10 years of lyrikline

Here's a press release from the wonderful Berlin-based poetry website lyrikline:

26 – 31 October

world wide poetry: 10 years of lyrikline.org

Week of events in Berlin

We are celebrating lyrikline.org, come and celebrate with us! For ten years now, the website for poetry has been seeing to it that international poetry is freely available and accessible everywhere. Reason enough to celebrate with a whole week of events opened by German President Horst Köhler. Sixteen Embassies and cultural institutions are joining the Literaturwerkstatt Berlin in organising a week of poetry readings throughout Berlin to mark this occasion. And if you can’t get to Berlin, never mind. You can listen to the final event of the week on 31 October 2009 at 20 hours CET in a live streaming in the Internet, as well as having the opportunity to take part in a special chat. Berlin-based poet Steffen Popp will be commentating the event live on Twitter.

lyrikline.org has been an ongoing success story since its inception in 1999. There is a huge audience for poetry, even if book publications and sales are in a world-wide decline and publishers are ever more wary of it. There are now 600 poets online on lyrikline.org with 5,500 poems in 50 languages, with translations into 48 languages. Partners in 40 countries collaborate in lyrikline.org, which began as an initiative by the Literaturwerkstatt Berlin.

The week of events to mark “10 years of lyrikline.org” is under the patronage of the EU Commissioner for Multilingualism, Leonard Orban.



The week of events is taking place in cooperation with: the Embassy of the Republic of Argentina, the Embassy of the Republic of Estonia, the Embassy of the Republic of Finland, the Embassy of the Republic of Iceland, the Embassy of the Republic of Croatia, the Embassy of the Republic of Macedonia, the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Flemish Representation, the Greek Culture Foundation, Berlin branch, the Ramon Llull Institute – Berlin, the Italian Cultural Institute, Berlin, The Royal Norwegian Embassy, the Titu Maiorescu Romanian Cultural Institute, Berlin, the Slovakian Institute, Berlin and the Québec Government Office in Berlin.

With kind support from:

The Working Group of Literary Societies, Foreign Office, Senate Chancellery – Cultural Affairs, Prussian Maritime Foundation, the Representation of the European Commission in the FRG, The Heinrich-Böll Foundation, the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media and the Mandala Hotel



Programme of the week of events to mark 10 years of lyrikline.org



Mon. 26 October

Password: Poetry

Opening

7,30 pm, Palais, Kulturbrauerei, Schönhauser Allee 36, 10435 Berlin, Entrance free, Advance reservation required at mail@literaturwerkstatt.org till 21th October

Featuring Lebogang Mashile (South Africa), Monika Rinck (Germany) Music: Aki Takase (Japan)
In the presence of German President Horst Köhler

Tues. 27 October

Greece: The Blast of Time

6.30 pm Greek Culture Foundation, Wittenbergplatz 3a, 10789 Berlin, Entrance free

Featuring Dionýsis Kapsális (Greece), Moderated by: Anna Lazaridou


Estonia/Finland/Iceland/Norway

North-North-East: a Nordic-Baltic evening

8 pm Nordic Embassies, Felleshus, Rauchstrasse 1, 10787 Berlin, Entrance free, please reserve a seat at info@nordischebotschaften.org

Featuring Simen Hagerup (Norway), Lauri Otonkoski (Finland), Steinunn Sigurðardóttir (Iceland) Elo Viiding (Estonia)



Weds. 28 October

Croatia: Mirrored Words

6 pm Embassy of the Republic of Croatia, Ahornstrasse. 4, 10787 Berlin

Entrance free. Please reserve a seat on 030-2192-5514

Featuring Branko Cegec (Croatia),: Dieter M. Gräf (Germany), Karen Kiwus (Germany), Zvonko Maković (Croatia) and Andriana Škunca (Croatia)

Moderated by: Alida Bremer



Flanders/Netherlands:

Poetry Below Sea-Level

8 pm Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Klosterstrasse 50, 10179 Berlin

Entry free, please reserve a seat at: bln-pcz@minbuza.nl

Featuring: Luuk Gruwez (Flanders), Ramsey Nasr (The Netherlands), Victor Schiferli (The Netherlands) and Mark van Tongele (Flanders)

Music: Ma Rain (The Netherlands)



Thurs. 29 October

Slovakia: Electromagnet Love

6 pm Berlin Slovakian Institute, Zimmerstrasse 27, 10969 Berlin. Entrance free

Featuring Martin Solotruk (Slovakia) Music: David Kollar (Slovakia) Moderated by: Angela Repka


Catalonia/Québec

The Poetry of Obstinacy: reading and discussion
8 pm Literaturwerkstatt Berlin, Knaackstrasse 97, 10435 Berlin, Entrance free
Featuring Nicole Brossard (Québec), Teresa Pascual (València) Translators: Juana Burghardt (Argentina), Tobias Burghardt (Germany), Odile Kennel (Germany)
Moderated by: Frank Heibert

Fri. 30 October
Macedonia: On the borders of poetry
5 pm Embassy of the Republic of Macedonia, Koenigsallee 2, 14193 Berlin
Entrance free
Featuring: Claudia Keelan (USA), Nikola Madzirov (Macedonia), Zvonko Maković (Croatia) and Uljana Wolf (Germany / USA)

Slovenia: The Magic of Slovenian Poetry

6.30 pm Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia, Hausvogteiplatz 3-4, 10117 Berlin

Entrance free

Featuring: Milan Dekleva (Slovenia), Gregor Podlogar (Slovenia)


Argentina / Italy:

Transeurope Hotel & Argentinian Visions

8 pm Instituto Cervantes, Rosenstrasse 18, 10178 Berlin, 2576180

Entrance free

Featuring: Bruno Capezzuoli (Italy), Luigi Cinque (Italy), Silvana Franzetti (Argentina), Daniel Samoilovich (Argentina)

Moderated by Timo Berger & Rike Bolte


Romania: POETRY LIVE – The Long Night of Young Romanian Poetry

10 pm (expected to last until 3 am), Literaturwerkstatt Berlin, Knaackstr. 97, 10435 Berlin

Entrance free

Featuring: Constantin Acosmei (Romania), Svetlana Carstean (Romania), Rita Chirian (Romania), Gabi Eftimie (Romania), Sorin Gherguţ (Romania), Vasile Leac (Romania), Stefan Manasia (Romania), Vlad Moldovan (Romania), Ioana Nicolae (Romania), Olga Stefan (Romania) Moderated by Răzvan Ţupa


Sat. 31 October
world wide poetry

Finale

8 pm Tape Club, Heidestrasse 14, 10557 Berlin (Near main station and Hamburger Bahnhof gallery), Entrance EUR 5/3 with conceesions, tickets on the door
Featuring Nicole Brossard (Québec), Babangoni wawa Chisale (Malawi), Elke Erb (Germany), Claudia Keelan (USA), Nikola Madzirov (Macedonia), Thomas Möhlmann (Netherlands), Joseph Molapong (Namibia), Remi Raji (Nigeria), Daniel Samoilovich (Argentina), Lutz Seiler (Germany)
Moderated by: Knut Elstermann (journalist based in Berlin)