Poeting Queer History – Open Call
Past Event Recap

Poeting Queer History x Unwanted Words

May 24, 2024

This intimate evening was mesmerizing! 🫂🌈

📜Dutch LGBTQ+ historian Henk B. De Vries led us to discover the true stories of courageous queer resistance fighters who stood up to the atrocities of war and fought not with weapons but with cunning to save the lives of many while risking their own.

🎨Weaver of stories Dane Prins painted intimate portraits of love through language without speaking and closed her set with an inaugural performance in Dutch.

📽️Filmmaker and slam poet Lau Zautsen gave us insight into the ‘animated’ imagination of queer youth. You’ll never look at Disney the same way again.

📝Kicking off the second set to further bolster the theme of Poeting Queer History, event moderator, poet, and spoken word artist Leonie de Waal performed her favorite and most befitting poem by Emily Dickinson.

🖋️Poet, printmaker, and literary translator Parel Joy didn’t shy away from challenges and was elegant in sharing sensual and provocative reconstructions of works.

✒️American poet Tuaca Kelly (‘femmeDaddy’) grabbed the audience with her GenX sensuality and conviction, escorting each person through her hometown of San Francisco and closing the night with an emotional performance that paid homage to those who succumbed to their plight with AIDS.

The intimate evening at Pakhuis de Zwijger concluded with a Q&A panel that allowed the live audience to access and share perspectives with the performers. 💬

Look for the next Poeting Queer History event, with a new lineup of guest historian, curated poets, and event moderator on 13 September 2024. (more info coming soon.) 📅

See you again soon!

Event Details
DateFriday May 24, 2024
LocationPakhuis Zwijger, Piet Heinkade 179, 1019 HC Amsterdam
Sign up here

🌈 CALLING ALL POETS IN AMSTERDAM! 💖

Unwanted Words is very excited to announce that we’ll be hosting the first edition of the Poeting Queer History series at Pakhuis Zwijger on Friday 24 May.

🎙️ The evening will kick off with a short lecture by a queer historian, followed by four performances highlighting the queer history of Amsterdam. We’ll conclude with an interactive Queer & Answer session featuring our performers and the historian. And we want YOU to be a part of it!

📜 Showcasing the theme ✨Queer Amsterdam History✨ in its broadest form, you need to choose a historical figure or event, explore the myth in your own way, delve into your personal queer journey, or celebrate our collective queer legacy. This isn’t your typical classroom assignment – get ready to let your creativity shine!

🫡 We’re looking for 4 poets to grace our stage! Submissions are open via the “Sign up here” button until 14 April.

✅ IMPORTANT DETAILS:

    • 1. Each performer will have 10-15 minutes to showcase their magic

    • 2. You don’t need to provide us with a finished piece during the application process, but be prepared to perform something based on the theme if you are selected

    • 3. To get a good understanding of what you can do, we kindly request you send us some examples of your work. This can be in whatever format you prefer: text, audio, video, published or not.

    • 4. In addition to that, a link to your social media may help us (and you) make a better-informed decision.

    • 5. Whether or not we decide to ask you to perform, you will hear back from us via email by 21 April.

Don’t want to perform? No worries! Look out for future posts on how you can attend!

Don’t miss the chance to share your voice and celebrate Queer History with us! 🎉

Poeting Queer History - Unwanted Words