| POETRY CURRENTS | |
IN THE WILDS OF BOSTON
There's wildlife and then there's leading a wild life. We have both in the Boston area. Yes, believe it or not, there are nature preserves just south of Boston. The Blue Hills contain the highest landrises along the East coast and from them you can view the Boston skyline. Depending on the season you can also pick wild blueberries, follow a floating boardwalk over a bog, ride horses, camp, bike, hike, ski, swim, or golf.
And now, thanks to Dana Lipp (longtime host of Braintree Borders' Last Friday reading series), you can read poetry. Dana has taken a cue from Andy Levesque's reading series at Walden Pond and has reserved a spot for poets at Brookwood Farm in the Blue Hills, Milton, MA. The series is to be held on the Second Sunday of All Seasonable Months, May through October, 2-4 pm.
Brookwood Farm boasts a field complete with shade trees and barn, but it's strictly BYOS (bring your own seating). Don't forget also to bring your poetry, and your projection, as there is an unamplified “open mouth” to accompany the featured readers. Kicking off the first of the Second Sunday series, on May 13, is Ernie Wight. Ernie is a retired jazz drummer and nationally published poet, who has honed his skills at such prestigious writing conferences as Bread Loaf. Don't miss him. The reading goes on rain or shine. In the event of rain, Dana has secured the Houghton Pond Visitor's Center, a recently renovated “gingerbread” house, about one mile down the road.
Directions: Take Route 128 to 138 North. Go right at the first set of lights; the farm is 0.4 mile (#11) on your right. In inclement weather, drive 0.7 mile more to the Houghton's Pond Visitor's Center.
For a list of the features and program reminders, email Dana Lipp at danalipp@att.net and ask to be put on his mailing list. Or call him at 781.380.3851 (708.810.6617 fax).
And to keep up on the Saturday reading series at Walden Pond, please email Andy Levesque at poetry@mothwing.com and ask to be added to his mailing list. Or visit his Walden Vision Quest Web site.
To explore the urban wild life in Boston, please visit a brand new bulletin board being launched by BostonHotList.com. On the BostonHotBoard, you can promote your own events, interact with other members, rate... um... personal encounters and even post poems in a poetry section freshly added for our written word pleasure.
POETS IN OCCUPIED BUILDINGS, TEMPORARY SHELTERS & STAND-OFFS
Harvard students seized Massachusetts Hall in Harvard Yard a few weeks ago to demand that their university pay its workers a living wage. In solidarity with the students and workers, Boston-area and visiting poets have been holding open air readings on the theme of social justice. Although this is one poetry series we'd love to see defunct due to an agreement between the opposing factions, more readings are planned at the time of this writing. The next date scheduled is on the evening of Wednesday, May 9 at 8 pm. Take the Red Line to Harvard Square and cross the street to enter Harvard Yard.
Peter Desmond (poet, translator, slammer and more) has been instrumental in organizing this and is calling for favorite poems about work. Winning entries may be recited at the next poetry support action, even if you can't make it there personally. As Peter reported, they are now holding these readings without a sound system since “Republican first-year students in nearby buildings have complained about noise levels.” I would encourage those who possess a booming voice as well as a conscience to show up. Please email Peter with suggestions and Web links at TaxHombre@cs.com. Here are some Web links he's already provided to poems inspired by labor issues:
- “The Mayor of Gary” by Carl Sandburg
- “Jorge the Church Janitor Finally Quits” by Martin Espada
- “What Work Is” by Phillip Levine
Editor's note, 5.12.2001: Word is out that a settlement has been reached between the students & the Harvard administration, and the sit-in ended on Tuesday, May 8. But the sites linked above are still worth visiting...
SPOKEN WORD IN PROVIDENCE
Paul Coppolelli (“Coppo”) has rejoined Jay Walker to cohost the Spoken Word poetry series in Providence, RI. You could call them “homeless” as they were left stranded from a planned venue site. In stepped the Fox Point Boys and Girls Club to offer them temporary shelter -- in a daycare room! Yes, the Monday night series lives on amid little chairs, beanbags, and toys. Snacks are provided. In a long-term move to gain their own permanent space, the Spoken Word series has put together a board of directors and is filing for non-profit status. For directions to their Fox Point location and for the URL of their impending Web site, please email Jay Walker at jaywalkpoet@aol.com. And get on his mailing list. You won't want to miss their second annual auction of poets (yes, poets can be yours for a price) this June.
ANOTHER READING OUT IN THE COLD
Another reading that may be out in the cold, because of the cold climate here, is the biweekly reading at The Daily Grind in Bridgewater. Lotfi, the poetry-supportive owner of the coffee shop, yearns for a warmer locale... warmer as in Arizona. Poets from as far away as Cape Cod, Worcester and Boston journey to this cozy venue off Route 24. And local poets have been inspired to branch off and start poetry ventures in other tucked-away places. Just a suggestion, but perhaps a cooperative could form to buy the business. I've seen this idea work in various places in New Hampshire where communities take over to save a vital meeting spot when the owner must move on.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, May 12, you can attend a special reading to celebrate cohost Valerie Lawson's photo show currently hanging on the walls there. And on Saturday, June 9, there will be a multi-voice reading of Michael McDonough's Marginal Poems, “a poem that unwrites itself like old speed limits before freeways, each state teaching different signals....”
