EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/celebrating-chinese-new-year

February 6th, 8:30pm-9:30pm EST, Virtual, Free

Celebrating Chinese New Year: A Musical Journey and Mindful New Beginnings

Welcome to our online event where we will celebrate the Lunar New Year in style! Join us for a unique experience filled with mesmerizing traditional Chinese music, meditation, and fun activities to kick off the new year with positivity. Let's embark on a musical journey together and set intentions for a fresh start. This event is all about embracing new beginnings and spreading joy. Don't miss out on this special celebration!

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/black-history-month-hackathon

February 4th, 2pm-4pm EST, Virtual, Free

Join us for our Black History Month Wikipedia edit-a-thon and help to close the Wikipedia racial gap by creating and editing biographies about Black artists and performers with connections to the arts and humanities in DC.

All are welcome and training will be provided for new Wikipedia editors. This event is presented with support from Wikimedia DC.

Please note that editors may not edit or create Wikipedia articles about themselves, their families, their organizations, or their employers.

Be advised that this workshop will include live real-time captioning via Zoom. For reasonable accommodation requests regarding access and inclusion, please contact David Markey (david.markey@dc.gov), no later than 5 business days before the start of this event.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/kai-naima-williams

January 9th, 9pm-10:30pm EST, Virtual, Free

City Lights celebrates the publication of

The Bridges Yuri Built: How Yuri Kochiyama Marched Across Movements

By Kai Naima Williams
Illustrated by Anastasia Magloire Williams
Published by Kaepernick Press

THE BRIDGES YURI BUILT: HOW YURI KOCHIYAMA MARCHED ACROSS MOVEMENTS introduces one of the 20th-century’s most notable freedom fighters, Yuri Kochiyama (1921 – 2014) to the next generation of young readers.

Debut children's picture book author Kai Naima Williams – great-granddaughter of Yuri Kochiyama – intimately chronicles the experiences and lessons, hardships and victories, and people and places that shaped Yuri’s life and influenced her activism. From Yuri’s incarceration in a Japanese-American concentration camp during World War II to her participation in movements organizing for better schools in Harlem to her close friendship with Malcolm X, Yuri never wavered in her belief in the power of people – especially young people – to bring about social change. Through imaginative writing and vibrant illustrations (Anastasia Magloire Williams), THE BRIDGES YURI BUILT is sure to inspire young readers to embrace Yuri’s unswerving belief that together we can build a bridge to a better world.

Kai Naima Williams is a multidisciplinary writer and performing artist based in Harlem, New York. She is the author of two poetry chapbooks He Tried To Drown The Ocean, I Waved (Hyacinth Girl Press, 2018) and Tomorrow Maps (The Hunger Press, 2023) and the children’s picture book The Bridges Yuri Built: How Yuri Kochiyama Marched Across Movements (Kaepernick Publishing, 2024). Her work has been featured in MASK Magazine, Louisiana Literature, Stirring Lit, Abolition Is, CRWN Magazine, Literary Manhattan and the upcoming anthology Black and Asian Feminist Solidarities (Haymarket Press, 2025) amongst other publications, and she has been honored by the Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival and The New York Times. She is also a co-founder of Eat At The Table Theatre Company.

Katie Yamasaki works primarily as a muralist and picture book creator. She has painted more than eighty murals around the world, and her most recent book is Place Hand Here. She has a forthcoming book coming out in April 2025 from W.W. Norton titled MURAL ISLAND. She lives in Brooklyn with her family.

Made possible by support from the City Lights Foundation

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/chavez-documentary

January 5th, 7pm- 9pm EST, Virtual, Free

Virtual Documentary Night is a monthly online event designed to give people the chance to discuss interesting ideas and topics explored in the documentaries that are free for anyone to access online. For this event we voted to talk about the documentary, Chávez Ravine: A Los Angeles Story. Jordan Mechner's award-winning 2003 half-hour documentary tells the bittersweet story of an American community betrayed by greed, political hypocrisy, and good intentions gone astray. Don Normark's haunting black-and-white photographs reclaim and celebrate Chávez Ravine, a closely-knit Mexican-American village that once overlooked downtown Los Angeles from the hill where Dodger Stadium now stands. You must watch the film on your own BEFORE the event. You can watch the film for free at this link.

>>Click here to watch Chávez Ravine for free<<

For the event we will meet on Zoom, where you participate in multiple rounds of small group discussions with a different discussion prompt and different randomized groups for each round. This gives you the opportunity to meet new people and hear a variety of perspectives throughout the night. You will receive the Zoom link and password for this event once you register for the event.

If you have any questions or would like to be added to the email list, please contact Adam Hicks at CommunityDocumentaryNight@gmail.com.

To learn more about Community Documentary Night and our past events, check out our website HERE.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/poets-across-lines

December 12th, 8pm- 9:30pm EST, Virtual, Free

Join us on December 12, 2024 at 8:00pm EST for an evening of poetry and community. The four poets of the inaugural cohort of Poets Across Lines, Arlo Pate and Kevin L. Tarver in Birmingham and Kevin Sanchez and RuthAnn in Tucson, will read poems created during the program. These poems center around the themes of housing, immigration, and LGBTQIA+ identity, amplifying poetry and poets from communities underserved by the traditional literary establishment. Featuring introductions and readings by program Mentors Erika Wade and Gabriel Dozal, and poems by Advisors Salaam Green and Ofelia Montelongo! This incredible evening of poetry and readings featuring emerging and established poets will center and celebrate community poets, their role and their work.

