Collins is a frequent guest on A Prairie Home Companion on public radio, where he has entertained listeners with his readings of poems that charm even those who had forgotten they liked poetry. William H. Pritchard, Henry Clay Folger Professor of English at Amherst, praised Collins s work in The Boston Globe for its splendid inventiveness and his extraordinary wit plenty of humor, yes, but plenty of intelligence, too, the way that word wit is used to comprehend both qualities. Collins was awarded a National Poetry Series publication prize for Questions About Angels. His poems have appeared in numerous magazines and journals, including Poetry, Chelsea, Boulevard, TriQuarterly, The New Yorker, American Poetry Review and The Paris Review. The Festival of Lessons and Carols is sponsored by the Amherst College Christian Fellowship, the Newman Club and the Interfaith Support Group.
Admission is free and the public is invited.
Mallorie Chernin will direct the Amherst College Choral Society, assisted by Bryce Bares 00. Denise Steele 02 and Alex Palermo 03 will direct the Amherst College Madrigal Singers. Other musicians will include organist Jim Maes and trumpeter Douglas Purcell of the Amherst Music Department. The Choral Society will perform music of Byrd, Randall Thompson, Vivaldi, Casals and others. Members of the college community will read the scripture lessons.