MANIFEST Voices Poetry Showcase

Chattanooga artist and teacher Christian J. Collier’s MANIFEST Voices poetry workshop will be concluding its second year with a free showcase on July 29^th, and the community is both invited and encouraged to come. Each of his students will be taking the stage to perform a set of powerful, original material.

The program, which is sponsored by the Southern Lit Alliance, uses an original poetry curriculum to provide a number of sustaining benefits for teenagers in the Greater Chattanooga area. Over the course of eight weeks, the students learned an array of creative writing and poetic devices, how to apply them in their work, and how to be able to perform them effectively.

Christian J. Collier is an accomplished writer and musician who has performed with several members of HBO’s Def Poetry, Minton Sparks, and legendary poet Ishmael Reed to name a few. He is a 2015 recipient of The Loft Literary Center’s Spoken Word Immersion Fellowship. His work has also been featured on The Guardian, and he has also given a TEDx Talk and appeared on an episode of TNT’s State Farm Neighborhood Sessions with multi-platinum recording artist Usher Raymond.

The MANIFEST Voices showcase takes place on July 29^th at The Arts Building (301 E 11th St #300). Doors open for the event at 6 PM, and the performance will run from 6:30 to 8:30. It is free to attend, and attendees are encouraged to arrive early due to limited seating. For additional information, Christian J. Collier can be reached through his website at christianjcollier.com.