Poems -- & musings on the Albany (NY) poetry scene.
"It's not the Truth, but it's pretty darn close."
January 29, 2017
Third Thursday Poetry Night, January 19
The first of the new year’s third Thursdays meant we were back at the Social Justice Center for the open mic & a reading by novelist Harvey Havel. & we still hadn’t gotten caught up with the dead poets of 2016. Brooklyn-born Irish poet John Montague went to that poetry reading among the stars on December 10. John was a great friend to Albany poets, having run a (free) workshop for the Writers Institute for community poets, for many years. I was pleased to be in it in 1989 & in 1995, & to have John as a guest for dinner in my home on a couple of occasions. To honor his memory & to invoke him as tonight’s Muse, I read his poem “Sheela Na Gig.”
Alan Catlin, who had been in many of John’s workshops, was first up for the open mic, read from “Hollyweird,” a work in project, a piece spun off from the film American Psycho, a memoir of college years. Richard Jerin returned with a poem from 20 years ago, a piece titled “Take Back.” Joe Krausman is also an alumnus of the Montague workshops & read a poem that he has entered into the Jewish Currents Reynes prize contest “The Wall.” Thérèse Broderick was next “With Ease” a poem about going to the gym, doing yoga. Taking us on a political turn, Frank S. Robinson, reminded us that in spite of our (mis) (pre) conceptions of “Who We Are.”
Harvey Havel is a novelist & short story writer who frequently attends this Third Thursday open mic but rarely reads. Tonight he was our featured reader & he started with a short story, “The Mother & Her Son,” a fable-like grim tale of a boy battling a cobra to protect his mother. This he followed with “Ode to America” an actual poem, a descriptive rant full of dark & violent images, political & personal.
After a short break I returned to continue the open mic with my poem “A Shill at the Fair” responding to Howard Kogan’s latest book A Chill in the Air (Square Circle Press). Karen Fabiane followed with a poem she wrote for R.M. Englehardt’s call for entries for poems reacting to the election of Donald Trump “Kremlin Along the Potomac.” Bob Sharkey read “January 16th” a poem about reading someone else’s poem, a poem he said that “wrote itself.” The final poet for the night was Brian Dorn who read a poem from his book, “Prophecy,” that he has rarely read out (this was only the 2nd time).
The Third Thursday Poetry Night takes place each month at 7:30PM at the Social Justice Center, 33 Central Ave., Albany, NY, a featured poet & an open mic for the rest of us — $3.00 (more or less) donation.
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