It is April. There are still patches of snow in sight, but the warmth of the sun is bliss. It feels like spring is finally here. And what a perfect time to be inspired by new writers, new writing, and new venues for literary happenings, and to compile a spring roundup of literary events. 

The events I’ve selected are mostly in Montreal, and since I’m sure more events will be announced after I’ve written this, do check back on Where Poets Read, along with other places with literary events posted — such as QWF and La Poésie Partout — for the latest news. In fact, April has already welcomed a celebration at Afromusée for Linda Leith Publishing’s relaunch of Mairuth Sarsfield’s 1993 novel No Crystal Stair, plus the launch of the online magazine, Font. Online, the League of Canadian Poets hosted a reading by new members in Quebec. Among those readers, Montreal-based poet David Bradford heard the news this month that he has made the Canadian shortlist for the prestigious Griffin Poetry Prize! And yesterday was Poem in Your Pocket Day/ La Journée du poème à porter! What a start to poetry month. Now, let’s take a look at where readings will be popping up around town, like green buds bursting through the damp earth after a long winter…

SAVE THE DATES

April 22 5 pm (online)

fluid vessels presents an online reading with Medrie Purdham, Michael Trussler, and Liz Howard. This reading is part of an online reading series presented by the Montreal International Poetry Prize (deadline to enter: May 15) and with more information on all the readings here. Plus, Liz Howard has just been shortlisted for the Griffin Poetry Prize – an online reading not to miss!

Event poster for Fluid Vessels, with Medrie Purdham, Michael Trussler, and Liz Howard.

April 23, 8pm at Mainline Theatre

The Words & Music Show is back in person, with performances by Sam Shalabi, Nisha Coleman, John Arthur Sweet, Dark Sky Preserve (Louise Campbell, Ian Ferrier), and Alasdair Rees. Tickets $10.

BLUE METROPOLIS

At the end of the month, Blue Metropolis Literary Festival gets underway, first online and then in person. Do check out the full program, but here are a few events worth highlighting: 

May 6, 9:30 pm at Hotel 10 (Blue Met)

ORAL/TRANS/MISSIONS | A performance retrospective by Clifton Joseph (yes, hear the legendary Clifton Joseph live in Montreal!). A night not to be missed, this event will be hosted by Atwater Poetry Project curator Faith Paré and co-sponsored by SpokenWeb.

Image from the event description of ORAL/TRANS/MISSIONS.

May 6, 11 am at Hotel 10 (Blue Met)

As part of the Blue Metropolis Professional Space and presented by the Association of English-Language Publishers of Quebec, check out Reimagining Book Promotion for a New Era, with Ryan B. Patrick (CBC), Sruti Islam (Weird Era), Gregory McCormick (Writers off the Page), Aude Le Dubé (De Stiil), and moderated by Chris DiRaddo. Tickets $7.

May 8, 10 am at Hotel 10 (Blue Met)

Weird Age, Imminent Selves | Consciences neuves pour vies chamboulées, with Tawhida Tanya Evanson, Caroline Dawson and Elkahna Talbi (English and French).  

May 8, 2:30 pm at McCord Museum (Blue Met)

Right on Time: Queer Eras, Queer Writing, with Olivia Tapiero, Helen Chau Bradley, Christopher DiRaddo and Tomson Highway for a conversation around what writing while queer has been, is, and could be moving forward. Tickets $7. 

May 8, 3 pm at Hotel 10 (Blue Met)

sounding undernames: a reading, with Faith Paré, Carlos A. Pittella and Klara du Plessis, and moderated by me, Katherine McLeod. Yes,I am biased in recommending this one, but it will be on the terrasse of Hotel 10. A reading on a terrasse — I’ve been looking forward to this all winter!

Interested in literary walking tours? Check out the tours offered throughout the festival.

ON THE ROAD

Montrealers Kaie Kellough, Martha Wainwright, Kim Thúy, and Aimee Wall will be in Moncton, New Brunswick, reading at the Frye Festival in late April. 

In mid-May, academics and poets will be flocking to Montreal for the ACCUTE (Association for Canadian College and University Teachers of English) conference. Keep an eye out for readings or performances popping up that week, or if you feel like registering for the conference itself, there is a lot to check out!

WHERE ARE POETS READING?

When I saw a poster for a reading on May 12 at 8:30pm with Kasia Van Schaik and Aaron Kreuter at Bar Notre Dame Des Quilles, I thought: I don’t know if I’ve heard of a reading there, but what a great place to host one. (Have you been to Bar NDQ? It’s the bar with fabulous music and bowling lanes where you reset your own pins, plus it’s across the street from Pizza Bouquet.) That got me thinking: we, as a city, are in yet another stage of re-opening and re-emerging this spring — what venues have been born over the winter, or are ready to be reborn?

Oana Avasilichioaei at Resonance Reading Series at the Resonance Cafe. (Photo: Katherine McLeod)

During the pandemic, we said goodbye to classic literary venues such as La Vitrola and Resonance Café (which had been home to the Resonance Reading Series). And yet both of these venues have been reborn, as La Casona and Kawalees respectively. 