Poems from this evening will be available in Watching for the Moon Above: Poets Across Lines (Community Poetry from Birmingham & Tucson) a collaborative zine produced by Pansy Press. You can download the zine for free at the end of the reading.

Learn more about the four selected poets of Poets Across Lines 2024:

Arlo Pate (he/they) is a writer and educator currently nestled in Birmingham, Alabama. After studying Anthropology, they got their start in farming and since then has followed opportunities that lead him closer to agriculture and labor organizing. Their relationship with the land has a profound influence on their songwriting and poetry.

Kevin L. Tarver (he/him) is a writer, educator, and mental health advocate living in Birmingham, AL. He is a Black gay man trying to live a joyful life through fierce self-care and emotional honesty. His subject matter includes mental and emotional health awareness, sexual health education, and his experiences within the southern LGBT+ community.

Kevin Sanchez (he/him) was born and raised in Tucson, Arizona. As a first generation college graduate, he earned a BA in English and a BA in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona. Kevin is currently a high school teacher, sharing his love for literature and writing with the future generations of poets.

RuthAnn (they/them) is an aroace abolitionist and accessibility advocate. Born and raised in Arizona, they love the Sonoran Desert, where they continue to reside today. They are a translator and aspiring librarian. In addition to poetry, they enjoy singing, dancing, photography, cross stitch, and hand lettering.

Free and open to the public with registration! The Zoom link will be provided the day of the event.

About the Program

Poets Across Lines is a cross-regional poetry writing program in Birmingham, AL and Tucson, AZ where four poets, two in each city, write poetry that tells the story of their communities—joys, challenges, and resiliency. Through instructor-led writing workshops, cohort convenings, and guest speaker sessions, Poets Across Lines fosters a space that believes poetry is a site of community and coalition building. Learn more on our website or by emailing pal@pen.org.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/a-flame-for-palestine

December 8th, 12pm- 2pm EDT, Virtual, Free

Join us for our 2024 concert which will feature contributions from:

• Lamar Elias, Conductor

• Lourdina Baboun, violin, Edward Said National Conservatory of Music almuna and PalMusic scholar

• Guest speaker, Reverend Munther Ishaaq from Bethlehem and students of the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music.

The concert is free, but we ask everyone to consider making a gift this Christmas, to support the tuition of a child who is not be able to study at ESNCM without financial assistance. For young innocent Palestinians who are witnessing and experiencing distress and trauma daily, the acknowledged benefits of music are immense. Learning music gives Palestinian children and young people a beacon of hope, a sense of belonging and a much-need creative outlet through which to express their emotions.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/Leonard-Peltier-film
November 17th, 7pm- 9pm EDT, Virtual, Free

Virtual Documentary Night is a monthly online event hosted by Community Documentary Night. It is designed to give people the opportunity to engage in meaningful discussions on a wide range of topics with people from various backgrounds. This event is in collaboration with SURJ Boston, specifically their Indigenous Solidarity Action Partnership committee. SURJ Boston is a local chapter of Showing Up for Racial Justice, a national network of groups and individuals organizing white people for racial justice. Through community organizing, mobilizing, and education, SURJ moves white people to act as part of a multi-racial majority for justice with passion and accountability. They work to connect people across the country while supporting and collaborating with local and national racial justice organizing efforts.

For this Special Virtual Documentary Night, in honor of Native American Heritage Month, we are meeting to talk about the documentary WARRIOR: The Life of Leonard Peltier. This is the definitive feature documentary about American Indian activist, Leonard Peltier. His story is told within the context of the American Indian Movement, the US federal government, and the multi national companies interested in mining the land in South Dakota. Suzie Baer and Jeanne Roach will be joining us for a special guest Q&A! You can watch the film for free at the link below.

>>Click here to watch WARRIOR: The Life of Leonard Peltier for free<<

**PLEASE REMEMBER TO WATCH THE FILM ON YOUR OWN BEFORE JOINING THE EVENT**

How this all works is you will first watch the film on your own prior to our event. Then we will meet on Zoom on the day of the event, where you participate in multiple rounds of small group discussions with a different discussion prompt and different randomized groups for each round. This gives you the opportunity to hear a variety of perspectives throughout the night. Then we will follow with the special guest Q&A! Again, you must watch the film on your own BEFORE the event. You will receive the Zoom link and password once you register for the event. Please remember your Eventbrite login and password. You may need that to access the Zoom info on the day of the event.

If you have any trouble accessing the zoom link, have any questions or would like to be added to the email list, please contact CommunityDocumentaryNight@gmail.com.

To learn more about Community Documentary Night and our past events, check out our website. https://documentarynight.wordpress.com/

We have generated a set of norms and expectations for our event. They were created to help us maintain a welcoming and civil environment for everyone in attendance. Please read through before attending. They will also be recited at the start of the event.

1. This event is open to all who are open to all. This is an inclusive event. We are open to anyone including all gender expressions, racial identities, political affiliations, etc. as long as you are open to hearing the perspective of others.

