The Matter of the Mask: A Reading with Derrick Weston Brown and Select D.C. Poets
Date and Time
May 22, 2025 7:00 pm
Location
450K
450 K St NW, Washington, District of Columbia, 20001
May 22, 2025 7:00 pm
450K
The Matter of the Mask: A Reading with Derrick Weston Brown and Select D.C. Poets
Join us for an intimate reading with poet, author, educator, and Fellow Derrick Weston Brownfeaturing poets from our Washington, D.C. Regional Workshop, The Matter of the Mask, as they share new work in the transformative power of persona poetry. Exploring the use of persona poetry in the guise of established poetic forms such as haiku, cento, sonnets, and more, these talented poets come together for a final workshop reading.
Access Notes:
About
Derrick Weston Brown ('02) holds an MFA in Creative Writing from American University and is a graduate of the Cave Canem and VONA summer workshops. He has received fellowships and scholarships to attend The Community of Writers and The Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. He was the recipient of an individual artist grant from the Maryland State Arts Council and was awarded the E. Lynn Harris Impact Award from the Hurston/Wright Foundation in 2023.
His work has been published in such publications as Racebaitr, Colorlines, and The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. His work has been widely anthologized in such collections as The Future of Black: Afrofuturism; Black Comics and Superhero Poetry; A Face to Meet the Faces: An Anthology of Contemporary Persona Poetry; and Dear Yusef: Essays, Letters and Poems for and About One Mr. Yusef Komunyakaa. His first poetry collection Wisdom Teeth was released in 2011 via PM Press. His second collection of poetry, On All Fronts, was released with two other poetry chapbooks in a series via Upper Rubber Boot Press in 2019. He is a full-time Creative Writing faculty member in the Cinematic Arts and Media Production (C.A.M.P.) department at The Duke Ellington School of the Arts.
Cave Canem Regional Workshops
Cave Canem’s workshops are rare opportunities for poets of all experience levels to work with and learn directly from accomplished poets in Cave Canem’s network. Limited to small enrollment groups, these multiple-session workshops offer rigorous instruction, careful critique, and an introduction to the work of influential poets. Workshops are tuition-free and free to apply. Learn more.
Funding & Partners
This program is made possible with the support of the Poetry Foundation.
This event is presented in partnership with Busboys and Poets & is free and open to the public. If you are unable to join us in person, there will also be a captioned livestream with ASL Interpretation available for both.
