Whitman on Walls! (WoW!)

Whitman on Walls! (WoW!) is a community-galvanizing hybrid event that brings living poets and Colombari performers on film together to explore Walt Whitman's iconic words and uncover what democracy and identity mean to artists and poets today. It's a movie screening meets poetry slam!

In response to the host of performance cancellations in 2020, Compagnia de' Colombari turned Karin Coonrod’s original production of MORE OR LESS I AM into short films. Working with Whitman's iconic poem, "Song of Myself," Colombari created seven short films with actors and musicians around the globe, bringing Whitman’s words to life in startling and beautiful new ways intermixed with live responses from local poets and performers. Colombari plans to tour WoW! in all 50 states of the USA to celebrate the upcoming 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

Whitman on Walls (WoW!) Tour Dates 2025:

November 8, 2025, 6-8PM: Winter Park, FL at Rollins College Mills Lawn & Olin Library. More info HERE.

September 20, 2025, 2-4PM: Staten Island, NYC, at Alice Austen House (2 Hylan Blvd). More info HERE.

June 23, 2025, 5-7PM: New Haven, CT, at the Beinecke Library (121 Wall Street). More info HERE.

May 3, 2025, 4-6PM: Williamstown, MA, at The Clark Art Institute (225 South Street). More info HERE.

To better understand WoW! and its effect on poets and communities, please read this marvelous feature by Kate Abbott, "Contemporary Poets Share Songs of Polyphonic Selves," first published in the Berkshire Eagle, May 3, 2025, now on BTW Berkshires covering Colombari's collaboration with Tupelo Press at The Clark.

Whitman on Walls! (WoW!) design created by Kyle Morrissey of White Bicycle

Brooklyn Audiences Experience REVELATION

On June 4, celebrating Flannery O’Connor’s centennial birthday,
Compagnia de' Colombari presented a work-in-process of REVELATION, Karin Coonrod's theatrical adaptation of one of O’ Connor’s classic short stories. The presentation at St. Paul's Church featured Trezana Beverly, KenYatta Rogers, Stacey Sherrell, Carlton Terrence Taylor, Whitney Andrews, Jo Mei, Ahmad Kamal, and Julian Elijah Martinez.

Continuing Colombari's theatrical adaptations of O'Connor's works, this potent and timely production is in development for a premiere and touring beginning Summer 2026.

Immediately following the Brooklyn work-in-process presentation of REVELATION, actor KenYatta Rogers and director/adaptor, Karin Coonrod, flew to London to attend Flannery Abroad: A Conference in Celebration of Flannery O'Connor's Centenary. Held at Fordham University London from June 5 to 7, the conference featured a global "who's who" of O'Connor scholars and aficionados. Attendees applauded thunderously after being treated to a private video screening of scenes from the Brooklyn work-in-progress.

For more information about Flannery Abroad: A Conference in Celebration of Flannery O'Connor's Centenary and to see a list of the speakers and events, click HERE.

REVELATION photography by Shin Kurokawa. Graphics by Zack Stanik.

Whitman on Walls! Anthology Volume 2

Book Launch

We are thrilled to announce Volume 2 of the WoW! Anthology published in collaboration with The MFA Program in Creative Writing, The City College of NY, CUNY, and the Henry LUCE Foundation.

BOOK LAUNCH EVENT:

Thursday, April 3 | 5-7PM
Shepard 95 | Music Auditorium
The City College of NY
160 Convent Avenue
NY, New York 10031

The evening showcased screenings of select WoW! films, talks from the contributors, and readings from featured poets. Books are now available for purchase and are complimentary to the featured poets. This event launched the next season of Whitman on Walls! for 2025, as the community project tours NYC and the USA.

Whitman on Walls! Anthology Volume 2 cover design by Zach Stanik and Lauren Gatta

The Francis and Ann Curran Center for American Catholic Studies,
in collaboration with Compagnia de’ Colombari, presents

Flannery O’Connor @ 100 Takes the Stage:

A Film, Conversation, & Celebration

To celebrate Flannery O'Connor's 100th birthday, a screening of the play Everything That Rises Must Converge, filmed in Rome by Mikołaj Cempla, HumanStories Studio, took place on March 25 at the Duane Library | Tognino Hall at Fordham University | Rose Hill Campus. It was followed by a panel discussion featuring Karin Coonrod, Mark L. Chapman, Angela Alaimo O’Donnell, KenYatta Rogers, and Carlton Terrence Taylor.