We are closing our National Poetry Month festivities with a special afternoon of readings, conversation, and creative prompts by Nevada poets. Join us on April 28, from 3:00 - 5:00 pm PT, on our Twitch channel for a live streamed event hosted by City of Reno Poet Laureate Jesse James Ziegler, featuring poets Ms.AyeVee, Wendy Chen, Elisa Garcia, Rodney J. Lee, and Iain Watson. Audience participation is welcome and encouraged!

Each poet will share original poetry readings and discuss their inspirations and the significance of poetry in their life, before sharing a prompt/phrase that audience members can use to create an original poem of their own. At the end of our stream, we will save time to read original poems created by our audience members and invited guests using the provided prompts.

No account is needed to tune in on Twitch, but creating a free account will let you participate in our chat and ask questions!

TUNE IN

Ms.AyeVee is an award-winning Afro-Latina Literary Artist from Las Vegas, Nevada.

She is a woman of many hats with a passion for poetry. Her work has been featured by the legendary All Def Poetry, Write About Now, and Button Poetry. Ms. AyeVee has also been recognized by the Las Vegas Book Festival, NPR, and the U.S. Congress for advancing the cause of literacy and extraordinary literary achievement. In 2022 Ms. AyeVee was selected as an official TEDx speaker for Las Vegas. She also runs a Las Vegas based poetry organization called Beyond the Neon (@btnpoetry) that focuses on poetry exclusive events and community outreach. Ms.AyeVee is currently promoting her new poetry collection, Broken Silence.

Follow her poetic journey at https://linktr.ee/Msayevee

Photo courtesy of Wendy Chen

Wendy Chen is the author of the novel Their Divine Fires (Algonquin) and the poetry collection Unearthings (Tavern Books). She is the editor of Figure 1, associate editor-in-chief of Tupelo Quarterly, and prose editor of Tupelo Press. Her poetry translations of Song-dynasty woman writer Li Qingzhao are forthcoming in a collection titled The Magpie at Night from Farrar, Straus & Giroux in 2025. She earned her MFA in poetry from Syracuse University and her PhD in English from the University of Denver. Currently, she is an assistant professor of creative writing at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Elisa Garcia is a Mexican-American writer and spoken word artist originally from Los Angeles, California.

Her journey in the spoken word scene has been marked by significant milestones, including her role as the coach for the Spoken Views Youth Collective at Brave New Voices in 2016. In 2017, Elisa made history as a member of the first-ever Reno team to compete in the National Poetry Slam held in Denver, Colorado.

Now living in Reno, Elisa shares space with her wonderful roommates and her mini black panther, Ferngully. When she's not crafting poems or managing an office, you can find her spreading joy through poetry workshops, where she helps others find their voices.

Away from the stage and the office, Elisa loves baking sweets, laughing too loud, and turning dance partners into cherished friends. You'll likely find her nestled with a good book, immersed in cozy video games, or gulping down one cup of coffee too many. Elisa's life is a testament to her dedication to art, community, and the simple things that make each day great.

Rodney J. Lee is a poet and educator living and performing in Las Vegas, Nevada. Lee has three published books: Family Words, A Page and a Pen, and Along These Trails. Lee feels blessed to be a part of the magic of poetry for the past 45 years. He hopes everyone can discover poetry in their lives.

Iain Watson works as a third grade teacher and is currently in his eleventh year as a certified educator in the Washoe County School District. Watson holds a MA in Teaching from Sierra Nevada College. He is the co-founder/director of Spoken Views Poetry Collective and also a member of the Nevada Poetry Society. Iain has been writing and performing poetry for over 20 years and is proud to have shared the stage with nationally recognized poets such as Brandon Leake, Michelle Myers and Buddy Wakefield. Watson also dabbles in photography and is a jazz vinyl collector. Iain currently lives in Reno with his wife Jamie and cat Garnet.

Jesse James Ziegler is currently serving as Poet Laureate for the City of Reno. He is the creator and manager of Monday Night Poetry and vice president for Spoken Views Collective. He is a member of the Sierra Literary Cooperative and the Spoken Word/Poetry contributor to Reno Arts News. He runs a twice monthly all ages poetry group/open mic True Colors in collaboration with Our Center. He was the first ever Poet in Residence for the Bruka Theatre and held that position for three consecutive seasons. His first collection of poetry, FIVE (2019), was published and brought to life through their annual new Works Festival.

Jesse opened and hosted the world premieres of Brandon Leake’s original spoken word play ‘Insomnia’ (Winner of Season 15 AGT) and has been a performance artist at the annual Utah Arts Festival. He has served as a host, judge, and prompter for the Nevada chapter of the national Poetry Out Loud organization and continues to be the curator and host of a monthly poetry book club Collective Breath. He is also an active member of the Nevada Poetry Society which is the state chapter of the National Federation of State Poetry Societies.

Humanities at Play explores and showcases the significance of the humanities in everyday life through games, media, and popular culture. Join us for dynamic and interactive online and in-person events designed to spark thoughtful conversation and reflection. Learn more at nevadahumanities.org/humanities-at-play.

Humanities at Play: An Afternoon With Nevada Poets