The Daily Grind Coffeehouse is at 23 Central Square, Bridgewater, MA. Open mic, feature poet and slam, starting at 7:30 pm. Free admission, pass the hat for feature (or in Michael McDonough's case, buy him a slice of chocolate chip cheesecake). For information, contact Valerie Lawson, VMuddyPond@aol.com, 508.833.3100, or Lotfi at The Daily Grind, 508.279.9952, or visit their new Web site.
THE AMAZON SLAM
The Amazon Slam is an all-woman slam held at Ryles in Cambridge, MA, on the last Sunday of every month. Men are welcome to come and cheer their favorite women, but are not permitted to slam. For this reason, venue host Ren Jender has not been allowed to register a team for the Slam Nationals, even though Amazon is a dues-paying member of the slam community, and her venue has participated in area slams for years now, and Amazon Slam is the most popularly attended slam in Boston.
The executive committee of Poetry Slam finally held out some hope this year. It allowed there may be compelling reasons for a community to need exceptions to the rules generally agreed upon. There are always exceptions to the rules, as evidenced by the venue which bars previous team members from applying again (which makes it no longer an “open” slam)... Or the team which barred those outside its regional borders. Poets, even those whom I greatly admire, are quick to say, “Yes, but...” and justify these exceptions. Fine, but what about Amazon Slam's “yes, but?” I have just listed two precedents which prove that “open” slams are open to interpretation. It's time to let Amazon Slam enter a team at the Nationals. I could say more on this matter, and I will. Email your support to Ren Jender at njender@hotmail.com.
Ryles is at 212 Hampshire Street, Inman Square, Cambridge, 617.876.9330. 7:30 sign up, 8 pm slam, $7 includes dancing (DJ She-Bang) after the slam.
- At the Lizard Lounge
Joyce Cunha, aka “Mrs. Robinson,” is Jeff Robinson's new tidal wave of a co-SlamMaster at the Lizard Lounge. Or “Slam Mama,” as she's affectionately known.
On May 13th catch one of the NE poetry workshops with Marty McConnell of The Morrigan.
And on May 20th, be there for the slam finals to choose the first Lizard Lounge team bound for Slam Nationals, in Seattle this year. May 20th is also Joyce's birthday, and as a present she's asking for erotic poetry in the open mic! It's a night on which the Minister will surely bring out the big sax.
Lizard Lounge is downstairs from the Boston Common at 1667 Mass. Ave., between Harvard Square and Porter Square in Cambridge, MA. For the full schedule, check out the Jeff Robinson Trio Web site.
- Another Slam Mama into themes is Sou MacMillan, who hosts the Monday night readings at the Java Hut, in Webster Square (1073A Main Street) in Worcester. Pick your dream slam from the following schedule:
On Sunday nights, Java Hut is hosted by the formidable Tony Brown. Both Tony and Sou are in line for the 2001 Worcester slam team. Look for a hot finals night there on May 13.May 14, Dead Folks Slam
May 21, Spoof Slam
May 28, Chain Poem Slam
June 4, Area 51 / Conspiracy Slam
June 11, Fortune Cookie Slam
June 18, Tarot Slam
June 25, Button Slam
July 2, Box O' Doom Slam (with Turiya and Walidah's Good Sista/Bad Sista tour to feature)
Other upcoming dates include Jack McCarthy on May 27, in a recording session for his CD, and The Morrigan on June 3rd. You can pester Tony for a feature of your own at host@poetsasylum.org, or visit www.poetsasylum.org for complete listings.
- Finally, although dubbed the poet who “will read anywhere,” this correspondent has not been getting to all the corners of New England as she would wish. Maybe forgivably, considering that the last two times she did travel to see poetry, the state police, who have no respect for classics, pulled over her 1966 Dodge Dart. This last time because the license plate is not illuminated (apparently a post '66 innovation). The poets inside were returning from “Generations of Male Black Voices” (Amiri Baraka, Everett Hoagland, Gary Hicks and Corey Cokes) at Cape Cod Community College.
“What's in the bag?” the officer demanded.
“Poetry,” replied Gary Hicks. “Would you like to see it?” He let us off with a warning, and we didn't even have to tell him “Ginsberg is Dead.”
So, until I brave the highway again, please explore Maine via the Internet, thanks to Tom Fallon, editor and Webmaster of Apples & Oranges International: Maine literary news with links to contests, calendars, rhyming dictionary, thesaurus and more! Contact Tom directly at aopoetry@yahoo.com or aopoetry@exploremaine.com and ask to be put on his mailing list. Or peruse the Poet's Desktop.
