Poet Nikki Giovanni to headline scholarship event in Norfolk
Vanguard poet and activist Nikki Giovanni is the featured speaker for the Chesapeake P.E.A.R.L.S. Inc. Black History Month Scholarship celebration Saturday.
Taking place at Norfolk’s historic Attucks Theatre — once known as “the Apollo of the South” — the event will showcase local talent including the Norfolk State University’s Jazz Ensemble, Norfolk-based dance company Dance Dimensions, vocalist Ashley Felder and opera singer Symone Harcum. The program will culminate in a fireside chat with Giovanni.
Giovanni is cemented in history as one of the modern era’s most influential poets, starting her career during the Black Arts Movement beginning in the 1960s. She has been hailed for her “unabashedly Afrocentric” themes, the study of race and gender, and contributions to Affrilachian culture, the work of African American natives of Appalachian regions. The retired University Distinguished Professor Emerita at Virginia Tech has written more than 40 books of poetry and essays, and has produced several recordings.
Some of her best-known poems include “Nikki-Rosa,” “Ego Tripping” and “Poem for a Lady Whose Voice I Like,” and books “Black Feeling, Black Talk,” “Bicycles: Love Poems” and “Gemini.”
She’s been named woman of the year by publications including Ebony, Ladies’ Home Journal and Mademoiselle, has won numerous book honors and has been named to Oprah’s list of 25 living legends.
IF YOU GO
When: Noon Saturday Where: Attucks Theatre, 1010 Church St., Norfolk
Tickets: $80
Details: sevenvenues.com