I'm opening at for Riverwood's Last Hurrah! Music, then Poetry

The Riverwood Festival has quite a line up for this year!  Check out the poster on the right, which lists the events the venues, the poets - and the many open mics.

This year I will be opening at the Last Hurrah at the City Steam Brewry hosted by Kathryn Kelly.   Starting around 6PM I will be playing a few tunes. At 6:30 the poetry begins. I will read for around 20 minutes followed the fabulous poet John Surowiecki - That's on Sunday, June 27, 942 Main Street in Hartford. A "MEGA" open mic is planned as well.

"Twice before I was asked, but this will be my first appearance there."

// UPDATE AND ASIDE: Actually this is apparently NOT TRUE.  My previous invites were for the CONNECITCUT BEAT FESTIVAL. THIS last one WAS FOR THE RIVERWOOD. I had thought they were the same but apparently they are not at all, though for a while they seemed to converge..... ///

In 2008 Tom Nicotera asked me to read at the venue he was running for the festival.  I accepted and  two days before my scheduled date, my 34 year old boss, friend and music director/mentor suddenly died. We were all in shock. He wasn't' ill. To boot,  for his funeral, I had to learn the mezzo soloist part to a quartet from  the Mozart Requiem  and I only had three days to do it. (I am not a quick study really at this sort of thing.)  Depressed and stressed out, I asked Anne Marie Marra to read in my place. She was a big hit, as she always was and she had a great time.

In 2009,  Yvon Cormier asked if I'd read  at the Outlaw Poets venue - (How cool is that!)  but that March Anne Marie Marra died.  The date of the reading was the same as a memorial gathering for Anne Marie. This gathering given by her brother Reggie, was held on her birthday in June. It was a terrible loss for us all as we'd also lost poet Terry McLain the previous November.And I had lost Rob the year before.  I was really numb and  I needed to be there at the gathering fully present, not thinking about reading or having to rush off to perform.

So this year, Kathryn Kelly kindly asked me if I would read some poems and also add a little music to the festival's Last Hurrah event.  SOOOO  if I live that long - and though the creek may rise, and winds blow  --- I WILL BE THERE on June 27th to read some poems  and play a few tunes at the Festival's last Hurrah at the City Steam Brewery! WooHoo!

The details of the Last Hurrah: