Poetry by Leslie Dianne

               Paulo César León Palacios CC




The Fallen King of 42nd Street

The woolly hair
             a crown
The supermarket cart
             a fallen kingdom
The torn overcoat
             a gold threaded cape
The plastic redeemables
             a warrior’s treasure
The shuffling gait
             a victory march
The extended hand
             an ancient blessing
             you ask us 
             to bestow
Until you are king
             of yourself again

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Leslie Dianne is a poet, novelist, screenwriter, playwright and performer whose work has been acclaimed internationally in places such as the Harrogate Fringe Festival in Great Britain, The International Arts Festival in Tuscany, Italy and at La Mama in New York City. Her stage plays have been produced in NYC at The American Theater of Actors, The Raw Space, The Puerto Rican Traveling Theater and The Lamb's Theater.  She holds a BA in French Literature from CUNY and her poems have appeared in The Lake, Ghost City Review, The Literary Yard, About Place Journal and Kairos and are forthcoming in Hawai’i Review. Her poetry was recently nominated for a Pushcart Prize. 

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