Blacksmith House Series to resume Monday
Andrea Cohen takes poetic helm
By Susie Davidson
Advocate Correspondent
Founded in 1973 by poet Gail Mazur, the
Blacksmith House Poetry Series is nationally recognized for its innovative
program of modern poetry and fiction. Sponsored by the Cambridge Center for
Adult Education, the Monday evening forum will resume operation following its
annual summer break this Monday, Oct. 20, and continue to Dec. 15.
In May of 2002, Andrea Cohen, a poet, took
over as director when Mazur stepped down from the post. Mazur, who is a
poet-in-residence at Emerson College and a faculty member in its Department of
Writing, Literature and Publishing, has won fellowships from the National
Endowment for the Arts and Radcliffe CollegeÕs Bunting Institute. Her books
include ÒThey Can't Take That Away from Me,Ó ÒNightfire,Ó ÒThe Pose of
Happiness,Ó and ÒThe Common.Ó She and her husband, artist Michael Mazur, have
homes in Cambridge and Cape Cod.
"Gail's creation
and stewardship of the series have been such a gift to our community,"
said Cohen, who serves as Communications Director for the MIT Sea Project and
its Sea Grant funds, which sponsor marine-related research, outreach and
education. "It's a privilege to carry the torch forward," she added.
Cohen, who holds a bachelorÕs degree from Tufts and a masterÕs of fine arts
from the University of Iowa, has written poetry since she was young. She began
helping out at Blacksmith House while in college. "I stood at the door
with a basket, taking donations," she said. About a dozen years later, she
became fiction coordinator, a position she held for five years before taking
the helm.
Cohen grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, where
she was bat mitzvahed at Ahavath Achim. Even then, she was inordinately taken
with what lay behind the rote nature of the language curriculum. ÒWe were
taught to read Hebrew but not taught the meanings of the words,Ó she said in
retrospect. ÒI like to think the style of teaching has changed since then,Ó she
added.
Blacksmith House, which was acquired by the
Cambridge Center in 1972, is also the site of the Dexter Pratt House, where the
village smithy and spreading chestnut tree were observed by Longfellow in his
1839 poem "The Village Blacksmith." The Center is preserving both houses,
which are in the National Register of Historic Places, as living museums.
Cohen noted that the series has not changed
much from her early days. "But now, there are a whole lot more readings in
the area,Ó she said, adding that the $3 donation is now obligatory, so that the
readers can be paid.
Fiction and nonfiction are featured on the
first Monday of each month; on Nov. 3, Rosamond Purcell, who wrote books with
Stephen Jay Gould, will read from her first work of nonfiction, ÒOwlÕs Head.Ó
"It will be particularly interesting for people who are familiar with her
visual work to hear her writing,Ó said Cohen.
"We're fortunate that the series is so
well-respected, and that so many
talented writers, both established and
emerging, are eager to read
with us,Ó she continued. ÒTo me, everyone
in the fall line-up is exciting. I am
thrilled that Mark Doty is returning in
December, that David Daniel
will be reading from his first book, and
that Glyn Maxwell and Katia
Kapovich will share the stage in October."
Upcoming readers will also include Peter
Shippy, Rosamond Purcell, Shona Ramaya, Susan Wood, Ira Sadoff, John Skoyles,
John Fulton, Sue Standing, Alicia Ostriker, and Paul Lisicky. ItÕs an ambitious
agenda, reflective of the depth of devotion of the seriesÕ mission, one Cohen
seems poised to further.
ÒMy work with the series is a labor of
love,Ó she said. ÒI choose poets
and fiction writers I think people need to
hear. Helping to bring those voices together with an audience is a privilege.Ó
The Blacksmith House Poetry Series, at 56
Brattle in Harvard Square, will run on Mondays, Oct. 20-Dec. 15 at 8 p.m. Cost
is $3; tickets go on sale 45 minutes prior to each reading. For information,
please call 617-547-6789, ext. 1, or visit www.ccae.org.