Seamus Heaney was introduced last night at City Arts and Lectures by an American poet of skill and grace, a man admired by many for his work as a poet and as an advocate for poetry. This man is as close to being a rock star in the poetry world as you can get without being Billy Collins. And yet, something about preceding Heaney seemed to unnerve him. Although he spoke at length and helpfully about the poems Heaney was going to read, it was difficult to follow his introduction. That's because every few seconds he would remove his glasses, then place them on the podium or slide them into his shirt pocket or wave them in the air. And then he’d put them on again and the whole elaborate dance of removal and retrieval would begin again. Three quarters of the way through the introduction, I began to count the number of times his hands met his glasses. I got to eleven before Heaney came on the stage.
Seamus Heaney at City Arts
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