Registration opens at Abu Dhabi's Poetry Academy

Abu Dhabi: The Poetry Academy, an initiative by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH), will begin receiving registrations for its courses on 1st - 26th March, 2009.

The Academy will be open for registration on weekdays from 12:00 pm - 20:00 pm.

Sultan Al Amaimi, Director of the Academy, said there will be more academic focus on Nabati poems.

The Academy will teach students the different fields related to Nabati poetry, including its style, characteristics, and structure, opening the door for more research and new subject matter.

It will also be organising many specialised lectures, talks and conferences where prominent Arabic poetry critics and professors will be participating.

Al Amaimi said registration applications will be receive at the Academy's headquarters in the Abu Dhabi Cultural Compound.

The application form can also be downloaded online from the Academy's website www.peotryacademy.ae, which provides all the necessary information, but the form and other relevant requirements must be submitted at the Academy's headquarters before the deadline.

Al Amaimi stressed that registration is open to all, with no prior requirement for being established as a poet, but he urged applicants to apply before all available seats are taken.

Last year, the Academy had published ten books on poetry, making a total of 16 titles since its launch, an average of one publication a month.

The Poetry Academy is the first cultural institution of its kind in the Arab World, playing an important role in preserving Nabati poetry.

It also aims to highlight popular UAE culture in particular and the Gulf one in general at the international level.