We Have the Power by Selina Trepp
Program

POWER LINES: Poetry Foundation’s Spring 2025 Season

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We thunder while our teeth
talk.
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— Elise Paschen

Twenty-five years ago, the Guild Complex, a grassroots Chicago literary organization, celebrated its first decade with Power Lines, an unexpectedly mighty anthology with a who’s who cast of poetry giants, many still early in their careers at the time. The Poetry Foundation’s spring 2025 season pays homage to this Midwest legacy and, following its example, takes as its theme POWER LINES: Lineage as a Source of Collective Power. 

Power lines run through our veins, an energetic current connecting us to the past, fueling us toward the futures of our imaginations. Regenerate with us.

Events

Archive(s) of Style

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A poetry reading featuring Cheryl Clarke, Harmony Holiday, Natalia Molebatsi, and Nikki Patin.
Events

Like a Hammer: Poets on Mass Incarceration

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A book launch featuring readings by contributors Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, Nicole Sealey, John Murillo, Candace Williams, and editor Diana Marie Delgado.
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Power Tripping

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An evening of performances and readings by Karen Finley, Jada Renée Allen, Odette Stout, and Ruby Que with Ále Campos.
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Blood Wolf Moon

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An evening of poetry readings by Elise Paschen and Esther Belin plus artist talks by June Carpenter and Lydia Cheshewalla, followed by a reception.
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Escaramuza, the Poetics of Home Exhibition Opening 

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Join us for a poetry reading, artist talk, and reception to celebrate the opening of the exhibition Escaramuza, the Poetics of Home. 
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Ghost Forest

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An evening of poetry readings by Ruth Lilly prize winner Kimiko Hahn, Sarah Ghazal Ali, Mónica de la Torre, and Rosalie Moffett.
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Power Lines 25th Anniversary Celebration

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A 25th anniversary celebration with original contributors and editors of Power Lines: A Decade of Poetry from Chicago’s Guild Complex.
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Power Through

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A poetry reading with Midwest-based authors Oliver Baez Bendorf, Imani Elizabeth Jackson, Nathanael Jones, Vi Khi Nao, and Ruben Quesada.
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Antigone Reimagined

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A listening experience of Danielle Davis and Cage Sebastian Pierre’s original mixtape “Songs from the Poets” from Court Theatre’s production of Antigone.

In addition, our adult education program offers free workshops with visiting teaching artists open to the general public. Registration for these workshops opens a month in advance. 

Events

Forms & Features with Hannah Treasure

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A generative poetry workshop, “Engaging the Collective: Lyrical Voices of the Internet,” created and led by Hannah Treasure
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Forms & Features with Laura Wetherington

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A generative poetry workshop, “The Intersection of Verse Forms and Visual Poetry,” created and led by Laura Wetherington
  • “Writing in The Rhythm,” created and led by Ide Amari Thompson
  • “The Best of Both Worlds: Writing the Novel in Verse,” created and led by Meg Eden Kuyatt

Stay tuned as this page is updated with additional upcoming events in the season.