An Evening in Celebration of National Poetry Month

Honoring the Wonder and Beauty of the Spoken Word through a Diverse Group of Poets in Recognition of National Poetry Month.

Leah Kogen-Elimeliah originally from Moscow, is a poet & writer based in New York. An Adjunct Assistant Professor at The City College of New York & John Jay College, Leah is also the founder & director of WordShedNYC Reading Series & an Editorial Associate for Fiction literary magazine. She has collaborated on various poetry/visual/dance projects with independent artists, experimenting with cross genres, multimedia and poetry, and has performed her work on The Red Stage organized by Creative Time, The NYC Poetry Festival, The Higher Ground Arts Festival, and was selected as a Public Humanities/Arts Graduate Fellow for the Zip Code Memory Project supported by Columbia, CCNY, NYU, Yale and the Social Science & Humanities Research Council. Currently, Leah is crafting her debut poetry collection, working on an art project "Notes from Daughters" & a film, "Good Girl." Her writing focuses on identity, language, immigration, intergenerational trauma, sexuality and culture. Leah lives in Nyack, NY with her husband and their children.

Bryan Roessel is a poet/event organizer/science teacher in New York's Lower Hudson Valley. Bryan is one of the founders and organizers of Rockland Poets, which has held poetry open mics, slams, and workshops in and around Rockland County NY since March 2011. Bryan's been featured at a variety of poetry events, including at the Utah Arts Festival. Bryan also has exactly one poem on Button Poetry. Their poetry is mostly about science, mental health, relationships, existentialism, and gender.

Ari Mack is an actor, dance/fight choreographer, and writer. He served as the choreographer for the Ramapo High School Players in Spring Valley, NY, from 2014 to 2021, having been affiliated with the group for 16 years. He was also the choreographer for the Cultural Arts Theatre at Rockland Community College in Suffern, NY, and for the Rockland Shakespeare Company (2016–2024). In addition to his choreography work, Ari is an Advanced Actor Combatant with the Society of American Fight Directors. He devotes himself to various forms of writing, including poetry, playwriting, and podcasting. YouTube: @AriumX, @TheAriHour. IG and TikTok: @ari_mack027

Judith Rose remains curious. She writes, she teaches, she creates, she choreographs,  she dances, she listens, she learns. She is  the director of  Vital Movement™, the wellness practice she founded, which is based in Nyack, NY. She collaborates regularly with artists in various media to create new works addressing crucial themes in contemporary life. Her belief in the healing power of the arts and the beauty of shared study salons,  continue to inspire her work, as does her ever-deepening reverence for the mystery of life.  www.judithroseVM.com

Litany Burns is a world-renowned medium, clairvoyant, lecturer, screenwriter, poet and author of Develop Your Psychic Abilities, The Sixth Sense of Children, and her new novel Goddess.Com all available on Amazon, iBooks, Google Play and featured in The 100 Top Psychics & Astrologers In America. Her poetry has been in the International Women’s Year Poetry Anthology and read at: New York University, Amnesty International Fundraiser, Hopper House Prison Art Program, Lehman College, The Nuyorican Poets Café. Having worked on the infamous ‘Son of Sam’ case she has also been featured on national and international TV, in Goop.com, New Yorker Radio Hour, popular magazines/social media and lectured nationally and internationally. Having sold a TV story to NBC and a feature film HK/LA she has several books, film/ TV projects in development. www.litanyburns.com