National Poetry Month begins on Monday and once again Albany and the upstate New York area has a lot of poetry and spoken word lined up. And even better than that, all of this poetry is here all year long, not just one month in the spring.
The week kicks off two of those year-round series with Nitty Gritty Slam and the Caffe Lena Poetry Open Mic. Tuesday’s NGS will be a big one too as nine of the top points leaders from the second half of the season will be competing to move on to the Grand Slam. For all Nitty Gritty news and information, head over to the NGS website.
On Wednesday the poetry continues at the great Caffe Lena. Carol Graser, host of the long-running open mic night at the famed Saratoga Springs venue, has two incredible featured poets booked, Barbara Louise Ungar and Lee Slonimsky. Get there early, grab a coffee, and take a seat. This in one of the finest mics in the area and worth the trip.
Looking ahead, we have our annual National Poetry Month event, the 2013 Albany Word Fest in the middle of the month. This years Word Fest looks to be another great week of events of open mics, featured readings, film screenings, haiku battles, poetry slams, and much more planned stating on Sunday, April 14 with the launch of Up The River.
But, first things first, here is rundown of the poetry events that are coming up next week in and around Albany.
Monday, April 1
8:00pm – Club Harmony
Wok ‘N Roll Cafe, 52 Mill Hill Road, Woodstock, NY
Weekly poetry open mic with a featured reader hosted by Michael Platsky.
Tuesday, April 2
7:00pm – Emack and Bolio’s Open Mic Night
Emack & Bolio’s, Delaware Ave., Albany, NY
A weekly open mic for music and poetry
7:30pm – Nitty Gritty Slam #41 – The 2nd Team NGS Semi-Final
Valentines, 17 New Scotland Ave., Albany
Albany Poets, Urban Guerilla Theatre, and The Frequency North Reading Series are bringing slam back to Albany with the NITTY GRITTY SLAM on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday’s of each month. If you’re not into slam, but want to get on stage and share your work, we have an open mic before the slam. Sign up begins at 7PM, open mic starts at 7:30, and the slam starts at 8PM. Admission is $5.00 ($3.00 with student ID).
Wednesday, April 3
7:00pm – Caffe Lena Poetry Open Mic
Pride Center of the Capital Region, 332 Hudson Ave, Albany, NY
Monthly poetry open mic at the historic Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs with a featured poet hosted by Carol Graser. This month’s featured poets are Barbara Louise Ungar and Lee Slonimsky.
8:00pm – Pauly’s Hotel Open Mic Night
Pauly’s Hotel, 337 Central Ave., Albany, NY
Poetry, Music, Comedy and more take center stage at Pauly’s weekly Open Mic Night hosted by Brian LaPoint and Joshua Gruft.
Thursday, April 4
7:00pm – Rockhill Bakehouse Open Mic
Rockhill Bakehouse Cafe, 19 Exchange Street, Glens Falls, NY
Weekly open mic for musicians and writers.
7:00pm – Noble Coffee Roasters Open Mic
Noble Coffee Roasters, 3020 Route 207, Campbell Hall, NY
Monthly open mic for poetry and spoken word with two featured poets.
8:00pm – Starving Artist Thursdays
Hudson River Coffee House, 227 Quail Street, Albany, NY 12203
A weekly open Mic for music, poetry, and spoken word at one of Albany’s best new coffee shops.
8:00pm – The Safe Haven
The Book Club, 153 S. Pearl Street., Albany, NY
A positive poetry open mic series hosted by Poetyc Visionz with a new theme every week.
Friday, April 5
3:00pm – 1st Friday Poetry Open Mic
Albany Public Library, 161 Washington Avenue, Albany, NY
Open mic for poetry and spoken word, part of the 1st Friday arts walk in Albany.
8:00pm – Calling All Poets
Howland Cultural Center, 477 Main St., Beacon, NY
Monthly open mic hosted by Jim Eve with featured poets performing their work.
Saturday, April 6
3:30pm – Poetry On The Loose
Seligmann Center for the Arts, 23 White Oak Drive, Sugar Loaf, NY
Poetry on the Loose takes place on the first Saturday of each month, hosted by William Seaton. This month’s featured poet is George Searles.
For a full listing of all of the poetry and spoken word events in upstate New York, head over to the events calendar page. And if you live in the Western Massachusetts / Connecticut area, be sure to check out Lori Desrosiers‘ Poetry News Calendar.
If you would like to have your poetry event listed on AlbanyPoets.com, send an email to albanypoets+events@gmail.com with the date and details.
