On April 1, 2008, the Academy of American Poets held its sixth annual benefit, Poetry & The Creative Mind, at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center. Some of America’s leading artists, scholars, and public figures participated in this extraordinary evening celebrating the role of contemporary poetry in American culture. Poetry & The Creative Mind kicks off National Poetry Month, established by the Academy in 1996 and now the largest literary celebration in the world.
This year, our special guest readers were Candace Bushnell, Robert Caro, Graydon Carter, Katie Couric, Philippe de Montebello, Jonathan Demme, John Guare, Yusef Komunyakaa, Dianne Reeves, Liz Smith, and Meryl Streep. Each read poems by some of America’s best-loved poets, including Emily Dickinson, Robert Hayden, Gertrude Stein, and Gwendolyn Brooks.