Cathedral of Saint John the Divine Inducts Sylvia Plath Into Poet's Corner November 4, 2010

The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, in association with the louderARTS Project, will induct poet/playwright Sylvia Plath (1932-1963) into its Cathedral Poets’ Corner on Thursday, November 4th at 7:00pm at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, located at 112th Street and Amsterdam Avenue in Manhattan. The exclusive Cathedral Poets’ Corner was created in 1984 to memorialize and celebrate American writers. It is modeled after a similar alcove at Westminster Abbey in London.

Scheduled to attend are Cathedral Poet in Residence Marilyn Nelson; Karen Kukil, Associate Curator, Special Collections & Archivist, Plath Papers, Smith College, speaking on her extensive work with Plath manuscripts, both as archivist and editor of the unabridged journals; poet/scholar Annie Finch speaking on the meter and music of Plath’s poetry; playwright/screenwriter/actress Tristine Skyler; poet Paul Muldoon, and louderArts Project poets Corrina Bain, Elana Bell, Sean Patrick Conlon, Marie-Elizabeth Mali, and Lynne Procope will read Ms. Plath’s work. The evening will also include discussions of her life and the installation of a plaque commemorating her induction.

In addition to the celebration on November 4, the Cathedral will host a special Evensong Service on Sunday, November 7th at 4:00pm to unveil the stone that will be placed in the Poets’ Corner space in the Cathedral. The Very Reverend James Kowalski will preside; Poets Carol Muske-Dukes is the guest speaker; poets Marilyn Nelson, Rosanna Warren, Kelly Cherry, and Major Jackson will take part in the Service.

Both events will include sections of "Ariel: 5 Poems of Sylvia Plath for Soprano, Clarinet and Piano", composed by Ned Rorem, 1974.

Plath is best known for her posthumous book, Ariel, poems of searing rage and startling metaphor; her novel The Bell Jar, a semi-autobiographical, satiric story of a young woman working at a New York magazine who attempts suicide; and for her own suicide in London after the break-up of her marriage. Plath’s poetry powerfully influenced a generation of poets and has now deeply permeated our culture. She became a symbol, and sometimes a cause, for women writers in the late 60’s through the present.

Last year, Tennessee Williams became the first poet/playwright to be inducted into the Poets’ Corner. Other inductees from past years include: Emily Dickinson, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Robert Frost, Langston Hughes, Herman Melville, Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Mark Twain, Edith Wharton, Walt Whitman and others.

The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call (212) 316-7540 or visit www.stjohndivine.org or www.louderarts.com.

DATE: Thursday, November 4th

TIME: 7:00 PM

PLACE: Cathedral of St. John the Divine
1047 Amsterdam Avenue (at 112th Street)
Manhattan