It was a dizzying evening, with events happening across the city! Over on the Twitter I heard nothing but great things about our poets and their readings. Braidings was moving, The Sweatshop was sweaty, Shout it Out was roarious, Take A Deep Breath was inspiring, and Brendan MacLeod was off the hook. But let’s not stop there! Poetry Week marches on!

For your listening and viewing pleasure, here are today’s events:

  1. A Slam Sampler. 12:00noon-1:00pm, CBC Center Stage, City Center Mall. Tuesday’s Slam Finals determined the last few members of Edmonton’s (reigning Canadian Champions!) slam team, and this event in downtown Edmonton will serve as their introduction. Hear present and past team members rock up the CBC stage. You’ll see why all the kids are crazy for slam poetry.
  2. Literary Cocktails. 4:00pm-6:00pm, The Faculty Club, 11435 Saskatchewan Drive. Join the University of Alberta Press as it launches three exceptional collections of poetry as the first books of the new Robert Kroetsch Series of creative works. Launching three collections simultaneously is pretty ambitious by any standard, but if anyone can pull it off, the U of A Press can. At this event, I am told that there will be a drinking game wherein a shot of mescal must be downed without hesitation each time Doug Barbour is mentioned. We’ll make sure the police are on hand to contain all you rowdy versifiers.
  3. French Twist. 7:00pm, Studio 104, Cite Francophone, 8627 – 91 Street. So many great readers on tap for this event, plus a few musicians. This is a bilingual event, and if you’ve ever heard poetry in a different language, you know how beautiful it can be to concentrate on rhythm and inflection, rather than on literal meaning. There’ll be music with poetry, song, voice-only, and other permutations. This event is sure to be a roaring good time, and don’t forget to bring an hors d’oeuvre (a poem, not an actual dish of food) for the open mic.
  4. On The Road with Bob Holman. 7:00pm, Garneau Theatre, 8712 – 109 Street. Join us at the Garneau Theatre for a special screening from On the Road with Bob Holman. This series on endangered languages investigates oral traditions and their relationship to hip-hop, slam, and spoken word. After the screening Bob will be joined by a panel of other artists to talk about making the documentary and the vanishing languages/traditions he has been exploring. There will be music by Allan Suarez. And hey, the bar is open at 6:30.

Be well in the world, and enjoy today’s offerings.