Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Diane di Prima: Presented by her Family
Sun, Aug 6, 2023
2:00 PM–7:00 PM
The Castro Theatre, 429 Castro St, San Francisco, CA 94114
FAMILY OF LATE POET LAUREATE DIANE di PRIMA FINALLY ABLE TO CELEBRATE HER LITERARY LEGACY WITH ARTS AND CULTURE BASH AT HISTORIC CASTRO THEATER.
Pioneering activist and feminist who died during height of the pandemic to be feted by two poets laureate and four generations of her family. Click here or read more below to help support this tribute event.
San Francisco, CA – The family of Diane di Prima will host a tribute to the late San Francisco Poet Laureate on August 6, 2023, from 2:00pm – 7:00pm at the Castro Theater in San Francisco. The event will feature video of the poetry readings of Diane di Prima, live jazz piano by Alexander Marlowe, screenings of the short documentary film ‘The Poetry Deal’, readings by poets laureate Kim Shuck and Tongo Eisen-Martin, actor Peter Coyote, poet Cedar Sigo, actor Amber Tamblyn, a performance from members of the comedy troupe Culture Clash along with Diane di Prima’s husband, children, grandchildren and a great grand.
Diane di Prima was a poet, activist, and teacher, well-respected by her literary peers, and widely regarded as one of the finest writers of her generation. She was the author of more than 40 books of poetry and prose, translated into 20 languages.
The tribute will celebrate the life and work of this influential poet, who passed away in 2020 at the age of 86. It will bring together a diverse group of artists, thinkers and friends who have been inspired by di Prima’s work. It will include interpretations of her poetry, musical performances, and personal reflections on her legacy. Renowned Latino comedy troupe Culture Clash had a special relationship with Diane as did a number of the participating artists spanning generations, ethnicities and disciplines. Author and actress Amber Tamblyn was one of di Prima’s students and an avid supporter. Actor Peter Coyote was a longtime friend and political ally. Indigenous American poet Cedar Sigo was a friend and colleague. Kim Shuck, a member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and who is the poet laureate who preceded Diane will read her work. Current San Francisco poet laureate Tongo Eisen-Martin, who followed di Prima’s time in the post, and who is an educator and organizer around issues of mass incarceration, extrajudicial killings of Black people, and human rights will take the stage as well.
Dominique DiPrima, Diane’s middle daughter, has risen to fame as a television and radio broadcaster and activist. Bay Area hip hop heads will remember her from KRON-TV’s Home Turf – or from the interstitial clip of her radio show on Tupac’s Makaveli album. Dominique will act as emcee for the program.
Alexander Marlowe, Diane di Prima’s eldest son is a respected producer and jazz pianist who has toured with soul legend Bobby Womack and produced tracks for Krayzie Bone of Bone Thugs n Harmony and Money B of Digital Underground. He will accompany Diane’s recorded readings with live music as he often did when she performed on stage.
Diane’s brother Frank will share memories of the poet. Her daughter Jeanne DiPrima and son Rudi will perform poetry and her husband Sheppard Powell will offer personal and literary reflections.
“This tribute to our Mom, Diane di Prima, has been some time in the making, as the pandemic prevented us from hosting a live event at the time of her passing.” said Alexander Marlowe, one of Diane’s five children. “Her work continues to inspire new generations of poets and activists. We hope this event will serve as a celebration of her life, and her contributions to the city and the world.” The event is free and open to the public.
Diane di Prima was a poet, playwright, activist, buddhist, feminist pioneer and author of more than four dozen volumes of poetry, prose and plays. Her work has been translated into twenty languages. Diane diPrima almost singlehandedly added a strong womanist voice to the Beat writers movement. Famously published by City Lights legend Larry Ferlinghetti, Diane was a founder of the New York Village Beats and the San Francisco North Beach writers scene. Author of the powerful Revolutionary Letters di Prima was a lifelong activist both on the page and in the streets reading and fundraising for countless causes, festivals, benefits and protests. An incredibly versatile writer with volumes ranging from the early poetry of This Kind of Bird Flies Backwards; to the prose of Dinners and Nightmares to the epic verse of her long form poem Loba; to the steamy pages of Memoirs of a Beatnik to her hundreds of beautiful love poems, haikus, abstract plays as well as writings on spirituality, anarchy and alchemy. She edited the newspaper The Floating Bear with Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones) and was co-founder of the New York Poets Theatre and founder of the Poets Press. She has been awarded the National Poetry Association’s Lifetime Service Award and the Fred Cody Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Diane was a devout buddhist, studying under Suzuki Roshi, Trungpa Rinpoche, Lama Tharchin Rinpoche and others.
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The Castro Theatre 429 Castro St, San Francisco, CA 94114 (415) 621-6120
PLEASE CONSIDER SUPPORTING THIS TRIBUTE: A LETTER FROM THE DI PRIMA FAMILY
Dear Lovers of Poetry and The Arts,
The Diprima family is producing a Diane di Prima Tribute which will be held at the Castro Theater in San Francisco, on Diane’s birthday, August 6th, 2023, at 2pm.
This free event is for all fans of Diane’s writing, fans of Poetry and the Arts in general, and especially Arts in the Bay Area, as well as anyone who would like to join us to celebrate the life of a great poet, teacher and activist.
Diane’s five children, her grand-children, and her life-partner have gotten together over the past year to plan an extraordinary event to honor our Mom and her work.
Because our Mom passed in October of 2020, the pandemic prevented us from getting together as a family to do this at the time.
The event will feature video of the poetry readings of Diane di Prima, live jazz piano by Alexander Marlowe, screenings of the short documentary film ‘The Poetry Deal’, readings by poets laureate Kim Shuck and Tongo Eisen-Martin, actor Peter Coyote, poet Cedar Sigo, actor Amber Tamblyn, a performance from members of the comedy troupe Culture Clash along with Diane di Prima’s husband, children, grandchildren and a great grand.
We are seeking support to help cover the cost of producing the event.
If you are able, please consider making a donation here:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/dia…
Thank you, Warm regards,
The DiPrima Family
Related Events
Book Launch & Reading
Diane di Prima’s Spring and Autumn Annals Release Party
Reading, Performance & Celebration
Diane di Prima Memorial Tribute
Conversation & Lecture
Poetry and Revolution on the Lower East Side with Mary Catherine Kinniburgh: NYPL’s Doc Chat Episode 5
Lecture
Cedar Sigo Presents “Reality Is No Obstacle: A Poetics of Participation”
