Word Central open mic

Open Mic Event

Contact: mail@flapjackpress.co.uk

Website: https://flapjackpress.co.uk/pages/word-central

Word Central Open Mic Poetry and Spoken Word.
Presented by Flapjack Press and Manchester Libraries.
Hosted by Tony Curry with special guest Melanie Neads.
Tuesday 26th November, 6.00pm – 7.45pm, at Manchester Central Library, St Peter’s Square, Manchester M2 5PD.
Doors open 5.40pm and free entry.

Book your open mic slot from noon on Tuesday 12th November via mail@flapjackpress.co.uk.
N.B. Open mic slots are 3 minutes per performer – it is essential that you stay within this timeframe.
Performance slots are allocated on a ‘first come first served’ basis from the stated booking time. If they are already filled you will be offered a place on the reserve list.

November’s special guest Melanie Neads is a poet, playwright, and dramaturge from Salford whose new collection of univocalic poetry and plays, Euphoria, was published by Flapjack Press in Autumn 2024. Her poetry has won several competitions and her co-authored collection with Sarah Miller was Best Collaborative Work runner-up at the Saboteur Awards. Melanie’s plays have won the Forever Manchester Award, been shortlisted for the Shelagh Delaney Award, and performed on radio by victims of youth crime for Live from Worktown’s Standing Together community safety project. She was Drama Co-ordinator for Salford Young People’s University, co-founded the Pavilion Theatre Company in Bolton, and is a judge for Manchester UNESCO City of Literature’s Slamovision 2024. Melanie is also a tantra and somatic yoga teacher and award-winning English and Drama SEND teacher, who has taught and lived in Australia, India, Poland, Israel, and the USA – experiences which infuse her work.
‘Style sits side by side with social commentary.’ Julie Hesmondhalgh

Event host Tony Curry is a poet, playwright, and workshop facilitator who runs literature-in-the-community projects with a specific leaning towards mental health and wellbeing. His work has been exhibited at Manchester’s Museum and art galleries, and his play, The Teddy Bear, was staged at Contact Theatre. Tony’s solo spoken word shows include Brit Boy, Complicit Relations, Moving and The Odyssey, performed at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre. In 2024 he will be touring his new show, Tall Tales for All Men, adapted from his collection Tall Tales for Tall Men Who Fall Well Short [Flapjack Press, 2012].
‘This is our poetry; these are our poems. They smell of home and friendship.’ Tony Walsh

Entry: Free

Time: 6:00pm (Doors 20 mins before start)