Welcome to the City of Pleasanton’s Civic Arts Literary page. The Civic Arts Literary page has been created to provide enthusiasts of the written word a listing of City sponsored literary events throughout the Tri Valley.
We are Pleased to Welcome our 2009-2011 Poet Laureate, Deborah Grossman. . . |
As the City of Pleasanton Poet Laureate, Deborah envisions continuing the “Century House Featured Poets” series, the Teen Poet Laureate program and other school programs. She plans to launch a “Celebrating Famous Poets” series. Guest poets will talk about the poet, read his or her poems and then read their own poems in a similar style. The first in the series will be “Celebrating: Robert Frost.” She will also partner with talented local poets in “Poetry Rocks in Many Languages” sessions. Poets will read a poem in the original language and then read their translation. Deborah also looks forward to coordinating several poetry programs at the Senior Center.
Deborah has written poems throughout her life. In the fourth grade, she organized her poems and favorite literary quotes into a blue, cloth-covered three-ring notebook. In 2006 Deborah published Goldie and Me, a book exploring the many facets of freedom, family, and food through the lens of poetry. On topics from Sunday car rides to Hurricana Katrina, several poems were written by her mother, Goldie W. Chavenson. Goldie and Me is available on amazon.com and at Towne Center Books in Pleasanton.
Her poems and essays have been honored at Ina Coolbrith Circle competitions, the Las Positas Literary Contest, the Pleasanton Poetry and Arts Festival, and the Alameda County Fair. She judges poetry at several Northern California venues and mentors poets of all ages.
Deborah often says, “Poetry lifts voices, minds and hearts in our neighborhood and around the world. Poems blend reality and imagination about the present, past and future—and expand one’s horizons at any age.”
To contact Deborah about the City of Pleasanton Poet Laureate programs or to join the email distribution list: pleasantonpoetry@gmail.com or follow her on Twitter@PleasantonPoets.
Pleasanton Civic Arts and Poet Laureate Deborah Grossman Present these Upcoming Events. . .
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Haiku Workshop with Jerry Ball
Tuesday, March 23rd 7:30-9:30 pm
Century House, 2401 Santa Rita Road, Pleasanton, CA 94566
Long before Twitter and instant messaging, the poetry form haiku has been a favorite of those who write big ideas in a few words. Comprised of 17 syllables on themes often related to nature, haiku continues to enchant readers. Learn about the genre from Jerry Ball, an internationally recognized haiku “Dojin” who has won awards for his haiku in both the U.S. and Japan. Jerry will lead the workshop with an introduction to haiku and an opportunity to write haiku and have it read anonymously.
A resident of Walnut Creek, Jerry has organized haiku conferences in the U.S. and Australia. Jerry lectured at Cal Sate University, Long Beach, and at Las Positas College in Livermore where he taught World Religions, Humanities, and Math. He has published books in Haiku and also western style poetry.
Cost: $5.00; Students free
Pleasanton Poetry, Prose & the Arts Festival
Saturday and Sunday, April 17-18, 2010, Pleasanton Senior Center, 5353 Sunol Blvd.
The 9th Annual Festival will feature guest speakers, poetry and prose workshops for adults, youth and teen workshops, writing contests and award ceremony. There are also a fine art exhibit and Literary Row, a place to meet local and nationally known authors. www.pleasantonarts.org
An Afternoon of Poetry about Mom
Sunday, May 2nd, 2010, 2:00-4:00 pm, Ravenswood Historic Site, 2647 Arroyo Rd., Livermore
In collaboration with the City of Livermore and Poet Laureate Cher Wollard, Pleasanton Poet Laureate Deborah Grossman will guest host at Ravenswood. San Francisco poet and fiction writer Joan Gelfand will read poems on family from Seeking Center and A Dreamer’s Guide to Cities and Streams. Joan is a 2008 Pushcart prize nominee and winner of the 2005 Best Fiction Award from Chaffin Journal. Rebecca Foust will read from Dark Card and Mom's Canoe, awarded the 2007 and 2008 Robert Phillips Poetry Chapbook Prizes, and All that Gorgeous, Pitiless Song, awarded this year's Many Mountains Moving Poetry Book Prize. Deborah Grossman will also read from her book, Goldie and Me, co-authored by her mother. An Open Mic follows.
Cost: $5.00, students free
Poetry Rocks in Many Languages
Sunday, June 6th, 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. Century House, 2401 Santa Rita Road, Pleasanton
Pleasanton poet, writer and online poetry publisher Liz Fortini will guest host an afternoon of poetry in the languages of Western Europe. Liz and three featured poets will read a blend of poems they or famous poets have written in Italian, Spanish, French and German and then translate the poems. At the Open Mic following, the public is invited to read a poem, one page or less, in a Western European language and read their translation or read a poem they’ve written in English.
Cost: $5.00, students free
Laugh Out Loud Poetry!
Sunday, Aug.1st, 2:00 to 4:00 pm,
Century House, 2401 Santa Rita Road, Pleasanton, CA 94566
Ready for some mid-summer laughs? Pleasanton poet, author and blogger Sandra Kay will host an afternoon of humorous poetry. An accomplished humor writer, Sandra will introduce the long tradition of laughter in American poetry and read some of her own poems. We will then feature a medley of four other Bay Area poets with a natural talent for the funny side of poetry.
At the Open Mic following the presentation and refreshments, the public is invited to read a poem trending toward the humorous, or on any subject they choose.
Sandra Kay is the author of eat, write & exercise (creative nonfiction), Beautiful Fish, (poetry collection) and has been published in several 4th St. Saturday Salon’s Livermore Wine Country Literary Anthologies. She writes a popular blog, teaches seminars on blogging, and is also a mixed-media artist.
Refreshments and Open Mic follow. Cost: $5.00; Students free
