Poem Talk

By Poetry Foundation

Arts Education

What's Poem Talk about?

Kelly Writers House impresario Al Filreis leads a lively roundtable discussion of a single poem with a series of rotating guests including Linh Dinh, Randall Couch, Jessica Lowenthal, Charles Bernstein, Rachel Blau DuPlessis, erica kaufman, and others.

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LAST EPISODE

With a Little String & a Sh...

03.10.2021

Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Christopher Stackhouse, Maria Damon, and Devorah Major.

Poem Talk episodes:

03.07.2017 To Rearrange the World: A discussion of Philip Whalen’s “Life at Bolinas. The Last of California.” Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring poets Stephen Ratcliffe, Joanne Kyger, and Julia Bloch.
02.09.2017 I Mean Only Means: A discussion of Kate Colby's I Mean. Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring poets Siobhan Phillips, Emily Harnett, and Joseph Massey
01.11.2017 But Too Beautiful: A discussion of Tracie Morris' “Slave Sho to Video aka Black but Beautiful” Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Edwin Torres, Camara Brown, and Brooke O’Harra.
12.06.2016 It Is Time: A discussion of Paul Celan's "Corona" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Ariel Resnikoff, Anna Strong, and Pierre Joris.
11.15.2016 Dear Conflicted Reader: A discussion of C.D. Wright's One Big Self Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Mel Nichols, Rob Casper, and Mark McMorris.
10.19.2016 No Truths Self-Evident: A Discussion of Michael Magee’s “Morning Constitutional” Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Kristen Gallagher, Joshua Schuster, and Kerry Sherin Wright.
09.14.2016 Explode for Small Change: A Discussion of Akilah Oliver's “Is You Is or Is You Ain’t” Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Patricia Spears Jones, Charles Bernstein, and Yolanda Wisher.
08.09.2016 Swear It Closed: A Discussion of Simone White’s book Of Being Dispersed Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Eileen Myles, Rachel Zolf, and erica kaufman.
07.12.2016 Mind’s Not Right: A Discussion of Robert Lowell's "Skunk Hour" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Rafael Campo, Elisa New, and Christina Davis.
06.14.2016 With What Geometry: A Discussion of Edward Dorn’s “The Sundering U.P. Tracks” Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Simone White, Sophia Le Fraga, and Andrew Whiteman.
05.10.2016 A Retrospective: A Discussion of Previous Episodes with Seven Poets Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring William J. Harris, Tracie Morris, Erica Kaufman, Steve McLaughlin, Herman Beavers, Maria Damon & Charles Bernstein.
04.12.2016 The Unabettable Bleak: A Discussion of Four Poems by William Bronk Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Joseph Massey, Julia Bloch, and Michelle Gil-Montero.
03.15.2016 Weakness Stalks in Pride: A Discussion of James Weldon Johnson's “O Southland!” Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Herman Beavers, Salamishah Tillet, Chris Mustazza.
02.17.2016 Articulate beyond Walls: A Discussion of Three Poems by Larry Eigner Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Ron Silliman, Daniel Bergmann, and Michael Kelleher
01.19.2016 The Laurel Crown: A Discussion of Allen Grossman's "My Radiant Eye" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Peter Cole, Kathryn Hellerstein, and Ariel Resnikoff.
12.08.2015 I too received identity: A Discussion of Rob Fitterman’s Sprawl Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Michelle Taransky, Laynie Browne, and Rodrigo Toscano.
11.17.2015 No Spell Broken: A Discussion of CAConrad's (Soma)tic Midge Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Trace Peterson, Gabriel Ojeda-Sague, and Erica Kaufman.
10.20.2015 Dreams Not Spoiled by Roaches: A Discussion of Helen Adam’s “Cheerless Junkie’s Song" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Laura Sims, Corina Copp, Richard Deming.
09.22.2015 An Abductee, in Theory: A discussion of Bob Perelman’s “Confession” Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Kathy Lou Schultz, Kristen Gallagher, and Bruce Andrews.
08.18.2015 The Body in Pain: A discussion of Gill Ott's "The Forgotten" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Jenn McCreary, Pattie McCarthy, and Frank Sherlock.
07.14.2015 The F*ck-You Bow: A discussion of Gertrude Stein's "How She Bowed to Her Brother" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Julia Bloch, Sarah Dowling, and Maxe Crandall.
06.18.2015 Requiem So Sweet We Forgot What It Lamented: A Discussion of Nathaniel Mackey's "Day after Day of the Dead" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring William J. Harris, Tsitsi Jaji, Herman Beavers.
05.19.2015 Me No One Will Take: A Discussion of Kathy Acker's "The Diseased" and "The Slave Trader" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Maria Damon, Catherine Wagner, and Kaplan Harris.
