THE LIVERPOOL CAMARADE – PART OF THE EUROPEAN POETRY FESTIVAL 2023
A remarkable poetry event in support of Ukrainian culture, celebrating liveness, collaboration and cross-linguistic collective inventiveness. Eight pairs of poets will present their readings:
Kārlis Vērdiņš and James Byrne
Hanna Komar and Michael Sutton
Katerina Koulouri and Patricia Farrell
Yasmin Hafedh and Sarah Dawson
Ailsa Holland and Stephen Sunderland
Robert Sheppard and Sarah-Claire Conlon
Tom Jenks and SJ Fowler
Stanimir Dimitrov and Michael Egan.
The Camarade format asks pairs of poets, many of whom have never met before, to produce new collaborative works especially for the night of the reading, with no criteria other than a seven-minute time limit.
This non-determinate curatorial model explores the possibilities around live poetry and performance. Moreover, it creates friendships and communities. These events are rapid fire and energised but fundamentally serious and complex in the work they often produce.
European Poetry Festival is one of the grandest celebrations of European poetry ever to take place in the UK. Eleven events over three weeks will see over one hundred poets from across the continent and the UK come together.
This event is a part of HOME programme which includes exhibitions, publications and events in Open Eye Gallery and across Liverpool city region. HOME is commissioned by Culture Liverpool / Liverpool City Council, with kind support from EuroFestival and Arts Council England.
Image: Evgeniy Pavlov, from the Total Photography series, 1992