Literature

16th Annual PoetryFest

Curated by Vona Groarke

RESERVE TICKETS

Details

All events on Saturday and Sunday are free. Tickets for the Friday launch event, Favorite Irish Poems, are $25–65 (inclusive of fees).
Date(s)

Fri, Dec 5 - Sun, Dec 7, 2025

Contact

Box Office
888-616-0274
boxoffice@irishartscenter.org

Phone hours:
10am-6pm, Monday-Friday

Location

The JL Greene Theatre
Irish Arts Center 
726 11th Avenue 
Hell's Kitchen, NYC

Overview

Take part in the “literary revelry” (New Yorker) of our longstanding festival of verse! The venerated poet Vona Groarke gathers writers from Ireland, Northern Ireland, and North America for a weekend of readings and conversations, starting with Friday evening’s much-loved Favorite Irish Poems launch event celebrating Irish poetry across the ages.

Most events are free, but reservations are strongly encouraged. Some of the weekend's events have sold out. For the chance to be notified of potential released seats, please subscribe to our e-mail list.

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5 // 8PM

Favorite Irish Poems

Favorite Irish Poems is the traditional opening night event of our annual PoetryFest, to which we invite festival poets and special guests to share their most-loved verses by Irish writers, followed by a reception in the Devlin Café.

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SATURDAY, DECEMBER 6 // 2PM, 3:30PM, 5PM
Free readings and conversations with festival poets

2pm // Scott McKendry and m.s. RedCherries
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3:30pm // In Conversation: Poetry Beyond Its Margins (Philosophy / Theology)
Pádraig Ó Tuama and Christian Wiman, with Vona Groarke

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5pm // Alan Gillis and Dorothea Lasky
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SUNDAY, DECEMBER // 1PM, 2:30PM, 4PM
Free readings and conversations with festival poets

1pm // Grace Wilentz and Jenny Xie 
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2:30pm // Desert Island Poems: Paul Muldoon and Rita Dove with Vona Groarke
Each poet chooses the five poems they would bring to a desert island with them.
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4pm // Paul Muldoon and Rita Dove
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Presented with generous support from the Adrian Brinkerhoff Poetry Foundation, Culture Ireland, CIE Tours Tourism Ireland, and Alan Klein.

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CIE Tours

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Bios

Vona Groake (curator)
Rita Dove
Alan Gillis
Dorothea Lasky
Scott McKendry
Paul Muldoon
Pádraig Ó Tuama
m.s. RedCherries
Grace Wilentz
Christian Winman
Jenny Xie

Featured Media

26 things to see and do in the city this season

Crain's New York Business
"Groarke’s fine lyricism and wit are present as never before"

The Irish Times
TIME Firsts Women Leaders: Rita Dove

TIME
"To Be Young and in Love in Middle Ireland" by Alan Gillis

Poetry Foundation
Watch: Dorothea Lasky - poetical journey

TEDx Talks
Meet the Artist: Scott McKendry

The Duncairn
Roger Rosenblatt on Paul Muldoon: "One of the great poets of the past hundred years"

The New York Times
Eliza Grizwold on Pádraig Ó Tuama: "Poetry, for him, is the language the heart speaks"

The New Yorker
"m.s. RedCherries’ mother is a groundbreaking collection"

Southern Review of Books
Profile on Grace Wilentz

The Irish Times
"Prelude in Grey Major" by Christian Wiman

The New Yorker
Five Questions with Jenny Xie

The Yale Review

Related

Our Supporters

Irish Arts Center programs are supported, in part, by government, foundation, and corporate partners including Culture Ireland, the agency for the promotion of Irish arts worldwide; public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the Mayor’s Office and the New York City Council; the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature; Howard Gilman Foundation; Tourism Ireland; the Jerome L. Greene Foundation; the Brandt Jackson Foundation; the Adrian Brinkerhoff Poetry Foundation; the Charina Endowment Fund; the Ireland Funds; the Shubert Foundation, Inc.; the Arnhold Foundation; the Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels Foundation; National Endowment for the Arts; the Irish Institute of New York; the Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater; the MacMillan Family Foundation; the Society of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick, New York; Northern Ireland Bureau; Invest NI; CIE Tours; M&T Bank; the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Consulate of Ireland in New York; the St. Patrick's Day Foundation, NYC; the Hyde and Watson Foundation; the Manhattan Tourism Foundation; and thousands of generous donors like you.

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