WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.140 align:middle line:90% Hello, everyone. 00:00:01.140 --> 00:00:02.720 align:middle line:90% How are you doing? 00:00:02.720 --> 00:00:03.680 align:middle line:90% Good. 00:00:03.680 --> 00:00:04.900 align:middle line:90% Welcome, everybody. 00:00:04.900 --> 00:00:06.940 align:middle line:84% It's nice to see all of Tucson here. 00:00:06.940 --> 00:00:08.488 align:middle line:90% Thanks for everyone for coming. 00:00:08.488 --> 00:00:09.780 align:middle line:90% We can do many things together. 00:00:09.780 --> 00:00:12.420 align:middle line:84% Since we're all here together, we can make important decisions. 00:00:12.420 --> 00:00:14.080 align:middle line:90% I'm glad you're here. 00:00:14.080 --> 00:00:17.140 align:middle line:84% You've made an excellent choice for a Thursday night. 00:00:17.140 --> 00:00:20.300 align:middle line:84% And this is an especially exciting Thursday night. 00:00:20.300 --> 00:00:22.960 align:middle line:84% We're helping Julia Alvarez launch her newest 00:00:22.960 --> 00:00:24.940 align:middle line:90% book of poems, Visitations. 00:00:24.940 --> 00:00:26.680 align:middle line:84% And so, round of applause to Julia 00:00:26.680 --> 00:00:30.500 align:middle line:84% for traveling to be here with us, with her husband, Bill. 00:00:30.500 --> 00:00:31.760 align:middle line:90% [APPLAUSE] 00:00:31.760 --> 00:00:33.023 align:middle line:90% We're really grateful for it. 00:00:33.023 --> 00:00:34.940 align:middle line:84% If you're just coming in and can't find seats, 00:00:34.940 --> 00:00:36.100 align:middle line:90% there's more seats in the back. 00:00:36.100 --> 00:00:37.740 align:middle line:84% You can feel free to grab any of those. 00:00:37.740 --> 00:00:39.300 align:middle line:90% Find a place to get comfortable. 00:00:39.300 --> 00:00:41.200 align:middle line:90% We're really glad you're here. 00:00:41.200 --> 00:00:43.040 align:middle line:84% My name is Tyler, and I work as the director 00:00:43.040 --> 00:00:44.480 align:middle line:90% here at the Poetry Center. 00:00:44.480 --> 00:00:45.980 align:middle line:84% If you don't know the Poetry Center, 00:00:45.980 --> 00:00:48.140 align:middle line:84% thanks for coming and being here with us tonight, 00:00:48.140 --> 00:00:49.182 align:middle line:90% come back and visit us. 00:00:49.182 --> 00:00:50.640 align:middle line:84% It's one of the largest collections 00:00:50.640 --> 00:00:51.940 align:middle line:90% of poetry in the country. 00:00:51.940 --> 00:00:54.720 align:middle line:84% About 120,000 items in our catalog. 00:00:54.720 --> 00:00:56.640 align:middle line:90% We'd love to show them to you. 00:00:56.640 --> 00:00:59.720 align:middle line:90% Not all at once, but over time. 00:00:59.720 --> 00:01:02.920 align:middle line:84% And you can come and visit something like 10 million poems 00:01:02.920 --> 00:01:03.835 align:middle line:90% in one place. 00:01:03.835 --> 00:01:06.210 align:middle line:84% And that's one of the special things that's possible here 00:01:06.210 --> 00:01:06.950 align:middle line:90% in Tucson. 00:01:06.950 --> 00:01:11.035 align:middle line:84% And we're so proud of it and excited to share it with people. 00:01:11.035 --> 00:01:12.410 align:middle line:84% What I want to do is just quickly 00:01:12.410 --> 00:01:14.785 align:middle line:84% orient us to some things that are coming up at the Poetry 00:01:14.785 --> 00:01:16.530 align:middle line:84% Center next, and we have one-- this 00:01:16.530 --> 00:01:19.610 align:middle line:84% is our penultimate reading from a visiting writer in our spring 00:01:19.610 --> 00:01:20.470 align:middle line:90% series. 00:01:20.470 --> 00:01:22.648 align:middle line:84% So if you've been with us all this academic year, 00:01:22.648 --> 00:01:24.190 align:middle line:84% we're so excited to be at this point. 00:01:24.190 --> 00:01:26.190 align:middle line:84% We've had many great visits throughout the year. 00:01:26.190 --> 00:01:27.590 align:middle line:90% We have one more that's coming. 00:01:27.590 --> 00:01:28.970 align:middle line:90% And so on August-- 00:01:28.970 --> 00:01:33.970 align:middle line:84% I'm sorry, August-- on April 30, on April 30, in two weeks, 00:01:33.970 --> 00:01:37.390 align:middle line:84% we'll have a visit from the Mexican poet Balam Rodrigo. 