Rise Up! A celebration of poetry and the spoken word

Nafeesa Hamid (b. Kashmir 1993, bred in Birmingham) is a poet; playwright; educator; performer; and director. When she’s not archiving city council bankruptcy, Nafeesa uses the intersectionality of her identity to inform her multi-disciplinary creative practice. Her poetry collection Besharam (Verve Poetry Press) was highly commended in the Forward Prizes 2019. Nafeesa is published in Forward Poems of the Decade 2011-2020 (Faber Poetry), The Things I Would Tell You: British Muslim Women Write, (Saqi Books). Nafeesa has appeared on BBC Bitesize; BBC Radio 4 Comedy; The Verb; and at literary festivals across the UK and abroad. In 2023 she received a scholarship for Writing Poetry MA at Poetry School London, where she continues developing a body of work about corner shop culture, car boots, faith, and divine love.

Zakariye Abdillahi is a poet, performer, playwright and filmmaker from Birmingham. His work often explores masculinity, faith and identity. His short poetry film ‘Cages’ has been broadcast on BBC 4 and BBC iPlayer. Last year saw him reach the finals at the Roundhouse Poetry Slam where he won the audience vote. He is currently a Roundhouse resident artist working on a one-man stage play set to release next year.

Samiir Saunders is a multimedia poet from Birmingham. Their work encompasses spoken word, alternative hip-hop, and performance art. Samiir’s work is sometimes witty, other times vulnerable, but always filled with honesty and hope. Samiir’s aim as an artist is to inspire curiosity, compassion, and radical imagination within audiences and local communities.

DOORS 7.30pm - SHOW 8.30pm.

------------------

Also check out other Arts events in York, Literary Art events in York, Entertainment events in York.