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“The Creative Moment,” the 25th
Annual Old Dominion University Literary Festival, is
celebrating continuity, variety, collaboration and excellence
in the literary arts. It will be held Sept. 30-Oct. 5.
This festival is important to
many, especially to director Dr. Philip Raisor, associate
professor of English. “Arts Reunion II” is sub-theme for the
festival because Raisor did the very first Annual Festival in
1978. Before the first festival, there was a three-day Poetry
Jam, and according to Raisor, “I knew that ODU and the
surrounding community were ready for something bigger. I
foresaw the Literary Festival becoming what it is today
because I knew that the university and community was ready for
a higher profile for literary arts.”
During the past 25 years, there
have been different directors, changing either every year or
two years. According to Raisor, this was implemented so that
there would be a new perspective at each festival.
The new outlook for this year’s
celebration of arts is technology, which is being brought to
the festival for the first time. The Festival will be
televised to five sites in Virginia.
Raisor said he hoped the literary
festival would spark the curiosity of students, prompting them
to talk to each other and to the visiting authors.
“Soul searching takes place at
festival like this one. It’s a discovery of one’s own talent,”
Raisor said.
The first events kick off the
literary festival on Monday, Sept. 30, from 2:00-3:30 p.m. in
Mills Godwin 102. The featured writers are Debra Bruce and
Lenore Hart, reading about struggles and successes of women in
our time. At 8 p.m., in the Chandler Recital Hall of the Diehn
Fine and Performing Arts Center, “The Round Square: Readings
in a Fluid Box” will feature readings and performances by
creative writing faculty members Luisa Igloria, Michael
Pearson, Janet Peery, Sheri Reynolds, Tim Seibles and Brian
Silberman.
Tuesday Oct. 1, in the Webb
Center South Wing at 12:30 p.m. “Universes,” a high-energy
blend of poetry, hip-hop, jazz and blues will be performed by
a New York group, coordinating their performance to stories
about their lives.
On Oct. 2, “An Evening of
Translation and Performance,” presented by W.D. Snodgrass,
Steve Kelley, Frederick Lubich, Marilyn Marloff, Agnes
Mobley-Wynne, Peter Schulman, and Lee Teply, starts at 8 p.m.
in the Chandler Recital Hall of the Diehn Fine and Performing
Arts Center. This event will blend poetry with dance, music
and song.
The President’s Lecture Series is
on Thursday, Oct. 3 is at 8 p.m.in the Webb Center featuring
Susan Sontag, a novelist, short story writer, playwright,
essayist, screenwriter, and film and stage director.
Friday, Oct 4, is “The Stephen
Dunn Greatest Team Tournament” at 10 a.m. “Virginia Deep in
the Bones” begins at 8 p.m. in the Chandler Recital Hall of
the Diehn Fine and Performing Arts Center. Four of Virginia’s
most honored poets, R.H.W. Dillard, George Garrett, Henry
Taylor and Ellen Bryant Voigt host this program.
Saturday, Oct 5, starting at 5
p.m., is a reception with artist Donald Roller Wilson, at the
University Gallery at 450 W. 21st Street; the gallery will be
open at 12 noon. At 8 p.m., “A Final Celebration: A Reading by
Stephen Dunn” will take place in the Chandler Recital Hall of
the Diehn Fine and Performing Arts Center.
Festival events are free and open
to the public. Seating is limited, so please arrive early. For
more information, contact the English Department at 683-3991
or visit www.lib.odu.edu/litfest.
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