WordFest 2013, Day 4, April 17

This night's piece of WordFest 2013 was a free screening of the 2011 film Louder than a Bomb at The Linda on Central Ave. This is from the press release for the film:

"Louder than a Bomb is a film about passion, competition, teamwork, and trust. It’s about the joy of being young, and the pain of growing up. It’s about speaking out, making noise, and finding your voice.

"It also just happens to be about poetry.

"Every year, more than six hundred teenagers from over sixty Chicago area schools gather for the world’s largest youth poetry slam, a competition known as "Louder Than a Bomb". Founded in 2001, Louder Than a Bomb is the only event of its kind in the country—a youth poetry slam built from the beginning around teams. Rather than emphasize individual poets and performances, the structure of Louder Than a Bomb demands that kids work collaboratively with their peers, presenting, critiquing, and rewriting their pieces. To succeed, teams have to create an environment of mutual trust and support. For many kids, being a part of such an environment—in an academic context—is life-changing.

"Louder than a Bomb chronicles the stereotype-confounding stories of four teams as they prepare for and compete in the 2008 event. By turns hopeful and heartbreaking, the film captures the tempestuous lives of these unforgettable kids, exploring the ways writing shapes their world, and vice versa. This is not "high school poetry" as we often think of it. This is language as a joyful release, irrepressibly talented teenagers obsessed with making words dance. How and why they do it—and the community they create along the way—is the story at the heart of this inspiring film."

What I found fascinating was how much this film that "just happens to be about poetry" was more like a sports bio-documentary, which explains why it was once shown on the MSG network. In other words, it was about poetry as a sport, not as an art. While the phrase "the point is not the points it's the poetry" is repeated almost too much, the point of the film was the points, about how you win, ultimately about how .1 is the difference between winning & not winning. And that's indeed what Slam is all about -- the recitin' not the writin'.  But as someone did say in Louder than a Bomb, "the world is bigger than a poetry slam." Indeed it is.

WordFest 2013, Day 3 -- Nitty Gritty Slam #42

It was the WordFest edition of the regular Nitty Gritty Slam, a special Haiku slam, & perhaps one could also say the "Jackie Robinson Slam" (42 being his number). My kind of Slam -- hard to make a Haiku last 3 minutes. But first the open mic, hosted by Christopher the Poet, as effervescent as the bubbles in his whiskey & coke, squeezing more & louder applause from the diverse audience.

First up was Avery, the title of whose poem ("Odontodacytlus Scyllarus", i.e. the mantis shrimp) I never would have gotten if he hadn't given me a (signed) copy of his poem later. I followed with the much less challenging "Living in Wilcox." Brian Dorn dedicated his poem, "From My Poem to Yours," to WordFest 2013 & National Poetry Month (we do like to point out that "In Albany, everyday is Poetry Month").

Linda Miller was here for the first time & read a poem about baby-sitting her grandchildren, "Renewable Energy." Christopher the Poet performed one of his crowd-pleasers, "Letter from Home to My Children." Christian Phiffer came over from the Slam scene in Pittsfield & performed "new, untitled shit," a lost love slam piece comparing himself to a tomato. Jess ListenToMyWords also read a break-up poem, then her poem about a shooting in her neighborhood, "Nameless Bullets." There was so much heckling & teasing going on when Poetyc Visionz came to the stage (with a beer!) that I thought he would never begin the poem, but eventually he was able to get into it, "Disguised Opportunity." Algorhythm (who strangely did not enter the Haiku slam) ended the open mic with "a true story" of sex & drugs.

Jackie K., & Christian

The Haiku Slam was run by il papa Thom Francis of AlbanyPoets.com along the lines of sports contests with paired poets alternating up to 3 Haikus in single-elimination rounds. While the rules didn't state it, there was some heated discussion at the bar about what constitutes a "haiku," with some academic purists defending the Japanese form (strict 5-7-5), while certain grey-haired rebels championed the "American Haiku", citing Poets&Writers Handbook of Poetic Forms, edited by Ron Padgett.

