Sun 21st October, 2018
8:00 pm - 10:30 pm (Doors: 7:30pm)
Buy Tickets
Bookings are closed for this event.
Stephen performed “This Community” on The Late Late show on RTÉ One on Friday 12th October, it was broadcast live from Central Hall in Westminster, London and was the most watched episode of The Late Late Show in 2018.
Acclaimed Writer, Poet and Performer Stephen James Smith proudly announces the forthcoming release of his debut book of poetry entitled ‘Fear Not’.
The release of the highly anticipated collection of Stephen’s Poetic works will see him take to the road for a subsequent 29 date live ‘My Ireland’ tour with special guest Enda Reilly.
Stephen James Smith is a Dublin poet and playwright central to the rise of the vibrant spoken word scene in Ireland today. His poetry videos have amassed over 2.5 million views.
In 2017 he was commissioned by St. Patrick’s Festival to write a new poem as a “celebratory narrative” of Ireland. The resultant piece ‘My Ireland’ is accompanied by a short film by Director Myles O’Reilly, arranged and mixed by Conor O’Brien (Villagers), with music by Colm Mac Con Iomaire, Loah, Saint Sister, Eithne Ní Chatháin (aka Inni-K) and Ye Vagabonds. It has been viewed over 300,000 times online and was screened at London Film Festival in Trafalgar Square. The poem was in many ways a follow on from Smith’s previous poetry video Dublin You Are, which itself clocked up in excess of 250k views. Stephen also recently performed as special guest for Eddie Vedder at Dublin’s 3Arena and alongside Ed Sheeran, Loah and many more at The London Irish Centre.
Stephen has performed at high profile events and festivals such as the Electric Picnic, Other Voices, the National Concert Hall, the Abbey Theatre (Noble Call) and Vicar Street (alongside Oscar winner Glen Hansard and Colm Mac Ionmaire); and further afield at the London Palladium, the Oscar Wilde Awards in LA, Glastonbury, George Town Literary Festival (ML) and other events in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Iowa, Montreal, Ottawa, Bangkok, Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Utrecht, Ljubljana and Warsaw. In 2012 he was invited to perform for the Irish Olympic team in London.
Stephen has been conducting poetry workshops in secondary schools around Ireland for a number of years and was recently announced as an Artist in Residence with Dunamaise Arts Centre and Laois Arts Office, where he will develop the first ever Laois Spoken Word Project for young people in the county. His poetry is included on the syllabus at Western Connecticut State University and his work has been translated into Irish, Spanish, Slovenian, Polish, Dutch and Italian.
Stephen’s debut collection of Poetry, Fear Not, is published by Arlen House with a launch due in September 2018
“Passionate, witty, just plain great; this man’s voice hops right off the page.” – Roddy Doyle
“New Irish Poetry Urgently Needed… Stephen James Smith answers the call!” – Christy Moore
“Steve’s poems thrill me, don’t stop Steve. Steve don’t stop!” – Pat Ingoldsby
“Here are poems fuelled by the raw urgency of language leaping to meet the world.” – Paula Meehan
“Stephen James Smith ignores trends or fashions and writes his own poems about his world in his own original and inimitable way.” – Sarah Clancy
“In the midst of the toughness of his work, he also knows where to find the tender spot.” – Gerard Smyth
“His poems are crafted with care, with great skill, and most importantly, with love.” – Donal Ryan
“He knocks seven shades of shite out of all the usual ‘birds and bees, whey and cheese’ nonsense you find at poetry readings.” – Jinx Lennon
(Photo Credit Babs Daly Grace Photography)
Josie Alford
Josie Alford is a Bristol-based poet and event host. She is part of the Hammer and Tongue Bristol family. Her poetry fuses the techniques of spoken and written poetry. Having just completed an MA in Creative Writing, she is currently working on publishing a poetry collection about the death of her father.