indicates an eventWelcome to the Loft Calendar of Events. To view programs on a particular date, simply click on the shaded dates on the calendar at left. For an overview of specific months, follow the links below the events.
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Wednesday, April 1, 7:00 PMReader's Choice Award Event—Nominees for the 2009 Minnesota Book Awards Target Performance Hall, Open Book
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Wednesday, April 1, 7:00 PMAsian Women’s Group—Reading/Discussion Open Book Free To Register Call: 612-215-2587 |
Thursday, April 2, 6:00 PMLoft Student Reading—Loft Winter/Spring-Term Reading Open Book Free Reading from 6-8pm. |
Saturday, April 4, 1:00 PMAs Written By—Teen Open Writing Group Open Book Free Call to Register: 612-215-2587. |
Sunday, April 5, 2:00 PMFinote Tibeb Ethiopian Writers—Writing Group Open Book Free Call to Register: 612-215-2587 |
Monday, April 6, 6:00 PMPaisano Scribes Latino/Hispanic Open Group—Reading/Writing Group Open Book Free Call to Register: 612-215-2587 |
Wednesday, April 8, 6:00 PMNew Expressions—ELL Writing Group Open Book Free Call to Register: 612-215-2587. |
Wednesday, April 8, 7:00 PMLoft Member Series Publication ReadingJude Nutter—I Wish I Had a Heart Like Yours, Walt Whitman Open Book Free
Nutter, who was born in England and grew up in Germany, has a visceral sense of history as a constant, violent companion. Drawing on a range of locales and historical moments—among them Rwanda, Sarajevo, Nagasaki, and both world wars—she replays the confrontation of personal history colliding with history as a social, political, and cultural force. In many of the poems, this confrontation is understood through the shift from childhood innocence and magical thinking to adult awareness and guilt. |
Thursday, April 9, 5:30 PMTGI Frybread Native American Writing Group—Writing Group Open Book Free Call to Register: 612-215-2587. |
Friday, April 10, 8:00 PMEquilibrium Spoken WordSahra Nguyen, Jennii Le, & Magnetic North with emcee Linda Nguyen—Vietnamese Women’s Spoken Word & Hip Hop Show Weisman Art $5/3 for students & Loft members
Cosponsored by the Weisman and the Loft Literary Center. Equilibrium is the Loft’s groundbreaking series engaging communities of color with spoken word performances by the brightest local and national talents. Galleries open at 7:00 p.m. Tickets at the door. In collaboration with the Weisman Art Museum's Changing Identity: Recent Works by Women Artists from Vietnam. www.weisman.umn.edu |
Saturday, April 11, 9:00 AMSingle-Session Classes—
Get Published Faster with Less Stress; Polishing (9:00 am – noon): Polishing: Revision Strategies for Fiction and Nonfiction (9:00 am – 4:00 pm); Travel Writing: From Destination to Finished Story (10:00 am – 3:00 pm); Building a Successful Writing Business (1:00 – 5:00 pm |
Saturday, April 11, 10:00 AMBroadsides! Pairing Poems and Prints—Family day with the Loft & MCBA Open Book Free
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Saturday, April 11, 10:00 AMSpoken Word Class for TeensJenni Le and Sahra Nguyen— Open Book
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Saturday, April 11, 7:00 PMPublication ReadingFady Joudeh with David Mura, Anya Achtenberg, Raed Abughazeleh & music by Salah Abdelfattah—Unfortunately, It Was Paradise: A Tribute to Mahmoud Darwish Open Book Free
"When renowned novelist Ahdaf Soueif said that the Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish was 'the last poet who could fill a football stadium,' it wasn't hyperbole. A Darwish reading in Beirut earlier this year drew more than 25,000 people. His recent funeral, which garnered little attention here in the U.S., drew thousands more. Who was Mahmoud Darwish? Many considered him to be the national poet of Palestine and saw his poetry as an expression of the struggle of the Palestinian people."---John Lundberg Reception and Book Signing immediately following program. Traditional Middle Eastern Food. Cosponsored with Mizna. $5 Suggested Donation. |
Tuesday, April 14, 6:30 PMOpen Voices—Writing Group Open Book Free Call to Register: 612-215-2587 |
Wednesday, April 15, 7:00 PMTwin Cities GLBTQ Writing Group—Writing Group Open Book Free Call to Register: 612-215-2587 |
Friday, April 17, 7:00 PMPublication ReadingTina Chang & Ravi Shankar (editors)—Language for a New Century: Contemporary Poetry from the Middle East, Asia, and Beyond Open Book Free
Each section of the anthology—organized by theme rather than by national affiliation—is preceded by a personal essay from the editors that introduces the poetry and exhorts readers to examine their own identities in light of these powerful poems. In an age of violence and terrorism, often predicated by cultural ignorance, this anthology is a bold declaration of shared humanity and devotion to the transformative power of art. |