The contestants were Avery, Christian, ILLiptical, me, P.V., James Williams, Jackie K., K.P., & Brian. The themes ranged from booze, to the Boston Marathon bombing, to sex, to sex & booze, to Buddhism, to (my naiveté) love & desire. But, after all, this was a Slam & the themes that triumphed were self-referential, humorous Haikus about writing Haikus for a Slam. I was able to make it into 2 rounds (!), to be eliminated by Christian who went on to defeat Jackie in a final Battle Royale.

It seems only fitting at this point to offer a final nod to this event with a modest attempt at still another Slam Haiku:

poets gather to
read Haiku, slam 42:
Jackie Robinson

WordFest 2013, Day 2, April 15

One has to wonder "what the frack is going on?" but of course it is only WordFest 2013, with "Poets Against Fracking" at the UAG Gallery, day 2 of this week-long event sponsored by AlbanyPoets.com.

Kevin Peterson was busy taking notes & V-P ("very pretty") Mary Panza did the intros for this featured band of out-of-town bards. Quoting Kevin, quoting me, it was an "intimate gathering" cluster (non) fracking, the poets not all those who been advertised but some wonderful surprises, like Bertha Rogers & Annie Sauter.

Poet & environmentalist Annie Sauter began the evening with a single long "geology poem," a flowing-word rant, "In the Zone of the Wasted," personal & political.

I was pleased to see again my friend Bertha Rogers, the doyen of the poetry scene in Delaware County & Grand Dame of Bright Hill Press & the Bright Hill Literary Center. She read a variety of poems, beginning with "After the Oil Spill," "Verge," "Dragonfly," & a New Year's Day meditation on observing the natural world, "First Day Rondo."

Mario Moroni read his poems in Italian, while we followed along on copies he handed out of translations, "Earth, this Earth" (from his 2001 Icarus' Lands), & "Ballad 1" from a series, "Ballads of Maine."

Roger Hecht began with the most directly anti-fracking poem, "Questionnaire for the Governor," then two satirical, funny pieces, the literary "Variations on Lines by Williams" & the policitcal "Rumsfeld Sestina," based on lines from the speeches of Donald Rumsfeld.


A brief open mic followed with Brian Dorn reading an environmental poem, "Another Step." A.C. Everson read a poem in honor of her getting an A & being a student at an older age. I hadn't anticipated an open mic so did "If Peace Broke Out Tomorrow" from memory. Sylvia Barnard's poem was appropriate enough, "Wind," about seeing wind turbines in Sicily.

WordFest 2013 continues.

WordFest 2013, Day 1, April 14

Editor Jill Crammond (left)
with poetry co-conspirator Carolee Sherwood

As I have been wont to say during April, "In Albany, every day is Poetry Month." Especially today as the week-long WordFest 2013 starts, & this is my second poetry event of the day. It was the "book launch" for the new poetry journal Up the River, edited by Jill Crammond & sponsored by AlbanyPoets.com, with the back room of McGeary's (The Poetry Parlor) filled to illegal capacity by the poets in the first issue, each chomping at the bit to read their 1 poem. The hosting duties were shared by Jill, Vice-President (emphasis on "vice") Mary Panza & il Papa Thom Francis.

The following is my record of the poets & the poems they read, to the best of my hearing/knowledge -- you'll just have to wait until the journal is out before you can check the accuracy of this, of course I'll take corrections as needed in the meantime.

Dan Wilcox, "Coyote 2." Carolee Sherwood, "Seeing Another Dead Doe at the Side of the Road." Darcy Smith, "Shoreline Now." Judy Lechner, "In a Nursing Home." Ken Denberg, "Even Dog Odd Dog" (from a series of poems about a man & a dog, "both assholes"). Howard Kogan, "The River of Time." Lloyd Barnhart, "Wanted: River Keepers."

