On Wednesday May 3rd
First 10 - 11am Listen to me on WBAI 99.5 FM

And later on in the evening...

Wednesday, May 3rd @ 7:30pm
FIRST WEDNESDAYS
Presented by the Bronx Council on the Arts
Open Mic and Featured Poets TARA BETTS and ELIEL LUCERO

Tara Betts, writer/educator/performer, appeared on HBO's "Def Poetry"
and jessica Care moore's "SPOKEN" on The Black Family Channel. Her
work has been adapted for the stage production "Words on Fire" at the
nationally-recognized Steppenwolf Theater and the stage adaptation of
Rivka Solomon's "That Takes Ovaries!" Aside from representing Chicago
twice at National Poetry Slam, Tara's work has appeared in Essence
magazine, anthologies such as "Gathering Ground: A Reader Celebrating
Cave Canem's First Decade" (University of Michigan Press), "Bum Rush
the Page" (Three Rivers Press), and in the upcoming volumes "Black
Writing from Chicago" (Southern Illinois University Press) and
"Hurricane Blues: How Katrina and Rita Ravaged a Nation." (Southeast
Missouri State University Press). A Cave Canem graduate and MFA
candidate at New England College, Betts teaches poetry and encourages
literacy with organizations such as Bronx Writers' Center and Urban
Word NYC.

Eliel Lucero is a native New Yorker of Afro-Dominican descent, who
began writing at the age of 14. Eliel read his poetry for the first
time, during the summer of 2003, after visiting the Acentos Bronx
Poetry Showcase. Reading after reading, his interest grew as he found
inspiration in his surroundings. With the help of his family at
Acentos and the louderARTS Project, Eliel has taken his work to
heights he never imagined. His goals are to enhance his craft through
passion and dedication, to one day publish a few books of poetry, and
to reciprocate all the help given to him to anyone who feels a hunger
for writing. Eliel has been featured at a number of New York City
readings including the Acentos Bronx Poetry Showcase, louderARTS at
Bar13, Cornelia Street Café and the Nuyorican Poets Café. He is
also
the author of the chapbook, "View From the Watchtower."

The Downtown Bronx Cafe
141 E. 149th Street (Corner of Walton Ave and 149th Street)
2, 4, 5 trains to 149th Street-Grand Concourse
Hosted by Rich Villar
FREE!