| 01/06 | Thanks to everyone who came out for the first Asylum reading of 2008. Our features this week were the touring duo of Mike McGee and Robbie Q. This pair gaves us a energetic set with stories of love, loss and the power of change. Trading off turns at the mic they demonstrated how their time together has given them an easy repertoire, allowing them to build off of each others poetry. It was a great way to start the new year at our (still fairly new to us) space. Thanks Mike and Robbie. |
| 01/13 | It was a quiet night at the Poets' Asylum this week. We held the next open qualifying slam of the 2008 Worcester Slam season with five hearty competitors - Candice, Jon, Dave, Liz and Greg. There were some tough scores, a time penalty and vigorous hosting from next weeks feature, Bill MacMillan. At the end of the night Jon and Liz won the top two spots and a place in the Spring semi-finals. Congrats to both of them. |
| 01/20 | A packed house greeted our feature Bill MacMillan this week. Bill mixed poetry with a Q&A session with the audience. Oddly one of the more popular questions was about his choice in undergarments. Luckily his poetry took center stage with a blend of older work, newer pieces and some good old W.S. Burroughs. An excellent feature from someone we never grow tired of hearing. Thanks Bill! |
| 01/27 | If you missed the Asylum this week (and a bunch of you did) missed an eclectic feature by Regie Gibson with cellist Robert Rivera. Regie performed a wild mix of spoken word, page poetry, and covers (such as Oscar Brown Jr.). His topics ranged from a hysterical political spin on the State of the Union to a remix of classic Greek myth. It was a fun night with loads of laughs. Many thanks Regie and Robert. Come again! |
| 02/03 | The Asylum this week had a quietish start with a fun open mic. A couple of new voices took to the stage (welcome) and a couple of old faces found their way to The Q for the first time (good to see you). Following the open Mr. the Klute took the stage and kicked the energy level up a few hundred percent. At times wheezingly funny, and then the next moment starkly serious, he shared his well crafted work. After the obligatory "signature" slam piece our black trenchcoat wearing feature sweated his way through poems about love, racism, fear and the power of the color black. A powerful start to kick-off his 7 feature/9 day mini-tour. Thanks Klute, glad to have you share our stage. |
| 02/10 | Poets' Asylum co-host Dave Keali'i was our feature. He read a ton of poems including a couple of covers (Robert Sullivan & Martín Espada for those playing along at home). His own work contained gems about Hawaiian creation myths, failed romance and lots of water. Those who attended heard the spectacular dual voice tale of Headshine & Multiple which Dave performed with Erin Jackson. Thanks for making it a fun night at the Asylum Dave. |
| 02/17 | This week we held an open qualifying slam for the 2008 Worcester Slam team. Thanks to Dave, Candice, Melissa, Nick, Jeff, Elyse and Artie for competing and to our brave judges for their hard work. Congratulations go to Artie Moffa and Nick Davis for winning the top two spots. They move on to the Spring Semi-finals which will take place on May 4th. |
| 02/24 | Hampshire College slammer Sean Conlon was our feature this week. His fourteen poem set consisted mainly of what Sean called his more "academic work". Sean shared work about heartbreak, Allan Seager, the Holocaust and first & last times. At times intense, Sean words seems to come from a place deep within, tumbled with lessons learned, until they shine. |
| 03/02 | This week we held an open qualifying slam for the 2008 Worcester Slam team. Thanks to Greg, Tak, Mareh, Erin and Logan for competing and to our brave judges for their hard work. Congratulations go to Erin Jackson and Tak for winning the top two spots. They move on to the Spring Semi-finals which will take place on May 4th. |
| 03/09 | Thanks to all who came out to the reading this week. Mighty Will Evans and J.W. Baz were our features. Their tag team set hit on the highs and lows of relationships, how our work changes us and the power of music as a shared language. Great stuff and an energetic feature. |
| 03/16 | Sunday night our very own Erin Jackson took the stage. She performed a wonderful mix of older and newer pieces that got the crowd laughing and contemplating. Erin reminded us why she is one of our best. |
| 03/23 | Denver slam poet Brandon Stephien was our feature this week. With youthful exuberance he shared his well practiced words. With a focus on politics his set was full of heavy meaning and with moments of levity. Thanks for joining us Brandon. |
| 03/30 | This week the Hampshire College Slam Team was our feature. Newcomers Sophia Holtz, Charley Pope and Andy Locke were joined by seasoned slammers Sean Conlon and Esme Vanndrager for a high energy set. Their well practiced set included stories of growth, growing up, missing gloves, marketing rants and the addiction of poetry. They head off to Albuquerque, NM on Wednesday to compete at the National College Poetry Slam. Thanks for sharing your talent folks. Have an amazing adventure. |
| 04/06 | It was a busy weekend for poetry and poets on Sunday. First off Bill
MacMillan completed the 24 Hour Poetry Reading he started Saturday night.
