WAVEMACHINE is a poetry and performance series in San Francisco, CA. It began in New Haven, CT in 2012 and took place briefly in Brooklyn, NY in 2019 before resuming in the Bay Area in 2024.

We are thrilled to announce our machines to come:

WAVEMACHINE26 // Nov 22nd, 4pm
Sid Ghosh, Youna Kwak, Rob Schlegel, and Kim Shuck

WAVEMACHINE27 // April 11th, 4 pm
Jennifer Chang, Aracelis Girmay, and Cecily Parks

The address for our upcoming events will be sent out via our mailing list in advance and on the day of the event. Sign up for our mailing list below.

WAVEMACHINE25—featuring Gabrielle Bates, Rhoni Blankenhorn, Hieu Minh Nguyen, Camille Ralphs, and sam sax— took place on Saturday, October 11th, and was completely glorious: thank you to everyone for kicking off our new season with verve and joy. Our fundraiser for the Refaat Alareer Camp via The Sameer Project, an initiative led by Palestinians in the diaspora to supply emergency shelter and aid to displaced families in Gaza, remains ongoing. You can learn more about the initiative and donate here.

You can read more about us in The New Yorker and The Yale Daily News. See a recording of Keston Sutherland and Geoffrey G. O’Brien reading for the series at the Boston Review. Black-and-white posters by Adam Douglas Thompson. Color posters by Chika Ota.

Unless otherwise specified, our events take place in the backyard of our home in Bernal Heights. The yard is wheelchair accessible and there’s a first floor bathroom, but the house is on a steep slope. If you have questions about accessibility or need help with accommodations, please send me an email or a DM on Instagram. Bring drinks and snacks for friends.