Over 100 poets from 30 countries in Bucharest in May

The eighth edition of the Bucharest International Poetry Festival (FIPB) will kick off in Bucharest in about one month. During a whole week, May 15-21, over 100 poets from more than 30 countries will come to the Romanian Capital for the renowned festival, allowing the poetry lovers to attend more than 20 events hosted by ten famous cultural venues in the city: the National Museum of the Romanian Literature (8 Nicolae Cretulescu street), „Carol I” Central University Library, Bucharest Museum-Filipescu Cesianu House, Green Hours jazz-café, the Group for the Social Dialogue, (GDS), Point, Humanitas Cismigiu Bookshop, Humanitas Kretzulescu Bookshop, Tramvaiul 26, „Tudor Arghezi – Mărțișor” Memorial Museum.

The festival includes round tables, debates, jazz recitals and performances, book launchings, conferences, and, for the first time in the project’s history- events for children.

At the same time, a first this year will be the PEN anniversary- a major prestigious institution which is integrating the Romanian writers in the world literary world. PEN members from almost all European countries will come to Bucharest on this occasion.

Internationally renowned names will attend FIPB 2017: Entela Kasi (Albania), Hugo Mujica (Argentina), Marco Lucchesi (Brazil), Gueorgui Konstantinov (Bulgaria), Călin-Andrei Mihăilescu (Canada), Simona Racková (Czech Republic), Olga Walló (Czech Republic), Hu Xian (China), Jidi Majia (China), Gao Xing (China), Gong Xuemin (China), Lee Gil-Won (Korea), Nadežda Čačinovič (Croatia), Olja Savičević (Croatia), Kätlin Kaldmaa (Estonia), Jarkko Tontti (Finland), Géza Szöcs (Hungary), Sylvestre Clancier (France), Regula Venske (Germany), Victor Ivanovici (Greece), Bruno Mazzoni (Italy), Marco Di Pasquale (Italy), Katica Kulavkova (Former Republic of Macedonia), Enormi Stationis (Poland), Emilian Galaicu-Păun (Republic of Moldova), Nikolay Zvyagintsev (Russia), Barbara Korun (Slovenia), Veronika Dintinjana (Slovenia), Ioana Gruia (Spain), Jordi Valls (Spain), Adam J. Sorkin (USA), Haydar Ergülen (Turkey), Mykola Riabchuk (Ukraine).

A selection of experimental poets, famous worldwide, will join the events in this area: Christian Foley (UK), Steven J. Fowler (UK), Max Höfler (Austria), Christian Bök (Canada / Australia), Maja Jantar (The Netherlands / Belgium), LaTasha N. Navada Diggs (USA), who will meet their Romanian colleagues Mugur Grosu, Claudiu Komartin, Răzvan Țupa and Tara Skurtu, within metaMorph – experimental poetry performance. Curator: Simona Nastac (Romania/UK).

The Romanian poetry will be represented by an impressive number of authors, from all generations.

The latest trends and the amplitude of the edition this year turns the Bucharest International Poetry Festival into the most important genre festival in Romania.

„Bucharest International Poetry Festival represents a cultural initiative that is absolutely necessary in the Union European and against its joint cultural values. During the first edition in 2010, Bucharest was among the fewest European capitals that were not hosting and organizing a wide genre festival. FIPB supplied this gap on the Romanian cultural stage and today it brings poetry as a major literary genre, but also the poets and their distinct voices, into the limelight of a wide audience, passionate about the various expressions of poetry. For one week, Bucharesters will enjoy much more events than at the previous editions, dedicated to all ages, starting with the little ones, who will discover the contemporary poetry, to adults, familiar with poetic languages or not, with all having unmediate access now to this live, ever-growing phenomenon. A big picture over the contemporary poetry around the world, an interactive, dynamic week in the world capital of lines,” said doctor docent Ioan Cristescu, director of the National Museum of the Romanian Literature, which organizes the festival, next to the Bucharest City Hall and the Culture Ministry.

The Romania Journal is supporting the festival as media partner.