2. Step Up and Step Back. Step up meaning we ask that you step up and share your perspective so that we can learn and grow from your knowledge and experience. Step back meaning we ask that you step back on occasion, allowing yourself the opportunity to hear and grow from the experience and perspectives of others in attendance.

3. Allow others to express their full thought. This is just a nice way of saying try not to interrupt.

4. Be mindful of others wanting to speak. Try to keep your thoughts concise, allowing time for others to respond.

5. If you don't agree, this is not a debate but a discussion. So instead of trying to sway the other person, try to understand where they are coming from. That can be done by asking "What makes you think that?" This requires coming from a place of curiosity rather than competition.

6. But even though it's not a debate, feel free to challenge what is said. Not in saying "You're wrong." But by sharing the idea that you have and asking how that fits with what they just shared. This allows for both ideas to be in the same space and gives the other person an opportunity to explain their thinking.

7. Assume good intentions. We are all here to learn and grow together. If something does not sound right, ask first for clarification before jumping to conclusions.

8. If there is an issue, speak up in the moment, if at all possible. Some may not realize that what they said had a negative impact on those in the room. Speaking up can give them the opportunity to correct what they said.

9. If it is not possible to resolve amongst yourselves, request that the host join your room. Once he enters your breakout room you can explain the situation or send him a private message if you are not comfortable stating the problem openly. If you would rather wait till after the event, feel free to email the host at CommunityDocumentaryNight@gmail.com, then we can figure out a way of resolving the issue for future events.

10. It's ok to eat on video. This event occurs around dinner time for many of us. So feel free to eat while participating in the discussion. We just ask that you mute yourself while you are chewing.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/solito-talk
November 14th, 4pm-5:30pm EST, Virtual, Free

NOTE: This is an online-only event hosted by the Library Speakers Consortium. Please go here to finalize your registration: https://libraryc.org/detroitpubliclibrary/60073/register

Tune in for a special conversation with New York Times bestselling author Javier Zamora as he chats with us about his riveting tale of survival and perseverance as told in his award-winning memoir Solito.

Zamora’s adventure is a three-thousand-mile journey from his small town in El Salvador, through Guatemala and Mexico, and across the U.S. border. He will leave behind his beloved aunt and grandparents to reunite with a mother who left four years ago and a father he barely remembers. Traveling alone amid a group of strangers and a “coyote” hired to lead them to safety, Javier expects his trip to last two short weeks.At nine years old, all Javier can imagine is rushing into his parents’ arms, snuggling in bed between them, and living under the same roof again. He cannot foresee the perilous boat trips, relentless desert treks, pointed guns, arrests and deceptions that await him; nor can he know that those two weeks will expand into two life-altering months alongside fellow migrants who will come to encircle him like an unexpected family.Solito provides an immediate and intimate account not only of a treacherous and near-impossible journey, but also of the miraculous kindness and love delivered at the most unexpected moments. Solito is Javier Zamora’s story, but it’s also the story of millions of others who had no choice but to leave home. Register today to learn more about this gripping and moving story!

About the Author: Javier Zamora was born in El Salvador in 1990. His father fled the country when he was one, and his mother when he was about to turn five. Both parents’ migrations were caused by the U.S.-funded Salvadoran Civil War. When he was nine Javier migrated through Guatemala, Mexico, and the Sonoran Desert. His debut poetry collection, Unaccompanied, explores the impact of the war and immigration on his family. Zamora has been a Stegner Fellow at Stanford and a Radcliffe Fellow at Harvard and holds fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation.

NOTE: This is an online-only event hosted by the Library Speakers Consortium. Please go here to finalize your registration: https://libraryc.org/detroitpubliclibrary/60073/register

Questions? Email msummers@detroitpubliclibrary.org for help!

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/maima-water-spirit
November 8th, 8pm EDT, Virtual, $20

Maima: The Water Spirit is a dance performance exploring the language of movement as a way of communication and time travel through music. This work forms part of DANCING FUTURES, a residency celebrating its 10th anniversary.

Presented by Pepatián in partnership with BAAD! (Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance) Dancing Futures provides emerging Bronx-based and/or dance artists of color with valuable resources, performance opportunities, mentorship, and professional documentation to help foster and showcase new dance and performance work. Major support is provided by the Jerome Foundation.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/mosab-abu-toha-reading
November 4th, 10pm- 11:30pm EST, Virtual, Free

City Lights and Alfred A Knopf present Mosab Abu Toha reading poetry to celebrate the publication of
Forest of Noise: poems, published by Alfred A Knopf.

“A powerful, capacious, and profound” (Ocean Vuong) new collection of poems about life in Gaza by an award-winning Palestinian poet.

Barely thirty years old, Mosab Abu Toha was already a well-known poet when the current siege of Gaza began. After the Israeli army bombed and destroyed his house, pulverizing a library he had painstakingly built for community use, he and his family fled for their safety. Not for the first time in their lives.

Somehow, amid the chaos, Abu Toha kept writing poems. These are those poems. Uncannily clear, direct, and beautifully tuned, they form one of the most astonishing works of art wrested from wartime. Here are directives for what to do in an air raid; here are lyrics about the poet’s wife, singing to his children to distract them. Huddled in the dark, Abu Toha remembers his grandfather’s oranges, his daughter’s joy in eating them.

