Youth and Adult Poetry Programs Are Set for 2015 at the Birmingham Public Library

Resolve to become a poet or just appreciate the art form in 2015 with the help of several Birmingham Public Library programs. All events are free.

Bards & Brews, a monthly poetry performance and beer tasting event, will be held on Friday, January 9, at the Central Library. Friday’s program will be a poetry slam and feature craft beer samples from Good People Brewing Co., courtesy of the BPL Young Professionals. The event will open with live music at 6:30 p.m., and poetry at 7:00 p.m. Brian “Voice Porter” Hawkins will serve as emcee. Slams are held quarterly. Other Bards & Brews sessions are open mic. Light refreshments will be served. Attendees must be 18 years or older to be admitted, and 21 years or older to be served. IDs will be checked.

The February Bards & Brews will be Friday, February 6, at Avondale Library, with Grayton Beer Co. This series is funded in part by the Alabama State Council on the Arts. For more information, call 226-3670.

Gifts of a Wordsmith, an adult poetry workshop, is held the first and third Tuesday of the month from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Central Library. Tina Mozelle Braziel, who’s skilled in teaching creative writing, and Alicia Clavell, a full-time UAB business communications instructor, will alternate leading sessions. For more information, call 226-3607 or email hm@bham.lib.al.us.

The WORD UP! 2015 Poetry Showcase and Workshop, featuring spoken word artists from around the region, will be held on Sunday, January 25, in the Arrington Auditorium of Central Library. Alex “Huggy Bear Da Poet’’ Lofton will lead a workshop for youth, ages 12 to 18, at 2:00 p.m. Registration is required. Call 226-3670 or email hm@bham.lib.al.us. The showcase, which is open to all ages, will start at 3:30 p.m.

The Teen Poetry Initiative Workshop is held the first Saturday of the month from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. at the Central Library. John Paul Taylor of Real Life Poets Inc. is the coordinator. This workshop is open to youth, ages 12 to 18. For more information, call Taylor at 585-8271 or email him at johnpaul@reallifepoets.org.

WORD UP!, an annual poetry slam competition for students in grades 9 -12 in Jefferson County, will be held on Saturday, April 11, at 3:00 p.m. at the Central Library. Participants must write and perform an original work inspired by the theme “Survive.’’ Students will compete in contests at their schools. The deadline for schools to register to compete is Tuesday, February 17. Call 226-3670 or email hm@bham.lib.al.us to register. Winners from each school will face off at the annual WORD UP! competition at the library. This program is funded in part by the Alabama State Council on the Arts. For more information, visit http://www.jclc.org/wordup.aspx.