This October, we will present our annual Poets Forum in partnership with the Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival, the largest poetry event in North America. Our weekend of special events will take place from October 20 to 23 and will include a reading by the Chancellors of the Academy of American Poets and a series of conversations among the distinguished poets.
In anticipation of the upcoming events, the Dodge Blog is spotlighting those poets who will participate in the festival in a new series—Ask a Poet. Here’s an excerpt from a Q&A with Academy Chancellor Alicia Ostriker:
Dodge Blog: Tell us about your favorite experience reading for an audience.
Alicia Ostriker: I opened once for Allen Ginsberg at the Seattle Bumbershoot Festival, in a huge auditorium, packed to the rafters, even though B. B. King was performing at the same time at the opposite end of the festival grounds. I was a bit terrified, but the audience not only applauded, they kept applauding and had me come back for an encore. Talk about thrilling…