PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Monthly Reading Series in the Uptown Arts District Reaches One Year Milestone
Grassroots Organization Brings Diverse Voices in Creative Writing and Performance From Across the Nation to Michigan City, Indiana
Michigan City, IN—May 23, 2017—The monthly “Legit AF” literary reading series and open stage continues in the Uptown Arts District of Michigan City, Indiana on Monday, June 12th, 6-8pm Central. Celebrating one year of programming and activities in the Michigan City Uptown Arts District, the event will be held at Quality Beet, located in the Artspace Uptown Artist Lofts Building (717 Franklin Street) in Suite C, accessible from the side alley. Sign-up will begin at 5:30 with the first performance kicking off at 6.
The featured performer of the evening is poet & performance artist Craig “Ultraviolence” Cady. Cady is embedded as an artist in residence this summer in the Michigan City area. His biography states he “is here as an experiment. Where ‘here’ is changes frequently, but his original home of Cassfield remains with him wherever he goes.”
Cady has performed as a poet performance artist and “goodwill ambassador” with his collaborator, musician Lucas Carey, touring across the United States. Cady’s stated purpose in life is “to protect the world from the dehumanization and greed of the wealthy elite.” Armed with a “repository of kindness” and a master’s degree in gerontology from USC, his ultimate goal is “to create a sustainable intergenerational community that creates a healthier & more connected world.”
Legit AF was established in June of last year by poet in residence and founder of The Literary Underground, Michele McDannold. In the interest of creative enrichment and community inspiration, Legit AF is always free and open to the public. “At the foundation of all our activities is the belief that the creative process and experience should not be reserved for those with disposable income. As long as there are voices that are marginalized, I’ll keep turning the lights on,” said McDannold. “Working in this vein is essential to a thriving arts community. I feel very fortunate to be living and working in the Artspace Uptown Artists Lofts, inarguably an essential component to Michigan City’s Uptown Arts District. This is my small but persistent way of giving back.”
The series is focused on mingling a diverse mix of accomplished contemporary authors from across the nation with emerging regional talent and the Michigan City creative community at large. The first of these events featured a dozen small press authors from across the nation, sharing their work in person, over Skype and pre-recorded performances. Funds were raised that night and online with the purpose of bringing diverse voices in creative writing and independent music to our community, specifically to cover travel costs and a small stipend for touring performers. To date, The Literary Underground through Legit AF has funded and featured live performances from authors traveling from Florida, California, Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois and other parts of Indiana. Donations continue to be sought in furtherance of these efforts.
Typically, each month will feature one to two poet/author/performance artists following the open stage. All skill levels and avenues of creative pursuit or talent that can be performed or presented in front of an audience are welcome. Subversive and marginalized voices are particularly appreciated. The Magical Jeep Distributing Library–a curated collection of small press books for lending–will be on hand as well. This event is not suitable for children.
For the most up to date information on special happenings and featured readers, please find us on facebook (http://www.facebook.com/legitafmc/) or visit The Literary Underground website at http://theliteraryunderground.org.
About The Literary Underground
The Literary Underground was founded in 2010 to support independent artists, promote diversity in creativity and foster community in the small press. The effort aims to offer a point of view under-represented in mainstream literature by introducing a larger population to these marginalized voices. The LU began promoting and hosting events in June 2012 with their participation in the first annual Midwest Small Press Festival in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Since then, the LU has organized events in Oakland, California (“Beast Crawl”); in Albuquerque, New Mexico (“Mothpocalypse” and “Happy Endings”); in Denver, Colorado (“Tiny-amp Records VS The Literary Underground”), in Jacksonville, Illinois (“Nothing to Lose”); in Seattle, Washington (“A Rainy Day in Seattle”); as part of the worldwide “100 Thousand Poets for Change” Day in Danville, Illinois; along with other events in Los Angeles (CA), Springfield (IL), Old Hickory (TN), Lenoir (NC), Hammond (IN), and most recently La Porte (IN).
Citizens for Decent Literature Press was founded in 2011 as the publishing arm of The Literary Underground, producing first a print zine, Little Books, Roll Your Own Stories, Limited Edition chapbooks, and an online publication. CfDL now focuses on the successful “This Is Poetry” project which will ultimately result in an eight-volume book collection of poetry, each volume representing poets from a specific geographic region as well as several special collections. Volume 3: Poets of the West is set to be released August 2017 joining Volume 1: Women of the Small Press and Volume 2: The Midwest Poets.
Other successful projects of the LU include the Legit AF Reading Series, the Magical Jeep Lending Library, Project U Radio Network and The Literary Underground Wiki—an open-source encyclopedia covering the history, production, and culture of the underground press. More information about these projects and others can be found online at http://theliteraryunderground.org.
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