June 10 | 5:30pm | Wavertree | $50
Do you find poetry intimidating? Do you race past the poems in The New Yorker on your way to the fiction or the cartoons? Have you persuaded yourself that you’ll “just never get it?”
Join the Seaport Museum and Pulitzer Prizewinning poet and former Poetry Editor of The New Yorker Paul Muldoon for a gathering where participants discuss poems published only that week in literary journals and magazines—not just to uncover their meanings, but to reflect on where poetry has been as an art form and where it’s going. Poems for discussion will be provided at the session. No preparation or prior poetry knowledge required—just bring an open mind!
Preregistration is encouraged. Walkups will be accommodated as possible; only credit or debit cards are accepted. Seaport Museum members receive 20% off their ticket. Just sign in when prompted at checkout to receive your discount. Access to Wavertree involves climbing a few stairs, walking up an angled gangway, and descending a few stairs onto the deck.
Please Note This is a Past Program, Event, or Activity
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About the Speaker
Paul Muldoon has been Howard G. B. Clark Professor at Princeton, teaching creative writing, Irish literature, songwriting and translation for nearly forty years. He served as Oxford Professor of Poetry from 1999 to 2004 and Ireland Professor of Poetry from 2022 to 2025. He has taught at Cambridge University, University of St. Andrew, University of East Anglia, and Lancaster University. His fifteen major collections of poetry, published in America by Farrar, Straus & Giroux, include the Pulitzer Prize winning Moy Sand and Gravel and Joy in Service on Rue Tagore, a New York Times Notable Book of 2024. He is the editor of many anthologies of poetry, including, most recently, Scanty Plot of Ground: A Book of Sonnets.
Enjoy More That the Museum Offers
Access to the historic ships and exhibitions on view is not included with your event ticket. If you would like to explore more that the Museum has to offer, book in advance or ask Museum staff about General Admission tickets when you check in.
General Admission brings you aboard the 1885 tall ship Wavertree and 1908 lightship Ambrose at Pier 16, and into both exhibitions on view in the first-floor Schermerhorn Row galleries at 12 Fulton Street. General Admission also sets you on course to explore Maritime City, the Museum’s immersive, three-floor exhibition at A.A. Thomson & Co., located at 213 Water Street.
Want to experience even more?
Reserve your tickets for the special exhibition The Promise of Liberty: Words That Shaped a Nation, on view this Summer! Book in advance and save with a discounted combo ticket that includes both General Admission and The Promise of Liberty.
Sailing season is here! Book your tickets today to enjoy an on-the-water adventure aboard the 1885 schooner Pioneer or the 1930 W.O. Decker.
Plan Your Visit
We look forward to welcoming you! Before your visit, please review the Visitor Guide and Frequently Asked Questions. You’ll find helpful information on ticketing and discounts, planning a family visit, directions and accessibility at each of our historic sites, the visitor code of conduct, what is and isn’t permitted across the Museum campus, tips for using technology during your visit, and more.
Ready for more?
Head over to our Programs and Events page to see what else is happening at the Museum. Sign up for an upcoming talk, learn more about visiting Wavertree, or explore our virtual offerings.