Literary Arts has been hard at work preparing for our second year as the presenter of Wordstock: Portland’s Book Festival, and we wanted to share some early updates and announcements with you as we look forward to the festival’s return on Saturday, November 5, 2016.
We are thrilled to announce that Wordstock will present author events at five new stages in the South Park Blocks neighboring the Portland Art Museum, thanks to new partnerships with The Old Church, Oregon Historical Society, and three of the stages of Portland’5: the Brunish Theatre, the Winningstad Theatre, and the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. We will also return to the First Congregational United Church of Christ. These new partner venues and stages more than DOUBLE the seated capacity for the festival, and will take pressure off of the traffic flow in the museum.
We are grateful that the Portland Art Museum (PAM) has been an enthusiastic partner from the outset of the relaunched Wordstock and will remain the heart of the festival. PAM will once again be home to Powell’s festival bookstore; the book fair, which will expand this year to a second ballroom; and two of the eight author stages. Of course, PAM will also be home to our popular, dynamic pop-up events, which couldn’t happen anywhere except the beautiful galleries of the museum.
We hope you’ve had a chance to hear some of the 2015 festival events on our OPB show and podcast, The Archive Project. You can be a part of Wordstock this year by submitting your book, exhibiting at the book fair, sponsoring the festival, donating to Literary Arts, and volunteering. A bigger festival footprint means that we will need more volunteers than ever. Last year’s volunteer roles reached capacity, so click here to sign up today!
We are proud to present a festival reflecting the amazing literary community in this city and state, and we strive to make Wordstock accessible and enjoyable for all ages and all backgrounds. As the festival approaches we are working to curate a diverse, exciting lineup of authors, to improve festival logistics and wayfinding, to improve the advance ticket buying experience, and to reinforce our partnerships in the community and build new ones.
We look forward to celebrating with you at Wordstock: Portland’s Book Festival on Saturday, November 5.
All the best,
Andrew Proctor
Executive Director
Amanda Bullock
Director of Public Programs
