Thursday May 5
Hammer Theatre Center, Paseo De San Antonio near S. Third Street
5 - 7 p.m.
Poetry on the Paseo:
Readings by SJSU students, faculty,
staff and alumni poets
8:15 - 9:30 p.m.
Hammer Theatre Center:
Poets Laureate Reading
Featuring
Juan Felipe Herrera, U.S. Poet Laureate
Free Admission
About Legacy of Poetry Day
Edwin Markham
Legacy of Poetry Day is an annual event to celebrate National Poetry Month, which we will carry over into the first week of May. National Poetry Month is held every April, when schools, publishers, libraries, booksellers, and poets throughout the United States band together to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture. Thousands of organizations participate through readings, festivals, book displays, workshops, and other events across the nation. The theme of this year's tenth Legacy of Poetry Day celebration is "Ways and Ways to San Jose: A History of Santa Clara/Silicon Valley." The theme comes from a poem by Al Young. The event also celebrates San Jose State University's poetic legacy dating back to Edwin Markham (1852-1940).
Poetry on the Paseo
The event will kick-off with brief readings from SJSU President Susan Martin and Academic Senate President Michael Kimbarow, on the patio of the Hammer Theatre Center. Also featured will be readings from San Jose State University students, alumni, faculty, and staff. With music by Cuatro Con Tres.
Pachanga on the Paseo
Following “Poetry on the Paseo,” there will be a special multimedia theatrical performance, Pachanga on the Paseo: A Roving Spectacle of Public Art, directed by Kinan Valdez and written by Luis and Kinan Valdez, presented by the Department of Radio, Television, Film, and Theater. The Pachanga will conclude with a procession of performers, poets, and audience members entering the Hammer Theatre.
SJSU Legacy of Poetry Day
The Poets Laureate Reading will take place inside the Hammer Theatre where Juan Felipe Herrera will bless the theatre. Then featuring past and present regional Bay Area Poet Laureates including California Poet Laureate Emeritus Laureate Al Young, San Francisco Poet Laureate Alejandro Murgia, and Santa Clara Poet Laureate Arlene Biala. Concluding with a reading by U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera.
