dialogue

Ofelia Zepeda reads from Where Clouds Are Formed (2008). This reading was originally given with Christopher Burawa.

Richard Siken reads poems from Crush (2005). This reading was originally given with Camille T. Dungy and Heriberto Yépez for the Next Word in Poetry Series.

Poet and playwright Denise Chávez reads from her poems and short stories, and also performs some scenes from her stories, drawing from her work in the theater arts. She reads first from Descansos: An Interrupted Journey (a 1995 collaboration with Rudolfo A. Anaya and Juan Estevan Arellano, combining photography and creative writing), which explores the cultural and personal histories surrounding roadside crosses. She also reads from Face of an Angel (1994), a novel about a career waitress, exploring themes of divorce, race, and childbirth.

Manuel Paul López reads primarily from his fourth collection, Nerve Curriculum (2023), as well as from his third collection, These Days of Candy (2017), and uncollected work. Surreal but grounded in recognizable places and situations, his selection of poems also includes dialogue from a verse play. This reading was originally given with Adam O. Davis.