00:01:37.390 --> 00:01:39.430 align:middle line:84% We're really excited about Balam's visit. 00:01:39.430 --> 00:01:43.170 align:middle line:84% Balam is a poet, a biologist, and a former professional soccer 00:01:43.170 --> 00:01:44.010 align:middle line:90% player. 00:01:44.010 --> 00:01:46.090 align:middle line:84% He's based in San Cristóbal de Las Casas 00:01:46.090 --> 00:01:47.610 align:middle line:90% in the state of Chiapas. 00:01:47.610 --> 00:01:50.530 align:middle line:84% He's the author of more than 20 books of poetry, 00:01:50.530 --> 00:01:53.150 align:middle line:84% and his book, The Central American Book of the Dead, 00:01:53.150 --> 00:01:57.790 align:middle line:84% was recognized with Premio Bellas Artes de Poesía 00:01:57.790 --> 00:01:59.770 align:middle line:90% Aguascalientes in Mexico. 00:01:59.770 --> 00:02:01.690 align:middle line:84% And then the English translation of that book 00:02:01.690 --> 00:02:04.190 align:middle line:84% was done by a translator named Dan Bellm, 00:02:04.190 --> 00:02:07.530 align:middle line:84% and it was shortlisted for the 2024 National Book 00:02:07.530 --> 00:02:09.009 align:middle line:90% Award in Translation. 00:02:09.009 --> 00:02:11.390 align:middle line:84% So we're very excited to have Rodrigo with us. 00:02:11.390 --> 00:02:13.903 align:middle line:84% That'll be a bilingual reading in Spanish and English, 00:02:13.903 --> 00:02:15.070 align:middle line:90% and I'll come back for that. 00:02:15.070 --> 00:02:18.070 align:middle line:84% That'll be again on April 30, 7 o'clock, 00:02:18.070 --> 00:02:20.490 align:middle line:90% back here at the Poetry Center. 00:02:20.490 --> 00:02:23.090 align:middle line:84% There's a reading tomorrow night from an undergraduate poet 00:02:23.090 --> 00:02:26.770 align:middle line:84% that we're excited about named Nagasriya Ramisetty. 00:02:26.770 --> 00:02:28.690 align:middle line:84% And her presentation of her senior thesis 00:02:28.690 --> 00:02:30.130 align:middle line:90% is called Bittersweet. 00:02:30.130 --> 00:02:32.590 align:middle line:84% It's a reading and it's an art exhibition. 00:02:32.590 --> 00:02:35.390 align:middle line:84% It'll begin at 5 o'clock, and it's nearby. 00:02:35.390 --> 00:02:37.750 align:middle line:84% It's in the Health Sciences Innovation Building, 00:02:37.750 --> 00:02:40.290 align:middle line:84% just about five minutes away by foot from here 00:02:40.290 --> 00:02:41.730 align:middle line:90% in that direction. 00:02:41.730 --> 00:02:45.010 align:middle line:84% If we all had an orange, we could almost hit it. 00:02:45.010 --> 00:02:46.395 align:middle line:90% So not far away at all. 00:02:46.395 --> 00:02:47.770 align:middle line:84% You can park at the Poetry Center 00:02:47.770 --> 00:02:49.418 align:middle line:84% and enjoy a nice stroll over there. 00:02:49.418 --> 00:02:51.710 align:middle line:84% Nagasriya has worked really hard on this senior thesis, 00:02:51.710 --> 00:02:55.210 align:middle line:84% and so I hope you'll join us in attending that event again, 5 00:02:55.210 --> 00:02:59.650 align:middle line:84% o'clock tomorrow, Friday night at the HSIB Building 00:02:59.650 --> 00:03:01.850 align:middle line:90% and more there. 00:03:01.850 --> 00:03:05.790 align:middle line:84% This weekend on Saturday, which is the 20th, 00:03:05.790 --> 00:03:08.010 align:middle line:84% we have our spring Kids Create program. 00:03:08.010 --> 00:03:10.460 align:middle line:84% We turn the Poetry Center over to children 00:03:10.460 --> 00:03:13.980 align:middle line:84% and we have activities for kids, infants through age 10. 00:03:13.980 --> 00:03:15.800 align:middle line:84% There's sing-alongs for the youngest ones. 00:03:15.800 --> 00:03:20.200 align:middle line:84% There's age-based writing experiences for the older kids, 00:03:20.200 --> 00:03:21.000 align:middle line:90% and it culminates. 00:03:21.000 --> 00:03:23.240 align:middle line:84% There's lots of snacks, which is important. 00:03:23.240 --> 00:03:26.300 align:middle line:84% There's coffee for the grownups, not for the kids. 00:03:26.300 --> 00:03:28.020 align:middle line:84% And then there's a theater performance 00:03:28.020 --> 00:03:29.867 align:middle line:90% from Tucson Stories That Soar. 00:03:29.867 --> 00:03:31.700 align:middle line:84% And so if you have young people in your life 00:03:31.700 --> 00:03:33.117 align:middle line:84% who might like to come back, those 00:03:33.117 --> 00:03:34.600 align:middle line:84% are always really fun experiences. 