Spoken Word Night in association with Bath Spa University.

“Exuding originality…accessible…atmospheric” ★★★★ - Intermission

"Raise The Bar exemplifies how spoken word has no fixed style—from the conversational to the melodic, the comedic to the poignant." - Epigram

Raise the Bar's February edition of live performance poetry will feature the Queen of UK spoken word Joelle Taylor, as well as Bristol-born poet James Bunting. Hosted by Craft-D and Connor Macleod.

With its regular monthly slot at Watershed, each Raise the Bar show promises a to be a completely different and unique experience - an energetic event featuring the highest quality spoken word performers. As usual there will be a spoken word Open Mic session as part of the night. There are eight spaces available for any budding poets so remember to arrive promptly and sign up if you would like to have a go.

Joelle Taylor

One of the UK’s greatest live performance poets, Joelle's most recent collection of prose Songs My Enemy Taught Me has been widely acclaimed and was undoubtedly one of the best books of 2017. An award winning spoken word artist, poet, playwright and author, she has performed across the UK as well as internationally. She is the Founder and Artistic Director of SLAMbassadors UK, the Poetry Society’s national youth slam championships – the longest running spoken word education programme in the country.

James Bunting

A real favourite on the Bristol scene over a number of years, Bristol born James started writing aged 13, doing nothing with his poems until, at 18, a chance encounter with three American performance poets introduced him to a style of poetry that proved the jump-start for his writing. Since that night, James has performed extensively throughout the UK, including at literature festivals, music festivals and slams alongside some inspirational poets. His writing has been described as powerful and emotive, and his performances regularly leave audiences in awed silence. Conkers is his debut collection and features many of the poems that have taken him across the country over the past eight years.

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