Critically acclaimed as one of the most rigorous poets the country has ever produced, Jay Wright has been quietly and diligently crafting an intellectually expansive poetics for more than 50 years. Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico in 1934, Wright is the author of sixteen books of poetry and he has written more than forty plays—many to be found in Selected Plays of Jay Wright (Kenning Editions). A Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, his honors include a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Hodder Fellowship, a Lannan Literary Award, a MacArthur Fellowship and the Bollingen Prize for Poetry. A collection of new and startlingly original essays, entitled Soul and Substance: A Poet’s Examination Papers, was published by Princeton University Press.

Join us in celebrating the achievements of his verse and drama! The program will commence with a one-act play reading, poetry readings by Jay Wright, and conclude with a book signing.

Sponsored by The New School’s Creative Writing Program and Cave Canem. Cave Canem is a nonprofit organization, committed to cultivating the artistic and professional growth of Black poets. Founded by artists for artists, Cave Canem fosters community across the diaspora to enrich the field by facilitating a nurturing space in which to learn, experiment, create, and present. Cave Canem develops audiences for Black voices that have worked and are working in the craft of poetry.