A storytelling, slam poet and music event featuring Lee Francis IV and Myrlin Hepworth.
Myrlin Hepworth is a poet, emcee, and teaching artist who writes and performs across the United States. In 2009 the Arizona Commission on the Arts selected him for its roster of Teaching Artists. In 2010 he became the first undergraduate teaching artist for the Young Writers Program at Arizona State University, where he received his degree in 2011. He co-founded and coached the Phoenix youth team to consecutive appearances at the Brave New Voices International Poetry Slam. In 2011 Myrlin released his first poetry collection, From the Rooftops, and in 2013 released his first hip-hop mix-tape, The Funky Autopsy. He teaches Hip-Hop Theatre to young people using elements of music, theatre, and spoken word.
Lee Francis IV (Laguna Pueblo) is an educator, activist and poet with over fifteen years of experience teaching and conducting workshops with minority populations, especially in and around Indigenous and Native American communities in North America. His career has ranged through all aspects of education, from PreK to Higher Ed, from teaching to administration. His primary focus has always been on positive youth development and student success, with an eye towards the arts and exploring creativity in all aspects of education. He began his career with the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington DC and spent a number of years in New Mexico working with the Pueblo of Laguna Department of Education. He currently serves as the National Director of a Native American community-youth development organization, Wordcraft Circle, Inc., that focuses on promoting stories as a means of local development and cultural sustainability. He is an award winning poet and performer and has been published in numerous journals, most recently the Yellow Medicine Review.
Beats and Words
Date and Time
Thursday Apr 28, 2016 7:30 PM - 9:30 PM MDT
Thursday, April 28, 2016 at 7:30 p.m.
Location
Western New Mexico University Light Hall Auditorium