By Arsht Center Staff

Can a poet pack the house?

We’ll find out Friday, when the Adrienne Arsht Center throws a Miami homecoming in the Knight Concert Hall for Richard Blanco, the Cuban-American poet who was tapped last month as President Obama’s 2013 Inauguration Poet. Raised in Miami, Blanco is the youngest and the first openly gay and Hispanic poet to receive this distinction.

This Friday’s 7:30 p.m. event is FREE and open to the public. Passes must be claimed on the Arsht Center website, www.arshtcenter.org, or by calling 305-949-6722 in advance.

The evening will feature a bilingual reading of selected works, an on-stage interview and an open Q&A session that gives you the chance to ask a real live famous poet your most burning question. P. Scott Cunningham, founder of O, Miami Poetry Festival and University of Wynwood, will introduce Blanco. Books & Books will host a book signing in the lobby after the event.