Moving between glimpses of life in relative peacetime and absurdist poems about surviving in a barely livable occupation, Forest of Noise invites a wide audience into an experience that defies the imagination—even as it is watched live. Abu Toha’s poems introduce readers to his extended family, some of them no longer with us. This is an urgent, extraordinary, and arrestingly whimsical book. Searing and beautiful, it brings us indelible art in a time of terrible suffering.

Mosab Abu Toha is a Palestinian poet, short-story writer, and essayist from Gaza. His first collection of poetry, Things You May Find Hidden in My Ear, published by City Lights, was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry and won the Palestine Book Award, the American Book Award, and the Walcott Poetry Prize. Abu Toha is also the founder of the Edward Said Library in Gaza, which he hopes to rebuild. He recently won an Overseas Press Club Award for his “Letter from Gaza” columns for The New Yorker.

Made possible by support from the City Lights Foundation.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/journey-of-a-refugee
November 2nd, 10:00am- 11:00am EDT, Virtual, Free

This event is part of the Yorkshire Festival of Story.

Journey of a Refugee is a powerful and moving production exploring the universal theme of people searching for a place they can call home.

Using a beautiful blend of puppetry and dance, this visually stunning piece of epic storytelling invites audiences to find compassion and humanity as they follow the journey of a refugee from their homeland to the UK.

A Theatre-Rites production, part of This is Croydon London Borough of Culture, and adapted from Theatre-Rites’ 2017/18 production The Welcoming Party co-produced with Manchester International Festival, Z-arts and the Ruhrtriennale Festival. Created in collaboration with Agudo Dance Company who delivered an extensive workshop programme.

“Powerful and stunning. A must-see piece of theatre.” – Adventures in Theatreland

“Gorgeous, politically engaged and beautifully crafted show.” – 4.5 stars – The Reviews Hub

“Unmissable! Vibrant, sensory, emotional.” – 5 stars – Everything Theatre

“Journey of a Refugee is a beautiful piece of work which sensitively explores ideas about asylum in an accessible way for youngsters, while providing important talking points for audiences of all ages.” – The Family Stage

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/black-disabled-proud
October 30th, 10:30am - 11:30am EDT, Virtual, Free

Act Up! Newham presents 'Black, Disabled and Proud' to celebrate Black History Month (in UK). An afternoon of entertainment written and directed by Act Up! Newham's Black artists, compered by Glory Sengo. Jade Sempare uses a well known song to explore the affects of staring on her everyday life; Awa Jagne takes the audience with her on her bus journey; Grace Fundu explores the meaning of beauty; and Glory Sengo entertains us with Congolese dance. Followed by a Q&A with the performers. Act Up! Newham is Together! 2012 CIC's Associate Drama Company.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/black-poetry-day
October 17th, 7:00pm-8:00pm EDT, Virtual, Free

Established in 1970, Black Poetry celebrates the advent of poetry by black poets in America with the birth of Jupiter Hammon, America’s first black poet, born on October 17, 1711, at the Lloyd Manor in Long Island.

Poets:

• Akua Lezli Hope

• Jaqueline Johnson

• Linda Addison

• Miguel Mitchell

will present their poetry live on Facebook via Zoom from 7 to 8 pm EST.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/Han-Qin-Little-Images
October 2nd, 10:30am-11:30am, EDT, Virtual, Free

Explore the current exhibition Han Qin: Little Images on a virtual tour with artist Han Qin and Joyce Raimondo, Education Coordinator. Inspired by the early works of Lee Krasner, Han Qin's exhibition Little Images confronts the idea of “home” as both a refuge and a restraint. Drawings, videos, sculptures, personal artifacts, and site-responsive installations illustrate Qin's own search for belonging, personally, artistically, and culturally. Han Qin is a visual artist, researcher, and art journalist based in Long Island, NY and Hangzhou, China. The exhibition is on view at the Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center, 830 Springs Fireplace Road, East Hampton, New York, through October 31, 2024.

Click Here to Register

Offered by the Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center

Virtual Programs Hosted by Joyce Raimondo

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/new-jeans-september
September 19th, 10:00pm-11:00pm, Virtual, $10

New Jeans, written, choreographed and directed by David Alonzo Jones, is as much a journey into avante garde musical theater as it is a stylish documentary on post revolutionary Cuba. It's theme song "Viva Cuba", is the hallmark refrain of the enduring spirit of the Cuban people. Songs "I'll Swim If I Have To" and "American Tourists" ring with the heartfelt frustration with Cuba's isolation and desperate need for commerce. Based on fact, Viva Cuba is a provocative blend of culture and expression presented in dance (African, Ballet, Modern, Jazz, Hip Hop, Salsa) to original songs. Viva Cuba is a captivating story told with hot Latin rhythms and an exuberant song and dance ensemble. Check out the website for the full list of available show dates.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/loving-corrections
September 11th, 9:00pm-10:30pm, Virtual, Free

adrienne maree brown in conversation with Matt McGorry

A discussion and reading centered upon the book Loving Corrections by adrienne maree brown, afterword by Janine de Novais, published by AK Press as part of the Emergent Strategy Series.

New York Times-bestselling author adrienne maree brown knows we need each other more than ever, and offers “loving corrections”: a roadmap towards collective power, righting wrongs, and true belonging.

