Originally from the great white suburbs of Long Island, NY, and now residing in the heart of St Petersburg downtown, David Durney has been performing for the better part of five years across the Tampa Bay area.
Premeiring in dingy cafes he eventually moved up and on to dingy bars, even more dingy cafes, and dingy art galleries. Currently one half of the hosting duo of Resurrection @The Lobby every Wednesday night in downtown St Petersburg, he also has a knack for hosting all manner of venues across Tampa Bay.
Irreverent, eccenctric, astrokological (thanks Sin!), and extraordinarily arrogant; this is the poet mom warned you about. Can usually be found with drink in hand downtown on most nights of the week, also frequently haunts cigar bars and Gulfport cafes. Keep an eye out for product coming from this one; everyone needs a new coaster for their coffee table!
David Durney appeared on Tampa Bay's Media Talk where he was crowned "Creative of the Week".
Editor David Warner of Creative Loafing said some kind and encouraging words on page 26 of the August 26, 2009, issue. Partial quote, "At a moment when ignorance is being aggressively defended, Deep Carnivale still respects our intelligence. Imagine that."
Esther Martinez, in a story at The Florida Book Review" says she knows "Deep Carnivale will be 'A Celebration of Words' and not a Bourbon Street bacchanal."
"But logophile that I am, I reason I’ll get drunk on language. With over 70 writers and artists scheduled [for the 2008 Carnivale] to perform or read from their works, my beaded necklaces will be strung with verse. I imagine haiku shooters..."
"It is just before 10am when I arrive at the corner of Palm Avenue and 14th Street—Deep Carnivale ground zero. About a dozen vendor tables are lined up around the Hillsborough Community College courtyard where a band of teenagers [Next Exit] are setting up their instruments.
"The vendor tables sell books by local writers, HCC publications and baked goods. I grab a Cuban favorite, papa rellena, a potato stuffed with savory ground beef. Belly satisfied, I cross the street and enter the historic Circulo Cubano. A nearly 100 year old neo-classical building of ionic columns and marble staircases, it served as the Cuban Social Club and remains the oldest building of its kind in the country."
"When I look back over 2008, my visit to the second edition of Deep Carnivale was a
highlight. You and your staff did a great job and I loved being part of it, again.
I am sure there will be bigger festivals to come. But maybe not better!!!"
– Darrell House,
children's book author and 2008 Deep Carnivale presenter.