Poetry Cabaret with Dionne Brand and Patrick Lane

Hosted by Stephen Brockwell

Admission

Free

Saturday

Oct , 2011

4:00pm

Eastern

Knox Presbyterian Church

120 Lisgar Street (at Elgin) • Ottawa

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Brand’s luscious and ferocious lines go beyond a critique of dystopian realities to construct, in themselves, in their keen, lyric intelligence, an oasis of truth, compassion, and sensuality.

Jury Citation, Griffin Poetry Prize

We celebrate 75 years of the Governor General’s Literary Award with two of Canada’s most accomplished poets, Toronto’s Dionne Brand and Victoria’s Patrick Lane.

Dionne Brand is a multi-award-winning poet, essayist, and novelist. Her ten volumes of poetry include Land to Light On, winner of the Governor General’s Award and the Trillium Book Award, thirsty, and Inventory. In 2009, she was named Toronto’s Poet Laureate. At the centre of her latest book, Ossuaries, a hypnotic, long poem, is the narrative of Yasmine, a woman living an underground life, fleeing from past actions and regrets.

Patrick Lane, has won nearly every literary prize in Canada, from the Governor General’s Award to the Canadian Authors Association Award to the Dorothy Livesay Prize. His distinguished career spans forty-five years and twenty-four volumes of poetry, as well as award-winning books of fiction and non-fiction. Witness: Selected Poems 1962-2010 covers the breadth of his career—from early poems penned during his literary beginnings to new poems written at the height of his career. Fierce, piercing, and unflinchingly honest, Lane explores the darker side of human nature and desire even as he looks to the future with a hopeful eye.

"Celebrating 75 Years of the Governor General's Literary Awards"

The Authors

Dionne Brand

Dionne Brand's literary credentials are legion. Her most recent book of poetry, Ossuaries, won the Griffin Poetry Prize; her nine others include winners of the Governor General's Literary Award, the Trillium Book Award, and the Pat Lowther Memorial Award. Her novel In Another Place, Not Here was selected as a NYT Book Review Notable Book and a Best Book by the Globe and Mail; At the Full and Change of the Moon was selected a Best Book by the LA Times and What We All Long For won the Toronto Book Award. In 2006, Brand was awarded the Harbourfront Festival Prize for her contribution to the world of books and writing, and was Toronto's Poet Laureate from 2009 to 2012. In 2017, she was named to the Order of Canada. Brand is a Professor in the School of English and Theatre Studies at the University of Guelph. She lives in Toronto.September 2018. Her works of non-fiction include Bread Out of Stone and A Map to the Door of No Return. In 2006, Brand was awarded the prestigious Harbourfront Festival Prize, and from 2009 to 2012, she was Toronto's Poet Laureate. In 2017, she was appointed to the Order of Canada. In addition to her literary accomplishments, Brand is a Professor of English in the School of English and Theatre Studies at the University of Guelph.

Patrick Lane

Patrick Lane is one of Canada's finest poets, and his distinguished career spans 50 years and over 24 volumes of poetry as well as award-winning books of fiction and non-fiction. He has won nearly every literary prize in Canada, including the Governor General's Award for Poetry, the Canadian Authors Association Award, the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Literary Excellence, the Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize and three National Magazine Awards. His poetry and fiction have been widely anthologized and have been translated into many languages. Lane's most recent book is The Collected Poems of Patrick Lane, which contains more than 400 poems ranging from Letters from the Savage Mind (1966), to new work published in Witness (2010). It is a remarkable collection that demonstrates the breadth of Lane's achievement. The Collected Poems of Patrick Lane is his latest book.

Patrick Lane

Patrick Lane is one of Canada's pre-eminent poets, winner of numerous awards, including the Governor General's Award for Poetry, the Canadian Authors Association Award, the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Literary Excellence and three National Magazine Awards. His distinguished career spans fifty years and twenty-five volumes of poetry as well as award-winning books of fiction and non-fiction. He has lived and travelled extensively around the world and his work has been published in a number of countries, including England, France, the Czech Republic, Italy, China, Japan, Chile, Colombia, Yugoslavia, the Netherlands, and Russia. He has been a writer in residence and teacher at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec, the University of Victoria in British Columbia, and the University of Toronto in Ontario. Patrick Lane lives near Victoria, BC, with his wife, the poet Lorna Crozier. His most recent books are The Collected Poems of Patrick Lane (2011) and Washita (2014).