Victoria Sullivan

Victoria Sullivan, "The Lover" (shagging the handyman). Leslie Gerber (said it was the 3rd county he has read poetry in this weekend), "The Time of My Life in this Neighborhood." Roberta Gould, "For Dorothy." Tess Lecuyer (introduced as "Lily's godmother"), "Prompt Dates" (in 34 pieces). Cecele Krause, "Her Song," then she reads for Jan Tramontano, "Hibiscus." Judith Prest, "Wardrobe Alchemy." Mary Perez, "What the Snow Uncovers." Alan Catlin, "The Little Darlings" (from a work-in-progress, "Beautiful Mutants"). Brett Peterson, "The Room". A.C. Everson, "Bad Daughter" (about her Mom in her last days). Sally Rhoades, "My Father's Slippers." Carol Graser, "Portrait of a Poet Unhappy with the Size of His Hair."

Matt Galletta

Matt Galletta, "Mix Tape" (with "no way to rewind"). Avery, "On Marriage" (& baking a cake). Tom Corrado, "A Piece of Nothing." Carol Jewell, "Beast." Mark O'Brien (Obeeduid), "My Great Hunger." Julie Lomoe, "Open Mic on Lark St." (the last reading by poet Tom Nattell). Cheryl A. Rice, "Encounter with Frida Kahlo" (sex & images from the paintings).

Phew! What a start to this week of poetry mayhem -- stay tuned.

Poetry + Prose -- 2nd Sunday @ 2, April 14

Another Sunday at the Arts Center in Troy, with my co-host Nancy Klepsch & a roomful of eager readers of prose & poetry -- excuse me, not just another Sunday, it was a day of back-to-back poetry events as this regular monthly event was followed by the start of the week-long annual Albany WordFest.  Fasten your seat belts, it's going to be a bumpy ride!

Brian Dorn was first with his rhymes, "Preach It's Wrong," followed by a love poem "Can't Escape" & an interesting use of rhymes in "Sad Poems." Mike Conner had been here before just to listen & check us out; we've must've passed the test because today he read "Bottled Memory," "The Hearth's Ballet" (about watching a fire), & "Seaweed Sanctuary."

Caroline Curran had read in the Albany poetry scene many years ago, now has moved back to the area & read about half of a stunning fictional piece about an autistic boy, "Headphones" -- hope she comes back with the other half. Howard Kogan had to give an intricate introduction, reading a Rilke poem then his own poem "The Amazing Grandchildren, After Rilke" (on observing "works of art"), then a poem he said "does not refer to anyone in the room -- hmm?). Mizara's first was a letter to all her ex-'s, "Saying Goodbye," while her next piece was a speech about gun control, "Lives Taken Away," while her last untitled piece was was the most poetic, about carrying her heritage forward, with lines like "I am the richest soil, the darkest oil …"

David Wolcott read from another chapter of his memoir, this about working in Eastern Europe writing Poland's new energy law after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the title for the chapter taken after one of Richard Haliburton's travel books, The Royal Road to Romance. In celebration of my recent trip to Oklahoma I read my poem from my last trip there 2 years ago, "Oklahoma Sunday," then a new poem "Nurture or Shooter." My co-host Nancy Klepsch also had a new poem, an intense, dense piece "I Wish You Had Lost Your Pass," then a intricate poem bouncing off Robert Frost & Langston Hughes, which says why I like so much sharing this space with her. Ron Drummond shared his success in being scheduled to  read in a gallery in San Francisco in May & then read from the liner notes he wrote for a recording of Anton Reicha's (1770 - 1836) G major string quartet.

Shannon Grant is another performer who has been around here for many years, most frequently in the singer-songwriter scene, but today showed up with poems about asserting herself as a woman & a performer, "Knight" (an ironic title) & "Rock Girl," a screed against the music industry's images of women performers. Kate Laity read a story from her novelette Unquiet Dreams (as C. Margery Kempe), a section about a "horse clock" she had in Ireland, the little hands, the big hands as characters. Sam Perkins was another returnee, having been here a year ago, with 2 related pieces, "Pendulum," & a work in progress that he sings about trying to find his way back home.

This variety, this diversity of voices is why we gather each 2nd Sunday at the Arts Center of the Capital Region in Troy, at 2PM. It's Free!