Friday, April 17, 7:00 PMPublication ReadingTina Chang & Ravi Shankar (editors)—Language for a New Century: Contemporary Poetry from the Middle East, Asia, and Beyond Open Book Free
Each section of the anthology—organized by theme rather than by national affiliation—is preceded by a personal essay from the editors that introduces the poetry and exhorts readers to examine their own identities in light of these powerful poems. In an age of violence and terrorism, often predicated by cultural ignorance, this anthology is a bold declaration of shared humanity and devotion to the transformative power of art. |
Friday, April 17, 7:30 PMPublication ReadingJoshua Beckman—Take It at Magers and Quinn Booksellers Free
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Saturday, April 18, 9:00 AMFestival of Children’s and Young Adult LiteratureAndrew Karre, Brian Farrey, Emily Easton, Zachary J. Marell & Tina Wexler—Workshops, Performances, Presentations Open Book
Craft and Publication Sessions for writers and illustrators of children’s, middle grade and young Schedule & Registration: Complete schedule and registration information will be available soon. |
Monday, April 20, 9:00 AMSpring 4-week Classes Begin—
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Tuesday, April 21, 7:00 PMTalking Volumes Regional Book ClubSandra Cisneros—The House on Mango Street Washburn High School, 201 West 49th Street, Minneapolis $20 with discounts for Loft & MPR members
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Wednesday, April 22, 6:00 PMPublication ReadingLouise Dunlap—Undoing the Silence: Six Tools for Social Change Writing Open Book Free Louise Dunlap will present a one hour writing workshop on writing for social change, and she’ll then read passages from her book Undoing the Silence: Six Tools for Social Change Writing on Wednesday evening, April 22. The workshop is at 6pm, the reading is at 7. A Q & A with the author will follow, as well as a signing. 612-379-8999. Louise Dunlap began her career as an activist writing instructor during the Free Speech Movement of the 1960’s. She learned that listening and gaining a feel for audience are as important to social transformation as the outspoken words of student leaders atop police cars. “Free speech is a first step, but real communication matches speech with listening and understanding. That is when thinking shifts and change happens.” |
Wednesday, April 22, 6:30 PMPeace and Justice Group—Reading/Writing Group Open Book Free Call to Register: 612-215-2587 |
Friday, April 24, 12:30 PMSingle-Session Adult Class—
The Geometry of Picture Books. Adult Education |
Friday, April 24, 5:00 PMNative American Cycle Inroads Deadline—
Visit the Inroads page for more information. |
Friday, April 24, 6:00 PMRaking Through Books Happy Hour Book Clubnominees and publishers—Minnesota Book Awards Kieran’s Irish Pub Free Cosponsored by the Loft, Secrets of the City, KFAI, U of M Bookstores, and Kieran’s Irish Pub. |
Saturday, April 25, 9:00 AMSingle-Session Adult Classes—
Op-Eds: Crafting Persuasive and Publishable Editorials; On the Function of the Line; Write, Publish, and Syndicate Your Own Column; Introduction to Acting for Writers. Adult Education |
Saturday, April 25, 10:00 AMTwo-Session Adult Class— Open Book Member Price: $135.00; Nonmember Price: $146.00 Friday & Saturday, April 24 & April 25 Adult Education How to Plan, Develop, and Write a Book with Mary Carroll Moore. |
Sunday, April 26, 9:00 AMSingle-Session Adult Class—
Self-Editing for Book Writers with Mary Carroll Moore. Adult Education |
Sunday, April 26, 2:00 PMPublication ReadingBarbara Graham, Sandra Benítez & Judith Guest—Eye of My Heart: 27 Writers Reveal the Hidden Pleasures and Perils of Being a Grandmother Open Book Free
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Thursday, April 30, 7:30 PMPublication ReadingNorah Labiner—German for Travelers Open Book - Target Performance Hall Free
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Nominees for the 2009 Minnesota Book Awards vie for your votes for favorite book. Readers include: Chris Monroe, Monkey w/a Tool Belt; Rae Katherine Eighmey & Debbie Miller, Potluck Paradise; Ray Gonzalez, Renaming the Earth; Julie Kramer, Stalking Susan; Barbara W. Sommer, Hard Work & A Good Deal; Brian Malloy, Twelve Long Months; Marya Hornbacher, Madness; Margaret Hasse, Milk and Tides; Nancy Carlson, Henry's Amazing Imagination; David Mura, Famous Suicides of the Japanese Empire; Catherine Friend, Compassionate Carnivore; Laura Flynn, Swallow the Ocean; Tim Nolan, The Sound of It; and Kao Kalia Yang, The Latehomecomer. Cosponsored by the Loft Literary Center, The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, and the Saint Paul Pioneer Press.
