Haverhill’s River Bards read in person monthly through June, beginning with The Diminished Prophets this Friday night.
The River Bard works in collaboration with Creative Haverhill and meets at 7 p.m., at HC Media Studio 101, 2 Merrimack St, Haverhill.
Friday, April 1, The Diminished Prophets is presenting “The Gallery,” a new program of melopoeia. Poets Rhina Espaillat and Alfred Nicol recite their own poems and those of Emily Dickinson, Sor Juana, David Berman and Charles Coe to the accompaniment of music written by Francisco Tarraga, Heitor Villa-lobos, Manuel Ponce and other composers, and performed by guitarist John Tavano and bassist/cellist Roger Kimball. There will be no open mic portion, but there will be a short time for questions and answers at the end of their performance and readings.
Organizers say masks are not required, but strongly recommended. Readings are recorded and posted on the HC Media website following each event.
The talented young poets of Haverhill High School’s Creative Writing and Spoken Word clubs are featured Friday, May 6, while Friday, June 3, brings Dario Preston. Preston is a Haverhill resident who grew up in Lawrence and credits the city for his artistic abilities. He is a frequent River Bards open mic presenter and currently working on his first novel.