Ampersands: Raymond Antrobus & Joe Carrick-Varty

Joe Carrick-Varty and harpist Olivia Jageurs perform a unique piece originally commissioned for Ledbury Poetry Festival: More Sky combines a sequence of short prose poems with Jageurs’ haunting composition. The text is excerpted from Carrick-Varty's collection of the same name and addresses themes of absent parents and growing up in the shadow of domestic abuse. The result with the ancient beauty of the harp is something like a modern psalm sequence: lingering powerful profound.  

The piece is followed by a reading from Raymond Antrobus from his ambitious new collection Signs Music. This third collection from the prize-winning poet plots the journey into parenthood with honest trepidation humility and a quiet joy. Dedicated in part to ‘all the fathers healing their hurts’ with the closing instruction ‘keep going’ this is a moving collection from a poet hitting his stride on new ground.

BSL interpretation for both pieces will be provided by Pettra St Hilaire. 

Presented by Stephanie Sy-Quia in association with Stratford East 

Host or Publisher Stratford East