Poetry and Prose @ THE MINE for APRIL

MINE gallery in Fairfax continues with its poetry and prose reading series. This month, on April 27th, at 3pm, ruth weiss , in honor of Holocaust Remembrance Day, will be reading from her book Single Out (D'Aurora Press 1978) which is about her escape from Nazi Germany, and a selection of newer work accompanied by percussionist Hal Davis. Sandra Cross will be reading selected poetry.

ruth weiss came from a climate of political turmoil. Born to a Jewish family in the years of the rise of Nazism, her early childhood was spent fleeing her home in Berlin with her parents to Vienna and eventually to the Netherlands. In 1939, she and her family arrived in New York City and on to Chicago. weiss went to school in Switzerland and spent much time hitchhiking and writing. In 1952, she left Chicago and hitchhiked to San Francisco, where she began reading poetry with street musicians. Shortly after, several of her friends opened a club called The Cellar, she also began publishing in the magazine Beatitude, one of the first magazines for Beat writers. ruth weiss and Jack Kerouac first met in 1952. In 1957, weiss started a salon in her apartment, a gathering space for poets and writers to read and discuss their works. weiss has published many poems and anthologies in recent years, she continues to perform live in North Beach and at many jazz and poetry festivals.

Sandra Cross a retired lawyer, was born in St. Louis, and raised in San Francisco.  She attended the University of Chicago in the late 60’s and has always been proud to have come of age in the 60’s when rock & roll was born and rebellion was the language of the streets. Having been in the poetry closet for most of her life, she began taking classes and attending poetry workshops about 6 years ago. She is a regular with the First Thursday group of writers in Stinson Beach, where she has lived for the past 15 years, and for the last few years has  written with an international group of poets in an on-line workshop. Her poems have been published  many times in the Marin Poetry Center’s Anthology. 

Hal Davis is a retired officer in the merchant marines. He has been playing various musical instruments from strings to horns and performing with poet ruth weiss from Vienna to New Orleans and the Bay area since 2010.