Lowell – A new festival will celebrate Edgar Allan Poe’s three visits to Lowell, with art exhibits, spoken word readings of poetry and short stories by Poe, dance performances inspired by Poe’s work, a screening of the Roger Corman film, “The Raven,” and more.
Poe in Lowell is set for Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 19 and 20, with events taking place at several venues in downtown Lowell.
“Poe visited Lowell three times, in 1848 and 1849,” said organizer Meg Smith, a writer, journalist, dancer and events producer in Lowell, who also serves on the committee of the Lowell Celebrates Kerouac!, a Poe in Lowell partner. “Poe in Lowell will celebrate Poe’s visits as part of the city’s history and literary heritage.”
Smith added, “Much like Jack Kerouac, who was born in Lowell, Poe’s writing represented something innovative, challenging and exciting. Like Kerouac, Poe is loved and remembered today because his life and writings speak to so many people. He is best known as a writer of horror, but so many themes run through his work, including love, loss, mystery, and discovery.”
Festival highlights include:
– A Poe Pop Up Shop, featuring local authors and vendors of spooky and gothic offerings
– “A Dream Within A Dream” soiree and artist’s reception, held in concert with Gallery Z, and featuring guest musician Amy Beauregard and model and cosplayer, The Blood Witch
-Roger Corman’s “The Raven,” at Luna Theater, with a 2 p.m. showing emceed by horror movie hostess, Penny Dreadful
– “The Edgar Allan Poe Show,” an evening of readings of Poe’s work by area poets, with special musical guest Todd Brunel; followed by performances by local Oriental and fusion dance artists, inspired by Poe’s short stories and poetry
In addition to the two-day festival, Poe in Lowell is sponsoring “Echoes of Poe,” an exhibit of poetry and art by Lowell High School students, running through October at Lowell Telecommunications, with a reception set for Friday, Oct. 18, 1 to 3 p.m.
Photo courtesy Rebecca Paiva
A complete schedule of festival events can be found here, at linktr.ee/poeinlowell
Poe in Lowell is supported by a grant from Mosaic Lowell, as well as by local businesses and individual supporters.
More information on Poe and the scheduled events:
Why did Poe visit Lowell? This article from the UMass Lowell library explains.
Penny Dreadful hosted the horror movie TV program, “Shilling Shockers” from 2006-2016, and was inducted into the Horror Host Hall of Fame in 2014.
She will host the 2 p.m. showing of Roger Corman’s “The Raven,” Oct. 20 at Luna Theater, as part of the Poe in Lowell Festival.
Photo courtesy Sanary Phen
Sanary Phen will read Poe’s signature poem, “The Raven,” at the Edgar Allan Poe Show, an evening of spoken word, live music and dance performance, set for 7:30 p.m. at Olympia’s Zorba Music Hall in Lowell.
Sanary Phen is a poet, writer and storyteller, born in a Thai refugee camp during the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia.
She is a longtime advocate for Lowell’s Southeast Asian community, and serves as the development coordinator for the Coalition for a Better Acre, and serves on the board of the Cambodian Literary Arts Association.
Photo courtesy Matt Jersey
The Blood Witch is a model and cosplayer, whose recent appearances include the Dead of Winter Horror Festival.
She will co-host the gothic fashion pageant at “A Dream Within A Dream: Artist’s Reception and Saturday Soiree, set for 7 p.m. Ot. 19 at Gallery Z in Lowell, as part of the Poe in Lowell festival.
Edgar Allan Poe visited Lowell a total of three times, in 1848
and 1849.
This daguerreotype is one of two known daguerreotype portraits of Poe taken in
Lowell. This daguerreotype is sometimes called “the Annie portrait,” after Annie Richmond, who
heard Poe speak on his first visit to Lowell, when he lectured on “Poets and the Poetry of
America.”
