Vallejo Poet Laureate Jacalyn Avonne joined Vallejo Poet Laureate Julie Boyce and Richmond Poet Laureate Stephen Sharp for the inaugural Celebration of Poetic Diversity at Alibi Bookshop. The second program night she will be held on April 18th at 6:30pm.
This year is National Poetry Month, and Vallejo's co-poet laureates Jacalyn Avonne and Kathleen Herman want to make celebrating poetry accessible and exciting for newcomers.
The poetic duo has put together a two-night event, “A Celebration of Poetic Diversity,” designed to serve as an open invitation to the community, not just celebrated poets. The next Poetry Evening will be held on April 18th and will feature Mr. Hellman's special guests, Suisan Poet Laureate Excalibur and Vallejo Poet Anna Kismario.
The first of the two events began at Alibi Bookshop on a cold, rainy evening on April 4th. But despite the unfortunate weather, the bookstore quickly filled up with a diverse mix of generations and ethnicities, poets and newcomers alike.
The first night was organized by Avonne and featured guests Stephen Sharp, Richmond Poet Laureate, and Vallejo Poet Julie Boyce, who read aloud and interacted with the audience.
“She gave it a lot of breathing room,” Hellman said, praising Avonne's program. “The guest poets read and express themselves, and then the audience participates. It wasn't limited to a formal program where people come and listen and leave, it was interactive,” Herman said. he said.
Hellman recalled hearing a young woman in her 20s comment, “This is the first time I've read a poem,'' to which someone else responded, “You picked a good poem.'' The lively gathering was not afraid to share their past poetry reading experiences, with many comparing this evening's poetry reading to other boring readings.
In the evening, Avonne read her poem “A Clock Without Hands.” The poem details her experience growing up not knowing who her father was. This poem touched a young man's heart, and after reading it, he felt compelled to share a similar upbringing with Avonne.
“Our words often provide an emotional realm for people to reflect, heal, and reflect,” Avonne said appreciatively.
Another unexpected but welcome aspect of the event was the grant Herman won from Poets and Writers Magazine. This sponsorship not only added weight to the program, but also allowed us to reimburse guest poets' participation fees.
While it would have been nice to pay for a work of art, that doesn't always happen in the world of poetry, Herman said.
Looking forward to her program, Ms. Hellman expressed her excitement to host Excalibur, which works closely with rhythm to unite music and poetry. “What's important to him is not just sitting and reading the paper, but making eye contact with people and gesturing towards them. He's a very dynamic performer,” Herman said.
The audience's warm and welcoming engagement on their first celebratory night only added to Herman and Avonne's excitement for a packed bookstore and another group of devoted listeners.
“The range of participants was really diverse,” the poetic duo said, reflecting on their first event at the bookstore. “From people who have been writing poetry for a while already to people who want to know what poetry is all about.”
If you go:
- what: A celebration of poetic diversity
- where: Alibi Bookshop, 624 Marin St., Vallejo.
- when: April 18th, 6:30pm
- ticket: free