A refreshed speaker series called WBRL Centre Stage has been launched by the Wood Buffalo Regional Library in partnership with Syncrude.
Spoken word poet, author and activist Shane Koyczan will be the first speaker coming to town on June 1.
Koyczan has gained worldwide recognition for his work on anti-bullying and his poetry and novels. His first volume of poetry, ‘Visiting Hours’, was the only work of poetry selected by both the Guardian and the Globe and Mail for their Best books of the Year lists in 2005.
He performed at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and also wrote “Stickboy”, a novel in verse that chronicles the dark and lonely journey of a bullied child gripped by helpless rage.
The world took notice of Koyczan when his influential, anti-bullying, To This Day Project video went viral in early 2013. It was released as a project to acknowledge and support national anti-bullying day.
Since the video’s release Shane has presented at Ted Talks which led him to collaborate with TED-ED to create a classroom tool that provides teachers a way to discuss anti-bullying with students.
Tickets will go on sale for Shane Koyczan’s talk here in Fort McMurray on Wednesday, April 20th at the Keyano Theatre Box Office.
The Library will hold a draw April 1 to 15 to win four sets of tickets. Ticket cost, $40 per person.
The show will run from 7:30 to 8:30, followed by a 25 minute Q&A session. After his time on stage, Koyczan will be available for book signings.
