BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//wp-events-plugin.com//7.4.5//EN TZID:America/New_York X-WR-TIMEZONE:America/New_York BEGIN:VEVENT UID:2807@thelavacenter.org DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260228T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260228T210000 DTSTAMP:20260212T172221Z URL:https://thelavacenter.org/events/marlon-carey/ SUMMARY:Postcards From the Promised Land: An Evening with Poet & Storytelle r Marlon Carey DESCRIPTION:Postcards from the Promised Land is a poetic journey through me mory\, migration\, and becoming. This original performance weaves spoken w ord and song to trace the immigration story of a young Jamaican boy sent t o America with a promise to write home. Charged by his great-grandmother t o send postcards and letters back to "the yard\,” he chronicles his new world in snapshots—each poem a dispatch\, each song a stamped confession .\n\nFrom the bright hope of arrival to the complex realities of growing u p in an urban Black community\, these pieces capture culture shock\, humor \, longing\, survival\, and self-discovery. The postcards evolve over time —at first full of wonder\, then edged with questions\, and eventually gr ounded in hard-earned truth.\n\nThrough rhythm\, storytelling\, and music\ , Postcards from the Promised Land explores identity\, family legacy\, and the meaning of “promise.” It is a love letter across borders\, a conv ersation between generations\, and a reminder that the American dream look s different depending on who is writing home.\n\nPay What You Can ($20 sug gested)\n\nMarlon “Inphynit” Carey is a storyteller\, hip-hop artist\, slam poet\, actor\, and educator with Rhode Island Black Storytellers (RI BS). For over eight years\, he has woven narratives that spark empathy\, h umor\, and community while uplifting literacy and learning. Inspired by hi s three children and guided by masters like Len Cabral and Valerie Tutson\ , he blends music\, poetry\, and performance to engage audiences of all ag es. His commissioned school stories and collaborations—including The Sha kespeare Time-Travelling Speakeasy and his album High Value Target—refle ct his commitment to using story as a bridge between people and possibilit y.\n\n(longer bio:)\n\nMarlon Carey is a Poet Educator Actor Communicator Entertainer...Storyteller.\n\nHe has a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree in Creative Writing\, which he earned at St. Andrews College in Laurinburg \, NC under the watchful eye of Prof. Ronald H. Bayes. Carey has written a nd taught Poetry and Creative Writing for over a decade in the New England Area and around the country. Carey is a community activist and has worked for and in collaboration with numerous Neighborhood Development\, Outreac h and Community Advocacy organizations.\n\nCarey worked with D.A.R.E. on t he campaign for “Question #2” in Rhode Island\, which led to the histo ric passing of legislation to stop the disenfranchisement through extended parole\, restoring voting rights for persons previously convicted of a fe lony\, who have served their time. Carey has also performed in plays and o ther events to champion Inmates’ rights with the notable director Bruce Reilly of 1000lbs Guerilla Theatre Company.\n\nAlso known as hip hop poet\ , Inphynit\, (Pronounced “Infinite”) Marlon Carey was a member of the 2010 Boston Lizard Lounge Poetry Slam Team which was ranked 11th in the Na tion\, as well as the 2013 Providence Poetry Slam team\, and is a proud me mber of Providence-based poetry ensemble\, Brother’s Keeper\, a group de dicated to inspiring and educating young men in urban environments aspire to greatness. Carey was also producer and radio DJ on Off Tha Top\, a radi o show that ran for for over four years on 88.1FM (WELH) Providence throug h Brown University’s BSR\, student and community radio.\n\nNamed “Best Hip Hop Poet” by the Cambridge Poetry Awards two years in a row\, he ha s also been the Boston Cantab Lounge's "Grand Slam Champion". Marlon has b een a TEDxBoston speaker and a presenter at a Providence presentation of P echakucha. Carey has been a regular collaborator with local Storytelling t roupe\, RIBS (Rhode Island Black Storytellers)\, including Valerie Tutson\ , Raffini\, and Len Cabral. With a blend of eclectic themes\, wordplay and wit\, Marlon brings a refreshing twist on performance poetry his charming flow\, poignant\, clever lyrics and serious fondness for language are ble nded artfully to create a unique presentation.\n\nMarlon was a curator for a week of poetry and music by local artists as part of the historic exhib it Locally Made at RISD Museum and was a performer in the poetic performan ces at Soundsession Providence (later PVD Fest) each year.\n\nIn theatre\, Carey has been in major plays such as The Sunset Limited\, Topdog/Underdo g and Shakespeare’s Othello\, in which he played the character Iago with great success. He remains active in the area of theatre and was a lead ac tor in the original run of When Mahalia Sings\, at Mixed Magic Theatre. He was a company member of 2nd Story Theatre where he performed in Take Me O ut\, A Few Good Men\, Lobby Hero and Enron.\n\nMarlon was Lucien in 2nd St ory Theatre’s presentation of RI playwright Tom Griffin’s The Boys Nex t Door.\n\nMarlon was a lead actor in a presentation of an Afro Brazilian play entitled "Sortilegio" at Brown University's Rites and Reason Theatre. \n\nMarlon has published three chapbooks: Giraffe Theory (2000)\, Prolegom enon (2003) and Lazarus (St. Andrews College Press\, 2007). He has also re leased several albums with hip hop group United Soul Alliance. His latest offering is a digital album entitled High Value Target which is available at http://inphynit.bandcamp.com\n\nOther Titles are: End of The World Mixt ape 2012: OCCUPY Your Mind\, And Plan M: the un-Mixtape which he largely p roduced in his home studio.\n\nCurrently Marlon’s time is taken up with his work with Rhode Island Black Storytellers and as a Teaching Artist wit h his company Shakespeare to Hiphop\, (a literacy enrichment program that travels to various schools around New England\,) writing\, performing and spending quality time with his family\, two girls\, one boy\, a wife\, thr ee cats…and 21 fish. ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://thelavacenter.org/wp-content/uploads/202 6/02/Marlon-Carey-1-sm.jpg CATEGORIES:Special Events LOCATION:324 Main Street\, Greenfield\, MA\, 324 Main Street\, Greenfield\, MA\, 01301\, United States X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=324 Main Street\, Greenfiel d\, MA\, 01301\, United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=100;X-TITLE=324 Main Street\ , Greenfield\, MA:geo:0,0 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York X-LIC-LOCATION:America/New_York BEGIN:STANDARD DTSTART:20251102T010000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE END:VCALENDAR