Within Words We Are One
Below are the expected dates of regular shows, barring unforeseen circumstances and federal holidays, there are many opportunities to read your poetry and hear spoken word performers in Solano County, ranging from all ages to 21+ events. Always check official Facebook pages and websites closer …
Happy New Year! If you are looking for opportunities in the new year to perform your poetry and spoken word at open mics in Vallejo, Fairfield, or Benicia we’ve got you covered. Perform your poetry at open mics in Solano County and connect with a …
Due to winter holidays in the month of December many open mics may not be holding performances. Please confirm details with individual event hosts closer to the date.
Tue., Dec. 3 – First Tuesday Poets, Benicia Library, Dona Benicia Room, 6:15 cookies and social time, Open Mic, 6:30-8:30, hosted by Benicia Poet Laureate Katrina Monroe, 150 East L Street, Benicia, CA
Saturday, December 7th – 4:00-6:00pm – Save the Date for an ekphrastic with Fairfield-Suisun City Visual Arts Association Gallery- Solano Town Center Mall, 350 Travis Blvd, Suite D-8, Fairfield, CA 94533
Sun, December 08, 2024 – 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM PST – Poetic Medicine Circle with John Fox at Rush Ranch. 3521 Grizzly Island Rd, Suisun City, CA 94585 Partial fee scholarships available. Register here.
Tea House Poetry will meet on December 8th 2:00-4:00 PM, hosted by Amana and Indi.
Sunday, December 8th – 6 PM Three Rooms Press presents 2024 SF ¡DADA! DO SALON A Highly Eclectic DADA Performance Event plus the official San Francisco launch of MAINTENANT 18: Journal of Contemporary DADA Writing and Art at SPEC’S Twelve Adler Museum Cafe located at 12 William Saroyan Place, North Beach, San Francisco. The line-up features renowned contempoarary DADA artists from the Bay Area and beyond including Youssef Alaoui, Mahnaz Badihian, Allison Davis, Carol Dorf, D. L. Lang, Jon Longhi, Richard Loranger, Robyn Mallory, Marina Solé, Rich Stone, Barbara Vos, and Lorene Zarou-Zouzounis. Three Rooms Press co-founders and MAINTENANT editors Peter Carlaftes and Kat Georges host.
Come to Alibi Bookshop on December 15th from 3:30 PM – 5 PM for the Youth Poetry Letters Book Party at Alibi Bookshop in Vallejo. 624 Marin Street. Celebrate the release of the Youth Poetry Letters: Pencils and Dreams: Young Vallejo Poets Share Their World, an anthology edited by Vallejo Poets Laureate Jacalyn Eyvonne and Kathleen Herrmann.
Art Beat Poetry Hour will be meeting on the third Thursday, December 19th, due to national and religious holidays. It shall return to 4th Thursdays after the new year. Show up at 1026 Georgia Street in Vallejo by 10:15 AM to read live on air. You can listen to the broadcast at worldwide via https://tunein.com/radio/Ozcat-Radio-895-s130679/
Sunday, December 29th – 2 PM – Integrity Poetry Party at 717 Marin Street. Poetry open mic and live music.
December 6 – Fairfield’s annual tree lighting in front of the Solano County government building at 675 Texas St. Poet Laureate Suzanne Bruce will be sharing a poem.
December 7 – Vallejo’s annual Mad Hatter Holiday parade. Vallejo Poet Laureate Jacalyn Eyvonne will be sharing poetry. For more details visit hattervallejo.com
Saturday, December 14 – Benicia Literary Arts Annual Holiday Party at the Estey Real Estate office located at 216 First Street in downtown Benicia. Look out for details to come via the Benicia Literary Arts website.
Saturday, December 21st – 1:00-3:00pm – Fairfield Poet Laureate Suzanne Bruce will be holding a December Cultural Celebrations poetry open mic on December 21, 2024 from 1-3 PM at 5050 Business Center Drive, Fairfield, CA. Check her site for more details.
