Cal U. hosting African poet
California University of Pennsylvania will host internationally acclaimed African poet Kofi Anyidoho at 7 p.m. Thursday in Steele Hall Mainstage Theatre as part of the College of Liberal Arts’ global initiative. The event is free and open to the public.
“Kofi and I were freshmen together at the University of Ghana,” said Dr. Mohamed Yamba, dean of the College of Liberal Arts at Cal U. “Even then he was being interviewed by the international media as a poet who was ‘the new voice of Africa.'”
A native of Ghana, Anyidoho is a United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization resource poet and international speaker whose live performances combine spoken-word traditions with contemporary culture.
“Not only is he a trained, academic poet, but his work arises from a long tradition of African poetry,” said Yamba. “Kofi has performed all around the world – in Australia, Indonesia, England and the U.S. – and I’m glad he can bring his global perspective to Cal U.”
Ayindoho has published six collections of poetry and a bilingual children’s play that blends English and the native Ewe language. Anyidoho also is the recipient of the Langston Hughes Prize and the BBC Arts and Africa Poetry Award.