Talking with Poets: Mary Panza at The Linda

Thom Francis welcomes poet Mary Panza who is the vice president of the Hudson Valley Writers Guild and has been an active member of the local poetry community for over 30 years.

According to her bio, Mary has been a mainstay on the Albany poetry scene since 1988. She has been witness to countless open mics, naked poets, fires, drunks, chapbooks, career changes, organizations (both coming and going), festivals and great poetry and spoken word.

Mary hosted two long running open mics – 5 years at Borders in the late-90s and the Poets Speak Loud series at the Lark Tavern and then McGeary’s for 15 years until the pandemic hit in 2020.

In December 2021, Mary read her poem, “We’re Barefoot People,” at the first “Year in Review” spoken word event at The Linda.