“Dub” Poet Jean “Binta” Breeze to Perform at Pitt

Acclaimed “dub” poet Jean “Binta” Breeze will give a free public performance at 8 p.m. Feb. 21 in Pitt’s Graduate School of Public Health Auditorium (G-23 Parran Hall). A Jamaican-British performance poet, Breeze is widely known as the first female reggae, or “dub,” poet. Her performance features a fusion of poetry and acting, music, and dance.

Breeze recently received a National Endowment for Science, Technology, and the Arts fellowship in Great Britain. Her books of poetry include Riddym Ravings and Other Poems (Race Today Publications, 1988), Spring Cleaning (Virago, 1992), and The Arrival of Brighteye and Other Poems (Bloodaxe, 2000). Breeze recently completed her first novel, The Fifth Figure: A Poet’s Tale (Bloodaxe Books, 2007). She also has appeared on the HBO program “Def Poetry.”

Shalini Puri, a professor in Pitt’s Department of English, organized the performance, which is sponsored by a Global Academic Partnership Grant (GAP). Launched in fall 2001, GAP is an initiative of Pitt’s Global Studies Program within the University Center for International Studies and the Office of the Provost. For more information, contact Pitt’s Department of English at 412-624-6506.