Friday June 22 10:56 AM ET
Poetry Academy Opens in Italy
VERONA, Italy (AP) - The World Academy of Poetry, a new institution dedicated
to the promotion of poetry around the globe, opens Friday in the Italian city
best known for its star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet.
Among those expected to take part in the inauguration ceremonies were Wole
Soyinka of Nigeria, who won the 1986 Nobel Prize for Literature, and 50 other
literary greats. They will take part in concerts and readings around Verona
this weekend to celebrate the new academy.
The academy will sponsor poetry contests and readings, publish a magazine and
produce television broadcasts on prominent members of the institution, the
Italian news agency ANSA said.
The northeastern city of Verona, chosen by Shakespeare for his tragic love
story ``Romeo and Juliet,'' already is home to the International Institute
for Opera and Poetry, which was established by UNESCO
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