SATURDAY APRIL 25 The Contradictions of Flesh - Sonia Hendy-Isaac & Clare Ferguson-Walker 7.30pm-8.30pm, Smokey Joe’s, £7/5 Sonia Hendy-Isaac’s debut collection The Contradictions of Flesh explores the flinty and fluid boundaries of bodily experience and of contemporary life, the gaps between what is said and unsaid. It’s been described as “fiercely sensual, shamelessly witty, drunk with life” (Alison Brackenbury) and as “erotic and playful” (Maggie Butt). Spoken word star, poet and comedian Claire Ferguson-Walker has won nearly every slam she’s ever entered. She has performed with London-based outfit Tongue Fu and described as “absurdly talented” by Phil Jupitus.
Martin Daws
Hip Hop & Freestyle Cabaret - Martin Daws & Petra Vita + open mic 9pm – 10pm, Smokey Joe’s, £7/4 An outstanding spoken word poet whose live sets blend free musicality and innovative lyricism Martin Daws is a double Farrago Slam Champ and a favourite at festivals in the UK. A collaboration between poet/vocalist Brandon Landis and guitarist Ben Easey, Cheltenham-based Petra Vita fuse spoken word poetry and hip hop narratives with backing tracks and live guitar, with a little off-the-cuff wordplay, and self-deprecating humour thrown in. The night includes an open mic – come and share your poetry, short prose or music.
SUNDAY APRIL 26 Motherʼs Milk – Teika Bellamy, Sarah James, Angela Topping 11am-12 midday, Playhouse Theatre Lounge, £6/4 Two prize-winning poets - Sarah James and Angela Topping - have joined forces in the first of a new series of poetry duets being published by Mother’s Milk Books. Sarah and Angela will be joined by Dr Teika Bellamy of Mother’s Milk for a Q&A session, where the focus of the discussion will be how, as mothers, we can best meet the demands of family life whilst still pursuing our own creative projects. David Morley & Adam Horovitz 1pm-2pm, Playhouse Theatre Lounge, £7/4 David Morley is one of Britain’s most original and exciting poets. Known for his energy and linguistic inventiveness, he is a master storyteller, whose poems uncover “universes bound together by language” (The Guardian). David is joined by Adam Horovitz, whose breathtakingly lyrical poetry has gained him critical acclaim and fans, who include Radio 4’s Cerys Matthews. Ted Hughes
Black Silent Waters: Ted Hughes as Artistic Father – a talk 2.30pm-3.30pm, Playhouse Theatre Lounge, £7/4 Tim Liardet learned from Ted Hughes that a poet’s primary concern is the creation of an epic universe. He will talk about his first encounter with Hughes’s work and the profound influence it had on his development as a poet. This talk will include the elegy he wrote when Hughes died in 1998.
For bookings call 0844 576 2210 or visit www.cheltenhamtownhall.org.uk
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