The Beat Scene: After Hours

About

The Beat Scene: After Hours is a unique celebration of poetry, photography and counterculture presented by the Troubadour’s poet-in-residence Scarlett Sabet. Hailed as one of the brightest new stars on the international poetry scene, Scarlett will host a series of spoken word happenings at London's iconic live music and performance venue. The Beat Scene: After Hours will feature a photographic exhibition including a remarkable collection of largely unseen photographs of the Beat Generation by renowned Magnum photographer Burt Glinn and photographs of Bob Dylan taken in the UK in 1966 by Barry Feinstein. It will launch on 20 November with an evening of poetry and live music hosted by Scarlett Sabet, who will read from her recently published collection of poetry. Scarlett will be joined by writer and performer Oakley, the winner of the Out-Spoken Prize for Page Poetry 2018. 

Burt Glinn’s lost photographs are a rare treasure. Shot between 1957 and 1960 in New York and San Francisco they document the lives of the legendary and influential Bohemians. Allen Ginsberg, Gregory Corso, William Morris, Anita Huffington, Helen Frankenthaler, Jacques Lipchitz, Hans Hoffman, Barnett Newman, Joan Mitchell, David Smith, Frank O’Hara, Larry Rivers, Sidney Rolfe, Grace Harrington, David Amram, Bernard Tapié, Jay DeFeo and William de Kooning are captured here alongside the scene’s infamous names, making the collection a dream for Beat aficionados and an exciting rarity for an increasingly popular and beloved period of history. Archived with the negatives was a lost essay manuscript by Jack Kerouac entitled “And This Is The Beat Nightlife of New York”, which is also presented here. 

Glinn was celebrated for his extraordinary talent as a social documentary photographer and during his time with the Beats, his camera captured the spirit of the counterculture – writers, musicians and artists meeting in cafes, bars and parties to pursue a truth and future the mainstream would not and could not acknowledge. The photographs were only recently discovered in Glinn’s archive where they had sat untouched for over 50 years and have been the subject of a 2018 book, The Beat Scene, published by Reel Art Press.  
Barry Feinstein photographed Bob Dylan over an eleven-year period, starting with the 1963 cover of The Times They Are A Changing. He was the official photographer on the European leg of Dylan’s 1966 world tour and also photographed Dylan in 1963 and 1974. A series of Feinstein’s seminal shots of Dylan, some previously exhibited at The National Portrait Gallery, will also be exhibited here.   

Alongside the photography of Burt Glinn and Barry Feinstein will be rare first editions, letters and ephemera presented by Peter Harrington Rare Books including including signed and inscribed first editions by Allen Ginsberg, Raymond Carver, Jack Kerouac and Bob Dylan. 

Scarlett Sabet comments, “I am hugely influenced by the Beat poets who fought to have their voices heard at a dangerous time. I cannot wait to bring contemporary poetry to this historic and evocative venue, that has been the home of London counterculture at such important moments. I hope people will come and experience new poetry against a backdrop of amazing images from Burt Glinn and Barry Feinstein, reminding us all how these icons spoke to their generation." 

Ian Williamson from the Troubadour adds, "For decades the Troubadour has been at the hub of London's counter-culture and it is a great pleasure and honour to play host to this fascinating retrospective of the Beat Scene and to continue the tradition!”