Projects
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Raise the Bar
Danny is founder and director of Raise the Bar, the South West's leading live poetry night. He’s been producing running blockbuster spoken word events in Bristol and beyond since 2014. He was awarded the Sky Arts Award for Poetry 2026 for his work with Raise the Bar.
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Lyra
Danny is Artistic Director of Lyra - Bristol Poetry Festival, which brings together local, national and international poets, representing Bristol as a cultural centre for poetry. Lyra was awarded the Bristol Legends Award 2026 for Best Event/Show.
Danny Carlo Pandolfi produces events, festival curations, community outreach projects, youth activities and international collaborations.
Danny is the founder of Raise the Bar, the South West’s leading spoken word events organisation, and Artistic Director of Lyra - Bristol Poetry Festival. He was awarded the Sky Arts Award for Poetry in 2026 for his work with Raise the Bar.
As a producer and curator of spoken word and live arts events, he has curated and hosted sold-out capacity events at 600-1500 capacity venues, with artists such as Hollie McNish, Benjamin Zephaniah, Travis Alabanza, Joelle Taylor, Simon Armitage, Danez Smith, Shane Koyczan, John Agard and many more. His Raise the Bar events were shortlisted for Most Diverse Production in the Bristol Diversity Awards.
He is also producer of Out-Spoken Live at London’s Southbank Centre and Bristol Palestine Film Festival. In 2026, he produced ‘Where We Land’ for Spectroscope, the South West’s first ever artist gathering for deaf, disabled and neurodivergent artists.
He has recently led multi-partner collaborations including a cultural exchange with poets at Ashesi University, Ghana, and a University of Bristol funded project exploring the human and ethical questions of AI and poetry/art.
[Danny produces sell-out spoken word events across bristol and beyond]
Danny has produced sell-out spoken word events at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, produced national book tours for the likes of Buddy Wakefield, Dizraeli and Out-Spoken Press, and has produced dynamic projects for leading organisations including Cheltenham Lit Fest, Bath Festivals, Clevedon Lit Fest, Bath Spa University, University of Bristol and Bristol Pride. He’s produced literary collaboration projects and commissions with the likes of National Heritage Fund, Bristol Ideas and Working Class Writers Festival. He has also organised writing retreats for adult writers, and has written successful funding bids for a variety of arts projects.
Danny is passionate about curating arts shows, activities and experiences that are multidisciplinary, audience-led, diverse, accessible and entertaining. He has built a reputation in Bristol and beyond as a dynamic, inclusive and innovative producer, raising awareness for important issues through the power of the arts.
During the 2020-21 lockdown he co-produced a series of online workshops, talks, and activities for Vulnerable, exploring the power of vulnerability through arts and discussion, and has programmed several other online curations and digital events. He subsequently delivered a short talk for the Poetry Society on using digital content to make an arts festival more accessible.
List of previous collaborators/clients/venues as a producer, curator and facilitator include:
