Renga Around the Community: @GBLabs Announces First GB Pandemic Poetry Expansion

Great Barrington, MA (July 31, 2020) - Encouraged by the large number of responses received for its GB Pandemic Poetry Project, @GBLabs is pleased to continue building on this success and announce the “GB Renga Project”.  Founded in Japan over 700 years ago as a way to encourage collaborative engagement with poetry, rengas are created by a group of poets working together.  The first poet writes a stanza which is three lines long with a total of 17 syllables (5 syllables in line one, 7 in line two, and 5 in line three).  The next poet adds two lines of verse with 7 syllables per line.  The third poet follows the same instructions as the first, and the fourth follows the second.  This pattern alternates until the poem is completed.  Writers only see the line that immediately precedes their own.

“I was reading my mother’s Smith College Quarterly a few weeks ago and happened across a renga completed by several alumnae and faculty,” said @GBLabs Director Joe Grochmal.  “As soon as I read it, I knew that we would have to create and launch a GB Renga, assuming that the Poetry Project was well-received, of course.”

“It’s one thing for a person to write a poem sharing their personal feelings and experiences,” said @GBLabs Fellow Meryl Phair.  “It’s a different challenge and experience to contribute to a larger piece with limited context.  We are very eager to see the community’s creativity flourish, and I am pleased to be the first contributor who will launch this renga!”

Interested community members can sign up for the “GB Renga Project” through this Google Form (https://bit.ly/2DqaupC). They will then receive an email from atgblabs@gmail.com with a brief project description, a reminder of the guidelines, and the previous renga line and will be asked to respond with their contribution within 24 hours. At the end of the project, all participants will receive a completed copy of the renga, which will also be published on @GBLabs’ social media accounts.

Participants are encouraged to tackle their stanzas creatively and be free in their expression. Any questions regarding this project can be directed to atgblabs@gmail.com.