Kate Gale (born 1963) is an American author, poet, librettist, and independent publisher. She is the managing editor of

Red Hen Press Red Hen Press is an American non-profit press located in Pasadena, California, and specializing in the publication of poetry, literary fiction, and nonfiction. The press is a member of the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses, and was a final ...

Life

Kate Gale was born in

Binghamton, New York Binghamton () is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the conflue ...

to Stephen Gale and Evadene Swanson. She graduated with a B.A. in English from

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

. She received an M.A. in English with a creative writing emphasis from

California State University Northridge California State University, Northridge (CSUN or Cal State Northridge) is a public university in the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. With a total enrollment of 38,551 students (as of Fall 2021), it has the second largest un ...

in 1990 and a Ph.D. in English from

Claremont Graduate University The Claremont Graduate University (CGU) is a private, all-graduate research university in Claremont, California. Founded in 1925, CGU is a member of the Claremont Colleges which includes five undergraduate (Pomona College, Claremont McKenna Co ...

in 2003.

Career

Gale, along with her husband Mark E. Cull, founded

in 1994. Gale is the managing editor of Red Hen Press; the editor of the

Los Angeles Review The Los Angeles Review, LAR, () is an annual print and online literary journal. It was established in 2003. Dr. Kate Gale, managing editor of Red Hen Press Red Hen Press is an American non-profit press located in Pasadena, California, and spe ...

, which is also part of Red Hen Press; and the past president of the Los Angeles chapter of the

American Composers Forum The American Composers Forum is an American organization that works for the promotion and assistance of American composers and contemporary classical music. It was founded in 1973 as the Minnesota Composers Forum and is based in Saint Paul, Minn ...

. She was the 2005-2006 president of PEN USA and serves on the board of the School of Arts and Humanities of

and

Poetry Society of America The Poetry Society of America is a literary organization founded in 1910 by poets, editors, and artists. It is the oldest poetry organization in the United States. Past members of the society have included such renowned poets as Witter Bynner, Ro ...

. She teaches in the Low Residency MFA program at the University of Omah

and at the MFA in Creative Writing Program at San Diego State University. Gale is an author for

HuffPost ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

Works

Gale's work began with ''Blue Air'', a book of poetry published by Garden Street Press, San Luis Obispo. She published three collections of poetry with Red Hen Press: ''Where Crows and Men Collide'', ''Selling the Hammock'', and ''Fishers of Men''. ''Mating Season'' was published by

Tupelo Press Tupelo Press is an American not-for-profit literary press founded in 1999. It produced its first titles in 2001, publishing poetry, fiction and non-fiction. Originally located in Dorset, Vermont, the press has since moved to North Adams, Massachus ...

in 2004. She has also written the librettos to two operas. ''Rio de Sangre'', with composer Don Davis, was showcased at

Walt Disney Concert Hall The Walt Disney Concert Hall at 111 South Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles, California, is the fourth hall of the Los Angeles Music Center and was designed by Frank Gehry. It was opened on October 24, 2003. Bounded by Hope Street, Grand Ave ...

in 2005, by the New York City Opera VOX in May 2007 and had its world premiere on October 22, 2010 with the Florentine Opera Company in Milwaukee. ''Paradises Lost'', co-written with

Ursula K. Le Guin Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (; October 21, 1929 – January 22, 2018) was an American author best known for her works of speculative fiction, including science fiction works set in her Hainish universe, and the '' Earthsea'' fantasy series. She was ...

with composer Stephen Taylor, was showcased at the

New York City Opera The New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company located in Manhattan in New York City. The company has been active from 1943 through 2013 (when it filed for bankruptcy), and again since 2016 when it was revived. The opera company, du ...

VOX in 2006. In 2014, Kate published two poetry collections: ''Goldilocks Zone'', by the

University of New Mexico Press The University of New Mexico Press (UNMP) is a university press at the University of New Mexico. It was founded in 1929 and published pamphlets for the university in its early years before expanding into quarterlies and books. Its administrative ...

, and ''Echo Light'', by Red Mountain Press—winner of the Red Mountain Press Editor's Award. 2016 saw the appearance of ''The Palm Trees Are Restless: Five Poems of Kate Gale'', a song cycle by composer

Mark Abel Mark Abel (born April 28, 1948) is an American composer of classical music. Background After a brief stay at Stanford University in the late 1960s, Abel was active on the New York rock scene during the 1970s and early 1980s, leading his own gro ...

released on the Delos label. The piece is a setting of texts from ''Echo Light'' sung by soprano

Hila Plitmann Hila Plitmann (born August 9, 1973) is an Israeli-American two-time Grammy Award-winning operatic soprano, songwriter, and actress specializing in the performance of new works. Career Education *Juilliard School of Music: Bachelor of Musi ...

Awards

* Allen Ginsberg Poetry Award * Claremont Graduate University Fellowship * Mitchell Lathrop Fellowship * Red Mountain Press Editor's Award

Bibliography

*''The Loneliest Girl'' (University of New Mexico Press, 2022) *''Echo Light'' (Red Mountain Press, 2014) *''Goldilocks Zone'' (University of New Mexico Press, 2014) *''The Crucifix is Down'' (Red Hen Press, 2005) (ed.) *''Mating Season'' (Tupelo Press, 2004) *''Fake-City Syndrome'' (Red Hen Press, 2002) (ed.) *''Lake of Fire'' (Winter Street Press, 2000) *''Blue Cathedral'' (Red Hen Press, 2000) (ed.) *''Fishers of Men'' (Red Hen Press, 2000) *''African Sleeping Beauty'' (Blue Beginnings Publishing, 2000) *''Selling the Hammock'' (Red Hen Press, 1998) *''Anyone is Possible'' (Red Hen Press, 1997) (ed.) *''Where Crows and Men Collide'' (Red Hen Press, 1995) *''Water Moccasins'' (Title Wave Press, 1994) *''Blue Air'' (Garden Street Press, 1993)

Librettos

*''Rio de Sangre'' with composer Don Davis *''Paradises Lost'' with Ursula K. Le Guin and composer Stephen Andrew Taylor *''Inner Circle'' adapted from the novel by T. C. Boyle with composer Daniel Felsenfeld *''Che Guevara'' with composer Andrew Bayola *''The Web Opera'' with composer Michael Roth *''Gargoyles'' with composer Julia Adolphe

References

External links

Red Hen's Website

Rio de Sangre site

American Composer's Forum site

University of Nebraska News site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gale, Kate 20th-century American poets American opera librettists Women opera librettists American publishers (people) American political writers 1965 births Living people Writers from Binghamton, New York Arizona State University alumni California State University, Northridge alumni Claremont Graduate University alumni American librettists Poets from New York (state) American women poets Women librettists 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers American women non-fiction writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American poets