POETRY Day Ireland is coming up on April 28 and among many events planned for it is a spoken word-based show in Dublin’s Workman’s Club with proceeds to Pieta House.

I spoke to organiser, Alicia Byrne Keane, about the event and her take on the thriving spoken word scene. Poet and performer Alicia is the spoken word editor for the Bogman’s Cannon site – (check out her compiled playlists Best of 2015 and a trans* rights spoken word playlist, which involve a lot of personal stories about belonging and identity.)

Q: There seems to be an explosion of spoken word events going on around Dublin and beyond. How do you feel about the scene, is there a sense of community?

A: Spoken word events have definitely become a lot more numerous and widespread in recent years. It’s one of the best things I ever got involved in – there is a definite sense of community and I have made a lot of really good friends through attending various performance nights. People are very encouraging and support you a lot, especially if you are a new poet starting out.

Q: You seem to be very much a regular at open mics and now organising your own poetry events. How and when did you start out? What advice or recommendations would you give to aspiring poets?

A: I used to perform at open mic nights for the Trinity College Literary Society, and that was very encouraging and gave me a place to get my poetry heard. I started out doing public, non-college events about two and a half years ago, because a friend of mine brought me to The Monday Echo, a weekly night for music and poetry performance. There was an open mic at the end, and I performed a poem there, and they asked me back to perform as a featured act the following week.

So it’s really easy to get involved. In terms of advice, I would say it’s worth remembering that, creatively, things can turn around in a very rapid time. When I got involved in the poetry stuff, I had been in this completely discouraged period where I wasn’t writing at all and I felt I had nothing to contribute. I also had never really heard of spoken word until I saw a Kate Tempest gig in 2012. I think I just hadn’t found a medium of writing that suited me. So I would say, don’t get discouraged, although that’s corny.

Q: Tell us about Poetry Day Ireland and the event you are organising for it.

A: Poetry Day is being organised by Poetry Ireland – basically, they provided an opportunity for people to organise their own poetry events, whether it’s a reading, a performance night, whatever, on Poetry Day, the 28th of April. You had to get a venue and some poets confirmed, and Poetry Ireland would help organise and publicise it.

It’s a really great opportunity for them to to have provided, because I wouldn’t have really thought to organise my own event before then. I am planning a performance night in The Workman’s Club with my friend Saul, which will showcase a range of really exciting Dublin-based poetry performers and musicians. I feel some divides still exist between written-down ‘page poetry’ and spoken word performance, and a great thing that’s happening lately is that more events and organisations are liaising with each other and bringing together the disparate media. I want to contribute to that.

Q: What are three poems/poets that have meaning for you at the moment?

A: Abby Oliveira – American Candy

John Cummins – Phil Lynott

Caoimhe Lavelle & Stu Mollusc – Concrete Cathedral

Q: What pieces of music do you turn to for inspiration or solace in tough times?

A: I listen to either ’90s music like the Vengaboys because it reminds me of being a kid, or else blues artists like John Lee Hooker or Bessie Smith.

In terms of individual pieces, I really like this one album by the band Sylvan Esso, songs like ‘Coffee’, ‘Dress’, ‘H.S.K.T.’ or ‘Play It Right.’ It’s quite upbeat so it’s good music when you’re sad.

Alicia is performing in West Cork tonight, Friday, April 15, at an event called Under the Hammers.

Her Poetry Day Ireland event is on April 28 at Dublin’s Workman’s Club on Wellington Quay at 8pm, featuring spoken word performances from Christy Gaffney, Ethan O’Callaghan, and Ailish J Kerr, and music from Oisín McCole, Laura Ryder and Wastefellow. Admission is 3 euro, with proceeds to anti-suicide charity Pieta House.

See Poetry Day Ireland on http://www.poetryireland.ie/