Jesse James Ziegler is currently serving as Poet Laureate for the City of Reno (Jan/24-Dec/25). He is a “Performance & Page Poet – Spoken Word Artist – Event & Workshop Host.”
He is featured at the inaugural Tahoe Literary Festival October 11th & 12th.
Profile by J.Macon King
I’m calling Jesse James the “hardest working man in the poetry business” as he seems to be everything to everyone, everywhere all at once. He often leads and participates not only in several events a week, but several a day. Take a look at his bio:
Jesse is the Vice President of Spoken Views Collective and the Creative Director for Monday Night Poetry (Voted 2024 Best Open Mic – Reno News & Review), True Colors Poetry and Collective Breath Poetry Book Club. He is a member of the Sierra Literary Cooperative, Sierra Arts Literary Community and the Nevada Poetry Society. He is the Spoken Word/Poetry contributor to Reno Arts News.
He was the first ever Poet in Residence for Reno’s Bruka Theatre and held that position for three consecutive seasons His first collection of poetry FIVE (2019) was published and brought to life through their annual new Works Festival. His work has been published by Nevada Humanities and Multnomah University Press.
Jesse opened and hosted the world premieres of Brandon Leake’s original spoken word play ‘Insomnia’ (Winner of Season 15 AGT) and has been a performance artist at the annual Utah Arts Festival. He has served as a host, judge and prompter for the Nevada chapter of the national Poetry Out Loud organization.
Jesse tells us what being Poet Laureate means to him: “I am honored to serve as the ambassador of the art form to the entire Truckee Meadows region as poetry has always been my first love. Poetry is the language of bridge building, activism, catharsis, edification and love. I intend to further the art form in our region through community building and community service.”
I’ve had the pleasure of hearing Jesse do readings a few times now and his “The Perfect Day” poem is one of the few poems I’ve heard and thought, as a performing poet myself, “Damn, I wish I had written that poem. Why didn’t I write that poem?” Jesse’s the type of poet that makes one desire to be a poet, and if a poet, makes them want to be a better poet. In other words, Jesse James is the perfect person to be a Poet Laureate.
Not that his other poems are chopped liver, but once in a while a poem comes along that grabs a live audience and touches them personally.
Jesse, in co-operation with Sierra Arts Foundation and others, is participating in jumping-out-of-the-box events like this one: “Dinner on the Bridge” fundraiser. October 5th, Sierra Arts Foundation will transform downtown Reno’s picturesque Virginia Street Bridge over the Truckee River into an elegant dining venue with multiple art experiences, handcrafted cocktails, and a delicious multi-course dinner.
As reported to Katey Roshetko on KOLO TV “Morning Break,” Sierra Arts Executive Director Tracey Oliver, said about this event, “Jesse brought it to our attention that we are really ‘bridging’ the arts and community. And we hadn’t thought of it that way.”
Jesse elaborated that he will present his original poem written for this event titled—”UNTIL” and that he wanted to encapsulate “…that the arts are important for everyone. Of all ages, of all socio-economic classes—how they really ‘bridge’ the gap between members of the community.”
“With stunning views, beautiful music paired with the natural sounds of the Truckee River and powerful visual arts at every turn, this intimate experience promises to be a magical evening that will remind us what the world looks like when we support our working artists.” Sierra Arts promo.
More of Jesse James Ziegler:
Interview here.
Poetry here with exclusive publishing premier of Jesse’s “The Perfect Day.”
More of Jesse James Ziegler:
Interview here.
Poetry here with exclusive publishing premier of Jesse’s “The Perfect Day.”