A event held at The Station on Tuesday 14th November. The event starts at 19:30.
Raise the Bar and Bad Betty Press present an evening of dynamic and eclectic live poetry, including four feature poets and a short open mic.
This month's lineup includes...Caroline Bird, Tom Sastry, James Kearns and Jasmine Cooray!
️ November 14th 2023
The Station, Silver St, Bristol BS1 2AG
7:00pm doors | 7:30pm - 9:30pm show (including 15 minute interval)
PWYC £6 / £8 / £10 (£5 concessions)
16+ accompanied. Wheelchair accessible. Scroll down for further access and safeguarding information.
OPEN MIC
Our open mic is welcome to poets, rappers, storytellers, lyricists, songwriters, and wordsmiths of all styles and levels of experience, whether it's your first time or your 100th. To sign up to perform, head to the link in our Instagram Bio (@rtbspokenword) at 10am THIS Sunday 15th October. If spaces are full, email [email protected] and you'll be added to the reserve list. A number of open mic spaces are reserved for writers from the global majority, the LGBTQ+ community and non-male performers.
FEATURE ACTS
CAROLINE BIRD
Caroline Bird is a poet and playwright. Her sixth collection, The Air Year, won the Forward Prize for Best Collection 2020 and was shortlisted for the Polari Prize and the Costa Prize. Her fifth collection, In These Days of Prohibition, was shortlisted for the 2017 TS Eliot Prize and the Ted Hughes Award. She won an Eric Gregory Award in 2002 and was shortlisted for the Geoffrey Dearmer Prize in 2001 and the Dylan Thomas Prize in 2008 and 2010. She was one of the five official poets at the 2012 London Olympics. As a playwright, Bird has been shortlisted for the George Devine Award and the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Her Selected Poems, Rookie, was published in May 2022.
JAMES KEARNS
James Kearns is a poet based in Birmingham and Cape Town. His work focuses on experimentation and collaboration and explores how poetry can interact with other art forms. He has been a winner in the Streetcake Magazine Prize for Experimental Writing and his pamphlet featured in Ghost City Press’s 2022 Summer Series. His forthcoming project explores depictions of dementia in experimental poetry and publishing and his debut collection will be released by Bad Betty in November 2023.
JASMINE COORAY
Jasmine Cooray is a poet, psychotherapist and arts facilitator. She has been a Women of the World Festival speaker, BBC Performing Arts Fellow and Writer-in- Residence at the National University of Singapore, and has delivered creative writing projects for the Barbican, the Southbank Centre, First Story, the Arvon Foundation and the National Literacy Trust. Her pamphlet Everything We Don’t Say was published by Tall Lighthouse in 2009. Inheritance is her first full collection of poetry.
TOM SASTRY
Tom Sastry is a ray of sunshine. He once co-edited a book of poems about the future which turned into a collection of poems about the apocalypse because no-one could believe he would want to publish anything remotely cheerful. He will be performing a brand new set drawn from his current project Life expectancy begins to fall. Expect him to be political, ironic, emotional, morbid and funny in all the wrong places.
Tom’s pamphlet Complicity (2016) was a Poetry School Book of the Year and a Poetry Book Society pamphlet choice. His first collection A Man's House Catches Fire (2019) was highly commended in the Forward Prize and shortlisted for the Seamus Heaney First Collection Prize. And You have no normal country to return to (2022) is also quite good (citation needed).
“A magician of deadpan” – Hera Lindsay Bird
"Tom Sastry navigates the mysterious everyday...making friendships and love affairs new and strange" - Carol Ann Duffy
⭐ RAISE THE BAR ⭐
The South West's leading live poetry night, showcasing the very best of UK poetry and spoken word since 2014.
