Opening the Shutters

OPENING THE SHUTTERS is a book of poems by Nan Knighton which has been called "extraordinary" by author Delia Ephron, "glorious" by playwright Ken Ludwig and "stunning" by Richard Ridge of Broadway World. Charles McGrath, former Editor of The New York Times Book Review says, "Reading Nan Knighton is like reading a 21st century Edna Millay" and Elizabeth Goodenough of Secret Spaces of Childhood says "Her poems fly. They take risks…with arresting images, kick-ass verbs, hilarious dialogue and dramatic power. Brilliant." Knighton's poems are conversational. Alfred Uhry, Pulitzer Prize winner for Driving Miss Daisy, says, "Nan Knighton's poems celebrate the ebb and flow of everyday life." Her poems live in that arena - conversational, easily grasped. As she says, they are for those who say, "I'm not really a poetry person" as much as they are for poetry lovers. Her poems travel from Skee Ball on the boardwalk to a tango by the river, from drunken prayers in a taxi to writing songs in the nude, from parents who drive you nuts - ("I'll be dying, they'll be drinking Mint Juleps") - to a man on his knees begging his lover to stop making him laugh. Whether in rhyme, free verse, haiku, prose poem or dialogue, Knighton's poems are sure to hit a nerve.

OPENING THE SHUTTERS is a book of poems by Nan Knighton which has been called "extraordinary" by author Delia Ephron, "glorious" by playwright Ken Ludwig and "stunning" by Richard Ridge of Broadway World. Charles McGrath, former Editor of The New York Times Book Review says, "Reading Nan Knighton is like reading a 21st century Edna Millay" and Elizabeth Goodenough of Secret Spaces of Childhood says, "Her poems fly. They take risks...with arresting images, kick-ass verbs, hilarious dialogue and dramatic power. Brilliant." Knighton's poems are conversational. Alfred Uhry, Pulitzer Prize winner for Driving Miss Daisy says, "Nan Knighton's poems celebrate the ebb and flow of everyday life." Her poems live in that arena - conversational, easily grasped. As she says, they are for those who say, "I'm not really a poetry person" as much as they are for poetry lovers. Her poems travel from Skee Ball on the boardwalk to a tango by the river, from drunken prayers in a taxi to writing songs in the nude, from parents who drive you nuts- ("I'll be dying, they'll be drinking Mint Juleps")- to a man on his knees begging his lover to stop making him laugh. Whether in rhyme, free verse, haiku, prose poem or dialogue, Knighton's poems are sure to hit a nerve.

Nan Knighton received a Tony nomination for Best Book of a Musical for The Scarlet Pimpernel, for which she also wrote the lyrics. Pimpernel is regularly performed around the world. Its most recent American production was held at Lincoln Center's David Geffen Hall. Knighton wrote the book for Saturday Night Fever for both the West End production in London (Olivier nomination) and its Broadway production. She wrote book and lyrics for Camille Claudel, which premiered at the Goodspeed Opera House's Norma Terris Theatre. Her songs have been performed everywhere from Carnegie Hall to Japan's annual Takarazuka Revue and in numerous cabarets including Storybook: The Songs of Nan Knighton. Knighton was honored for being one of eight lyricists in The Dramatist's Guild 2016 Gala "Great Writers Thank Their Lucky Stars."