Backstage of the California Theatre, the blue and gold stage lights strike down on the wrapped cords above our heads, creating electrifying halos that seem to be floating in the dusty abyss of the stage's ceiling. And here I am sitting in the dark, caught in the magic moment with California Poet Laureate, Dana Gioia. We talk about him being a librettist for the opera Nosferatu. He recites his poem “Nosferatu’s Serenade” which he will soon read for the audience on the other si

I invited Dana Gioia as guest poet for Poets N Film event in collaboration with Cinequest film festival and Poetry Center San Jose. I thought while we had him in the neighborhood that I would see if going on the air was something of interest to him. I was excited when Rachelle Escamilla accepted my invitation to have Dana Gioia on her radio show "Out Of Our Minds." She features local poets. Dana was thrilled to be a part of our San Jose live radio show being a constant on BBC

This poetry film featured at Cinequest Film Festival 2019 with Poets N Film event. “Layaway” is based on an incident I had in my youth. I grew up with a single mom. Let me quickly explain that a single mom is different than a divorced mom. A single mom is a parent who raises her child or children without support from the father of her child or children. This was my mom. She occasionally got checks but they were written in my name and my brother’s name, so you could imagine ho