Open Mic Poetry at the New Park Centre

The special guest at Open Mic Poetry at the New Park Centre, Jubilee Hall, Chichester on Wednesday, October 28 is Sylvie Jane Lewis who is currently pursuing her doctoral studies in Brighton after her earlier education in Chichester.

Following her recent success in the major national Bridport Poetry Competition, her debut pamphlet, Grandmother’s House is published by Dare-Gale Press.

Event organiser Barry Smith said: “Recasting a history of displacement through the language of fairy tales, Grandmother’s House celebrates family bonds between women and the imaginative possibilities of the home.

“Centred around the life of the poet’s Polish grandmother, these poems explore the inherent magic and absurdity at play in daily life.

“By turns nostalgic and uncanny, several poems embody voices from folklore, literature, and film, sitting uneasily between the terrains of the domestic and the feral. The sequence’s creaturely presences, from Cinderella’s mice to Red Riding Hood’s wolf, affirm the home as an inhabited space and site for storytelling.”

Looking ahead to her reading, Sylvie Jane said: “My writing embraces quietness, from shy characters to secretive animal presences. My poetry explores the creative potential of stories and playfully demonstrates the impossibility of taming wild creatures through set forms. I am drawn to magical realism, with interests in folklore, the sea, and dream sequences.

“I began writing consistently over the course of my studies at the University of Exeter (BA Hons English) and the University of Cambridge (MPhil English Studies). Writing of mine has placed and been commended in the Ware Poets Competition, the Free Verse Prize, Verve Poem of the Month as well as the Bridport Prize.”

Barry added: “Sylvie Jane Lewis’s poetry has appeared in The London Magazine, Acumen, and Fourteen Poems, among other high-profile publications. Her poetry placed third in the 2025 Bridport Poetry Prize, making her winner of the 2025 Bridport Young Writer Award. She is pursuing an AHRC-funded literature and media PhD at the University of Brighton, focused on the fairy in literary modernism and early film and photography.”

In the second part of the evening, local writers will get the chance to share the platform with Sylvie Jane and read their latest poems.

Barry added: “It promises to be a stimulating evening. It is a great pleasure to feature emerging writers at our open mic. Sylvie Jane has a distinctive take on life which is reflected in her engaging and stimulating poetry.

“We hope this will inspire old friends and newcomers to share their own poems in the open mic. Those who prefer just to sit back and listen are equally welcome.

“Future Open Mic Poetry sessions at New Park will feature a range of visiting poets, including Arundel journalist, Rebecca Zeman on November 25 with her Grey Hen pamphlet, Preloved. On December 16, we are linking up with CDC for a seasonal special, the Festive Jazz Café, at the Guildhall.’

Open Mic Poetry, Wednesday, October 28, 7.30pm, Jubilee Hall, New Park Centre, Chichester. Entrance £5 on the door. www.sdpf.org.uk.