Events at this location

Readings of Original Poems by Local Poets

Our free PoetryMic series introduces you to a varied group of talented poets that live in and around Sarasota. But you never know what visiting, well-known poets may drop by the loft!
This month’s poets are Rick Hilles, Georgia Court and Doug Knowlton.
About the poets:
Rick Hilles:
Rick Hilles, a recipient of a Fulbright, Whiting, and the Amy Lowell Traveling Poetry Scholarship, has poems, essays, and translations that have appeared in: American Literary Review , Five Points , Harper’s , Kenyon Review , Literary Imagination , Narrative Magazine , The Nation , New Letters , The New Republic , Paris Review , Plume , Poetry , Salmagundi , Smartish Pace , Southern Review , storySouth , and Tar River Poetry . Author of Brother Salvage , A Map of the Lost World , and three chapbooks, most recently, My Roberto Clemente . He teaches in the English Department and MFA Program at Vanderbilt University.
Georgia Court:
Georgia Court retired from teaching English Composition and Writing for Healthcare at the University of Cincinnati, but her career path included writing a weekly column about healthcare for the Cincinnati Post (a daily newspaper), publishing a weekly newspaper for healthcare professionals and owning a PR-event management company. Her first job out of college was with IBM where she worked as a systems engineer for several years before moving on to a life in words.
Georgia is the owner of Bookstore1Sarasota, located downtown. She is also the founder of PoetryLife, which started in 2012 as an annual event to bring the world’s finest poets to Sarasota. PoetryLife is now an umbrella program that brings poetry to Sarasota audiences all year long.
Doug Knowlton:
Doug’s been writing poems and lyrics since the 1960s. His love of poetry was reignited as he participated in readings around the Orlando area c. 1996-1999. He emceed the open mic at Java N’Jive Coffee House in Palmetto, 2002-2003. He was a regular at the Fogartyville Café Open Mic (Bradenton) 2002-2005 and hosted the Village Bookshop Poets and Writers from 2006-2011. Doug enjoys facilitating workshops for writers stirred by poetry’s potential.
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This free in person event is in the Loft at our store at The Mark, 117 S. Pineapple.
Registration will end 1 hour before the event’s scheduled time.
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All signed up and unable to go? Please let us know! Seating is limited and there may be people on our waitlist who would like to to take your place. Please send an email to bryn@sarasotabooks.com ASAP and hopefully we’ll see you next time.
Click here to go to the Bookstore1Sarasota website: https://www.sarasotabooks.com/.

A Conversation with Award-Winning Writer, Actor & Director Ron Destro.

What if everything you learned about William Shakespeare was a lie? That’s the question we’ll explore this evening with the Kennedy Center award-winning playwright, actor, director, and author Ron Destro. Come hear why the Shakespeare authorship question (supported by such notables as Walt Whitman, Mark Twain, Orson Wells, and Mark Rylance) is a legitimate one. Then listen to the first chapter of Destro’s audiobook, The Starre, The Moone, The Sunne , narrated by acclaimed actor Sir Derek Jacobi, followed by audience questions and a book signing.
About the book:
In 1624 London, a brave printer is executed, a portly poet is kidnapped, a Stratford-upon-Avon grave is emptied, King James is put into a panic, many swashes are buckled, and things are never as they seem, all because brave Nicholas and clever Valentina are about to discover and reveal the true identity of “William Shake-speare.” This is a timely tale that touches on the powerful love of fathers, the perils of the plague, the joys of turnips, and the mysterious life and tragic death of the Bard of Avon. It is a (mostly) true story of suspense and humor.
About the author:
Ron Destro is a Kennedy Center award-winning writer, actor and director. His works include The Shakespeare Masterclasses (Routledge) and the play Hiroshima , with an original score by Yoko Ono, which was listed in the Top Twenty Best Shows of the year by NY Theatre Wire . His new novel, The Starre, The Moone, The Sunne , was shortlisted in the Flash 500 Novel Opening Competition. He has staged more than 50 Shakespeare productions in Stratford-upon-Avon, Birnam Wood, Elsinore, Agincourt and Venice, and is the founding director of the New York and London-based Oxford Shakespeare Company.
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This free in-person event is in the Loft at our store at The Mark, 117 S. Pineapple.
Registration will end 1 hour before the event’s scheduled time.
…………………………………………………………………………….
All signed up and unable to go? Please let us know! Seating is limited and there may be people on our waitlist who would like to to take your place. Please send an email to bryn@sarasotabooks.com ASAP and hopefully we’ll see you next time.
Click HERE to go to the Bookstore1Sarasota website: https://www.sarasotabooks.com/