2024 Word Fest Open Mic, April 27

The very 1st Albany WordFest was held on September 8, 2001, at the Greenhouse Shelter in Thatcher Park, up in the mountains outside Albany. It was the brain-child of Albany poetry impresario R.M. Engelhardt. There were readings by 31 poets, divided into 5 local gangs/groups, plus an open mic of 6 poets. One poet from the Kingston group made up faux back-stage pass/badge for “PsychoClusterFuck” — it seemed to fit. There was, of course, some grousing about the outdoor venue from some of the staunchly urban poets, but there were toilets available.

Over the years there were various iterations of Word Fest, including strings of multi-day events, even folding in the Third Thursday Open Mic as well as other regularly-scheduled events into a grand WordFest, all held in Albany, many at the UAG Gallery on Lark St., eventually in 2007 switching from the Fall to April (to coincide with National Poetry Month). Then the pandemic.

Word Fest resurfaced again this year in Averill Park, a rural suburb of Albany, at the Sand Lake Center for the Arts, from 4PM to 7PM on Saturday, April 27. The prior night there was a poetry book-signing & sales in Troy at the Tech Valley Center of Gravity, both a project of the Hudson Valley Writers Guild, with an online sign-up for readers. 

The host Saturday was long-time Albany poet Mary Panza (whose image had graced the badges for WordFest 1, aka “PsychoClusterFuck”). She runs a tight ship as an open mic host. There were 24 readers, including “Homecoming” poets, poets from diverse segments of the local open mic scene, & — the best of all — new, not previously heard poets. Exactly what a Word Fest should be.

As with any advance sign-ups there were a few cancellations, the 1st of which catapulted me into the opening act — I had signed up in the open 2nd slot. & much like past Word Fests I had given long-time poet & former host of open mics in the early year, Don Levy, a ride here tonight. Don followed me on in the open mic. Don read a new piece, “My Queerness,” & some old-time favorites such as the once-televised “Lobsters at the Grand Union.” Francesca Sidoti included one of her “true-crime story” poems. 

Anna B. read a poem on chronic pain, another on a break up. Tim Verhaegen included a poem titled “Crime Sex.” Nathan Smith read from his Cotton Candy poems. 

The announcement for this Word Fest noted there would be 3 featured readers, all women (prompting one wise-ass to brand this “Pussy Fest”), & all 3 had names that began with “S,” but the only one to show up was poet (& activist) Samira Sangare. She began with a love poem, “The Sun Sets on a Black Girl,” the a Slam poem “The Angry Black Woman Tribute;” on to 2 poems for Palestine, the widely published “If I Must Die” by Palestinian poet Refaat Alareer who was killed by an Israeli military attack in December, & Samira’s own “I Have No Words,” which she said was just written. She was honored with the rare poetry encore, for which she read from Frederick Douglas’ famous comments on the meaning of the 4th of July for a black man who was a former enslaved person.

A quick break, then back for many more open mic readers.

Cat Simon included a poem from her chapbook-in-progress. Kate S. read her poems in public for the first time, one with the great title “If You Can’t Find the Words, Choose a Color.” Frank Robinson began a segment of married couples reading with their spouses (is the plural of “spouse” “spice”?) & was playful, including rhyming on the word “metaphor.” Therese Broderick included a poem to her daughter inspired by a long-saved tuft of her hair. Continuing the spouse section Robb Smith read a series of Haiku. His wife, Julie Lomoe, read from her newly self-published chapbook of poetry a poem in the persona of Donald Trump.

David Gonsalves included a poem by the recently gone poet Jerome Rothenberg (“A Little Boy Lost”). Mojavi was a blast-from-the-past (he was the host of Soul Kitchen at Clayton’s Restaurant in the late ‘90s), he read some childhood memoirs, & an erotic love poem. Toyin O., another new voice, included a poem on her skin color (“Reality of a Black Girl”), & a love poem. Sally Rhoades read poems she has read out at local open mics, & at the Scissortail Creative Writing Festival in Oklahoma.

Kathleen Anne Smith, the author of the poetry collection Let the Stones Grow Soft, read a couple of poems, including “How Do We Home Alone?” Mimi Moriarty also read a poem on a related theme, “Advice on Being Alone.” Ed Rinaldi seems to be slinking back into the in-person poetry scene, read an untitled philosophical meditation. Karen P. was also a new voice for me, read poems with rain & snow, & even a paper bag. It’s been a long time I’ve heard Poetic Visionz doing his thing with audience participation & deconstructive word-play, glad to hear this again. 

Annie G. was yet another new voice, had sat with her family in the front row, patiently awaiting her turn, read a poem for a friend also in the front row (“Coke Bottle Wisdom”), one for her father, & list poems (one titled “Grief Is …”). I’ve seen Sybil perform in the past as a singer/songwriter but I think this was her 1st time in a poetry venue, a long playlist, including a new one from her 1st year at medical school, “The Painting Hanging by the Library Stairs.”

The final reader was Samuel Maurice, who as an intern for the Hudson Valley Writers Guild was around all day, even before we readers got here; he has been making his presence (& his work) known over many months, including at the 1st Monday Invocation open mic series at The Eleven on Lark St. in Albany one poem he read tonight included a mood ring, “Love Poem to My Hangnail.”

April may be over but one can find out where the poetry events are happening in the Capital Region of Upstate New York by going to the Hudson Valley Writers Guild website -- check out the calendar, the calls for entries, the poems, the stories, the photos.