LitFest 2024 at Bard College Berlin: Polyphony of a Metropolis

LitFest is a two-day series of readings and author talks celebrating the work of writers working across linguistic and national boundaries. In accordance with its motto, LitFest explores “Berlin - Polyphonie einer Großstadt,” or “Berlin - Polyphony of a Metropolis,” celebrating Berlin's literary diversity by highlighting writers from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds to create meaningful connections. All events take place at Bard College Berlin (Waldstraße 15, Berlin 13156) and are free and open to the public. Organized and moderated by Dr. Martin Widmann and Prof. Dr. Laura Scuriatti.

Thursday, November 21
18:00-19:00: Poetry Reading & Conversation with Uljana Wolf (Germany) and Volha Hapeyeva (Belarus)
Language: German
Poet, translator, and linguist Volha Hapeyeva, recipient of the prestigious Wortmeldungen Prize 2022 for her essay on poetry and exile, will be in conversation with award-winning poet, essayist, and translator Uljana Wolf, whose writing oscillates between her native German and several other languages.

19:30-20:30: The Happy Couple: Novel Reading & Conversation with Naoise Dolan (Ireland)
Language: English
Irish novelist Naoise Dolan, author of Exciting Times (2020) and The Happy Couple (2023), will discuss her writing featuring the experiences, fears, and hopes of the millennial generation through characters who navigate an increasingly technologically connected but politically complex world.

Friday, November 22
17:30-18:30: Bard College Berlin Student Reading
Language: English
This event features Bard College Berlin students reading from their works of creative writing, fiction, and poetry.

19:30-21:00: Familienstraße: Novel Reading & Conversation with Jenny Erpenbeck (Germany) and John Erpenbeck (Germany)*
Language: German
Jenny Erpenbeck, renowned German novelist, playwright, and International Booker Prize winner for her novel Kairos, with her father, acclaimed scientist, novelist and longtime resident of Niederschönhausen John Erpenbeck will talk about their respective careers in the GDR and in Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall, about the history of their family, and about how their writing captures recent social changes and universal human issues through storytelling.
*NOTE: This talk requires registration. Please register online here.

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For more information, e-mail m.widmann@berlin.bard.edu.

Location: W15 Cafe (Waldstraße 15, 13156 Berlin, Germany)