Poet Marcus Amaker named Gaillard Center artist-in-residence

Today the Gaillard Center announced that Charleston’s poet laureate, Marcus Amaker, will join their artist-in-residence program, bringing Poetic Hip-Hop: From the page to the stage to the Gaillard and area schools.

Poetic Hip-Hop is a partnership with the Free Verse Poetry Festival that Amaker started several years ago, and emphasizes the power of the written word. A performance component features interactive elements and is appropriate for all ages.
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[content-8] Amaker will continue to host the Gaillard’s annual poetry contest.

In a press release, Sterling de’Vries, Gaillard’s director of education, said: “Marcus will have the opportunity to teach in area schools, host an educational performance, and a poetry slam. His talent as a teaching artist inspires students to write and assists teachers with the difficult task of sparking creativity through poetry. Marcus is a gifted artist with the power to reach students through spoken word.”

In addition to serving as the city’s poet laureate (and creating the city’s first poetry festival), Amaker has published seven poetry books and been featured in publications like The Huffington Post and mentioned in the NYT. Check out all of his work online at marcusamaker.com.
[content-7] The Gaillard’s artist-in-residence emeritus, Charlton Singleton, continues in his role, leading the Youth Jazz Orchestra, the summer jazz program, and the Jazz Through the Ages educational program.

Head online to learn more about the Gaillard’s education initiatives.