The Spiro Ark together with Exiled Writers Ink

    Yvan Tetelbom Christiane Bonnay

Date: Sunday 13 May 2007

Time: 7.00 for 7.30pm

Venue: The Spiro Ark Centre - 25-26 Enford St, W1

Price: £5

On a rare visit from France and performing in English and French:

Yvan Tetelbom: the Jewish performance poet born in Algeria with Polish roots and exiled in France.

Accompanied by Cristiane Bonnay: classical accordionist, born in Dakar, Senegal.

Introduced by: Jennifer Langer, founder of Exiled Writers Ink www.exiledwriters.co.uk

YVAN TETELBOM– was born in 1947 in Port Gueydon, Algeria and has Polish, Algerian and Jewish roots. He is currently exiled in France. Before becoming a poet, he trained as an actor and singer, performing in France, Hungary, Israel and the Palestinian territories. His most recent anthology of poetry is entitled 'Prayers and Confessions'. His work has been widely broadcast on regional, national and international radio and television and he has performed his poetry at national and international literary festivals and events in a wide range of venues and countries.

His grandparents fled from Poland because of the pogroms at the beginning of the last century. They spoke Yiddish mixed with Kabyle (an Amasigh language) while he learnt French at school. He had a carefree upbringing in a Kabyle village by the Mediterranean in spite of the war in which the Algerians were engaged against France. Relations were good between the Jews and Kabyles and even during the War of Independence the Jews helped those revolting against the French occupation. However, because of Middle East tensions, bad feelings towards the Jews developed causing the Teltelboms to leave for France in 1962.

CHRISTIANE BONNAY – was born in Dakar (Sénégal) and studied in Chambéry, at the Hannover Conservatory of Music and with Frederich Lips in Moscow. She has won numerous prizes including the President of the Republic prize and the World Accordion Cup in Auckland. She currently teaches at the Académie de Musique, Prince Rainier III and at the Menton Conservatoire. She also established the Association for the Promotion and Development of the Accordion.