More than a dozen venues in Beirut are hosting events exclusively dedicated to poetry. (Credit: Zeina Kovacs)
It was 9 p.m. and the evening was coming to an end. Hesitant, a young brunette woman with short hair stood up, encouraged by around 20 people sitting in the audience of a bar in Mar Mikhael. Once on the small stage, she slowly read verses she had scribbled in a notebook. It was a declaration of love."I could stand before you, raw, for a lifetime, rot, transform, and blossom. And you could be my home, where I will never have to hide again," she said, as applause followed. Then, she joined her partner sitting in the back of the room, embracing her.Every Tuesday for the past few months, young people gather around this open stage dedicated to poetry. In the room, the average age is at most 23, and new faces appear every week in the audience or on stage."I wanted to create an intimate environment," explained Serge, 24, one...
It was 9 p.m. and the evening was coming to an end. Hesitant, a young brunette woman with short hair stood up, encouraged by around 20 people sitting in the audience of a bar in Mar Mikhael. Once on the small stage, she slowly read verses she had scribbled in a notebook. It was a declaration of love."I could stand before you, raw, for a lifetime, rot, transform, and blossom. And you could be my home, where I will never have to hide again," she said, as applause followed. Then, she joined her partner sitting in the back of the room, embracing her.Every Tuesday for the past few months, young people gather around this open stage dedicated to poetry. In the room, the average age is at most 23, and new faces appear every week in the audience or on stage."I wanted to create an intimate environment," explained Serge, 24,...