This selection of prescient, compassionate essays explores patterns we engage in that are rooted in limited thinking. Through a lens of “loving correction” rather than mere critique, author adrienne maree brown helps us reimagine how to hold ourselves, our loved ones, and our communities accountable by setting clear boundaries, engaging in reflection, and nurturing honest relationships.

Along with allowing us more authentic access to ourselves and to each other, these “corrections” are intended to explore and break identity-based patterns including white supremacy, fragility, patriarchy, and ableism. brown also offers practical guidance on how to apologize and be accountable from our nuanced positions of power, history, and resources.

adrienne maree brown grows ideas in public. She is a student of the works of Octavia E. Butler and Ursula K. Le Guin. Some of her books include Emergent Strategy, Pleasure Activism, We Will Not Cancel Us, and the speculative fiction trilogy, Grievers. She is the editor of the Emergent Strategy Series.

Matthew David McGorry is an American actor. He is best known for playing John Bennett in the Netflix comedy-drama series Orange Is the New Black and Asher Millstone in the ABC legal thriller series How to Get Away with Murder.

Made possible by the support of the City Lights Foundation.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/free-verse-workshop-bipoc
September 3rd, 7:00pm-8:15pm, Virtual, Free

This workshop closely observes how normative medical language and languages of the body can be subverted to express the reality of living in a body with chronic illness, disability, or neurodivergence, "queering" language to reveal surprising and new ways to think about corporeality. We will observe work by Hala Alyan, Anthony Lombardi, Kay Ulanday Barrett, heidi andrea restrepo rhodes, Mia Mingus, Alice Wong, and more.

About the instructor: Ashna Ali is a Best-of-the-Net-nominated queer, disabled, and diasporic poet, writer, and educator raised in Italy and based in Brooklyn. Their work has been featured or is forthcoming in The Margins, Split This Rock, The Felt, Nat. Brut., Zoeglossia, and beyond. Their forthcoming collection, The Relativity of Living Well, documents the connections between the political neglect of the COVID pandemic in 2020 with contemporary struggles for Palestinian liberation and freedom from American fascism. They hold a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from The Graduate Center, City University of New York, and publish a weekly Substack newsletter called PAIN BABY.

This workshop is taught by and for Black, Indigenous, and other Persons of Color with an interest in poetry. We invite folks to connect in this safe, generative, BIPOC-centered space: to share work, experiences, and discourse. At the end of every workshop, we welcome the sharing of resources, such as literature, community events, and grants available for application. Respectfully and consensually connecting with other members outside of the space is encouraged. If you are not BIPOC-identifying, we kindly invite you to attend other PSNY events. While topics do not necessarily center around being BIPOC, this community space is designed specifically for the BIPOC experience. Attendees of our Monthly Free Workshops for BIPOC Creatives receive a 50% off discount code for our Weekly Virtual Workshops!

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/painting-for-palestine 
August 22nd, 2:00pm-4:00pm, Virtual, Donation

Painting for Palestine

In this reoccurring online watercolour course we will celebrate Palestinian culture and raise funds for Palestinian people.

Over two weeks, we will begin to explore the rich heritage of Palestine through art. Our first workshop will focus on painting flowers native to Palestine, while the second will delve into the intricate Tatreez embroidery technique.

This course is donation-based, with all funds going to Medical Aid for Palestinians.

Session 1: Wild Flowers of Palestine

Session 2: Palestinian Embroidery: The Tatreez Technique

Dates and Times
Thu, 22nd August 2024 19:00 - 21:00 GMT (2pm-4pm EDT)
Thu, 29th August 2024 19:00 - 21:00 GMT (2pm-4pm EDT)

Suggested donation: £20 /$25.81

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/criptic-arts-2024
August 15th, 2:30pm-4:00pm, Virtual, Free

Experience new work in development by our Launchpad artists in anticipation of our upcoming Fall show in this online sharing. These pieces, once developed, will be shown at the Barbican as part of The Acts.

2024 Launchpad artists will be sharing work-in-progress style excerpts of the pieces they are developing as part of the programme. These pieces, once developed, will be shown at the Barbican as part of The Acts. This is a chance for audiences to see the work as it’s made, but also to give feedback which will help the work develop.

The completed “Acts” comes to The Pit Theatre at the Barbican for 2 nights, Friday 8th & Saturday 9th November.

The individual acts:

A.C. Smith brings To Rose On Her 18th Birthday, a love letter written by a mother to her daughter as she reaches for joy after twice developing cancer, aware her daughter may have inherited the same genetic risk.

Stephen Bailey and ASYLUM Arts present the darkly comedic Autistic as Fuck, exploring the complexities and contradictions of neurodivergence, masking, and the ways we’re told we need to tell our stories for them to be seen by non-disabled audiences.

Peyvand Sadeghian & Matthew Robinson use immersive projections & material from the NASA archives of the 1969 Apollo 11 moon landing, to navigate awe, despair, wellness, and isolation in Over The Moon (working title).

Hugh Maylon & Steve Sowden intertwine classical myth with knotty reality, taking us to the seaside long after the holidays have ended in the liminal and unreal Humetheus and the Quest for the Bronze Cloak.

The Acts has been made possible with the support of Arts Council England & The Barbican Centre.

