Poetry in motion

Abrupt closure of The Spill forces a switch to new locations for national poetry festival events next week.

New venues have been arranged for four events of the national poetry festival that starts in Peterborough on Sunday, now that The Spill has closed for good.

Four events related to the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word Nogojiwanong - Peterborough 2017 were supposed to take place at The Spill, on George St. – but the bar closed suddenly on Wednesday.

One event on Sunday night – the Wild Card Slam – is moving to The Sapphire Room, while three late night events, starting at 11:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, are happening at The Venue.

Jon Hedderwick, festival director and member of Peterborough Poetry Collective, confirmed the changes.

The Spill closed on Wednesday night after 14 years in business. Owner Dave Tobey hasn’t commented on the reasons why the bar closed.

The Canadian Festival of Spoken Word is the largest spoken word festival in the country.

It will feature poetry slam competitions, master classes, workshops and feature performances at various locations downtown.

Here are the changes to the venues:

Wild Card Slam: Sunday, 7 p.m. signup, 7:30 p.m. start, at the Sapphire Room

The Mixolos Mitchtape Podcast Live Recording: Tuesday, 11:30 p.m. to 1 a.m., The Venue

n Our Sexless Marriage with Charlie Petch and Andre Prefontaine, a showcase and LGBTQQAII2S+ Open Mic: Wednesday, 11:30 p.m. to 1 a.m., The Venue

Slamily Feud: Thursday, 11:30 p.m. to 1 a.m., the Venue.