Venues living on and ready for poetry are places like Dépanneur Café (plus their L’Annexe Dépanneur Café), Brasserie Beaubien, Mainline Theatre, Bar Le Ritz PDB, Théâtre St-Catherine, La Petite Marche, and La Sala Rossa. 

At Concordia, 4th SPACE has been hosting quite a few hybrid literary events in collaboration with Writers Read and more. 

But where else can poets read? 

Rumours! Behind Anteism Books, there’s a space to check out at 435 Beaubien. Word has it that Rocket Science Room might return, and that Ursa might have a few readings upcoming.

Where else can we read? The park! Did you ever notice that many parks in Montreal have mini-amphitheatres? Both Parc Beaubien and Parc Drolet were locations for lovely readings last summer. 

Keep an eye on when Théâtre de Verdure finishes its renovations in Parc La Fontaine. 

Want to be inspired by Théâtre de Verdure and L’Entrepot77? Watch Oana Avasilichioaei‘s video, Tracking Animal, recorded alone in these spaces in 2020. Which brings me to one more outdoor venue…

L’Entrepôt77 — last summer, so many impromptu arts performances happened here, and their popularity has made it so that there is now a way to reserve the space. Get in touch with the organizers for more! (Or hold a reading under the trees in the park across the street from it.)

Where poets read in the city of Montreal is always changing. Share where you think poets are, or should be, reading by writing to wherepoetsread@gmail.com — and I’ll share your suggestions — or get in touch with AELAQ on social media.

Where Poets Read is Katherine McLeod. She started Where Poets Read in 2016 when she was compiling lists of readings for her poetry students at Concordia, and realized that her lists were a valuable resource for those wanting to seek out where poets are reading. Since then, she has kept updating the lists as a form of sharing, archiving, and community-building. As an academic researching recordings of poetry readings, the producer of the literary series ShortCuts on The SpokenWeb Podcast, and a dancer of poems, Katherine has always been interested in the places where live art happens and the stories of those places. Follow her posts here and here. 

Illustration by Todd Stewart

The post Spring Readings, A Roundup appeared first on Read Quebec.

Please note that due to unforeseen circumstances, this event, originally scheduled for November 17th,  has been rescheduled for Saturday, November 20th, at 7 PM. We apologize for any inconvenience this might cause, and hope to see you then!

Saturday, November 20, 2021, 7 p.m.

Online on Zoom, registration required (see below for details)

Iconic Quebec writer, novelist, playwright, and poet Marie-Claire Blais will discuss her novel Songs for Angel as well as the process of translation with Katia Grubisic, who rendered Des chants pour Angel into English.

The ninth novel in internationally acclaimed author Marie-Claire Blais’s extraordinary Soifs cycle, Songs for Angel is an impassioned interrogation of violence and hate that takes us into the soul of a white supremacist on the verge of a racist attack.

The conversation will take place in English and in French on Zoom. Sign-up here, the Zoom information will be emailed to you prior to the event.

Read more about and purchase a copy of Marie-Claire Blais’s Songs for Angel, translated by Katia Grubisic.

Explore other 2021 Holiday Book Fair events here, and discover more English-language books written, published, or translated in Quebec at ReadQuebec.ca.

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En raison de circonstances imprévues, l’événement Marie-Claire Blais en conversation avec Katia Grubisic qui était prévu pour le 17 novembre, sera reporté à samedi, le 20 novembre à la même heure, 19 h. Nous vous prions de bien vouloir nous excuser pour tout inconvénient que cela peut vous causer.

Samedi 20 novembre 2021, à 19 h.

En ligne sur Zoom, inscription obligatoire (voir ci-dessous pour tous les détails).

Parmi les grandes écrivaines québécoises, la romancière, dramaturge et poète Marie-Claire Blais parlera de son roman Songs for Angel et du processus de traduction avec Katia Grubisic, écrivaine, poète et traductrice, qui signe cette version anglaise de Des chants pour Angel.

Ce neuvième roman de l’extraordinaire cycle Soifs de l’auteure de renommée internationale Marie-Claire Blais, Songs for Angel est une interrogation passionnée sur la violence et la haine qui nous plonge dans l’âme d’un suprémaciste blanc suite à une fusillade.

La conversation aura lieu en anglais et en français sur Zoom. Inscription obligatoire ici, les informations Zoom vous seront envoyées par courriel avant l’événement.

Pour en savoir plus et achetez un exemplaire de Songs for Angel de Marie-Claire Blais, traduit par Katia Grubisic, cliquez ici.

Consultez le reste de notre programmation « Holiday Book Fair » 2021, et découvrez d’autres livres de langue anglaise écrits, publiés ou traduits au Québec sur ReadQuebec.ca.

The post Marie-Claire Blais in conversation with Katia Grubisic appeared first on Read Quebec.