Access Information

• Auto-captions

• BSL Interpretation

• Integrated AD

• Rest break

Please note this event contains swearing, and references to death, loss and cancer.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/saba-husain
August 8th, 8:15pm-10:00pm, Virtual, Free

BookWoman 2nd Thursday poetry is delighted to welcome Saba Husain as our feature on Thursday, August 8, 2024 from 8:15 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. EDT. This will be a Zoom-only event.

Saba Husain is a Pakistani-American poet from Houston. Her debut poetry collection, Elegy for My Tongue, was published by Terrapin Books in 2023. She has work in Barrow Street, Cimarron Review, On the Seawall, Puerto del Sol, Southern Poetry Anthology, Third Coast, The Shore, and elsewhere. Saba is a 2023 Pushcart Prize nominee, a 2023 Perugia Press finalist, and a 2021 and 2020 X.J. Kennedy Poetry Prize finalist. She works a day job and has served on the board of Mutabilis Press since 2019. Saba earned a B.A. in Creative Writing from University of Houston.

Cindy Huyser hosts; an open mic follows.

Please be sure to log into Zoom with your email address and password before accessing the event. EventBrite registration is required.

Contact BookWoman to order your copy of Elegy for My Tongue and other titles for in-store pickup, curbside delivery and direct-from-warehouse shipping: bookwomanaustin@gmail.com; (512)472-2785; https://ebookwoman.com .

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/baldwin-in-paris
August 3rd, 1:00pm-3:00pm, Virtual, $0-$15

Join us for a virtual watch party as we explore the captivating world of James Baldwin in Paris.

"A portrait of James Baldwin, one of the towering figures of 20th-century American literature, Black culture and political thought, filmed in Paris. The iconic writer is captured in many symbolic locations in Paris, where he was living at the time."

The 28-minute documentary is stressful to watch. I think it needs to be watched in community because your body goes through so much when you’re watching it. It presents the tension between two people (the documentarian and the author) and the tension between two concepts (consumerism and humanity) James Baldwin models grace, defends his love ethic, and stays committed to sharing his truth. He stays aligned to his purpose. We are writers and storytellers looking to share our truth with the world. It’s important to me that we see how our ancestors stood tall as they wrote. Writers love to write and know how to form their craft, but do we know how to say, “how I tell me story is more important than your expectation of it.”

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/black-snafu
July 17th, 8:00pm-9:00pm, Virtual, Free

Santa Fe Workshops’ collection of free online events, Creativity Continues, features an evening this summer with photo-based artist André Ramos-Woodard (he/they). André uses their work to emphasize the experiences of marginalized communities while highlighting the repercussions of contemporary and historical discrimination. His art explores ideas of communal and personal identity, influenced by his direct experiences as a queer African American raised in Tennessee and Texas. Focusing on Black liberation, queer justice, and the reality of mental health, he aspires for his art to help bring power to the people.

During this program, André discusses the relationship between raw emotion and image making. André has been a crybaby for as long as they can remember; from forgetting their homework as a kid to watching those cheesy videos of families reuniting as an adult, they’ve never been able to shake those tears! André is just an emotional-ass person. For a long time, they considered it a substantial weakness within their personhood. In reality, all that crying was coming from a person who cared deeply for the people he loved.

Today, André channels their emotions into the themes behind their work. André uses his artwork to storytell, teach, and question ideas regarding historically marginalized communities–pushing these realities to the forefront of a world plagued by misogyny, anti-queerness, and white supremacy. During this Creativity Continues, André will share work from his mixed-media project BLACK SNAFU, investigating the reason he felt compelled to create the series and critique pop-culture, and why he believes it is important for people–especially marginalized people–to create from real, raw, doggone emotions.

At the end of their presentation, André takes questions from the webinar audience. A recorded segment of the live event will be available for all those registered.

Selected for Silver Eye’s inaugural 2021 Silver List and a two-time Finalist for Photolucida’s Critical Mass (in 2020 and 2023), André has shown their work at various institutions across the United States, including the Tamarind Institute–Albuquerque, New Mexico, the Museum of Fine Arts Houston–Houston, Texas, Leon Gallery–Denver, Colorado, and FILTER Photo–Chicago, Illinois. He received his BFA from Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas, and his MFA at The University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Creativity Continues is a program that collectively develops creative voices by offering connection and encouraging expression. Because the goal is to engage all within our creative community, we encourage you to extend invitations and share Santa Fe Workshops Creativity Continues events with anyone who expresses an interest.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/ilyas-mao
July 13th, 9:00am-10:00am, Virtual, Free

Hello from Canada!

Ilyas Mao, a globally influenced artist born in Somalia and raised in Pakistan and Canada, uniquely blends traditional and modern influences in his music.

He’s known for pioneering the use of his voice and mouth to create soundtracks for films, documentaries, and cartoons, with one of his songs featured in the prestigious Apple TV+ series, “Little America.”

With over 50 million streams online, Ilyas excels as a singer, songwriter, composer, producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He founded Vocal Tunez, a pioneering A Cappella production house, collaborating with industry giants.

His music resonates worldwide, and his dynamic stage presence connects with diverse audiences, pushing the boundaries of creativity in the arts.

