Whether he’s playing master of ceremonies at a Libertines show in front of 5,000 screaming rock fans or reciting Georgian ballads down your local, Luke Wright is adept at taking poetry to places it doesn’t normally go. His poems can be tender, riotous, caustic and romantic and he delivers them with the ferocity and panache of a raconteur at the top of his game.
Now Luke is undertaking an extensive tour the UK in 2022 with an all new show of poems. The tour will visit the length and breadth of Britain, from The Channel Islands to Scotland and is coming to Oxford Playhouse on Friday 16 September.
In the show his deliciously funny poems are set against a backdrop of pandemic politics, ageing parents, and an endless, droning culture war. Wright throws a squat party in his ‘poor old heart’, featuring a cast of murderous swans, sozzled devils, and the people we most want to protect.
For over 20 years now Luke has toured the world to perform his flamboyant, political and riotously funny poetry. In March 2020 that all came to an enforced halt but now he is ready to fully emerge from this temporary retirement with an infectious thirst for life. But what kind of life? And does it bear any resemblance to the one he had before?
'His performances rumble with rage, passion and humour.’ Guardian
Luke commented ‘usually I spend much of the year touring around the world, so the pandemic lockdowns gave me time to reflect more and think about how Covid has affected people from all walks of life. After so long it’s a thrill to take this new collection of poems on tour’.
With an international reputation as a leader of the spoken word scene, Luke Wright is one of the UK’s most riveting spoken word performers. His poems are delivered with dynamism, intensity and charisma. Keenly personal but always inflected with irreverent humour, his poetry is always based on his life - as a poet, a father and a son. He is acknowledged as one of our top poets and one of the principle architects of the now thriving UK spoken word scene.
In 2020, when mostly confined to his home he was dubbed ‘the bard of lockdown’ by The Daily Telegraph for his marathon stint of 100 consecutive nights of online shows. These attracted daily viewing figures of up to 10,000.
‘Fierce, wistful, romantic and witty. A sensational hour of poetry’ ***** The Stage
Friday 16 September Oxford Playhouse, Beaumont Street, Oxford OX1 2LW
7.30pm £20 01685 305305 www.oxfordplayhouse.com