The Key

If you’re a product of, inspired by, or simply interested in the Riot Grrrl feminist punk movement of the early ’90s and haven’t already picked up a copy of Sara Marcus’ Girls To The Front: The True Story Of The Riot Grrrl Revolution (released last September by Harper Perennial) you probably owe it to yourself to do so. And make sure to read it by February 8th, when Marcus—along with Bikini Kill/Le Tigre frontwoman Kathleen Hanna, Philly (by way of D.C.) musician and Exotic Fever Records co-founder Katy Otto, and Girls Rock Philly founder Beth Warshaw-Duncan—drops by the Kelly Writers House‘s Arts Cafe (3805 Locust Walk) on The University Of Pennsylvania campus for a panel discussion.

From the event organizers:

On Tuesday, February 8, beginning at 6:00 p.m., we’ll be celebrating and investigating all things Riot Grrrl. REVOLUTION GIRL STYLE AGAIN brings together a panel of national and local experts on this two-decade-old musical-feminist movement, a cross-section of musicians, writers, and activists featuring KATHLEEN HANNA, SARA MARCUS, KATY OTTO, and BETH WARSHAW-DUNCAN…Organized by this year’s Kerry Prize winner Grace Ambrose (C ’11), the event will culminate in a concert at the Rotunda, open to all. This event is part of Penn Women’s Week.

Author Sara Marcus will read from her critically acclaimed Girls to the Front: The True Story of the Riot Grrrl Revolution and moderate a discussion among legendary Riot Grrrl musician Kathleen Hanna, activist and founder of Exotic Fever Records Katy Otto and the founder of Girls Rock! Philly, Beth Warshaw-Duncan. Topics will range from discussion of the panelists own participation in the movement to what women in music can and should be doing today. A concert at the Rotunda (4014 Walnut) will follow, featuring Philadelphia bands Trophy Wife and Cat Vet, as well as Providence’s Whore Paint, with all proceeds benefiting the Girls Rock! Philly organization, which encourages teenage girls to pick up instruments and start bands.

Full details (including speaker bios) can be found here. Seats are extremely limited at this point, so you should RSVP by emailing wh@writing.upenn.edu or calling (215) 746-POEM.