by Portia Choi | Apr 15, 2021 | Events, Interviews, Poems
First Friday Open Mic on April 2, 2021 First Friday Open Mic on April 2, 2021 The First Friday Open Mic was the first event during National Poetry Month. It began with a virtual reading as poets got together to share their words. The poet interviewed for this...
by Portia Choi | Mar 30, 2021 | Events, Interviews, Poems
March 5, 2021 Open Mic – ZOOM The March 5, 2021 Open Mic (via ZOOM) was especially meaningful. The poet, Betty Lee Cortez recited her heart-felt poem about her brother who had died, and her family and friends joined the Open Mic, listening to her words. ...
by Portia Choi | Mar 25, 2021 | Events, Interviews, Poems
First Friday Open Mic, February 5, 2021 We had another performance of original poetry and music on February 5th by ZOOM. Creativity continues, as always, and a way to share our creations happens even during the social precautions of the pandemic. The...
by Portia Choi | Jan 31, 2021 | Events, Interviews, Poems
Open Mic January 2021 We started the New Year with sparkles of spoken words at Open Mic poetry. The poets who performed were Portia Choi, Lola Jimenez, Carla Martin, Chris Nielsen, Eric Osborne, Kevin Shah and Suzanne Weller. Barbara Mattick and Viridiana...
by Portia Choi | Jan 4, 2021 | Events, Interviews, Poems
First Friday Open Mic by ZOOM December 4, 2020 To end year 2020, poets shared their words at First Friday Open Mic by ZOOM on December 4. The poets who performed were Anke Hodenpijl, Carla Martin, Chris Nielsen, Eric Osborne, Mandy Wallace, Portia Choi,...
by Portia Choi | Nov 23, 2020 | Events, Poems
First Friday Open Mic on November 6, 2020 Story by Carla Martin We had our first ZOOM First Friday Open Mic on November 6, 2020. A delightful group of Bakersfield performers read their works. There was a wide range of poetry shared. Here are some of the highlights:...
by Portia Choi | Apr 1, 2020 | Features
Jack Hernandez wrote “A Journey with Poetry” in the Community Voices of the Bakersfield Californian. It was published on April 1, 2020 which coincided with the the first day of National Poetry Month. The essay is reprinted below. ...
by Portia Choi | Mar 17, 2020 | Events, Interviews, Poems
Bakersfield Poets Respond to COVID 19 I, Portia Choi, of Kern Poetry thank you, our poetry community. These are times of change – a time of mandatory precaution due to COVID-19. It has also been a time of connection with poetry and with creativity. This story is...
by Portia Choi | Dec 1, 2019 | Events, Featured Poet, Interviews, Poems
First Friday: Open Mic, November 1, 2019 Featuring Annis Cassells. Annis Cassells was the featured poet at the First Friday Open Mic at Dagny’s Coffee on Nov 1, 2019, she read from her book of poetry, You Can’t Have It All. Even though the event was over a year...
by Portia Choi | Oct 9, 2019 | Events, Poems
First Friday Open Mic at Dagny’s Coffee (Summer 2019) There were poets and musicians, new faces and seasoned performers at Dagny’s Coffee during the summer 2019 at First Friday Open Mic. Below are interviews of poets who performed during the summer. An in-depth...