‘From top to bottom, one of my all time favourite shows’ – Shane Koyczan
'One of the best poetry nights in the country' – Rafeef Ziadah
'Out-loud reactions are encouraged…shaking off traditional theatre etiquette' – Bristol 24/7
⭐ BAD BETTY ⭐
Bad Betty is an award-winning independent publisher of new poetry, and curator of live literature events taking place across the UK.
London-born, Nottingham-based, Bad Betty Press was set up in 2017 by Amy Acre and Jake Wild Hall with the aim of showcasing exciting and risk-taking poetry, supporting poets’ artistic development and celebrating stories less often told.
Bad Betty runs live poetry and music events across the UK, supported by Arts Council England. Our annual live poetry tours have taken us to Belfast, Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Derby, Edinburgh, Leeds, Leicester, London, Norwich, Nottingham, Southampton and York.
♿ ACCESSIBILITY / SAFEGUARDING ♿
Our events aim to be as safe, inclusive, accessible and welcoming as possible.
The venue has a wheelchair accessible entrance.
If you have any particular access requirements or concerns, please email [email protected] in advance.
The event may include photography and videography.
SEATING / TIMINGS
Doors open at 7:00pm, and the bar will be open with a selection of drinks (alcoholic + non-alcoholic).
The show begins at 7:30pm, so please arrive and be seated promptly. The event includes a 15 minute interval. We aim to finish at 9:30pm.
COVID-19
If you are feeling ill and showing symptoms, please take a test. If you test positive, please don't attend the event. We will provide a refund.
⚠️ CONTENT WARNING ⚠️
Poetry events include performers sharing personal accounts which you may relate to in some way. This may include content that is potentially upsetting or triggering. We provide a general content warning at the beginning of each event, and we encourage feature artists and open mic performers to provide content warnings for individual poems where necessary. Attendees are welcome to leave the venue at any time if necessary, and return when they feel comfortable, but please try to do this before/after a poem.
SAFE SPACE
Raise the Bar has a zero tolerance policy towards hate, discrimination and abuse of any kind. Our staff team will work together to ensure the space is respectful and welcoming at all times. The open mic rules include 'no punching down' and 'no nudity', as well as being encouraged to provide a content warning where necessary.
This month's lineup includes...Caroline Bird, Tom Sastry, James Kearns and Jasmine Cooray!
️ November 14th 2023
The Station, Silver St, Bristol BS1 2AG
7:00pm doors | 7:30pm - 9:30pm show (including 15 minute interval)
PWYC £6 / £8 / £10 (£5 concessions)
16+ accompanied. Wheelchair accessible. Scroll down for further access and safeguarding information.
OPEN MIC
Our open mic is welcome to poets, rappers, storytellers, lyricists, songwriters, and wordsmiths of all styles and levels of experience, whether it's your first time or your 100th. To sign up to perform, head to the link in our Instagram Bio (@rtbspokenword) at 10am THIS Sunday 15th October. If spaces are full, email [email protected] and you'll be added to the reserve list. A number of open mic spaces are reserved for writers from the global majority, the LGBTQ+ community and non-male performers.
FEATURE ACTS
CAROLINE BIRD
Caroline Bird is a poet and playwright. Her sixth collection, The Air Year, won the Forward Prize for Best Collection 2020 and was shortlisted for the Polari Prize and the Costa Prize. Her fifth collection, In These Days of Prohibition, was shortlisted for the 2017 TS Eliot Prize and the Ted Hughes Award. She won an Eric Gregory Award in 2002 and was shortlisted for the Geoffrey Dearmer Prize in 2001 and the Dylan Thomas Prize in 2008 and 2010. She was one of the five official poets at the 2012 London Olympics. As a playwright, Bird has been shortlisted for the George Devine Award and the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Her Selected Poems, Rookie, was published in May 2022.
JAMES KEARNS
James Kearns is a poet based in Birmingham and Cape Town. His work focuses on experimentation and collaboration and explores how poetry can interact with other art forms. He has been a winner in the Streetcake Magazine Prize for Experimental Writing and his pamphlet featured in Ghost City Press’s 2022 Summer Series. His forthcoming project explores depictions of dementia in experimental poetry and publishing and his debut collection will be released by Bad Betty in November 2023.
