This image shows the “The High Level Magpie” is a depiction of the essential Edmonton bird pica hudsonia (aka the magpie) created by Ashley Rosenow of Illustrious Interiors as part of the mural that envelops the exterior of The Highlevel Diner.

Above is The High Level Magpie, a depiction of the essential Edmonton bird pica hudsonia (aka the magpie), created by Ashley Rosenow of Illustrious Interiors as part of the mural that envelops the exterior of The Highlevel Diner.

The Edmonton Poetry Festival Society (EPFS), along with its presenting sponsors, The Edmonton Arts Council, The Alberta Foundation For The Arts, The City Of Edmonton, and Canadian Heritage, presents its programming for April’s National Poetry Month!

The Festival will showcase local poets, open mics, regionally based publishers showcase, and collaborations with local arts organizations. New initiatives include:

Opportunities for volunteers!

Before we jump into this year’s Festival programming, we want to let readers know there are still volunteer opportunities at this year’s Festival. See the March issue of The Magpie for details, and then get in touch with Volunteer Coordinator Shyanne Duquette at volunteers @ edmontonpoetryfestival.com.

Five categories of Festival programming

This year’s Festival Programming will happen at diverse venues across the city and throughout the month, organized into five categories: 

  1. Spotlight Series, 
  2. Showcase Series,
  3. Partnerships,
  4. Publications, and
  5. Outreach.

Spotlight Series: 

The Festival’s Spotlight Series directs your attention to those independent presenters of poetry who keep Edmonton’s scene vibing and thriving all year long, such as:

Showcase Series:

The Festival Showcase Series Feature presentations and curated events, such as: 

Partnerships:

This series projects programming initiatives that intersect poetry into the mandates of organizations that are not defined by poetry such as:

Publishing:

Outreach:

Project: Spring Break: How To Poet 

EPFS is offering a spring break workshop for young folk. Presented by the City of Edmonton’s Poet Laureate Shima Robinson, this 15-hour primer will address almost every aspect of poetic practice: appreciate, write, read, speak, publish, and perform. For more information visit Spring Arts Buck$ For Youth. 

Project: The Twenty

With support from The Edmonton Arts Council’s Connections & Exchanges grant program, EPFS is commemorating its 20th anniversary with an anthology publication of twenty poems by twenty poets under the age of twenty. Led by Maigan Van Der Giessen, the writers between the ages of nine and 20 were asked to respond to the creative prompt “my turn of phrase”. Their contributions will be combined with illustrations by a young visual artist and be published during the Festival.   

Partnerships make us better

The theme of partnerships is also an especially important theme to the Festival this year. Of course the Festival has benefited from partnerships in our recent history with entities such as:

New partnerships and collaborations

We are also engaging new partnerships and collaborations with:

The Edmonton Poetry Festival turns Twenty!

One of The Edmonton Poetry Festival Society’s goals in its 20th year is to establish itself as a hub of information for consumers and practitioners of poetry in the greater Edmonton area. Yet another way we are pursuing that mission this year is by spreading our wings over the entirety of National Poetry Month in April. We invite you to join us as patrons, members, artists, and Festival volunteers. We invite you to invite others to do the same.

Last month, we unveiled the official image for the Festival 2025. The High Level Magpie is a depiction of the essential Edmonton bird pica hudsonia (aka the magpie) created by Ashley Rosenow of Illustrious Interiors. It appears as part of the mural that envelopes the east exterior of the Highlevel Diner (10912 88 Avenue) near the bike path to the High Level Bridge. See the mural virtually on the Highlevel Diner’s Instagram account.

It’s a local thing

The High Level Magpie speaks to one of the very important themes this year: local. We are excited this year to be supported by Canadian Heritage’s Local Festivals program and are keenly embracing an emphasis on a festival oriented around local energy, talent, and partnerships.

The High Level Magpie exemplifies the local theme most obviously as one of Edmonton’s most ubiquitous fauna—one that has represented the Festival for a long time now. In addition, it is created by a local artist, adorns the exterior of a beloved and successful local and independent eatery, and is a partnership between the artist and said business.  

Edmonton Poetry Festival 2025 will burst with unique events, including open mics, book launches, and diverse community programs like the French Twist (for the francophone community), Deaf Poetry Jam, a collaborative poetry night with Rapid Fire Theatre, and “Sage” poetry events with elderly folks. 

We can’t wait to see you there. Receive more information in the April newsletter. Subscribe here.