Hay Festival has launched a series of Book of the Month live Q&A sessions with authors, to expand its digital offering. It comes as the festival launches season two of its podcast. The Q&As will be regular free digital events, showcasing authors through an interactive conversation on Crowdcast. Poet and playwright Inua Ellams will feature at the launch event on 21st July to discuss his collection The Half God of Rainfall, which was performed to critical acclaim at London’s Kiln Theatre last year.
The multi-award-winning poet and playwright Inua Ellams introduces extracts from his celebrated autobiographical one-man show and discusses the latest twists and turns in his life with the online audience. Littered with poems, stories and anecdotes, the show tells his ridiculous, fantastic, poignant immigrant-story of escaping fundamentalist Islam, experiencing prejudice and friendship in Dublin, performing solo at the National Theatre, and drinking wine with the Queen of England, all the while without a country to belong to or place to call home.
Born in Nigeria, Inua Ellams is a poet, playwright & performer, graphic artist & designer. He is a Complete Works poet alumni and facilitates workshops in creative writing where he explores reoccurring themes in his work – Identity, Displacement and Destiny – in accessible, enjoyable ways for participants of all ages and backgrounds.
His awards include: Edinburgh Fringe First Award 2009, the Liberty Human Rights Award, The Live Canon International Poetry Prize, The Kent & Sussex Poetry Competition, Magma Poetry Competition, Winchester Poetry Prize, an Arts Council of England Award, a Wellcome Trust Award, A Black British Theatre Award and The Hay Festival Medal for Poetry.
He has been commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company, National Theatre, Tate Modern, Louis Vuitton, Chris Ofili, BBC Radio & Television. His poetry books include ‘Thirteen Fairy Negro Tales’ and ‘Candy Coated Unicorn and Converse’ published Flipped Eye, ‘The Wire-Headed Heathen’ by Akashic Books. His plays include ‘Black T-shirt Collection’, ‘The 14th Tale’, ‘Barber Shop Chronicles’ and ‘Three Sisters’ published by Oberon. He founded The Midnight Run (an arts-filled, night-time, urban walking experience.) The Rhythm and Poetry Party (The R.A.P Party) which celebrates poetry & hip hop, and Poetry + Film / Hack (P+F/H) which celebrates Poetry & Film.