JASMINE COORAY
Jasmine Cooray is a poet, psychotherapist and arts facilitator. She has been a Women of the World Festival speaker, BBC Performing Arts Fellow and Writer-in- Residence at the National University of Singapore, and has delivered creative writing projects for the Barbican, the Southbank Centre, First Story, the Arvon Foundation and the National Literacy Trust. Her pamphlet Everything We Don’t Say was published by Tall Lighthouse in 2009. Inheritance is her first full collection of poetry.
TOM SASTRY
Tom Sastry is a ray of sunshine. He once co-edited a book of poems about the future which turned into a collection of poems about the apocalypse because no-one could believe he would want to publish anything remotely cheerful. He will be performing a brand new set drawn from his current project Life expectancy begins to fall. Expect him to be political, ironic, emotional, morbid and funny in all the wrong places.
Tom’s pamphlet Complicity (2016) was a Poetry School Book of the Year and a Poetry Book Society pamphlet choice. His first collection A Man's House Catches Fire (2019) was highly commended in the Forward Prize and shortlisted for the Seamus Heaney First Collection Prize. And You have no normal country to return to (2022) is also quite good (citation needed).
“A magician of deadpan” – Hera Lindsay Bird
"Tom Sastry navigates the mysterious everyday...making friendships and love affairs new and strange" - Carol Ann Duffy
⭐ RAISE THE BAR ⭐
The South West's leading live poetry night, showcasing the very best of UK poetry and spoken word since 2014.
‘From top to bottom, one of my all time favourite shows’ – Shane Koyczan
'One of the best poetry nights in the country' – Rafeef Ziadah
'Out-loud reactions are encouraged…shaking off traditional theatre etiquette' – Bristol 24/7
⭐ BAD BETTY ⭐
Bad Betty is an award-winning independent publisher of new poetry, and curator of live literature events taking place across the UK.
London-born, Nottingham-based, Bad Betty Press was set up in 2017 by Amy Acre and Jake Wild Hall with the aim of showcasing exciting and risk-taking poetry, supporting poets’ artistic development and celebrating stories less often told.
Bad Betty runs live poetry and music events across the UK, supported by Arts Council England. Our annual live poetry tours have taken us to Belfast, Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Derby, Edinburgh, Leeds, Leicester, London, Norwich, Nottingham, Southampton and York.
♿ ACCESSIBILITY / SAFEGUARDING ♿
Our events aim to be as safe, inclusive, accessible and welcoming as possible.
The venue has a wheelchair accessible entrance.
If you have any particular access requirements or concerns, please email [email protected] in advance.
The event may include photography and videography.
SEATING / TIMINGS
Doors open at 7:00pm, and the bar will be open with a selection of drinks (alcoholic + non-alcoholic).
The show begins at 7:30pm, so please arrive and be seated promptly. The event includes a 15 minute interval. We aim to finish at 9:30pm.
COVID-19
If you are feeling ill and showing symptoms, please take a test. If you test positive, please don't attend the event. We will provide a refund.
⚠️ CONTENT WARNING ⚠️
Poetry events include performers sharing personal accounts which you may relate to in some way. This may include content that is potentially upsetting or triggering. We provide a general content warning at the beginning of each event, and we encourage feature artists and open mic performers to provide content warnings for individual poems where necessary. Attendees are welcome to leave the venue at any time if necessary, and return when they feel comfortable, but please try to do this before/after a poem.
SAFE SPACE
Raise the Bar has a zero tolerance policy towards hate, discrimination and abuse of any kind. Our staff team will work together to ensure the space is respectful and welcoming at all times. The open mic rules include 'no punching down' and 'no nudity', as well as being encouraged to provide a content warning where necessary.