The EMBARK | Peekskill Family Poetry Party took place at the Energy Movement Center at 925 South Street at 1:30 on Saturday, April 14. Its purpose was to celebrate poetry in April (National Poetry Month) with young people. The event was many activities focussed around poetry, including creating original poems and reciting poems to music. The young people left with the knowledge that poetry could be something they will enjoy throughout their lives.
The Poetry Party began with readings of some favorite poems. Then Embark Literary Director and Garrison English teacher Ian Berger then led everybody in several activities, including building a silly poem from a pre-made list of vocabulary but also writing a group original poem. Sprinkled throughout these exercises were more poems not only in English but Spanish and German.
“This event showed how literary activities can be a fun part of a person's life,” said Mr. Berger. “Poems are something we enjoy every day; we don't realize that because we call them ‘song lyrics’, but they're really a type of poem. At our event, we showed kids the process of how they can make poems of their own.” Garrison middle school student Sara Labriola led the group in the classic song “Three Little Birds”, and local musician Matt Norris created a musical rhythm with his computer which led the young people through two “beat poems”, poems read to an outside beat. All in all, it was a busy event that taught young people new ways to enjoy and create poetry.
EMBARK | Peekskill is a coalition of performing and literary artists and community members committed to the establishment and development of a Performing and Literary Arts Center for Peekskill and its surrounding communities as a home and venue. It is our goal to partner and collaborate with artists, arts alliances, and supporters of the arts. EMBARK seeks to encourage understanding of the role the arts play in building community and in celebrating diversity. We can be found on the web at www.embarkpeekskill.com and on Facebook. Please contact us at embarkpeekskill@gmail.com.
