2019 Events
April 23, 2019
50 Years Since Woodstock…The Beat Goes On!
Reading
7 pm
Trattoria Mirabella
Calling All Poets Series (CAPS), an organization that hosts readings and other events throughout the Hudson Valley, invited me to be part of The ’60s @ 50 at the lovely restaurant/jazz club Trattoria Marbella in Ellenville, N.Y., not far from where the legendary Woodstock folk festival was held 50 years ago this past summer. I joined Rifka Kreiter, author of Home Free, Adventures of a Child of the Sixties, to read from my novel Layla, which is also focused on the politics and counterculture of that very turbulent time in U.S. politics.
As Rifka and I drove up from New York City, the sun dappled the hills and woods along back roads to a part of the state I’d never been before. Ellenville is coming back from a depressed period, its downtown now bustling with new quirky stores (Mexican artifacts, antiques, art supplies) and restaurants. Before the event we strolled the town’s appealing streets, including a stop at the library, where we chatted with the librarian and donated signed copies of our books.
For the CAPS event, Rifka and I punctuated our readings with short musical selections from Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Bob Dylan, and, of course, Eric Clapton (whose song “Layla” gave me the title of my novel). We were followed by an Open Mic and a wide-ranging discussion of the political and social issues of the ’60s and today. It was an intense and wonderful day, reminding me why I write – the power of words, the building of community, the coming together.
