Writers in the Round goes live at RiverRun

Songwriting is sometimes referred to as the oldest form of poetry. Writers in the Round honors that tradition with performances that mix live music and spoken word poetry. After a two-year hiatus, the event returns on Tuesday, May 26, from 7 to 9 p.m., at RiverRun Bookstore in Portsmouth. 

The event’s featured performers include WITR founder and songwriter Deidre Randall, cellist and spoken word artist Kristen Miller, Portsmouth Poet Laureate Mark DeCarteret, and Seacoast musician Thomas D’Amour.

Randall shied away from holding live events for the past two years due to the birth of her third child. But now that her daughter has turned 1, Randall looks forward to bringing the event back. A second show will be held at Gracie’s Diner in Portsmouth on Friday, July 17, featuring Randall, D’Amour, Nate Laban, Guy Capecelatro and Ari.

“The wealth of talented writers, both poets and songwriters, in the area from Boston to Portland is incredible and I enjoy bringing this talent to a wider arena,” Randall said in a press release.

Registration for Writers in the Round’s fifth annual creative retreat on Star Island is now open. The retreat takes place from Sept. 10 to 13 with former N.H. Poet Laureate Marie Harris serving as poetry instructor, and Juno award-winning musician Craig Werth as songwriting instructor.

Writers in the Round also hosts a weekly radio show on Portsmouth Community Radio 106.1 on Wednesdays from 7 to 8 p.m.
RiverRun Bookstore is at 20 Congress St., Portsmouth, 603-431-2100. For more on WITR, visit www.witrhome.org.

blues party at The Grog

Parker Wheeler’s weekly Sunday night blues party at The Grog in Newburyport, Mass., will get some extra spice from guitarist Chris “Stovall” Brown on May 24. Other special guests for the evening include R&B singer Madeleine Hall, saxophonists Amadee Castenell and “Sax” Gordon Beadle, and pianist Keith Munslow.

Wheeler, a veteran blues-based harmonica player, has been hosting blues parties at the Grog since 1990 and will celebrate his 20th anniversary of the gig next year. Each week, he brings in a lineup of skilled instrumentalists and singers to the downtown Newburyport venue for soulful jams.

Brown began playing music in the 1960s and formed the Stovall Brown Band in the ’70s. The band toured the Northeast extensively through the ’80s, opening for acts like B.B. King and Bobby Blue Bland. In addition to playing electric guitar, Brown sings and plays harmonica and drums. He has performed with Hall on vocals for several years. His upcoming gig with Wheeler comes on the heels of a recent worldwide tour.

The show takes place from 7 to 11 p.m. at The Grog, 13 Middle St., Newburyport, Mass., 978-465-8008. Admission is $7.