Hosted by: Asma Younas, host and radio presenter

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/blessings-a-novel
July 11th, 9:00pm-11:00pm, Virtual, Free

City Lights and Doubleday Books celebrate the publication of Blessings: a novel by Chukwuebuka Ibeh, published by Doubleday.

Moonlight meets Purple Hibiscus in this searing debut of self-acceptance, sexual awakening, and first love set in a Nigeria on the verge of criminalizing same-sex relationships.

Obiefuna has always been the black sheep of his family—sensitive where his father, Anozie, is pragmatic, a dancer where his brother, Ekene, is a natural athlete. But when Obiefuna’s father witnesses an intimate moment between his teenage son and another boy, his deepest fears are confirmed, and Obiefuna is banished to boarding school. As he navigates his new school’s strict hierarchy and unpredictable violence, Obiefuna both finds and hides who he truly is. Back home, his mother, Uzoamaka, must contend with the absence of her beloved son, her husband’s cryptic reasons for sending him away, and the hard truths that they’ve all been hiding from. As Nigeria teeters on the brink of criminalizing same-sex relationships, Obiefuna’s identity becomes more dangerous than ever before, and the life he wants drifts further out of reach. Set in post-military Nigeria and culminating in the Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act of 2013, Blessings is an elegant and exquisitely moving story that asks how to live freely in a country that forbids one’s truest self, and what it takes for love to flourish despite it all.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Chukwuebuka Ibeh is a writer from Port Harcourt, Nigeria, born in 2000. His writing has appeared in McSweeneys, New England Review of Books and Lolwe, amongst others, and he is a staff writer at Brittle Paper. He was the runner-up for the 2021 J.F. Powers Prize for Fiction, was a finalist for the Gerald Kraak Award, and was profiled as one of the “Most Promising New Voices of Nigerian Fiction” by Electric Literature. He has studied creative writing under Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Dave Eggers, and Tash Aw, and is currently a an MFA student at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

francesca ekwuyasi is a is a learner, artist and storyteller born in Lagos, Nigeria. She was awarded the Writers Trust Dayne Ogilvie Prize for LGBTQ2S+ Emerging Writers in 2022 for her debut novel Butter Honey Pig Bread (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2020). Butter Honey Pig Bread was also shortlisted for a Lambda Literary Award, the Governor General’s Literary Award for Fiction, the Amazon Canada First Novel Award and longlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and the Dublin Literary Award. Butter Honey Pig Bread placed second on CBC’s Canada Reads: Canada’s Annual Battle of the Books, where it was selected as one of five contenders in 2021 for “the one book that all of Canada should read.” francesca’s writing has appeared in the Malahat Review, Transition Magazine, Room Magazine, Brittle Paper, the Ex-Puritan, C-Magazine, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, Canadian Art, Chatelain and elsewhere. Her short story Ọrun is Heaven was longlisted for the 2019 Journey Prize. She co-authored Curious Sounds: A Dialogue in Three Movements (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2023), a multi-genre collaborative book with Roger Mooking.

Named one of USA Today, Esquire, & Cosmopolitan's most anticipated books of 2024

“Chukwuebuka Ibeh’s writing has a certain delicacy to it, so wonderfully observant, and so beautiful.” —Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, author of Americanah and Purple Hibiscus

“Blessings is a stunning and exceptionally moving story of love, shame, redemption and fierce familial bonds. In sublime, evocative prose and from alternating points of view, Ibeh tells the story of Uzoamaka and Obiefuna as mother and son come to transformative realizations about themselves and each other. Ibeh has an elegant and passionate way with language, from the depictions of the Nigerian cultural landscape and its tense reckonings with queerness to the gorgeous mundanities of the protagonists’ home lives and the various dynamics of religion, class, and schoolboyhood. I’m grateful that this beautiful book exists, and I will return to it again and again as if for the first time.” —Francesca Ekwuyasi, author of Butter Honey Pig Bread

“Blessings is as raw and heart-wrenching as it is beautiful and delicate. A masterfully executed story about love, faith and sexuality that clenches your heart and doesn’t let go until the very last page. Ibeh is a once in a lifetime talent!” —Elvin James Mensah, author of Small Joys

“A sublime coming-of-age tale… An extraordinarily composed and deeply felt debut.”

—The Guardian

“There is music to the way Chukwuebuka Ibeh writes. There is balance. Blessings pulled me into a world I’m extremely unfamiliar with, yet somehow made it comfortable, even resonant. The intimate storytelling, the powerful dialogue, and the well-paced narrative all made it one hell of a heartbreakingly joyous read. Each chapter of this debut novel enthralled me, pushing me to the next, eager to share the road with its unforgettable protagonist right up to the ending, which made me want to start from the beginning again. On top of it all, Ibeh has provided a meaningful representation of queer Nigerians—one that opens borders and breaks barriers. An opportunity for many not only to see what Obiefuna and his mother see, but also to feel what they feel. Run, don’t walk, to get this book.” —Danny Ramadan, author of The Foghorn Echoes

"Wow—what a debut! I was left feeling heartbroken yet hopeful. Chukwuebuka Ibeh is a beautiful writer." —Taylor-Dior Rumble, author of The Situationship

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/virtual-hip-hop-homelands
June 26th, 8:00pm-9:00pm, Virtual, Free

Dance Artists Lotus Bomb & Janice Tomlinson expand on their 2023 work-in-progress collaborative project with "Are You Having Fun? Yes, Yes I Am" as part of Pepatian's 6th annual Hip-Hop Homelands initiative.

