Now Competing with the International Convention

I was happily preparing to listen to the International Speech Contest and hoping to catch up with some old friends at the virtual convention this year when a Twitter announcement of this event got me scrambling.

Here’s what

In partnership with the Kirkpatrick Foundation, Oklahoma Contemporary will livestream a six-day reading series of Emily Wilson’s recent translationof Homer’s The Odyssey, an immediate, accessible and boldly contemporary version of the ancient text. Working with a diverse group of local and national actors, musicians, artists and public officials, — including Emily Wilson herself — as readers, Oklahoma Contemporary’s broadcast will include all 24 books of the epic poem.

and here’s why

This marathon reading series aims to digitally re-create the experience of listening together to a tale told thousands of times, throughout histories and across continents — to see if we can find ourselves in Odysseus’ ever-turning voyage to find home.

I don’t think there’s any question about finding ourselves in the Odyssey (if you’re not sure maybe pick up Daniel Mendelsohn’s An Odyssey as a companion) and right now I’m planning to drop in for at least part of this event.