Internationally acclaimed American spoken-word poets, Sarah Kay and Phil Kaye, performed to a sold out crowd at the International Club, in the Capital, on Monday. The duo is currently in Nepal to partake in a two-legged show, March of the Poets: Phil Kaye and Sarah Kay in Kathmandu.

Kay, who is also a spoken-word educator and the co-founder of Project VOICE, an organisation that uses spoken word poetry as a tool for literacy and empowerment, has performed in numerous venues internationally including the Lincoln Center, the Tribeca Film Festival and at TED Talk. She was also a featured performer at the United Nations for the launch of the 2004 World Youth Report. Her most recent poetry collection, The Type, was published in 2016.  

Phil Kaye, who is a two time recipient of the National College Poetry Slam, has performed in hundreds of venues in fifteen countries. Most recently, Phil was invited to perform alongside the Dalai Lama for the celebration of his 80th birthday in 2015. He is the co-director of Project VOICE.

The show on Monday saw poets from Word Warriors—Nepal’s first spoken word poetry group—open for the American duo and musical performances by Project Sarangi and Zero Mile. The event also saw spoken word enthusiasts line up for a book signing by the poets as the show drew to a close.

March of the Poets was jointly organised by Quixote’s Cove Bookshop and Word Warriors. A second show is scheduled to be held on March 7, in the Kamal Mani Theatre at Rato Bangla School, starting 5 pm.