Raise the Bar returns with another dynamic night of live poetry at The Orchard Coffee & Co., with two brilliant feature acts, Rowena Knight and Sukina Noor. Our open mics are welcome to poets, rappers, storytellers, lyricists, songwriters, and wordsmiths of all styles and levels of experience, whether it's your first time or your 100th. If you'd like to sign up to perform, or just sit back with a beverage and listen to some of the city's finest wordsmiths, this is the evening for you. 16+ accompanied. Wheelchair accessible. Scroll down for further access and safeguarding information. Tuesday 17th March 2026 20 Clouds Hill Rd, Bristol BS5 7LA 7:00pm doors | 7:30pm - 9:30pm show (including interval) PWYC £6 / £8 / £10 (£5 concessions) OPEN MIC: This will be an opportunity to try out new material in a safe, warm environment hosted by Raise the Bar's compere extraordinaire Saili Katebe. There are 14 open mic spaces. These will become available at 10am on Sunday 22nd February via the following link: http://linktree.com/rtbspokenword 10 performers will be selected in advance from this form. The remaining 4 spots will be drawn on the night from a hat, which will include names from walk-ups and anyone who signed up here but wasn’t selected in advance. A number of open mic spaces are reserved for writers from the global majority, marginalised genders and sexualities, non-male writers, and writers in outlying areas of Bristol or the South West. FEATURE ACTS ROWENA KNIGHT Rowena Knight’s poetry is influenced by her queerness, feminism, and upbringing in New Zealand. Her poems have appeared in Butcher’s Dog, Magma, The Rialto, and The Emma Press Anthology of Love, among others. She was shortlisted for the 2018 Bridport Prize and commended in the 2019 Winchester Poetry Prize, and has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe and spoken word events across Bristol and London. Her pamphlet All the Footprints I Left Were Red is published by Valley Press. You can find her on Instagram @purple_fantail. SUKINA NOOR Sukina Noor is a poet, spoken-word artist, playwright, workshop facilitator and educator, event curator and public speaker. She is the current Bristol City Poet (2024 - 2026). Sukina has facilitated creative writing workshops across the world empowering communities to use the written word as a tool for dialogue and as a means for accessing their authentic voice. Her workshops seeks to explore the intersection between creativity and spirituality and awakening the voice of the heart. She has developed a series of poetry writing courses such as The Art of Speaking from the Heart, The Art of Writing Sacred Poetry and The Poetry of Female Mystics that she has delivered to international audiences and this summer led her first retreat in Portugal called The Healing Art of Sacred Writing. Her debut poetry collection Love and Longing: Yearning for the Face of God was released in October 2023 and her spoken word album of the same name WAS released in the Spring of 2025. RAISE THE BAR The South West's leading live poetry night, running blockbuster spoken word events in Bristol and beyond since 2014. ‘From top to bottom, one of my all time favourite shows’ – Shane Koyczan 'One of the best poetry nights in the country' – Rafeef Ziadah 'Out-loud reactions are encouraged…shaking off traditional theatre etiquette' – Bristol 24/7 ACCESSIBILITY / SAFEGUARDING Our events aim to be as safe, inclusive, accessible and welcoming as possible. The venue has a wheelchair accessible entrance via Cherry Orchard Lane and accessible toilets. If you have any particular access requirements or concerns, please email [email protected] in advance. The event may include photography and videography. SEATING / TIMINGS Doors open at 7:00pm, and the bar will be open with a selection of drinks (alcoholic + non-alcoholic), cocktails and bar snacks. The show begins at 7:30pm, so please arrive and be seated promptly. The event includes a 15 minute interval. We aim to finish at 9:30pm. Please note, there is limited seating at The Orchard. Some attendees may need to sit on the steps, in the balcony area, or in a seat with restricted viewing, so please arrive promptly if you'd like to sit at a table / downstairs. CONTENT WARNING Poetry events include performers sharing personal accounts which you may relate to in some way. This may include content that is potentially upsetting or triggering. We provide a general content warning at the beginning of each event, and poets may choose to provide one for their own poem if necessary. Attendees are welcome to leave the venue at any time and return when they feel comfortable, but please try to do this before/after a poem. SAFE SPACE Raise the Bar has a zero tolerance policy towards hate, discrimination and abuse of any kind. Our staff team will work together to ensure the space is respectful and welcoming at all times. The open mic rules include 'no punching down' and 'no nudity', and a content warning will be provided at the start of the event.

Entry requirements: 16+, any under 18s accompanied by 21+ adult 1:1 ratio — Read more — Read less