Events for Poetry and Spoken Word

Salt Lake Juneteenth Celebration & Black Owned Business Expo

The 2025 Salt Lake Juneteenth Celebration & Black Owned Business Expo, a vibrant and powerful tribute to freedom, culture, and community. Hosted by Beloved Community, this all-day experience brings together Utah’s Black voices, businesses, artists, and families in a dynamic celebration of joy and resilience. From sunrise community gatherings to high-energy performances and soul-stirring showcases, the 5th Annual National Juneteenth Independence Day will be a space to reflect, connect, and celebrate our Nation's Newest Holiday.
Free and open to the public. All are welcome.
Schedule of Events
Community Gathering: 10:00 am @ Utah State Capitol
Juneteenth Program: 10:30 am @ Utah State Capitol
Celebration Walk: 11:15 am to The Gateway
Celebration: Noon @ The Gateway
Black Owned Business Expo Black Art Gallery Entertainment Stage Roller Skating Kids Corner

Visit www.saltlakejuneteenth.org for more information.



2025 Utah Arts Festival

The 2025 Utah Arts Festival celebrates creativity and community with world-class entertainment and interactive art experiences in downtown Salt Lake City from Thursday, June 19th through Sunday, June 22nd.
Headliners include jamgrass legends Leftover Salmon, pedal steel guitar virtuoso Robert Randolph, hip-hop icons Souls of Mischief, and Latin Grammy-nominated MV Caldera supported by local bands Theoretical Blonde, Sister Wives and many others! Utah’s largest outdoor multi-disciplinary arts event presents 170+ visual artists and 5 stages of music, dance, and literary arts performances.
What to know: Thursday, June 19, runs 5pm-11pm and features a $12 discount ticket for all adults with kids 12 and under free!
Friday, June 20, offers $12 ticket from noon to 3pm
Hours: Thursday (June 19) runs 5pm-11pm with Friday, Saturday and Sunday (June 20-22) run noon to 11pm
What not to miss: • Street theater, including graffiti stiltwalkers, contortionists, and living masterpieces roaming the Festival grounds • Live graffiti mural artists • Kids Art Yard celebrating “Frozen Spaces” with wooly mammoths, polar bears, and penguin sculptures with dozens of nonprofit arts orgs with hands-on projects for kids • Mini “Fear No Film” Festival featuring short independent film s in the Library Auditorium • Interactive art exhibits for all ages • Artist demonstrations and workshops Schedule and tickets at uaf.org.



The Rumi Poetry Club and Golden Braid Books presents: Autumn with Rumi

Join us the first Tuesday of every month this fall for a mystical series of evenings celebrating Sufi Poetry. The Rumi Poetry Club was founded by Rasoul Shams in 2007, on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of Jalâluddin Rumi’s birth. Since then, they have celebrated the poetry, inspiration, and perennial teachings of Rumi and other poets of the heart, nature, and spiritual life from around the world. Rasoul Shams first learned of Rumi's poems in his Persian classes as a young boy in Iran. The works of Rumi and other Persian poets have been his spiritual companions for decades. He has studied and lived in India, Japan, and the USA. His books include Rumi: The Art of Loving, Rumi Essays: On the Life, Poetry, and Vision of the Greatest Persian Sufi Poet, The Words of Rumi, and Through Love Pain is Healed. https://www.goldenbraidslc.com/events/autumn-with-rumi-august-2025



The Rumi Poetry Club and Golden Braid Books presents: Autumn with Rumi

Join us the first Tuesday of every month this fall for a mystical series of evenings celebrating Sufi Poetry. The Rumi Poetry Club was founded by Rasoul Shams in 2007, on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of Jalâluddin Rumi’s birth. Since then, they have celebrated the poetry, inspiration, and perennial teachings of Rumi and other poets of the heart, nature, and spiritual life from around the world. Rasoul Shams first learned of Rumi's poems in his Persian classes as a young boy in Iran. The works of Rumi and other Persian poets have been his spiritual companions for decades. He has studied and lived in India, Japan, and the USA. His books include Rumi: The Art of Loving, Rumi Essays: On the Life, Poetry, and Vision of the Greatest Persian Sufi Poet, The Words of Rumi, and Through Love Pain is Healed. https://www.goldenbraidslc.com/events/autumn-with-rumi-august-2025



The Rumi Poetry Club and Golden Braid Books presents: Autumn with Rumi

Join us the first Tuesday of every month this fall for a mystical series of evenings celebrating Sufi Poetry. The Rumi Poetry Club was founded by Rasoul Shams in 2007, on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of Jalâluddin Rumi’s birth. Since then, they have celebrated the poetry, inspiration, and perennial teachings of Rumi and other poets of the heart, nature, and spiritual life from around the world. Rasoul Shams first learned of Rumi's poems in his Persian classes as a young boy in Iran. The works of Rumi and other Persian poets have been his spiritual companions for decades. He has studied and lived in India, Japan, and the USA. His books include Rumi: The Art of Loving, Rumi Essays: On the Life, Poetry, and Vision of the Greatest Persian Sufi Poet, The Words of Rumi, and Through Love Pain is Healed. https://www.goldenbraidslc.com/events/autumn-with-rumi-august-2025