2024 St. Augustine PoetFest
The Ancient City celebrates National Poetry Month with this three-day festival.
2024 St. Augustine PoetFest
In and around the Ringhaver Student Center
50 Sevilla Street
St. Augustine, FL 32084
DISCLAIMER: The details of this event are still subject to change. We encourage you to verify event times and details with the organizers.
For the third year in a row, Flagler College, Ancient City Poets, and the St. Johns Cultural Council present a three-day poetry festival to celebrate literary heritage and to connect the creative community.
St. Augustine PoetFest 2024 takes place throughout the city at various cultural venues and includes events ranging from poetry readings to improv showcases.
All Poetfest 2024 events are free and open to the public.
Day 1 — Thursday, April 11
Festival Kick-Off:
Beat Poet Summit & Community Open Mic
St. Augustine PoetFest 2024 will start with a night of shared poetry at the St. Johns County Waterworks building. For the first hour, poets who have been recognized as "Beat Poet Laureates" of their prospective states (current or incumbent) by the National Beat Poetry Foundation will perform their pieces. The second hour of this kick-off event will be a community open mic night, where local poets and the public are invited to share their most recent writing pieces.
Doors open at 6:00 p.m., with the sign-up sheet available for interested performers until the 7:00 p.m. showtime.
Admission: Free and open to all members of the public.
When: Thursday, April 11, 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Where: The Waterworks, 184 San Marco Avenue, St. Augustine, Florida 32084 (Free parking available onsite.)
Note: While the address is 184 San Marco Avenue, the only driveway on San Marco is Exit Only. Access to the Waterworks is through the St. Augustine Main Library parking lot. (Use 1960 North Ponce de Leon in your GPS.)
Day 2 — Friday, April 12
Day two includes a variety of events throughout the city from 10:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. During the day, performances, lectures, author discussions, and workshops will be held on the Flagler College campus. An open mic event will follow in the evening at Relampago Coffee Lab.
Flagler College Campus
| Friday, April 12 | 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. | Book Bazaar | Outside Ringhaver Student Center | PoetFest brochures and schedules available. Books and recordings from local authors and featured poets will be for sale. |
Ringhaver Student Center — 50 Sevilla Street
| Friday, April 12 | 10:00 a.m. - 10:50 a.m. | Blending Poetry and Comedy | The Virginia Room, 2nd Floor | New Jersey Poet Sam Rubenstein shares a series of comedic poetry performances. |
| Friday, April 12 | 11:00 a.m. - 12:20 a.m. | Women in Writing: Spotlight on Women Who Inspire | The Virginia Room, 2nd Floor | With presentations by Shannon E. Stephen, Eleanor Tremayne, Cynthia Atkins, and Victoria Nations, this segment will discuss how representing women's voices can bring balance to creative and social spaces. |
| Friday, April 12 | 12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. | San Diego Scene Spotlight | The Virginia Room, 2nd Floor | Presented by Chris Vannoy (New Generation Beat Poet Laureate) and Christophver R., two members of The Mightier P.E.N.S. (Poetic Expeditionary Nation of Semanticists). |
| Friday, April 12 | 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. | Improv Comedy Spotlight | The Virginia Room, 2nd Floor | Presented by Amy Angelilli and The Adventure Project/Third Space Improv. |
| Friday, April 12 | 2:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. | Menorcan Heritage in Poetry | The Virginia Room, 2nd Floor | Historical and cultural presentation by Ann Masters, Poet Laureate of the Menorcan Cultural Society. |
| Friday, April 12 | 4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. | Keynote Presentation | The Virginia Room, 2nd Floor | Given by George Wallace, a New York poet & writer in residence at the Walt Whitman Birthplace. |
Relampago Coffee Lab — 74 Spanish Street
Open Mic Night, hosted by the Flagler College English Dept.
After a full Friday of poetry and spoken word events, the Flagler English Department students and faculty invite locals and visitors to join them in an evening of creative performances. Tucked away in the back garden of Relampago, this regular open mic night event will include poetry and musical performances. Sign-up starts at 6:00 p.m., with the first reader beginning at 6:30 p.m.
