Hello! I’m Carolyn Nakagawa. I’m a poet and playwright. I write things, create performances, and collaborate with other artists.

Get in touch with me here.

I’m currently writing and developing a musical inspired by the true story of The New Canadian newspaper. It’s a big project to bring this to the stage one day! Check out a 5-minute preview below:

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Recent musings on social…

Feeling tender when I read these three of my poems in the latest issue of @eventmags (Winter 2025/2026). So pleased to be part of this local literary institution with poems that I've held close to my heart for some time 💞 Thank you @raoulisdreaming
Cultural highlights from my visit to Melbourne 💞 2. The Immigration Museum was a great introduction to Australian history and culture 🪷 3. Saw the 63-metre-long Millennial Dragon at the Chinese Australian Museum 🐉 4-7. Went back to the State Libra
I did not take enough photos of my weekend at @stratfest , so I'm borrowing this photo from them (taken by David Hou) of @ksandler24 's beautiful and loving new adaptation of Anne of Green Gables. Such a delight to see this show and to discuss the l
Come sit with me and Yoriko Gillard @powellstfest and hear about our journey reading internment-era Japanese Canadian haiku together and developing ways to reflect them into English. We'll read poems in Japanese and English, share our process, and di
Excited to be reading poetry next Monday for @ewreadingseries alongside other emerging writers! The event is online but hosted out of Toronto, so feels like a new crowd to me, and one I'm looking forward to spending a bit of time with. I've linked to
Poetry Month may be ending, but Asian Heritage Month is just beginning...I'll be reading with @hellofukumoto @ericahiroko @leannetoshiko and other formidable writers at the next Mata Ashita event, Saturday, May 10 on Zoom for the Canadian launch of @
Happy Poetry Month! My poem "Flicker" is today's poem in @canadianpoets Poetry Pause. Read it at poets.ca or by signing up for their free Poetry Pause newsletter!
A wonderful week for mail! Five poems in print between the @mataashitawriting zine and @haymarketbooks The Gate of Memory anthology edited by @brynnsaito and @brandon_shimoda . These worlds will collide May 10 when Mata Ashita hosts a Canadian launch