{"id":280333,"date":"2026-04-22T14:35:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T14:35:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/280333\/"},"modified":"2026-04-22T14:35:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T14:35:09","slug":"from-crush-to-craft-with-ross-gay-the-oakland-post","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/280333\/","title":{"rendered":"From crush to craft with Ross Gay \u2013 The Oakland Post"},"content":{"rendered":"

Students and community members gathered on Oakland University\u2019s Recreation and Well-Being Center<\/a> basketball courts April 14 for the 38th annual Maurice Brown Memorial Poetry Reading<\/a>, an event that blended literature, athletics and campus tradition in an interactive setting.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s theme, \u201cPoem Month Madness: Celebrating Poems and Basketball\u201d<\/a>\u00a0brought a unique energy to the event as attendees sat along the court, listening to poetry in a space typically reserved for sports.<\/p>\n

The nontraditional venue created a relaxed and engaging atmosphere, allowing participants to experience the reading in a new and accessible way.<\/p>\n

The event featured acclaimed poet and essayist Ross Gay, whose work often explores themes of joy, community and everyday life. Known for incorporating elements of basketball into his writing, Gay was a fitting choice for this year\u2019s theme.<\/p>\n

Throughout the reading, Gay shared selections that reflected on topics such as memory, gratitude and connections between personal experiences.<\/p>\n

The annual reading honors Maurice Brown, a former Oakland University English professor who taught at the university from 1961 until Brown\u2019s death in 1985. Established in 1988, the series continues to celebrate Brown\u2019s passion for poetry while bringing nationally recognized writers to campus.<\/p>\n

Oakland University professor Katie Hartsock, who organized this year\u2019s event, said the decision to invite Gay came after discussion among faculty in the Creative Writing Program<\/a>.<\/p>\n

After discussion, the Creative Writing committee selected Ross Gay to read basketball-themed poetry, aligning with the goal of connecting literature with shared cultural experiences.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe faculty of our Creative Writing program committee always discusses our choices of visiting writers to invite to our campus to read and share their work,\u201d Hartsock said. \u201cWe all knew we wanted to bring Ross Gay, especially as he is noted both as a poet and essayist.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hartsock said the idea to combine poetry and basketball developed from experience teaching Ross Gay\u2019s work and involvement in community arts programs, where blending creative expression with shared activities helped engage a wider audience.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt struck me, what if we had poetry reading devoted to basketball, bringing people together who know they love poetry, and people who love poetry but might not yet know they love basketball,\u201d Hartsock said.<\/p>\n

The event transformed the basketball courts into a space for storytelling and reflection, as attendees listened closely to Gay\u2019s readings.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt brings together students who are majoring and minoring in English and Creative Writing, but it also invites students of all majors who love literature,\u201d Hartsock said.<\/p>\n

Gay\u2019s readings emphasized a wide variety of themes, including adolescent romance, self-discovery and familial tension.<\/p>\n

In one of the readings, Gay discussed a note written to a childhood crush. During school, Gay realized that the note had been left in a pair of pants hidden behind the couch.<\/p>\n

Eventually, Gay found the pages of the note scattered across the bed. Gay revealed to the audience that the note had been discovered by Gay\u2019s father after picking up the discarded pair of pants.<\/p>\n

Gay explained that the discovery of the note encouraged continued writing, a moment that helped shape an early interest in storytelling.<\/p>\n

Hartsock emphasized that creative writing can enhance a wide range of careers by helping individuals express complex concepts more effectively.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor example, our environmental sciences majors can do so much by crafting stories, beyond pure data, regarding climate emergencies,\u201d Hartsock said.<\/p>\n

The event welcomed members of the surrounding community, including alumni, local writers and literature enthusiasts. This open format allowed for a broader exchange of ideas and reinforced the role of poetry as a shared cultural experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe love to have community friends, Southeast Michigan writers and professors, OU alums, local lit fans, join us for these events,\u201d Hartsock said. \u201cIt\u2019s an acknowledgement of the power of poetry to bring people into a shared space.\u201d<\/p>\n

Students who attended the event described the experience as both unique and engaging, particularly due to the unconventional setting.<\/p>\n

Maggie Quinn, a senior public relations major, said the basketball court setting made the reading stand out compared to previous experiences.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a very unique experience,\u201d Quinn said. \u201cI have been to poetry readings in the past, but doing it on a basketball court was very interesting. A lot of the storytelling was very interesting, and it was cool to see how different parts of life connected to basketball.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quinn added that the event expanded the understanding of what poetry can be, especially when exploring nontraditional topics.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was kind of nice to see you can write about stuff that isn\u2019t traditional,\u201d Quinn said.<\/p>\n

Natalie Ornette Corchi, a freshman English for education major, said the setting created a different perspective on both poetry and sports.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, it felt like an interesting disconnect that made me focus more on the writing itself and how it relates to sports,\u201d Corchi said.<\/p>\n

Corchi said the event changed previous perceptions of poetry as rigid or structured.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always thought that poetry was this stiff rigid thing, but with this, it felt more personal and conversational,\u201d Corchi said.<\/p>\n

Shannon O\u2019Connor, a senior majoring in women and gender studies and professional and digital writing, said the environment enhanced the emotional impact of the reading.<\/p>\n

\u201cI loved the way it echoed through the basketball court,\u201d O\u2019Connor said. \u201cIt felt like being at a basketball game and elevated the sense of connection with the topic.\u201d<\/p>\n

O\u2019Connor added that the setting demonstrated how poetry can exist in a variety of environments beyond traditional spaces.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt made me feel like poetry could be in any setting,\u201d O\u2019Connor said.<\/p>\n

Following the reading, audience members had the opportunity to ask Gay questions about the work, writing process and inspiration.<\/p>\n

A table was also set up where attendees could purchase copies of Ross Gay\u2019s poetry collections and have books signed, providing a more personal connection between the author and audience.<\/p>\n

As the Maurice Brown Memorial Poetry Reading continues its decades-long tradition, the event demonstrated how poetry can evolve to reach new audiences.<\/p>\n

By combining literature with the familiarity and energy of basketball, organizers created an experience that resonated with both longtime poetry enthusiasts and those encountering poetry in a new way.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Students and community members gathered on Oakland University\u2019s Recreation and Well-Being Center basketball courts April 14 for the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":280334,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[143,145,144],"class_list":{"0":"post-280333","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-oakland","8":"tag-oakland","9":"tag-oakland-headlines","10":"tag-oakland-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/280333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=280333"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/280333\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/280334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=280333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=280333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=280333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}