No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeArchivePoetry Festival Aims to Brighten Up Lives

Poetry Festival Aims to Brighten Up Lives

“POETRY improves people’s lives,”said Amalia Chaverri, vice-minister of culture.“Last year was a difficult time forCosta Ricans, but poetry allows people toexpress their thoughts and feelings on anytopic they choose” she said, referring to theupcoming poetry festival.From Jan. 30 to March 14, Costa Ricawill be celebrating the “springtime ofpoets” for the sixth year running, incorporatingNational Poetry Day, Jan. 31, andcommemorating the birth of Costa Ricanpoet Jorge Debravo.Under the slogan, “Harkers ofMemory,” the festival aims to bring poetryback into people’s lives. This year, the poetsof today will be invited to recite poems ofold and rediscover forgotten works.“It is important to make poetry visible.In this consumer society, people think thatpoetry is dead. But it isn’t. It is everywhereand still very strong. Poetry is humanizingand brings out the best in people; creatingit and spreading it is very important,” saidJulieta Dobles, vice-president of the Houseof Poetry.Events and activities are free, and willinclude poetry recitals in several San Joséparks with poets as renowned as AlfredoTrejos, a poetry marathon and numerousshort-film showings on the lives of manypoets. Also scheduled are poetry workshopsfor adults and children, exhibitionsand poetry exchange fairs, as well as a circusperformance by the Granada CircusSchool of Nicaragua. Many poetry eventswill be held in libraries around the country(see Calendar, page W-11/12, for details).Anyone feeling creative should sendtheir work to the humoristic poetry contest,open to all Costa Ricans or people residingin Costa Rica. Under the theme, “A Day inSan José,” those over 18 can e-mail a poemin Spanish of any length to sanjose@clubdelibros.com, from Feb. 1 until midnighton March 4. Ten winning poems will bepublished on the Internet at www.clubdelibros.com, and a prize-giving ceremonywill be held in Café Expresivo, in BarrioEscalante, on the east side of San José, at 7p.m. on March 14. For more information,visit www.clubdelibros.com/undiaensanjose.htm.“Poetry is about life. Many people arescared to try it because they think theydon’t know how to do it, but poetry is agame,” said Dobles. “It’s playing withwords, and we hope this festival will bringpoetry into many people’s lives.”

Trending Now

San Jose Airport Achieves Top 5 Global Ranking in Passenger Experience

Juan Santamaría International Airport in San Jose, Costa Rica's main gateway managed by AERIS, has earned the prestigious Level 5 Customer Experience certification from...

Chiquita to Rehire Thousands of Banana Workers in Panama

Chiquita Brands, one of the world’s largest banana producers, will return to Panama and rehire thousands of employees after shutting down operations three months...

El Salvador Fires School Leaders After Bukele Shares Gang Video

The Minister of Education ordered the dismissal of the director and deputy director of a public institute shown in a video shared by President...

Costa Rica Unveils Plans for Maximum-Security Prison

Costa Rica will soon be home to a new high-security prison designed specifically to house our country’s most dangerous inmates. At a weekly press...

Guatemala Prisons Erupt in Violence With Guards and Workers Taken Hostage

Gang members rioted this Friday in two prisons in Guatemala and took several guards and civilian employees hostage, a week after uprisings in which...

Maduro Says There Is No Way the United States Will Invade Venezuela

President Nicolás Maduro said Thursday that “there is no way” the United States will invade Venezuela and urged his citizens to enlist in the...
Avatar
spot_img
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica