Talking With Poets: Anne Gotham at the 2024 Word Fest

Thom Francis welcomes poet Anne Gotham who shared her work at the 2024 Word Fest Open Mic at the Sand Lake Center for the Arts on April 27, 2024.

The Word Fest began in 2001 in Thatcher Park as a one-day open mic event, uniting poets from across the region to share their work. Since then, it has blossomed into a week-long celebration of poetry and spoken word, featuring workshops, poetry slams, performances, and, of course, the beloved open mic.

After a hiatus since 2019, the Word Fest Open Mic made its much-anticipated return on Saturday, April 27, at the Sand Lake Center for the Arts. The event was filled with captivating performances by featured spoken word artists and talented open mic participants.

In today’s episode, we are thrilled to highlight one remarkable poet from the event: Anne Gotham who, with her family in the front row, read “Coke Bottle Wisdom,” a poem for her father, and a couple of list poems including “Grief Is …”