Dear Friends of Poetry,
On Thursday, August 6, 2026, Poetry Night will feature the poets Tamer Mostafa and Sam Jensen. We meet at 7 p.m. inside the John Natsoulas Gallery at 521 1st Street in Davis, and we hope you can join us!
Our featured poet for August 6 will be Tamer Mostafa.
Tamer Said Mostafa (he/him/his) is a therapist, poet, and storyteller from Stockton, California. His work has appeared in literary journals and magazines such as Glass, Confrontation, Prairie Schooner, and Freezeray among others. Tamer is a Best of the Net and Pushcart nominee, and a graduate of the Creative Writing program at University of California, Davis where he won the Lois Ann Latin Rosenberg Award for Poetry.
Opening the evening on August 6 will be Sam Jensen.
Sam Jensen is a teacher at Pioneer High School, having recently celebrated 20 years of working in public education. Sam has also written several books of poetry, and has been published in Albatross, Bliss, and Rattlesnake Review. Sam is a Poetry Night veteran, performing music and poetry at our multiple locations in Davis for more than a dozen years.
You are invited to visit the Facebook page for this event.
Doors and open-mic signups open at around 6:30 p.m.; the first featured reader begins at 7 p.m.; open mic starts at 8 p.m. Open mic performers will be asked to limit what they share to two items or four minutes, whichever is shorter. The open mic list is typically full by 6:45 p.m. People who show up early to help set up chairs will always earn a spot on the open mic list. Thanks to Mia Fisher, the new producer of Poetry Night! We expect open mic favorites Davis poet laureate Mercedes Ibañez, Joe Bacchus, and Allegra Silberstein to perform.
Find out more about the Poetry Night Reading Series in Davis, California by visiting https://www.poetryindavis.com. Encourage your friends to sign up for the mailing list. To learn more about Dr. Andy’s tiny media fiefdom, see some of his recent essays on Substack: https://andyjones.substack.com/. One post lists the almost 400 poets who have ever featured at the Poetry Night Reading Series. A recent post, titled “True Story,” remembers the recently-departed irreverent and lovable poet Bill Gainer.
Don’t miss what’s next! Upcoming features include Wendy Silk on August 20, and later, Terry Moore and Brad Buchanan. Please plan to join us on every first and third Thursday of the month at 7 p.m. at the John Natsoulas Gallery for the Poetry Night Reading Series.
