In celebration of National Poetry Month, Albany Poets is proud to present the 2019 Word Fest featuring the poetry and spoken word of upstate New York. This year’s event will take place Friday, April 12 – Saturday, April 20, 2019.
Whether you would like to take in a featured performance, attend the Word Fest Invitational Slam, celebrate the launch of the seventh edition of Up The River, or participate in the 24-hour Readings Against the End of the World open mic, this year’s Word Fest is the place for you.
24 Hours of Words
Albany Poets and the English Department at UAlbany will kick off this year’s festival with Readings Against the End of the World, a 24-hour read-a-thon.
All word-lovers and writers are invited to share readings – original work or favorite passages, poems and rants, raps and stories, spoken word and personal visions- enough to fill twenty-four hours the power of words. The event will start Friday, April 12 at the Husted Hall Café on the UAlbany Downtown campus, and will continue until Saturday, April 13.
This year’s event will host several special events – an evening of regional open mic hosts sharing their own work, midnight theatre, a morning youth reading, a haiku battle, afternoon college readers, and much more – all alternating with open mic signup slots.
Online sign up for the open mic portions of Readings Against the End of the World will be available on the Word Fest website soon. Organizations interested in having a table can contact Albany Poets at albanypoets@gmail.com for information.
Festival of Features
Throughout the week many poets and writers will be featured at venues in the area.
On Monday, April 15, the weekly Poetic Vibe open mic, hosted by D. Colin, at the Troy Kitchen will feature local poet Kareem Ture.
On Tuesday, April 16, the Brass Tacks series will feature a very special performance from a regional poet followed by an open mic.
The annual “Word Fest Night of Features” will take place at the Hudson River Coffee House on Quail Street on Wednesday, April 17. This event is an evening of poetry and prose featuring regional poets and writers hosted by Harvey Havel.
Caroline Bardwell will be the featured reader on Thursday, April 18, at the Third Thursday Poetry Night, hosted by Dan Wilcox, at the Social Justice Center on Central Avenue. There will be an opportunity before and after the feature for poets to step up to the mic and share their work.
Ongoing Online Open Mic
Additionally, all throughout the week, Albany Poets will be publishing local poetry on their website as part of the Word Fest Online Open Mic. Poets who wish to participate are encouraged to send their poems to albanypoets@gmail.com with “Word Fest Online Open Mic” in the subject line, starting Sunday, April 1.
And so much more
As we get closer to the 2019 Word Fest, more events, activities, and features will be announced. Be sure to check the website and our social media accounts often for details and information on the annual celebration of Upstate New York’s poetry and spoken word.
The 2019 Word Fest is sponsored by Albany Poets, English Department at UAlbany, Hudson Valley Writers Guild, The Low Beat, McGeary’s Irish Pub, The Social Justice Center, and the very generous donations of supporters of the arts in upstate New York. If you would like to become a sponsor, send us an email at albanypoets@gmail.com.
