Vik Shirley, photo courtesy of the artist.
Join us for an evening celebrating the next generation of storytellers, bards and troubadours as part of our Literary Cabaret series, featuring the Early Career Writers of Poetry's Residency at Banff Centre.
This final showcase brings together original works from resident poets, sharing verse that range from tales of urban malaise to queering marriage. The event will feature short readings and reflections on works-in-progress, offering a glimpse into creative process, voice, and lyricism craft across their poetry and lyrical narrative prose.
Acclaimed writer and faculty mentor Vik Shirley will host the evening and share from her own celebrated work.
Vik Shirley brings a sharp, surreal, and darkly playful poetic sensibility to the series. Her work connects contemporary poetry with visual practice, humour, the uncanny, and small press culture, making her a compelling host for audiences interested in poetry that pushes beyond the expected.
Discover bold new voices shaping the future of poetry. Explore curated selections from Pages Books and enjoy the welcoming creative atmosphere. Doors open at 6:15 p.m. in CLVB '33, with things kicking off at 7:00 p.m. Stay after to mingle with writers and faculty until 9:30 p.m.
Admission is free. Don’t miss this inspiring night of creativity, community, and verse! Event and audience may be captured on film.
About Vik Shirley
Vik Shirley
Dr. Vik Shirley is a poet, writer, editor and educator based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Her publications include Some Deer, (Broken Sleep, 2024), Corpses (Sublunary Editions, 2020), Disrupted Blue and Other Poems on Polaroid (Hesterglock, 2021) and Strangers Wave (zimZalla, 2023). In the UK, Vik’s work has appeared in such places as Poetry London, PN Review, The Rialto, Magma; in the US: Gone Lawn, Rejection Letters, The Indianapolis Review and Tiny Molecules. Vik co-edits Surreal-Absurd for Mercurius and Firmament online for Sublunary Editions. She is a Poetry School Tutor and has a PhD in ‘Dark Humour and the Surreal in Poetry’ from the University of Birmingham. Vik also founded Disrupted Blue Indie Press Publicity and works with small presses all over the world. In May 2025, Vik’s third photo poetry collection Persona Digitalia was selected for the inaugural P5—PhotoWorks series.