Calgary, AB - The 7th Annual Calgary International Spoken Word Festival is back with a vengeance, bigger and better than ever with 27 events and over 100 artists presenting an eclectic and exotic collection of spoken word in 4 cities. In Calgary, the Festival runs until April 30, 2010. Appealing, appalling, fabulous and slightly shocking, this year's theme is "Cabaret." Expect the unexpected!

A plethora of artists will perform at the "Pen-Ultimate" Cabarets on April 23 and 24 at 8:00pm in the Big Secret Theatre (EPCOR CENTRE for the Performing Arts, 205 8th Ave. SE). Ohio harpist/accordionist/singer-songwriter Baby Dee headlines the April 23 event, which also features Edmonton's Tippy Agogo, Washington DC's Regie Cabico, Montreal’s Greg Kramer, Toronto's Billeh Nickerson, Montreal's Alexis O'Hara and Toronto's Andrea Thompson.

This year, the Festival is expanding the horizons of spoken word with the addition of special electronic broadcasts. On April 23 and 24 at 12:00pm, select Festival artists will present short samplings of their work in the Cyberport Room at the University of Calgary (BioSciences 540B, 2500 University Dr. NW). Q&A periods will follow with Calgary audiences as well as audiences at the Bowery Poetry Club Cyberport in New York City. Audiences may also watch the events live at CalgarySpokenWordFestival.com.

“Humanity is the voice of the people and this is a festival about giving voice to the people," says Artistic Director and Festival Producer Sheri-D Wilson. “Plus that, it’s a darn good party!”

The Calgary International Spoken Word Festival runs in Calgary until April 30, 2010. For more information, or to purchase tickets online, visit CalgarySpokenWordFestival.com. Ticket prices vary.

For more information or interview requests, please contact Sheri-D Wilson at 403.686.4292 or SheriDWilson@Shaw.ca.