04.21.2015 Amplitude and Awe: A Discussion of Emily Dickinson's "Wild Nights - Wild Nights!" and "She rose to His Requirement" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Michelle Taransky, Cecilia Corrigan, and Lily Applebaum.
03.24.2015 The Signature Public: A Discussion of Tyrone Williams's, "Written By H'Self" & "Cant" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Herman Beavers, Alan Golding and Lily Applebaum.
02.24.2015 A Day Like Any Other: A Discussion of James Schuyler's "February" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Bernadette Mayer, Julia Bloch and Erica Kaufman.
02.03.2015 The I as Hieroglyph: A Discussion of H.D.'s Helen in Egypt Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Dee Morris, Annette Debo, and Julia Bloch.
12.30.2014 There It Was: A Discussion of Wallace Stevens's "The Poem That Took the Place of a Mountain" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Susan Howe, Dee Morris, and Nancy Kuhl.
10.28.2014 Remote Yet Present: A Discussion of Carl Rakosi's "In What Sense I Am I" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Anthony Madrid, Don Share, and Laura Goldstein.
10.07.2014 Deep Descent: A Discussion of Two Poems by Fanny Howe Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Rae Armantrout, Laynie Browne, and Kerry Sherin Wright.
09.09.2014 Fail Better and Revolt: A Discussion of Tom Leonard's "Three Texts for Tape: the Revolt of Islam" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Joe Milutis, Jenn McCreary, and Leonard Schwartz.
07.22.2014 Revolutionary Vibe: A Discussion of Joanne Kyger's “It's been a long time” Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Julia Bloch, Stephen Ratcliffe, and Pattie McCarthy.
07.01.2014 How Can They Write and Believe?: A Discussion of Muriel Rukeyser's "Ballad of Orange and Grape" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Amy King, Mytili Jagannathan, and David Abel.
05.29.2014 My Other Country: A Discussion of Lorine Niedecker's "Foreclosure" and "Wilderness" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Jessica Lowenthal, Dee Morris and Michelle Taransky.
05.13.2014 I'm Coming Up: Anne Waldman, "To the Censorious Ones" ("Open Address to Senator Jesse Helms") Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Pierre Joris, Orchid Tierney, and Stacy Szymaszek.
04.08.2014 Strange Galvanics: A Discussion of Will Alexander's "Compound Hibernation" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Kristen Gallagher, Tracie Morris, and Michael Magee.
02.25.2014 Word Up: A Discussion of Walt Whitman's "Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Julia Bloch, Tom Pickard, and Amy King.
01.07.2014 Is It Over Already?: A Discussion of Steve Benson's "Did the lights just go out?" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Tyrone Williams, Thom Donovan, and Patrick Durgin.
11.19.2013 Gone Is the Word as Word: A Discussion of Bob Cobbing's "Portrait of Robin Crozier" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Jaap Blonk, Danny Snelson, and Steve McLaughlin.
10.08.2013 Constrained to Honor: A Discussion of Claude McKay's "If We Must Die" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Salamishah Tillet, Herman Beavers, and Kathy Lou Schultz.
09.03.2013 On the Convergence of War & Wedding: A Discussion of Laura Mullen's "Bride of the New Dawn" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Michelle Taransky, Amy Paeth, and Steve McLaughlin.
07.30.2013 Fierce Storehouses of Articulation: A Discussion of Rachel Blau DuPlessis's "Draft 85: Hard Copy" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Ron Silliman, Jessica Lowenthal, and Randall Couch.
06.25.2013 Perhaps a New Optimism: A Discussion of Ray DiPalma's "It makes of nonsense" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Charles Bernstein, John Tranter, and Aaron Shurin.
05.28.2013 Girl Head Mostly Eyes: A Discussion of Catherine Wagner's "This is a F***ing Poem" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Laura Elrick, Rae Armantrout, and Rachel Blau DuPlessis.
05.14.2013 Deep Heart's Core Sound: A Discussion of William Butler Yeats's "Lake Isle of Innisfree." Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Taije Silverman, John Timpane, and Max McKenna.
04.16.2013 The Day Pours out Space: A Discussion of Lisa Robertson's The Weather Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Rachel Blau DuPlessis, Kristen Gallagher, and Michelle Taransky.
03.26.2013 The Straight Path Gone Astray: A Discussion of Caroline Bergvall's "Via" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Charles Alexander, David Wallace, Laynie Browne, and Amaris Cuchanski.
03.05.2013 Daytime Never Ends: A Discussion of Laynie Browne's Daily Sonnets Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Jessica Lowenthal, Sueyeun Juliette Lee, and Lee Ann Brown.
01.29.2013 A Space Only You Can Build: A Discussion of Charles Alexander's Near or Random Acts Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Ken Jacobs, Mark Nowak, and Ron Silliman.
01.08.2013 I Can't Get Started: A Discussion of Bill Berkson's "Signature Song" Hosted by Al Filreis and featuring Marci Nelligan, David Kaufmann, and Thomas Devaney.

