The Tucson Poetry Festival celebrates its 28th year with the theme  Poetry Where You Are. They plan on addressing the questions, “Where does poetry reside? What makes it vital to our everyday lives? How can we bring poetry out of the classroom and the library and into the world around us?” I would add, how do we tell our stories with poetry?

Friday, April 2, opens with readings at the Club Congress followed by the Grand Slam, billed as” the biggest Slam Poetry event that Tucson has ever seen”.  If you’ve never been to a slam (or even if you have), be prepared to be amazed!

Saturday, April 3, brings more readings and workshops with poets  Manuel Paul Lopez, Gypsee Yo, Linda Russo, and Sonya Renee, and a panel moderated by Paul Fisher.  See the schedule of events for times and locations.

Events are at Club Congress, Tucson High Library and Casa Libre.  You can buy a festival pass at the venues for the whole weekend for $25 or pay for individual events.  The High School readings and panel discussion are free.

The Festival is co-sponsored by Ocotillo Literary Endeavor and POG. For more information, contact mewakamatsu@msn.com