday, August 17, 2012
9:00pm to 11:00pm
Location TBA—expect a pub setting in downtown Kensington
$5 suggested donation
A night of poetry in a Kensington pub featuring the 2012 Golden Beret winner, Kirk Miles, and Midnight Yoga for Alcoholics and open mic.
Found Poetry Workshop
Saturday, August 18, 2012
11:30am to 1:00pm
Central Library, fourth floor, 616 Macleod Trail SE
FREE, but requires registration at the CPL website.
Join us for a hands-on found poetry excursion. Explore the library’s vast collection to pull lines from books, music, magazines, advertisements, news clippings, photographs and more to create your own found poetry piece.
Kids “Make Yer Own Poetry” craft event
Saturday, August 18, 2012
1:00pm to 2:00pm
DIY poetry central in front of Pages Books on Kensington
FREE (though, as a volunteer-run not-for-profit, donations are gratefully accepted!)
Join us at DIY Poetry central (right in front of Joints in downtown Kensington) for a kid-friendly DIY poetry crafting event. Crayons, glue, and… Shakespeare?
18+ Adults Only Reading
Saturday, August 18, 2012
2:00pm to 3:00pm
The BottleHouse Beer Parlour, 102 10 St. NW
FREE (though, as a volunteer-run not-for-profit, donations are gratefully accepted!)
Back by popular demand, this year’s Adult’s Only Reading features Andre Prefontaine, Dave Eso, Tiffany Maxwell and Weyman Chan.
18+ Erotica Writing Workshop
Saturday, August 18, 2012
3:15pm to 4:1pm
Resolution Art Gallery, 233 10 Street Nw, above Eleven Eleven boutique
A PPF first! A workshop you can really sink your teeth into:
The slip of words across the page, lust and longing in each phrase… Poetry is often the perfect medium for erotic writing. Writing about desire, fantasy and identity can be challenging and rewarding, and this workshop will be a safe space to stretch into new and exciting expressions. Tiffany Sostar—owner of Writing the Margins and The Smutty Story Circle—will facilitate this queer-friendly, gender-inclusive writing workshop. All styles of poetry, and all experience levels, are welcome.
Youth Open Mic
Saturday, August 18, 2012
5:00pm to 8:00pm
The House Coffee Sanctuary, 126 10 St. NW
FREE (though, as a volunteer-run not-for-profit, donations are gratefully accepted!)
After the runaway success of last year’s Youth Open Mic, we’re back, this time in a Sheri-D Wilson/A Place Called WordsWorth collaboration to bring you the best in youth SLAM! poetry and open mic.
18+ filling Station Showcase
Saturday, August 18, 2012
7:00pm to 9:00pm
The Royal Canadian Legion, 1910 Kensington Rd. NW *Note: this venue is outside downtown Kensington
$5 suggested donation
*Snacks will be served
**Cash bar
filling Station magazine presents a poetry reading of its nearest and dearest: the people behind the mag, The Collective. Listen to the poetry of fS editors, submission vetters, marketers, event coordinators, and circulation volunteers, featuring Angelo Ramirez, Steph Wong Ken, Emily, Jon R. Flieger, Ian Kinney and Caitlynn Cummings. We’re letting them out of the fS dungeon for this evening only, so do come hear them read!
18+ Poetry Cabaret
Saturday, August 18, 2012
9:00pm to 11:00pm
The Royal Canadian Legion, 1910 Kensington Rd. NW *Note: this venue is outside downtown Kensington
$5 suggested donation
*Snacks will be served
**Cash bar
Join us for an entertaining, adult only night filled with poetry, live music, burlesque performance and more, hosted by PPF 2011 Poet of Honour, Wakefield Brewster, plus Death by Pedestrian, burlesque performances by Calgary’s 2011 Miss Taboo, Marla Muse, and more!
Film screening: Saint Misbehavin’: The Wavy Gravy Movie
Saturday, August 18, 2012
10:00pm to 11:30pm
The Royal Canadian Legion, 1910 Kensington Rd. NW *Note: this venue is outside downtown Kensington
FREE (though, as a volunteer-run not-for-profit, donations are gratefully accepted!)
Join us (weather permitting) for an outdoor screenin of Saint Misbehavin’: The Wavy Gravy Movie on the outside wall of the Royal Canadian Legion No. 264 on Kensington Road
Synopsis:
Wavy Gravy is known as the MC of the Woodstock festival, a hippie icon, activist, clown, and even a Ben & Jerry’s ice cream flavor. In SAINT MISBEHAVIN’ we meet a true servant to humanity who carries his message through humor, compassion and a song he wrote called “Basic Human Needs”. SAINT MISBEHAVIN’ weaves together intimate vérité footage, reflections from an array of cultural and counter-cultural peers, and a rich collection of never-before-seen archival footage to tell a story that is bigger than the man himself.
Kids Approved Reading: Shel Silverstein
Sunday, August 19, 2012
12:00pm to 1:00pm
In front of The Plaza Theatre, 1133 Kensington Rd. NW
FREE (though, as a volunteer-run not-for-profit, donations are gratefully accepted!)
Back to delight young and old alike, our 2012 kids approved reading will feature that lyrical poet, Shel Silverstein.
Workshop: Getting Published
Sunday, August 19, 2012
1:00pm to 2:15pm
Oolong Tea House, 110 10 St. NW
FREE (though, as a volunteer-run not-for-profit, donations are gratefully accepted!)
Hosted by MRU professor Richard Harrison, learn the ins-and-outs of getting your poetry published:
Getting published means finding your audience. This workshop will discuss the various means by which publishers introduce writers and their audience to each other over time. It will look at the way that publishing is a form not just of getting your work out there, but of entering a creatively rich dialogue with those who don’t just want to read your work, but share it with those who trust them to bring work they’ll enjoy into their lives.
Workshop: Giving a Public Reading
Sunday, August 19, 2012
2:30pm to 3:15pm
Oolong Tea House, 110 10 St. NW
FREE (though, as a volunteer-run not-for-profit, donations are gratefully accepted!)
Hosted by Calgary poet, Bob Stallowrthy, this poetry workshop will shed some light on that oft feared aspect of the poet life: giving a reading.
Title: Eh? Or, What Was That Last Line?
You’ve been asked to give a reading in public. But, you say, “I don’t like getting up in front of people” or “My words were meant to be read on the page”. Both may be true. However, at some point, if you stay with a writing career, you are going to be asked to give a reading in public. And, there is NOTHING more frustrating for your audience than not hearing your words. The words you worked so hard to find. This workshop offers tips and ideas for you to use that will make giving a reading in public less frightening, less of an ordeal for both you and your audience. This workshop is designed to be a conversation, so there will be plenty of time for questions, answers, anecdotes, etc. I will use my own work as examples of how and how not to read to your audience. Giving a public reading is an important part of being an author. It might as well be enjoyable for you and your audience.