Admission: Free and open to the public
When: Friday, April 12 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Where: Relampago Coffee Lab, 74 Spanish Street, St. Augustine, Florida 32084
(No parking available onsite. Paid lots nearby.)
Day 3 — Saturday, April 13
Day three will see another day full of diverse and engaging sessions. Starting at 10:00 a.m. and concluding around 7:00 p.m., the final day of the festival will take place in various buildings on the Flagler College campus. The festival will conclude in the evening with an awards ceremony and reception.
Flagler College Campus —
| Saturday, April 13 | 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. | PoetFest Alive! | Outside of Ringhaver Student Center | PoetFest brochures and schedules available. The St. Johns County Library system's Book Mobile will also be onsite. |
| Saturday, April 13 | 11:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. | Typewriter Poets and Indie Market Pop-Up | Back Paver Patio of Ringhaver Student Center | Located between Markland Place and the Ringhaver Student Center, this space will host a pop-up market space with local crafts and goods. Poets will also compose improvisational poems on their typewriters. |
Ringhaver Student Center — 50 Sevilla Street
Jay's Place — 1st Floor
| Saturday, April 13 | 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. | Registration, Book Bazaar, & Festival Contact Center | Publications, author recordings, and local student literary magazines for sale. |
Ringhaver Student Center — 50 Sevilla Street
Gamache-Kroger Theater — 1st Floor
| Saturday, April 13 | 10:00 a.m. - 10:50 a.m. | Student Showcase | Presented by Flagler College English Department. |
| Saturday, April 13 | 11:00 a.m. - 11:50 a.m. | Faculty Showcase | Presented by Flagler College English Department. |
| Saturday, April 13 | 12:00 p.m. - 12:50 p.m. | Dramatic Play Reading - "The Poet's Masque" | Presented by Amy Goldin and A Classic Theatre. |
| Saturday, April 13 | 1:00 p.m. - 1:50 p.m. | Storytelling Showcase | Presented by Margaret Kaler and the Tale Tellers of St. Augustine. |
Ringhaver Student Center — 50 Sevilla Street
Virginia Room — 2nd Floor
| Saturday, April 13 | 10:00 a.m. - 10:50 a.m. | "Kerouac's Last Two Years - St. Petersburg, Florida" | Larry Jaffe, Poet in Residence at the Jack Kerouac House, disusses and reads the works of the infamous writer, who lived with his wife and sister in St. Petersburg, Florida from 1967 until his death in 1969. |
| Saturday, April 13 | 11 a.m. - 11:50 a.m. | "From Bookstaplers to Substack - Publishing 101" | Dustin Brookshire (Limp Wrist Magazine) and Johnny Masiulewicz (Happy Tapir Press) examine the process of self-publishing. |
| Saturday, April 13 | 12:00 p.m. - 12:50 p.m. | "Music and the Muse" | Featuring poet Claire Conroy (Maine) performing to improvisational music by singer songwriter Taylor Teachout followed by a Q&A discussion on how music can take your poetry to the next level. |
| Saturday, April 13 | 1:00 p.m. - 1:50 p.m. | "Florida is Haunted: Poetic Ghosts in the Sunshine State" | Featuring Ma Bones, Nick Dunkenstein, Keri Foster, Damon Thomas, enjoy an hour of poetry inspired by hauntings and the haunted. As Jacques Derrida said — "It is the question of ghosts." |
| Saturday, April 13 | 2:00 p.m. - 2:50 p.m. | "The Antinomian Outsider aspect of The Beat Generation" | Presented by Outlaw poet Ron Whitehead, who hails from Tennessee. |
| Saturday, April 13 | 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. | Closing Event |
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| Saturday, April 13 | 5:00 p.m. | Celebratory Reception | Finale celebration — poets and guests all invited! |
The main organizer of the St. Augustine PoetFest is Florida Beat Poet Laureate, Chris Bodor. Click the email button on this event page to reach out to his team.
Glimpse into PoetFest 2024 Presenters
2024 St. Augustine PoetFest
In and around the Ringhaver Student Center
50 Sevilla Street
St. Augustine, FL 32084
