PoughETRY Fest 2023 is here!

PoughETRY Fest 2023, celebrating its 6th year, will be held Saturday, April 22nd, 12 Pm to 8 Pm Est. as an in-person event at the Cunneen-Hackett Theatre (12 Vassar St. Poughkeepsie, NY) and at Reason&Ruckus
(305 Main Street) located in the heart of Poughkeepsie on Main Street.

To continue to engage the online audience that has participated in our past virtual programming, PoughETRY Fest, online, will take a look back at our past five years and post throughout the month of April highlighting participants poetic contributions and celebrating poetry month.

Curated and created by the 2017 & 2018 Dutchess CountyPoet Laureate -Poet Gold, PoughETRY Fest is a one-day festival, free, and open to the public highlighting the art of poetry both written and spoken, as well as poets of the Hudson Valley and beyond.

Spelled, P-o-u-g-h-E-T-R-Y, to signify where the Poet Gold resides, Poughkeepsie, NY in the Mid-Hudson Valley, PoughETRY Fest 2023, proclamation by the former Mayor of Poughkeepsie and now Senator –Rob Rolison, is where visitors experience the spirit and diverse voices reflected in today’s poetry.

Please support our GoFundMe. Thank You!!

PoughETRY Fest 2023

New year, new format!
Scroll over the performances you are interested in seeing and read all about the event and learn more about the artists and their beginnings!
Don’t forget our events are occurring at two locations: The Cunneen Hackett Art Center and Reason & Ruckus - both located in Poughkeepsie!
Please support our GoFundMe

12 Pm – 2 Pm
Youth Open Mic and Workshop – Hosted by Daniel Villegas, Teaching Artist/Performer. Open to youth of all ages, giving students the opportunity to relate to poetry that is relevant to them allowing exploration of the craft through combining words and beatboxing and to discover contemporary poetry in a meaningful way.
Co-hosted by Miguel Sanchez aka “Lito Koqui,” Poughkeepsie local poet and hip-hop artist.

1 Pm – 2:15 Pm
Self-Publishing with Myael Christopher Simpkins, CEO of Transcendental Expressions. Are you thinking about publishing your own body of work?Learn about the self-publishing process – How to get started; The stages of publication; The cost factors; The role of the self-publishing team.
Myael Christopher Simpkins is known as the Renaissance Artist of Dutchess County. Myael is the author of 4 published books: Emancerian Chronicles: Signs of the First Emancer, The Poetic Stylings of Myael Simpkins, Emancerian Chronicles: Why We Fear the Shadows, and A Charcoal Pencil and Graphic Art Portfolio.

“Blueprint For My People” directed by Carol Bash award-winning documentary film maker. Blueprint For My People, a short film that illuminates the African-American experience by lyrically weaving spoken-word narration of Margaret Walker’s epic poem, “For My People” with contemporary images and rare 19th century cyanotypes (blue photographic prints known as ‘blueprints’). Features the voices of award-winning spoken word artists, Poet Gold, and Richard “Braf” Braithwaite.
Opening film “Say Theirs Names” directed by Paul Thompson, co-directed by Poet Gold, produced by Suprina Troche and Poet Gold featuring “Sounds of Heritage”Special Guest Poetic Performance by Jakira “Jak” Kellogg –Jakira Kellogg, affectionately known as “JAK,” is the reflection that can turn an eye to an I, where she has the uncanny ability to make complex topics easily digestible.Both her poems “Chronicles of a Convicted Felon” and “Life’s Menstrual Cycles” have been published in Mercy Colleges Red Hyacinth Journal. Aside from publishing an anthology, her main goal is to connect people back to themselves through her writing. Even if it’s just for a moment.

4:00 Pm – 5:45 Pm
LGBTQ Open Mic featuring Pamela Sneed– Hosted by Jay “Jay Bird” Herman. Jay Bird brings their dedication for love and justice together through poetry and the spoken word. They have hosted the PoughETRY Fest LGBTQ Open Mic since its inception.
Featuring Pamela Sneed author of Sweet Dreams and Funeral Diva which was featured in The New York Times and won the 2021 Lambda Lesbian Poetry Award. She is the recipient of a 2023 Creative Capital grant in literature.

6 Pm – 8 Pm
Calling All Poets (CAPS) Open Mic (a 501c3 poetry org) is designed to give emerging poets the opportunity to share their work in a public forum.

YOU …

are the reason why the PoughETRY Fest is on its 6th Year! Click here to visit our Go Fund Me Page and help us reach our goal! Donate as you wish or become a sponsor and join our sponsorship family!