Newer episodes

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Poem Talk

What's Poem Talk about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Poem Talk episodes:

To Rearrange the World: A discussion of Philip Whalen’s “Life at Bolinas. The Last of California.”

I Mean Only Means: A discussion of Kate Colby's I Mean.

But Too Beautiful: A discussion of Tracie Morris' “Slave Sho to Video aka Black but Beautiful”

It Is Time: A discussion of Paul Celan's "Corona"

Dear Conflicted Reader: A discussion of C.D. Wright's One Big Self

No Truths Self-Evident: A Discussion of Michael Magee’s “Morning Constitutional”

Explode for Small Change: A Discussion of Akilah Oliver's “Is You Is or Is You Ain’t”

Swear It Closed: A Discussion of Simone White’s book Of Being Dispersed

Mind’s Not Right: A Discussion of Robert Lowell's "Skunk Hour"

With What Geometry: A Discussion of Edward Dorn’s “The Sundering U.P. Tracks”

A Retrospective: A Discussion of Previous Episodes with Seven Poets

The Unabettable Bleak: A Discussion of Four Poems by William Bronk

Weakness Stalks in Pride: A Discussion of James Weldon Johnson's “O Southland!”

Articulate beyond Walls: A Discussion of Three Poems by Larry Eigner

The Laurel Crown: A Discussion of Allen Grossman's "My Radiant Eye"

I too received identity: A Discussion of Rob Fitterman’s Sprawl

No Spell Broken: A Discussion of CAConrad's (Soma)tic Midge

Dreams Not Spoiled by Roaches: A Discussion of Helen Adam’s “Cheerless Junkie’s Song"

An Abductee, in Theory: A discussion of Bob Perelman’s “Confession”

The Body in Pain: A discussion of Gill Ott's "The Forgotten"

The F*ck-You Bow: A discussion of Gertrude Stein's "How She Bowed to Her Brother"

Requiem So Sweet We Forgot What It Lamented: A Discussion of Nathaniel Mackey's "Day after Day of the Dead"

Me No One Will Take: A Discussion of Kathy Acker's "The Diseased" and "The Slave Trader"

Amplitude and Awe: A Discussion of Emily Dickinson's "Wild Nights - Wild Nights!" and "She rose to His Requirement"

The Signature Public: A Discussion of Tyrone Williams's, "Written By H'Self" & "Cant"

A Day Like Any Other: A Discussion of James Schuyler's "February"

The I as Hieroglyph: A Discussion of H.D.'s Helen in Egypt

There It Was: A Discussion of Wallace Stevens's "The Poem That Took the Place of a Mountain"

Remote Yet Present: A Discussion of Carl Rakosi's "In What Sense I Am I"

Deep Descent: A Discussion of Two Poems by Fanny Howe

Fail Better and Revolt: A Discussion of Tom Leonard's "Three Texts for Tape: the Revolt of Islam"

Revolutionary Vibe: A Discussion of Joanne Kyger's “It's been a long time”

How Can They Write and Believe?: A Discussion of Muriel Rukeyser's "Ballad of Orange and Grape"

My Other Country: A Discussion of Lorine Niedecker's "Foreclosure" and "Wilderness"

I'm Coming Up: Anne Waldman, "To the Censorious Ones" ("Open Address to Senator Jesse Helms")

Strange Galvanics: A Discussion of Will Alexander's "Compound Hibernation"

Word Up: A Discussion of Walt Whitman's "Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking"

Is It Over Already?: A Discussion of Steve Benson's "Did the lights just go out?"

Gone Is the Word as Word: A Discussion of Bob Cobbing's "Portrait of Robin Crozier"

Constrained to Honor: A Discussion of Claude McKay's "If We Must Die"

On the Convergence of War & Wedding: A Discussion of Laura Mullen's "Bride of the New Dawn"

Fierce Storehouses of Articulation: A Discussion of Rachel Blau DuPlessis's "Draft 85: Hard Copy"

Perhaps a New Optimism: A Discussion of Ray DiPalma's "It makes of nonsense"

Girl Head Mostly Eyes: A Discussion of Catherine Wagner's "This is a F***ing Poem"

Deep Heart's Core Sound: A Discussion of William Butler Yeats's "Lake Isle of Innisfree."

The Day Pours out Space: A Discussion of Lisa Robertson's The Weather

The Straight Path Gone Astray: A Discussion of Caroline Bergvall's "Via"

Daytime Never Ends: A Discussion of Laynie Browne's Daily Sonnets

A Space Only You Can Build: A Discussion of Charles Alexander's Near or Random Acts

I Can't Get Started: A Discussion of Bill Berkson's "Signature Song"

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