The School of Night, April 11

"The School of Night" is the name of an open mic series that R.M. Engelhardt has been running off & on at various locations in Albany for a number of years. After a lengthy hiatus it is now back on the 2nd Thursday of the month at the Pearl St. Pub on Steuben Place (& North Pearl St.) in Albany, NY. The open mic poets & a cluster of fans were gathered in the side room, dubbed the "Dirty Martini Lounge."


Rob gave a brief, general history of "The School of Night" then read poems by former Librarian of Congress Archibald MacLeish (1892 - 1982) & by American surrealist Franklin Rosemont (1943 - 2009), a pairing that in itself was quite surreal. Mike Conner read some poems about the seasons & being outdoors, "Winter's Wolf" (working outside), "Late Winter Rain" & "Passed Peak" (a stroll on Peebles Island).

Another new voice/face was Nicole Ryan who read 2 untitled poems dedicated to a friend, Melissa. Before reading a poem by B.Z. Niditch Rob talked about the pre-Internet heyday of the zines that once flooded readings. Brian Dorn read 3 of his rhyming poems on various topics, "Divine Thoughts" (thinking for yourself), "Chemical Smile" (a love poem) & "From My Poems to Yours" (on the diversity of poetic expression).


Todd Fabozzi has not been reading out for a while, but tonight had a big chunk for us, beginning with a poem about responding to people's greetings, then one about his daughter's music teacher & the blues, a mistaken sighting on Dove St. ("I Thought I Saw William Kennedy"), a political piece ("Tea Party") & ended appropriately enough with "That's It You Son of a Bitch." Our host, R.M. Engelhardt, read a couple of new poems, "A Christmas in Hell" & another poem on drinking to become a poet, "Poetry Whiskey & Buk," & ended with old chestnuts, "Albany & Lark St. Haiku." I did a couple of relatively recent poems, "Trailer Park" & "Living in Wilcox." The last poet of the night, Kenyatta Jean-Paul Garcia read "The Sentimental Education" from what looked like an anthology or collection of poems, piling up images about repetitive educational techniques.

The School of Night is back -- sign-up on the 2nd Thursday at the Pearl St. Pub, see the calendar at AlbanyPoets.com for full information.

Live from the Living Room, April 10

Once again gathered in the living room of the Pride Center of the Capital Region, with our host Don Levy.

Tonight's featured poet Carole Rossi Kenyon read first, before the open mic poets. She had copies of her brand-new chapbook, Natural Selection, for sale & mostly read from that, beginning with the first poem "Phase Shift" then "Groove" sounding like young love with a rock musician. Then a couple of poems not in the book, "The Sex of Sound" (about playing a guitar) & "Good Morning H.P. Lovecraft." Then back to the book for the longing fantasy "The Calling" & a poem for her cousin Lori, "Big Rock Candy Condo." Residents of Fulton County took a bit of satiric beating in her poem "The Coming of Area 51 to the Mohawk Valley." On a more serious note was the poem/song "This Heart Was Made to be Broken," & the political piece, "In Honor of Lara Logan." She finished off with "Europa" (one of Jupiter's moons), "Evolver, "Anteater," "A Plan for Harold," & a poem not in the book that she dedicated to Don, "Beached Brain." Carole's book is a tidy, attractive collection, but I find that having all the poems centered on the page gives the poems the look of greeting card verse, which they certainly are not.

Sylvia Barnard was the first of the open mic poets with 2 poems written on a recent trip to New York City to see her daughter, Shiobhan: "Blues for Snake, Whitney Museum" & "Fashion & Impressionism, Metropolitan Museum." I read 2 of my new poems, "Living in Wilcox" & "Nurture or Shooter."

Delilah Grace Koi read a poem written this afternoon, about labels & how people identify themselves, then on a similar theme a letter addressed to her biological name/self, "Dear Marty." Don Levy read a poem responding to a FaceBook page, "Straight Appreciation Month" & a chance-encounter fantasy poem, "Port Authority Love Poem."

As is often the case here, each 2nd Wednesday of the month, a most interesting night of poetry.