Poets @ the Factory with spoken- word poet Sharmont "Influence" Little and Nadia Sims on August 30th, from 6 – 8 p.m at Ball & Socket Arts
presented by Connecticut Poetry Society and by Cheshire’s own poet laureate, Pat Mottola.
Headliners will begin the event, with an open-mic to follow.
BYO-chair & picnic supper!
Location: In the Live @ the Factory Stage and Pedestrian Plaza in front of Building 5 at Ball & Socket Arts (493 West Main Street, Cheshire, CT 06410). In the event of rain, we will move to an indoor venue.
About the Poets:
Nadia Sims: Nadia Sims is the newly appointed Poet Laureate for the town of Manchester. Currently, the poet is focused on spreading her message of grace across CT, NY and MA. The Princeton graduate is the proud author of "A Soft Place to Land" and "We Know the Dark." Her spoken word album, "The Weight of Grace" is available everywhere.
Sharmont (Influence) Little is a poet, activist and actor. He utilizes spoken word poetry to deliver Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s message “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Influence is an educator and advocate for inner-city youth and has performed at Yale, Virginia State and Boston Universities, as well as a host of other colleges and public schools across the nation.
He has performed at historic poetry venues such as the Nuyorican Poets Café and the Lizard Lounge. He is a six-time member of the Connecticut poetry slam team, Verbal Slap; Coach of the 2017 Verbal Slap and 2021 Yale university poetry slam teams. He has utilized poetry to speak on behalf of workers for Yale New Haven Hospital 1199 union in 2007, and in Washington DC to members of Congress for the Free Labor Choice Act. He is the creator of Influence A Life LLC, a curriculum based program teaching coping skills, social skills, and conflict resolution. He lives by his motto: Influence a Life every day; it’s just a way of living.
Pat Mottola: Award-winning poet and Pushcart Prize nominee Pat Mottola teaches Creative Writing at Southern Connecticut State University, where she earned both an M.S. in Art Education and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing. In addition to working with students at S.C.S.U., she is thrilled to teach both art and poetry to senior citizens throughout Connecticut.
Her work is published in journals across the country, including War, Literature & the Arts, Connecticut Review, Main Street Rag, San Pedro River Review, VietNow Magazine, and Paterson Literary Review, among others.
