Antònia Vicens, Teresa Pascual, Miriam Reyes, Leire Bilbao, Anna Pantinat, Sofía Castañón, and Jèssica Zuan—considered among Spain’s finest poets—will participate next week in the Versud Festival, organized by the Fundació Mallorca Literària.
The poetry event, which aims to establish itself as a leading festival and is being promoted this year as part of the Blai Bonet Year, will take place this Friday and Saturday, the Consell de Mallorca announced in a press release. On Friday morning,
the Pati de Dones at the La Misericòrdia cultural center in Palma will host a recital featuring the six poets, who write their works in Catalan, Spanish, Galician, Basque, and Romanç.
The recital will also feature a musical performance by the duo Ölivias, with pieces based on poems by Blai Bonet and Antònia Vicens, among others, and visuals by Atzur, who will present a show created for the occasion.
Prior to the recital, the 'Blai Bonet Reading Party' will take place in the garden of La Misericòrdia, an initiative to promote reading and conversation about the author from Santanyí, hosted by writer Sebastià Portell and featuring musical and poetic performances.
This is an adaptation for the Mallorcan public of the “reading party” format popularized in Manhattan and which, in the last year, has begun to take root in Barcelona, Madrid, and other Spanish cities.
Conceived as a gathering for silent reading in community, it is adapted on this occasion to offer a welcoming space where individual reading alternates with conversation and active listening, turning reading into a celebration and an incentive to share.
The Versud Festival will continue on Saturday at the Sant Blai de Campos Oratory with the recital “Vers novell,” featuring three of the most prominent emerging voices in Catalan poetry: Laura Taltavull from Mallorca, Andreu Blai from Valencia, and Sasha Pradkhan from Catalonia.
The festival will culminate with a concert by Mar Pujol, a very special event that will mark the closing of the Catalan singer-songwriter’s “Cançons de rebost” tour.