Singer-Songwriters and Poets to Take the Stage on May 19

The Gaithersburg Book Festival features more than just authors. Singer-songwriters and poets will perform on the Marvin Gay Stage, and while listening to these performances, you also will be able to enjoy gourmet snacks, coffee, and beer and wine from local breweries and wineries at the Brew & Vine Café, hosted by Dawson’s Market.

The schedule and performers include:

10:15 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Hayley Fahey – A prolific singer-songwriter and a multi-instrumentalist, Fahey draws influence from country, blues and folk. Fahey is also a music instructor, videographer, and owner of DC Music Video.

11 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.
Steven Gellman – A singer-songwriter described by Billboard Magazine as “intensely sensitive and impressively intelligent,” his songs tell stories of everyday life.

Noon – 12:45 p.m.
Martha Sanchez-Lowery, Jose Ballesteros and Maritza Rivera – This trio will perform bilingual poetry. Sanchez-Lowery, who served as poetry editor of Minimus literary journal, has been featured in Beltway, Hispanic Culture Review and Poets Against the War. Ballesteros is the author of the book of poetry “Lovedust/Polvo Enamorado,” a published translator of poetry, and co-founder and editor of the literary press Zozobra Publishing. Rivera, a Puerto Rican poet and U.S. Army veteran who has been writing poetry for over 40 years, is the publisher of Casa Mariposa Press and hosts the annual Mariposa Poetry Reunion Reading at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda.

1 p.m. – 1:45 p.m.
Tabi Terusiak – Tabi began songwriting at age 10, and was performing live by age 16. She caught the attention of many local venues, where her passionate lyrics, confident guitar playing, and spot on vocals won the crowd over. Her debut EP, “Moments Later,” will be out later this year.

2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Jessica Yellowitz – A 20 year old singer-songwriter from Northern Virginia, Yellowitz has been performing since age 6. Her EP, “The Very Beginning,” is available on iTunes.

3:30 p.m. –  4 p.m.
Po’opera by Vincent Hill – A poet, writer and performer who has lived all his life in Brooklyn, Hill recently released his debut book, “The Seven Day Theory: How The Concrete Rose Rises.”

4 p.m. – 4:15 p.m.
Michael Davis – A poet, guitarist and editor, Davis has been visiting schools in Northern Virginia and the Washington, D.C., area for more than 12 years to engage young students in writing poetry. 

4:15 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Miles David Moore, Michael Davis and J.D. Smith – Moore and Smith will be joining previous performer Davis to read original poetry. Moore is a reporter for Crain Communications Inc., a film reviewer for online magazine Scene4 and author of “The Bears of Paris,” “Buddha Isn’t Laughing” and “Rollercoaster.” Smith, whose fourth collection of poetry, “The Killing Tree,” was published in 2016, is a recipient of a Fellowship in Poetry from the National Endowment for the Arts and is author of the children’s picture book, “The Best Mariachi in the World.”

For more information about the performers, visit the click here.