News & Events “Poetry in the Garden” at the Emily Dickinson Museum July 10, 17, and 24

June 28, 2005
Director of Media Relations
413/542-8417

AMHERST, Mass.—The Emily Dickinson Museum will host “Poetry in the Garden,” a series of Sunday afternoon readings of Dickinson's poems in the garden at the Homestead at 280 Main St. in Amherst, Mass. On Sunday, July 10, at 2 p.m., Alan Powers, professor of literature at Bristol Community College, will present “Dickinson's Birdtalk,” readings from works by Emily Dickinson that employ descriptions and images of birds. On Sunday, July 17, at 2 p.m., Harrison Gregg, moderator of Amherst Town Meeting, will focus on the poet's ironic and witty work in “Dickinson the Satirist.” On Sunday, July 24, at 2 p.m., “Dickinson's Most Enigmatic Poems” will be the focus of readings and discussion led by Susan Snively, director of the Writing Center at Amherst College.

The readings are free and open to the public. Parking is available on Main Street and side streets throughout downtown Amherst. Some seating will be provided, but audience members are invited to bring blankets or lawn chairs. In the case of rain, the events will move indoors. For more information, contact the Museum at 413/542-8161 or visit the Museum's Website.

Alan Powers has presented “Birdtalk” lectures at libraries in New England and the United Kingdom. He has made notable appearances on Italian radio and in poetry documentaries, including an appearance in “Loaded Gun: Life and Death of Dickinson.” He has published articles on a variety of topics including Shakespeare, Renaissance law and folklore. Currently, he is professor of literature at Bristol Community College where he teaches Shakespeare, western world literature, and poetry writing classes.

Harrison Gregg is associate director of institutional research at Amherst College and also serves as moderator of Amherst Town Meeting. For more than fifteen years he convened the annual Emily Dickinson Walk, precursor of the Museum's Emily Dickinson Poetry Walk. He still presides at the final stage of the Walk, at which audience members are invited to read Dickinson poems and toast her memory. He describes himself as an ardent admirer, interpreter, and memorizer of Dickinson's work.

Susan Snively is the author of three volumes of poetry, From This Distance (1981), Voices in the House (1988) and The Undertow (1998). Her fourth, Skeptic Traveler, will be published this fall. Her poems and essays have been published in a variety of literary journals. She has taught at Smith and Mt. Holyoke College, and now directs the Writing Center at Amherst College, where she also teaches.

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