December 26 – Fairfield’s annual Hanukkah lighting with Chabad of Solano in front of the Solano County government building at 675 Texas St. Poet Laureate Suzanne Bruce will be sharing a poem, and Hadas Daniel will be translating it into Hebrew. Visit jewishsolano.com for more Hanukkah events around the county.
We recommend you join our mailing list and follow us on social media to stay in the loop about other poetry events where you can perform your poetry that may pop up throughout the year.
Seeking answers on the role and purpose of poets and poetry in our lives? Delve into the following quotes about poets and poetry for insights.
Sun., Aug. 4 – Poetry Open Mic Picnic, Benicia City Park, 150 Military West, 12:30-2:30p.m. Sat., Aug. 10- Makers Mart, Barbara Kondylis Waterfront Park, 12-5 PM, hosted by Co-Poets Laureate Jacalyn Eyvonne and Kathleen Herrmann Sun., Aug. 11 – Tea House Open Mic Poetry, Integrity Space, 717 Marin Street …
Benicia First Tuesday Poets will not be meeting on July 2nd or August 6th. They will be holding their annual Poet’s Picnic on Sunday, August 4th from 12:30 to 2:30 PM at the Benicia City Park, at the corner of Military and First St. There will also be a book launch for the Unsettled anthology at a date to be announced.
Please note there will be no OZCAT ART BEAT Poetry Hour live on air open mic on May 23rd, 2024. Please tune in to 89.5 FM KZCT on June 6 at 10:30 AM for a featured poetry reading and interview with D.L. Lang, former Vallejo Poet Laureate. For details about other events in May, please see this post.
Poetry in Notion has been cancelled due to low attendance. Current Vallejo Poets Laureate Jacalyn Eyvonne and Kathleen Herrmann are starting a new open mic series called Tea House Poetry, meeting on the second Sundays from 2 to 4 PM at 717 Marin in Vallejo beginning June 9th, 2024. Please refer to this post for details about ongoing open mics in Solano County, and be sure to check their individual mailing lists and social media pages in case of abrupt cancellations or schedule changes.
Vallejo Poets Laureate Jacalyn Eyvonne and Kathleen Herrmann will read poetry Climate Change Ekphrastic Exhibit, Temple Arts Loft on May 25, and June 1, 8, 15, and 22 from 1:00-2:00 PM
Kathleen Herrmann will be performing at the Alibi Bookshop 5 Year anniversary celebration at 2:30 PM on June 1st. Jacalyn Eyvonne will be performing at the Battle of the Bay Car Show and Hop in downtown Vallejo on June 1st.
June 8th – 3:30 PM – Vallejo waterfront – Makers PopUp with Poets Laureate Kathleen Herrmann, Jacalyn Eyvonne, and D.L. Lang. Jacalyn Eyvonne will also have a booth for the Poetry Letters project from 12-5PM.
June 14th – 1:15 PM – Solano County Fair with Poets Laureate Kathleen Herrmann, Jacalyn Eyvonne, and D.L. Lang. Bay Stage.
Sunday, June 2nd, the Benicia Love Poetry Contest will announce the winners via Zoom.
Saturday, June 15, 2024 2:00 – 4:00 pm 1 Commandant’s Lane, Benicia Benicia Literary Arts will reveal their new anthology, Carquinez Review 2024.
“Writing from your Soul!” Come hear featured poet and cellist, Diane Frank, who will incorporate poetry and music with Poetry Open Mic to follow on Saturday, June 29, 2024, 1:00 – 3:00 pm at the Fairfield Cordelia Library, 5050 Business Center Drive.
Fairfield Poet Laureate Suzanne Bruce is partnering with the Solano Land Trust to host her 4th Hike & Write. The hike will take place on June 30th from 9AM-12PM at Lynch Canyon (3100 Lynch Canyon Rd). The hike is medium level and will be approximately two miles. A docent will be leading the hike and sharing history and stories along the way. Please bring a pen and paper and water and snacks. Be sure to wear appropriate clothing and comfortable walking shoes. Parking is $5. If you would like to participate, please email Suzanne at [email protected] by June 27th so she can get a headcount.
