POET AND PLAYWRIGHT

The Writer PBS Series, September 12, 2000
2:00 p.m. Channel 17

Visit to NYS Writers Institute October 8, 1998

PROFILE
Derek Walcott, poet and playwright, was the winner of the 1992 Nobel Prize for Literature. He was born in the West Indian island of St. Lucia, and known for his body of work that blends Caribbean, English, and African traditions. In awarding him the Nobel Prize in 1992, the academy praised him for "a poetic oeuvre of great luminosity, sustained by a historical vision, the outcome of a multicultural achievement."

Since publishing his first poems at the age of 18, Walcott has published 17 volumes of poetry including In a Green Night (1962), Another Life (1973), The Star-Apple Kingdom (1979), Collected Poems, 1948-1984 (1986), The Arkansas Testament (1987), and Omeros (1990). Richard Wilbur, former poet laureate of the United States, has called Walcott, "one of the best poets writing in English."

Walcott is also known for his work in theatre. He has written numerous plays including Dream on Monkey Mountain (1970), Ti-Jean and His Brothers (1958), The Last Carnival, and The Odyssey: A Stage Version (1993). He also wrote the story and the lyrics for Paul Simon's musical The Capeman which opened on Broadway January 28, 1998.

Walcott won the prestigious MacArthur Foundation "genius" award in 1981. He currently is a professor in Boston University's English Department.

Books by Derek Walcott

Art Exhibit by Derek Walcott

In conjunction with the University Art Museum's exhibit

Island Light: Recent Watercolors by Derek Walcott & Donald Hinkson

October 2 - November 15, 1998

Public Reception , Wednesday, October 7 from 5:00-7:00 p.m., Art Museum's Main Gallery

Previous Articles:
The Writer PBS Series
Writers Online Magazine Article (transcript)
Nobel Prize Internet Archive

For additional information, contact the Writers Institute at 518-442-5620 or online at https://www.albany.edu/writers-inst.