International Events

Translation Duels offer an opportunity to compare and contrast two translators' approaches to the same poem and are fuelled by discussion and debate between the translators as they defend their choices and explore the question, what makes a translation work as English-language poetry? There are two translation duels this Festival, a Ukrainian Translation Duel hosted by Sasha Dugdale and a British Sign Language Translation Duel. British Sign Language is a language with complex three-dimensional syntax, and no written form – so join Kyra Pollitt and Sue MacLaine to discuss how to get a performing body onto the page?

International events offer an opportunity to hear poets who rarely perform in the UK. Marie Howe and Jericho Brown are two American poets who must not be missed. Marie Howe's recent collection Magdalene was nominated for the National Book Awards in 2017. From Howe’s perspective, poetry provides an opportunity for healing in how it allows us to tell human stories. Juxtaposed against Mary the mother of Jesus, “Magdalene was set up as the repentant sinner (often a prostitute), creating a split that has affected women for generations... This split between the virgin and the whore, the mother and the single woman, the sacred and the sensual, the body and the spirit – established by the patriarchy – has caused so much suffering in women,” Howe said. “How can we begin to heal this split? Perhaps by talking about it – telling our stories.” Other American poets appearing include Mark Doty, Major Jackson and Linda Gregerson.