Ray Davis hosts the I Need a Mic podcast which you can stream via Spotify. Anna Quismorio was the May guest, and Julie Voice is upcoming. Ray also has a writers’ group that meets at the JFK Library.
Suisun Poet Laureate Excalibur is performing at both Pride and Juneteenth in Suisun City. Info below.
Suisun Juneteenth is June 15 & 16 Harbor Plaza, 520 Solano St, Suisun City, CA 94585
https://juneteenth-suisun.com
Suisun Pride takes place 12-5PM on June 2nd at Harbor Plaza, 520 Solano St, Suisun City, CA 94585
https://www.suisun.com/Events-directory/Suisun-City-Pride-Event
Vallejo Center for the Arts – A Poetry Writing Workshop – June 29, July 6 & 13. 11:30 AM – 1 PM 324 Virginia Street Vallejo Facilitated by Co-Poets Laureate Kathleen Herrmann & Jacalyn Eyvonne, youth ages 8-14. RSVP here.
Benicia Literary Arts will have a booth at the Bay Area Book Festival Outdoor Fair 2024 on Sunday, June 2nd, 2024 from 11 AM to 5 PM. The booth will be located at Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park located at 151 Martin Luther King Jr Way, Berkeley, CA 94704.
The Revolutionary Poets Brigade will be reading at the North Beach Library at 11 AM on Saturday June 8th in celebration of World Oceans Day. The North Beach Library is located at 850 Columbus Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94133.
Three poets from out of state will be performing at the Beat Museum in San Francisco on July 13th at 7 PM. Tom Murphy is a former poet laureate of Corpus Christi Texas, Nathan Brown is a former Oklahoma State Poet Laureate and PW Covington is a beat poet. Tom Murphy is a former bay area poet. Tom is also going to attend the open mic at the Townhouse on Wednesday, July 10th.
D.L. Lang will be traveling back to Oklahoma to perform with the Woody Guthrie Poets on July 13th at 11 AM at Woody Guthrie Folk Fest in Okemah. The Woody Guthrie Poets have three readings this year:
D.L. Lang has been invited to feature at 3rd Saturday Poetry in Chinatown at Clarion SF at 2 Waverly Place in San Francisco on August 17th from 1 to 3 PM. Co-features TBA.
You can view poetry on display at these Bay Area county fairs. These fairs will also accept entries from Solano County residents.
We recommend you join the Google Groups for both Benicia and Vallejo for more timely announcements. This post is only a small selection of upcoming events known to us at the time of posting. We also share anthology calls and other opportunities.
County Fairs Special Events http://vallejopoetrysociety.org/happy-earth-day/ Open mics Benicia First Tuesday Poets meet on the first Tuesday of the month at 150 East L Street, Benicia. Come for snacks and schmoozing at 6:15. Show starts at 6:30 PM. Poetry in Notion has been cancelled. Poetry by …
Our Vallejo Poets Laureate Kathleen Herrmann and Jacalyn Eyvonne will be reading at the Earth Daze Festival in Vallejo on Saturday, April 27th from 12:15 to 1:00 PM. They will also be participating in the Climate Change Ekphrastic Exhibit, Temple Arts Loft, May 25, June …
Happy National Poetry Month!
Also known as National Poetry Writing Month, you can challenge yourself to write a poem every day.
Academy of American Poets established the tradition in April 1996.
In addition to regular open mics here are some upcoming special events in 2024 in Solano County for National Poetry Month:
Ekphrasis is when one form of art inspires another. There are three upcoming ekphrastic events in Solano County. Two in Fairfield and one in Benicia. Details are below. Questions should go to the poet laureate organizing each event. Request to join their mailing lists to …