In “Return of the Heroes,” Walt Whitman refers to the casualties of the American Civil War: “the dead to me mar not. . . . / they fit very well in the landscape under the trees and grass. . . .” In her new poetry collection, Jude Nutter challenges Whitman’s statement by exploring her own responses to war and conflict and, in a voice by turns rueful, dolorous, and imagistic, reveals why she cannot agree.
Equilibrium Spoken Word and Hip Hop Showcase: Jennii Le, Sahra Nguyen, and Magnetic North (Derek Kan and Theresa Vu) with emcee Linda Nguyen. The Weisman hosts nationally renowned performing artists in this special rendition of the Loft Literary Center’s “Equilibrium” series at the museum. The program begins with performances by two of the nation’s most talented spoken word artists, Jennii Le and Sahra Nguyen. Brooklyn hip-hop duo Magnetic North, featuring Theresa Vu and Derek Kan, headlines the show.
Enjoy literary crafts and fun over Spring Break with the Loft and the Minnesota Center for Book Arts. Drop-in family activities Saturday April 11, 10 am to 1 pm. Bring out the writer and artist in you and create a fabulous broadside. Write an original poem with instructors from the Loft. Then, join teachers at MCBA to make prints to complement your writing. Put your creations together to create a poster to take home. Children may also work with preselected text. Stop by MCBA’s gallery to see the Reflections exhibit, a juried show of illustrations inspired by poetry cosponsored by MCBA and the Minnesota chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Register: 612-215-2571.
Join Jenni Le and Sahra Nguyen at the Loft the day after their powerhouse EQ reading for an inkTank Spoken Word Class, from 10 am – 2 pm. Jenni and Sahra will be building on the theme of “Changing Identity,” which they will explore in their Equilibrium Performance on Friday night April 10th. All class participants will be able to attend the Friday night Equilibrium Performance for free. This class is presented in partnership with with the Weisman Art Musuem and their exhibit Changing Identity: Recent Works by Women Artists from Vietnam. Call Claire Wilson at 612-215-2571 to register. Space is limited!
Fady Joudeh, Palestinian-American poet and physician, winner of the 2007 Yale Series of Younger Poets Competition
Language for a New Century celebrates the artistic and cultural forces flourishing today in the East, bringing together an unprecedented selection of works by South Asian, East Asian, Middle Eastern, and Central Asian poets as well as poets living in the Diaspora. Some poets, such as Bei Dao and Mahmoud Darwish, are acclaimed worldwide, but many more will be new to the reader. The collection includes 400 unique voices—political and apolitical, monastic and erotic—that represent a wider artistic movement that challenges thousand-year-old traditions, broadening our notion of contemporary literature.
Proclaimed one of poetry's genuinely necessary voices, Joshua Beckman reads from his latest collection Take It. The poems in Take It masterfully combine traditional and contemporary concerns and speech in attending to a degraded, yet wondrous, world. At Magers and Quinn Booksellers, 3038 Hennepin Avenue, South, Minneapolis. Cosponsored with Magers and Quinn Booksellers.
Sandra Cisneros visits Minneapolis as part of the celebratory tour for the 25th anniversary of the publication of The House on Mango Street (Vintage), her lauded novel of a young girl growing up in the Latino section of Chicago. The book is a standard in high schools and colleges across the country. Cisneros will read from and discuss her work with MPR’s Kerri Miller at Washburn High School, 201 West 49th Street, in Minneapolis (recorded for later broadcast). Call for tickets at 651-290-1221 or go to Ticketmaster. Cosponsored by Minnesota Public Radio and the Star Tribune in association with The Loft Literary Center. A special performance in partnership with Project Success.
Minnesota Book Awards nominees and publishers will be featured. Line up: Chris Monroe and Andrew Karre, Monkey with a Tool Belt; Rae Katherine Eighmey, Potluck Paradise; Kao Kalia Yang and Chris Fischbach, The Latehomecomer; Margaret Hasse and Norton Stillman, Milk and Tides; Al Davis, editor, and Tim Nolan, The Sound of It. Join the fun! Kieran’s Irish Pub, 330 2nd Avenue South, Minneapolis. Refreshments. Free
Just in time for Mother’s Day! Barbara Graham, editor, and local contributors Sandra Benítez & Judith Guest read from and discuss Eye of My Heart: 27 Writers Reveal the Hidden Pleasures and Perils of Being a Grandmother. Free. 
Acclaimed novelist Norah Labiner reads from her latest novel, German for Travelers. Cousins Lemon Leopold, a Hollywood starlet, and Eliza, a romance writer, travel to Berlin in search of the key to unlock a great family mystery. Cosponsored with Coffee House Press.