Culture Vulturing

It's been a great few weeks for getting out and about and soaking up a bit of culchurr.  In addition to King Lear, I've seen a second local panto (with my Art Critic for filtonvoice hat on), Elmfield School for Deaf Children's wonderful Musical 'Around the World with Elmfield', and a startlingly good production of 'Spring Awakening - The Musical' (now who'd a-thought?!) at my son's college.  For a lad who once played the part of an aphid in his primary school play, my boy shone and I was really proud of him and his lovely singing voice. And there's another of my university set texts on at the Tobacco Factory next month, namely, Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard, which I'm really looking forward to.  

I've also been to Cardiff to see an exhibition of work by John Piper and David Jones, and am savouring the prospect of another featuring work by Eric Ravilious at the RWA.  Tomorrow night - or rather, later today - I'm attending a free lecture at Bristol University by Al Alvarez, with poetry readings by Edward Lucie Smith, Tom Raworth and John Fuller.

This afternoon saw my final poetry reading in a series of five over four weeks.  (In fact, I think that constitutes a tour!)  I was guest poet at Can Openers in the Bristol Old Vic at the beginning of the month, I read five poems as part of Voices in the City at Bath Literature Festival, and also did three smaller gigs, finishing today with a joint reading for International Women's Day with Hazel Hammond at Filton Library.  Our poems were accompanied by photos by Alison Wills. I enjoyed collaborating with Hazel and Alison - our work dovetailed nicely and it almost felt more like having a conversation with friends rather than reading our work.  And unlike at Can Openers, this time I didn't forget to take my poems with me!  

I'll be reading again in Bath next month as part of the Poetry Cafe's Bloodaxe Day, and later in the year at the Acumen evening and the portraitswest project respectively.  I also hope to venture further afield to read in Bradford on Avon in due course.  

And then there's the Bristol Spring Poetry Festival coming up in a few weeks.  Hooray for poetry and Poetry Can!!

Photos of me with Hazel Hammond, and my mother and two of her sisters by Dru Marland.