Blacksmith House Poetry Series
Founded in 1973, the award-winning Blacksmith House Poetry Series brings established and emerging writers of poetry and fiction to Harvard Square.
About The Blacksmith House Poetry Series
Founded in 1973, the award-winning Blacksmith House Poetry Series brings established and emerging writers of poetry and fiction to Harvard Square. The series is named after the Blacksmith House at 56 Brattle Street, site of the village smithy and spreading chestnut tree of Longfellow’s 1839 poem "The Village Blacksmith."
All readings take place in person at 56 Brattle Street on Mondays at 8pm. Admission is $5 and tickets are available at the door.
Ron Spalletta & Daniel Grover, Assistants to the Director
Andrea Cohen, Director
Gail Mazur, Founding Director
Spring 2025 Schedule
February 24
Forrest Gander reads from his newest book,Mojave Ghost.
March 17
Armen Davoudian reads from his debut collection,The Palace of Forty Pillars, with Abigail Chabitnoy, whose most recent book isIn the Current Where Drowning is Beautiful.
March 24
Jonathan Aaron reads fromJust About Anything: New and Selected Poems,with Steven Ratiner, whose new collection isGrief's Apostrophe.
March 31
Emerging Writers/New Voices
Izzy Casey, Milica Mijatović and Annaka Saari
April 7
Yolanda Pantin reads from the bilingual anthology Five Female Latin American Poets (Arrowsmith Press), with Sean Singer, whose most recent collection isToday in the Taxi.
April 14
Sally Keith reads fromTwo of Everything: Poems,with Andrea Ballou, whose debut collection isOther Times, Midnight.
April 28
John Koethe reads fromCemeteries and Galaxies: Poems, with Kevin McLellan, whose new book isSky. Pond. Mouth.
May 5
Fanny Howe, author ofNight Philosophy and a reader from the first Blacksmith House reading in 1973, will be joined by Haleh Liza Gafori, whose most recent translation of Rumi isWater.
Previous Reading Recordings
Fall 2024
December 2, 2024 - Carl Phillips and V. Penelope Pelizzon
Fall 2022
October 24, 2022, Recording - Tracy K Smith
Spring 2022
March 21, 2022, Recording - Linda Gregerson and Roger Reeves
February 28, 2022, Recording - Lesle Lewis and Joan Kane
February 21, 2022, Recording - Matthew Olzmann and Donika Kelly
Fall 2021
October 18, 2021 Recording - Lloyd Schwartz and Peter Shippy
October 25, 2021 Recording - Cammy Thomas and Joan Houlihan
November 1, 2021 Recording - Angie Estes and Maureen McLane
November 15, 2021 Recording - Peter Campion and Atsuro Riley
November 22, 2021 Recording - John Skoyles and Pablo Medina
November 29, 2021 Recording - Sandra Lim and Noah Warren
December 6, 2021 Recording - George Kalogeris and Chard DeNiord
Late Winter/Early Spring 2021
February 22, 2021 Recording - Denise Bergman and Katherine Hollander
March 1, 2021 Recording - Natalie Shapero and Rebecca Morgan Frank
March 8, 2021 Recording - Christian Wiman and Andrea Cohen
March 15, 2021 Recording - Joyce Carol Oates
March 29, 2021 Recording - Zachary Schomburg and Yona Harvey
April 5, 2021 Recording - Khaled Mattawa and Randall Mann
April 12, 2021 Recording - Yusef Komunyakaa
May 3, 2021 Recording - Jennifer Militello and Tim Liardet
Fall 2020
October 26, 2020 Recording - Steven Cramer and Joyce Peseroff
November 2, 2020 Recording - Jeffrey Harrison and Nathalie Handal
November 16, 2020 Recording -David Barber and David Blair
December 7, 2020 Recording - Rosanna Warren and Henri Cole
December 14, 2020 Recording - Dennis Held and Derek Sheffield
Other recordings
Blacksmith House Poetry Series is supported by:
The Ponsold-Motherwell Charitable Trust