PREVIEW: PATTI SMITH – BRIGHTON DOME
Few artists have shaped modern culture quite like Patti Smith. She’s a long-standing musician, poet, writer, visual artist and one of the defining American voices of the last half-century. Patti Smith brings words, music and radical spirit to Brighton Festival next month. This May, Brighton audiences will have a rare chance to experience her singular creative force up close when she appears at Brighton Festival for two nights, the first for a night of music (now sold out), and the second, this, for an exclusive evening of words and music.
Taking place at Brighton Dome Corn Exchange on Wednesday 13 May at 8pm, Patti Smith: An Evening of Words and Music promises an intimate encounter with an artist whose work has consistently blurred the boundaries between poetry, performance, politics and rock and roll.
Smith first emerged from the ferment of New York’s 1970s downtown arts scene, helping to redefine popular music with the release of her groundbreaking 1975 debut album Horses — a record that fused raw punk energy with literary ambition, and remains one of the most influential albums in modern music.
Over the decades, her artistic reach has extended far beyond music. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007, she went on to win the National Book Award in 2010 for her acclaimed memoir Just Kids, a tender and vivid account of her relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe and the creative life they built in New York. Her latest memoir, Bread of Angels, published in 2025, continues that deeply personal and politically engaged body of work.
For Brighton Festival, Smith will present an evening that combines spoken word, poetry and live music, showcasing the lyrical intensity, social conscience and fierce intelligence that have made her such an enduring cultural figure. Expect reflection, provocation, beauty and the unmistakable presence of an artist who has always spoken truth to power.
Given Smith’s devoted following spanning punk veterans, poetry lovers and younger generations discovering her work anew, this is likely to be one of the festival’s most sought-after events. This promises an evening in the company of a genuine icon, still restless, still radical and still utterly compelling.
Details
Dates: Wednesday 13th May. Performance begins at 8pm (doors open 7.15pm).
Venue: Brighton Dome Concert Hall, Church Street, Brighton, East Sussex, BN1 1UE.
Tickets: Tickets are £80, plus booking fee, with reserved seating.
Accessible: Venue access details available here
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