00:03:34.600 --> 00:03:38.160 align:middle line:84% It happens from 10 until noon on Saturday 00:03:38.160 --> 00:03:40.805 align:middle line:84% back here at the Poetry Center outside. 00:03:40.805 --> 00:03:43.180 align:middle line:84% And then I want to make sure to mention the Tucson Poetry 00:03:43.180 --> 00:03:44.900 align:middle line:90% Festival, which is coming up. 00:03:44.900 --> 00:03:48.540 align:middle line:84% So it's happening on the weekend, April 24 and 25th. 00:03:48.540 --> 00:03:50.120 align:middle line:84% Most of those events are happening, 00:03:50.120 --> 00:03:51.495 align:middle line:84% and maybe all of those events are 00:03:51.495 --> 00:03:55.365 align:middle line:84% happening at the Pima Community College Downtown Campus. 00:03:55.365 --> 00:03:56.740 align:middle line:84% And they have four poets that are 00:03:56.740 --> 00:03:58.865 align:middle line:84% going to be visiting for the Tucson poetry festival 00:03:58.865 --> 00:04:03.100 align:middle line:84% this year, including Cyrus Cassells, Catherine Strisik, 00:04:03.100 --> 00:04:05.620 align:middle line:84% Tucson's Poet Laureate Logan Phillips, 00:04:05.620 --> 00:04:07.240 align:middle line:90% and the poet Amber McCrary. 00:04:07.240 --> 00:04:08.880 align:middle line:84% And so we're really excited about that. 00:04:08.880 --> 00:04:11.700 align:middle line:84% Tucson Poetry Festival deserves a round of applause. 00:04:11.700 --> 00:04:16.140 align:middle line:84% It perseveres and continues and is growing in excitement. 00:04:16.140 --> 00:04:19.540 align:middle line:84% You can learn more about it on Tucsonpoetryfest.org. 00:04:19.540 --> 00:04:22.300 align:middle line:84% And again, that's the 24th and 25th. 00:04:22.300 --> 00:04:24.420 align:middle line:84% Books are for sale tonight at the table 00:04:24.420 --> 00:04:25.720 align:middle line:90% on my right after the reading. 00:04:25.720 --> 00:04:26.720 align:middle line:90% Hope you'll visit those. 00:04:26.720 --> 00:04:28.740 align:middle line:84% I know Julia will be happy to sign those. 00:04:28.740 --> 00:04:30.680 align:middle line:84% We have a very special evening tonight. 00:04:30.680 --> 00:04:32.820 align:middle line:84% This will be a kind of conversation and reading 00:04:32.820 --> 00:04:35.780 align:middle line:84% of poems together, and to help guide us through this 00:04:35.780 --> 00:04:38.740 align:middle line:84% is our great friend and colleague, Manuel Muñoz. 00:04:38.740 --> 00:04:41.040 align:middle line:84% Immediately to my left and my hero. 00:04:41.040 --> 00:04:43.100 align:middle line:84% I'm going to tap him on the shoulder. 00:04:43.100 --> 00:04:44.160 align:middle line:90% Manuel is amazing. 00:04:44.160 --> 00:04:45.640 align:middle line:90% A round of applause for Manuel. 00:04:45.640 --> 00:04:48.020 align:middle line:90% [APPLAUSE] 00:04:48.020 --> 00:04:51.420 align:middle line:84% We're very lucky for this that he's here with us in Tucson. 00:04:51.420 --> 00:04:53.740 align:middle line:84% He is our resident MacArthur genius, 00:04:53.740 --> 00:04:55.710 align:middle line:90% which is a tremendous thing. 00:04:55.710 --> 00:04:57.460 align:middle line:84% He's a colleague in the English Department 00:04:57.460 --> 00:04:58.877 align:middle line:84% here at the University of Arizona, 00:04:58.877 --> 00:05:00.240 align:middle line:90% teaching creative writing. 00:05:00.240 --> 00:05:01.920 align:middle line:84% His wonderful book of short stories. 00:05:01.920 --> 00:05:03.585 align:middle line:84% The most recent is The Consequences. 00:05:03.585 --> 00:05:05.460 align:middle line:84% If you don't own that, it's one of the things 00:05:05.460 --> 00:05:07.360 align:middle line:84% you should spend some of your dollars on. 00:05:07.360 --> 00:05:09.300 align:middle line:84% Please help me welcome Manuel Muñoz, who's 00:05:09.300 --> 00:05:10.720 align:middle line:90% going to guide us from here. 00:05:10.720 --> 00:05:13.400 align:middle line:84% He'll tell us more about Julia Alvarez as we go. 00:05:13.400 --> 00:05:14.580 align:middle line:90% Thanks for being here. 00:05:14.580 --> 00:05:16.190 align:middle line:90% Thank you.