Poetry at La Perla, March 26

Although this monthly poetry open mic has been going on since last year, this was the first time that I was able to get there. The usual host is Rhonda Rosenheck, but this night Nancy Klepsch was the substitute host. The reading was held in a sitting room separate from the dining room & bar. There is a separate menu of mainly small plate items & drinks can be ordered & then delivered to the room. I had fried calamari which was perfectly done, lightly battered. The seating was on couches around a coffee table, a couple of small tables, with more chairs brought in as needed, so it was somewhat awkward if one had a drink & something to eat; fortunately for me I had grabbed a chair at one of the small tables. Since it was set up as a “round robin” there was no central point for the readers & the lighting was  scattered table lamps, so if one needs a strong light it would be behoove one to grab a position early.

The open mic list kept growing as folks arrived late, or came in from the dining room. I read first, an older poem, “Kerouac,” about living in Northport, NY where Jack Kerouac had lived at one time, & a new piece inspired by online images of Teslas burning, “Fire Elon.” I had hitched a ride to here with Sally Rhoades & her husband Hasan Atalay, MD; Sally read 2 poems from her brand new book, Taking Time (The Troy Book Makers, 2025), the first about where she grew up in Northern New York State, “Salmon River,” then a poem about a rainy day in New York City, “A Solitary Man.”

Bob Como read a long piece with references to Allen Ginsberg, pondering souls, & the piling up of words. Ashraf Kamal read a section from a novel-in-progress, “The Periphery of Mind,” an episode where the main character considers returning to Pakistan; Ashraf is an artist-in-residence here at Arts Letters and Numbers, the arts organization that also owns La Perla.

Phil Good read a piece titled “Visitation” about a conversation with a friend, & in which the late Bernadette Mayer makes an appearance. Our host, Nancy Klepsch, read 2 anaphoric poems, the first with the repeating line “I made pizza…,” the 2nd from a chapbook that I don’t have, a poem titled “Watching the War in Ukraine on TV.” David Gonsalves 2 poems were titled “Short Leash” (mixing anxiety & blueberries) & the enigmatic “Pagan Angel.” 

The poems that Sarah S. read revolved around a pregnancy & the subsequent (?) baby, “The Tributaries” & “Rose Court Mornings.” Steve L. read a persona piece titled “The Germantown Busker” (I asked him if it was about the Hudson River hamlet, but he said it was a generic “Germantown), then on to a piece beginning “A storm is on the river…” both pieces filled with musical rhythms & words. Local author Julie Lomoe began with a piece in a Moonstone anthology out of Philadelphia “America Armageddon,” then a long, prosy piece pondering death, “Family Funeral in March.”

Check out La Perla Italian Restaurant, 3016 NY-43, Averill Park, NY, then check the listings on the website of the Hudson Valley Writers Guild for this & other open mics in the area.