Friends Week: Poems on the Underground – Poetry, Art, Music
Wednesday 18 May 2016 7 - 9pm
Sir Hugh Casson Room, Burlington House, Royal Academy of Arts
£15, booking required. Friends only.
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Join us for the 30th anniversary celebration of Poems on the Underground, with special attention to Shakespeare400, and the close links between poetry, music and art. Imtiaz Dharker, co-Director with Judith Chernaik, and Gillian Clarke, National Poet of Wales, will be joining us, along with the Apollo String Quartet for an evening of readings and live music.
We are delighted to invite Friends to join us for an evening celebrating art, music and poetry. Poems on the Underground, a project bringing poetry to a wider audience through stanzas printed on station advertising boards, celebrates its 30th anniversary this year; 2016 also marks 400 years since the death of William Shakespeare, and this event will consequently also celebrate his works.
Our speakers will be Imtiaz Dharker, co-Director of Poems on the Underground and winner of the Queen’s Gold Medal for her poetry, and Gillian Clarke, the National Poet of Wales.Imtiaz and Gillian both play key roles in mainstream British poetic practise, and have been widely celebrated for their poems and anthologies. Also speaking will be Judith Chernaik, the founder and co-director of Poems on the Underground and an acclaimed novelist.
At this celebration we will additionally be delighted to welcome Cicely Herbert, one of Poems on the Underground’s original co-directors, and award-winning poet George Szirtes.
Music will be provided by Apollo String Quartet, part of Apollo Music Projects; this music education charity has been instrumental in introducing classical music to London schoolchildren, and over their 11-year lifetime they have provided over 6000 children with interactive workshops and high-quality musical performances.
Through performance and debate, join us to celebrate the links between poetry, art and music, in the shadow of Britain’s greatest playwright in the anniversary of his death.
Ticket price includes a welcome drink. Booking is essential for this event; if you wish to bring a guest please book one ticket for each person.
Find out more about Friends Events and Friends Week 2016.
The Royal Academy is an independent charity that relies on the generosity of its Friends. Thank you for supporting the RA by participating in Friends Events.