New Play, Readings By Poets And Novelist,

Coming To 8th Mad River Literary Festival

WINSTED — Readings by three nationally-known poets and a novelist, plus the world premiere of Burst, a one-act play, will highlight the 8th annual Mad River Literary Festival April 13-16 at Northwestern Connecticut Community College.

Burst, a one-hour dramatic chronicle of family stress and love by Bill Hunt, is being directed by Penny Owen of the Nader Trust and features four local actors and Jason Smith, an actor living in Manhattan.

The Festival opens Tuesday, April 13, at 6:30 pm, with an open reading in the college’s Founders Hall Auditorium, located at the corner of Routes 44 and 8. The Open Reading will feature original poetry and other work written and read aloud by students of the college and community residents.

Those interested in reading should sign up with Jessica Treat at JTreat@nwcc.commnet.edu prior to the festival.

The readings will be followed by a reception with refreshments. All events at the four-day festival are free and open to the public.

On Wednesday, April 14, at 6:30 pm, widely published poet Brian Johnson will read new poems and work from his book-length collection Self-Portrait. At 7:30 pm, renowned performance poet Sean Thomas Dougherty will read work drawn from six books of his poetry. Mr Dougherty’s reading will be followed by a question and answer period where he will be joined by Mr Johnson.

At 8:30 pm the Founders Hall stage will be taken over by the cast of Bill Hunt’s Burst, in its world premiere performance.

On Thursday, April 15, at 6:30 pm, New York City poet Kimiko Hahn, the author of six books of poetry, will read from her work. At 7:30 Brian Evenson, the author of six books of fiction, will read selections from his work.

At 8:45 pm on Thursday the cast of Burst will present the play’s second performance. Then on Friday, April 16, again at 8:45 pm, the actors will close out the festival with the third performance of Burst.

Running concurrently with the Mad River Literary Festival, Northwestern’s art department is sponsoring an exhibit of photographic work by 25 students in the first floor gallery in Founders Hall. A reception with refreshments will be served at the opening of the exhibition on April 15 from noon to 1:15 pm. The exhibit of still life, landscape and portrait photographs by current NCCC students will run April 12-22.

For additional information contact Jessica Treat at 860-738-6340.