Feb. 25 & 26 (different programs). Performances for adults (Sat.) & families (Sun.) by 3 top storytellers from around the country.Bill Harley is a Massachusetts songwriter and storyteller with an off-center point of view whose stories paint vibrant and hilarious pictures of growing up, schooling, and family life. Best known locally in his guise as a pop-folk singer-songwriter, Don White is a veteran storyteller and humorist from Lynn (MA) who was a featured performer at the 2015 National Storytelling Festival. Bil Leppis a a Charleston (WV) storyteller with a flair for spinning humorously outrageous tall tales about everyday life who got his start when he won the 1990 West Virginia Liars Contest.
7:30 p.m. (Sat.) & 1 p.m. (Sun.), The Ark, 316 S. Main. Tickets $20 (Sat.) & $10 (Sun. family concert) in advance at the Michigan Union Ticket Office (mutotix.com) & theark.org, and at the door. To charge by phone, call 763-TKTS.
Feb. 25 & 26 (different programs). Performances for adults (Sat.) & families (Sun.) by 3 top storytellers from around the country.Bill Harley is a Massachusetts songwriter and storyteller with an off-center point of view whose stories paint vibrant and hilarious pictures of growing up, schooling, and family life. Best known locally in his guise as a pop-folk singer-songwriter, Don White is a veteran storyteller and humorist from Lynn (MA) who was a featured performer at the 2015 National Storytelling Festival. Bil Leppis a a Charleston (WV) storyteller with a flair for spinning humorously outrageous tall tales about everyday life who got his start when he won the 1990 West Virginia Liars Contest.
7:30 p.m. (Sat.) & 1 p.m. (Sun.), The Ark, 316 S. Main. Tickets $20 (Sat.) & $10 (Sun. family concert) in advance at the Michigan Union Ticket Office (mutotix.com) & theark.org, and at the door. To charge by phone, call 763-TKTS.
This local novelist reads from The Mountain Goddess, the 2nd in her Sadhana fantasy trilogy that explores the spiritual struggles of women in the Buddha’s time. In this book, the young prince Siddhartha falls for a beautiful warrior who has mastered supernatural yogic powers, and she’s the only person who may be able to convince him to stay with his people rather than leave on a quest for enlightenment. Signing.
Readings by featured poets, preceded by a poetry open mike.
Mar 5: Reading by EMU creative writing teacher and Neutral Zone creative arts directorJeff Kass. Old Dominion poetry professor Tim Seibles describes Kass’s latest collection, Beautiful Hook-Nosed Beauty Queen Strut Wave, as “poems of many men who grew up in this country bursting at the seams with boyness, who did the best they could to grow into useful men-fathers, teachers, plumbers.”
Mar 19: Reading by Neutral Zone staffer Fiona Chamness, a winner of the Beloit Poetry Journal Prize who was featured in the 2010 HBO documentary Brave New Voices.
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7-9 p.m. (sign-up begins at 6:30 p.m.), Espresso Royale, 324 S. State. $5 suggested donation. facebook.com/AnnArborPoetry.
On Mar. 6, Huron High School English teacher R.J. Fox draws on his recently published memoir, Love & Vodka, discusses the art of turning your experiences into a compelling nonfiction. For adult and teen (grade 6 & up) fiction and nonfiction writers.
Open mike storytelling competition sponsored by The Moth, the NYC-based nonprofit storytelling organization that also produces a weekly public radio show. Each month 10 storytellers are selected at random from among those who sign up to tell a 3-5 minute story on the monthly theme. The 3 judges are recruited from the audience. Monthly winners compete in a semiannual Grand Slam. Space limited, so it’s smart to arrive early.
7:30-9 p.m. (doors open and sign-up begins at 6 p.m.), $10. 764-5118.
U-M creative writing professor Claire Vaye Watkins reads from her acclaimed debut novel set in a dystopian near future where severe drought has led to brutal survival tactics and internment camps for less fortunate members of society. Followed by a conversation about the novel with U-M English grad student Emily Chew. Q&A. Signing.
5:30-7 p.m., 100 U-M Hatcher Grad Library Gallery, enter from the Diag. Free. 764-3166.
Talk by U-M English professor Linda Gregerson, an award-winning poet. The Russel Award is the U-M’s highest honor, awarded annually to a faculty member who is especially distinguished in his or her field. Reception follows.
4:30-5:30 p.m., Rackham Amphitheater. Free. 615-0520.
An open mike for poets, who are welcome to read their own work or a favorite poem by another writer. The program begins with a reading by a featured local poet TBA.
Storytellers Guild members present a program of old tales and personal stories for grownups.
Free; donations accepted. annarborstorytelling.org, facebook.com/annarborstorytellers. 665-2757.
