Are you a poet? Do you want to read your poetry aloud and meet like minded people but find everything about both those concepts overwhelming? Poetry Speed Dating is for all kinds of poets, whether they’re just starting out or an old hand looking for a casual listener for some new material. The night is designed to combat both the setup of a traditional poetry night as well as the horrible life draining social obligation known as networking.
How it works: Two chairs, two poets, two poems. Ten minutes. You sit opposite someone – maybe a stranger, maybe an old friend, maybe your dad who came along out of curiosity – and you read them or show them your poem. Then they show you or read you their poem, and maybe you guys talk about it. You have 10-15 minutes (we’ll see how it goes) together and then a bell/whistle will sound and one of you will move on to the next table, to do the same again – different person, maybe a different poem.
If that sounds exhausting you can also just bring poems you like and share them with another person. The idea is to read a poem and escape – you gain a moment of vulnerability with another human and you get to practise reading aloud or having your work read, then you can move on.
It’s a free night and there’s absolutely zero romantic implication, unless someone falls in love with your beautiful words