Hip-Hop Homelands aims to amplify and support artists of color and the Bronx dance community. Funding is generously provided by public funds from the Department of Cultural Affairs, the New York State Council on the Arts, and individual donors to Pepatián.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Janice Tomlinson (she/her) was born and raised in the Bronx. She graduated from CUNY Hunter College with a baccalaureate degree in Biology and Dance. In addition, she has a BSN in nursing and also works as a Registered Nurse. Janice has a dance background in hip-hop, West African, reggae, dancehall, jazz, ballet, contemporary, and modern. She also trained and performed abroad in Spain and Switzerland. She has worked with many brilliant artists including legendary B-girl Rokafella, Kwikstep, & the Full Circle Souljahs, Robin Dunn, Doug Varone & Dancers, and Marjani Forté-Saunders. Janice has presented her own choreographic works at Pregones Theatre, BAAD! Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance, Triskelion Arts, Alvin Ailey Studios, Peridance’s Salvatore Capezio Theater, STEPS on Broadway Studio Theater, and Dance New Amsterdam. Ultimately, Janice aims to combine her passions for dance and nursing in order to narrow the gaps in healthcare disparities. She strongly believes dance can be used as a vehicle for change and, along with nursing, she hopes to make a positive impact on the public health system.

Alexamarie “Lotus Bomb” Alerte born in Manhattan and raised in Long Island, NY; started her dance career at the bright young age of 2 years old at her local dance studio. Lotus has since acquired a fundamental Ballet Technique from the most prestigious school on the eastern coast including: Dance Theatre of Harlem, Alvin Ailey, and Broadway Dance Center. Throughout her career, Lotus has studied foundations of Hip- Hop, Modern, and Contemporary Jazz driving her to fall in love with Street Style dances such as Krump, Flexn, and House. Through the street styles, she became particularly attached to Krump finding a different form of freedom.

Humbly starting her Krump career within her local community of Concrete City in 2017; her hunger for more knowledge peaked once learning from an East Coast Krump Legend, Spartan, where she later joined his Krump Fam. Since, she has created a name for herself, using a combination of styles acquired to create a unique experience as she engages in battles, performances, and videos. Lotus has demonstrated dedication to cross breeding her styles in all movement asked of her.

Even though Lotus is known for her outrageously bright hair and unmatched movement, she has become more and more vocal in Women’s Safety in the dance industry. Featured on panels discussions, board meetings and interviews openly discussing her bold position of combatting sexual harassment within the dance industry. She hopes to continue that discussion openly and has gone as far as creating a full brand, Been Dat Bihhh, that creates a safe space for all artists especially women and LGBTQI+ Community to create with a peace of mind.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/juneteenth-art
June 19th, 4:00pm-5:30pm, Virtual, Free

This exhibition commemorates Freedom Day! Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when some 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas. The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state, were free by executive decree. This day came to be known as "Juneteenth," by the newly freed people in Texas.

Artists of the world join in celebrating the enduring spirit of Juneteenth through their powerful artistic expressions. For nearly 160 years, Juneteenth has commemorated the end of slavery in the United States - a pivotal moment that represented the promise of freedom, human dignity, and equal rights for all. Its significance was further acknowledged when President Joe Biden declared Juneteenth a federal holiday in 2021, ensuring this day receives the national recognition it deserves.

Some of the 27 artists will be present to speak about their works and answer any questions from the attendees. This is the first of four Gallery Talks.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/voices-of-palestinian-women
June 14th, 10:00am-11:30am, Virtual, Free

ADHUC-Research Centre of Theory, Gender and Sexuality at the University of Barcelona and the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. With the support of the UNESCO Chair Women, Development and Cultures organize the online literary series "Voices of Palestinian Women Authors." Our project is a semi-academic reading sessions directed to people interested in literature and Palestine, and it is open to university attendees and general audience.

This series aims to provide a prominent platform to showcase and explore a curated selection of works, primarily literary, by Palestinian women authors. Throughout each session, we will delve into various aspects of Palestinian culture, history, and contemporary reality, utilizing literature and the arts as key vehicles to understand the diverse voices and perspectives of Palestinian women.

Each one and a half hour session will consist of an interactive conversation where participants will have the opportunity to discuss and analyze the selected book. Sessions will take place online at 16h 17:30h / Barcelona. 10-11:30h / ECT 17-18:30h Jerusalem / 15-16:30h London.

EVENT LINK: https://tinyurl.com/things-we-dare-not-do
June 10th, 3:00pm-5:00pm, Virtual, Free

This event is online and in-person. Join the Pelham Parkway-Van Nest Library for a free screening of "Things We Dare Not Do.”

Program Description

In the small Mexican coastal village of El Roblito, 16-year-old Ñoño lives what seems to be an idyllic existence with his loving family. But he holds a secret. Defying gender norms, Ñoño works up the courage to tell his family he wants to live his life as a woman. Yet when violence interrupts a community celebration, he must face the reality of a country shrouded in machismo and transphobia.

Directed by Bruno Santamaría and Abril López Carillo and Andrea Rabasa

Run time: 1 Hour and 11 minutes