Billy Collins in The Green Room

Friday, December 8, 2017 at Maui Arts & Cultural Center, McCoy Studio Theater

“Luring his readers into the poem with humor, Mr. Collins leads them unwittingly into deeper, more serious places, a kind of journey from the familiar to quirky to unexpected territory, sometimes tender, often profound.”

— The New York Times

The Merwin Conservancy presented an evening with former U.S. Poet Laureate, Billy Collins, whose critical acclaim and widespread popular appeal has earned him the title, “the most popular poet in America” (The New York Times).

Collins has published ten collections of poetry. A collection of his haiku, She Was Just Seventeen, was published by Modern Haiku Press in fall 2006. He has also published two chapbooks and he has edited two anthologies of contemporary poetry.

His book, Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems 2003 – 2013, and his most recent book of poetry, The Rain in Portugal, are both New York Times best-sellers.

Included among the honors Billy Collins has received are fellowships from the New York Foundation for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Guggenheim Foundation.

In June 2001, Collins was appointed United States Poet Laureate 2001-2003, and in January 2004, he was named New York State Poet Laureate 2004-06.

He also helped launch “Poetry in Motion,” a Metropolitan Transit Authority program that places poems in advertising space on New York City buses and subways.

Photos by Bryan Berkowitz