Even after 100s of poems he had the energy to jump around the room
talking about natural selection and dinosaur books. And if the feat of
reading poetry for 24 hours straight isn't enough Bill's efforts also
netted the Poets' Asylum over $700 toward the expenses of the 2008
Worcester Slam Team. Thanks Bill.
After Bill completed his mission the regular Sunday night reading was held. Following the open mic we held the final Open Qualifying Slam for the 2008 Worcester Slam Season. Six brave souls took to the stage - a around of applause for Kate, Cassandra, Cyndi, Gary, Sam and Dave K. At the end of two rounds the winners were Sam and Gary. They move on to the Spring semi-finals on May 4th. |
| 04/13 | Great show this week with a packed house and the always stellar Jack McCarthy for our feature. Jack never fails to deliver the poetic goods. He shared well loved work such as Swan on Nutting Lake and Thomas Merton along side amazing new work "just to prove he's still writing". With amusing haiku between each poem and just the right amount of information about each poem to help them shine Jack brought the crowd to a standing ovation and an encore poem from the Car Talk series. Thanks for playing a visit Jack, it's always a joy to have you in the house. |
| 04/20 | Jon Wolf was the feature this week. He kicked off his set with a longer piece that started with his amazing numerical creation piece and continued with vibrant imagery describing the world of numbers. He closed out his set with a couple of old favorites. This was excellent work. It's easy to forget what great poets are in our midst. Thanks Jon. |
| 04/27 | Amy Steinberg artfully combined spoken word, music and singing using her guitar. She involved the audience with the music and had everyone in hysterics with a story concerning a dildo. She also offered a fine cover of Ani DiFranco and reminded everyone how good it is to enjoy themselves at a performance. Thank you, Amy! |
| 05/04 | The house was packed for the Spring Semi-Final Slam. Bill MacMillan hosted the evening with his usual gruff humor. Eight slammers took the stage in the slam - Jon Wolf, Liz Heath, Nick Davis, Erin Jackson, Tak, Gary Hoare, Dave Keali'i and Kate Richardson. After the smoke cleared and the math was double-checked we found Nick, Erin, Gary and Dave had earned to top four spots. They move on to the 2008 Worcester Slam Team Final on May 25th. Thanks to all the competitors, judges and audience members for making this a great night. |
| 05/11 | It was a fairly quiet night at the Asylum this week - folks must have been off celebrating with their mothers. Those who attended witnessed the debut of our new co-host, Liz Heath, at the mic. She did a great job. Thanks to the four competitors who took part in the Cash Slam and congratulations to Joe for winning. He went home with 60% of the bucket based on his lucky card draw. |
| 05/18 | It was a hot night at the Poets' Asylum this week with a packed open mic and a killer feature by Logan Phillips. With a mix of well practiced work and newer pieces he worked the mic and carried the audience with him. Moving from heavier material to lighter fare and back with ease he kept those who gathered to hear him waiting for the next sentence, the next phrase. His tales of teaching English in Mexico were especially captivating. Thanks Logan! |
| 05/25 | Well that was fun!!! The 2008 Worcester Slam Team Finals were
held tonight. A packed house witnessed a kickin' open mic followed by
8 of the area's best performance poets. If you were there you know who
won. If you weren't you missed laughter, open emotion, blazing acts of
poetry and the best the performers had to give. Thanks to Adam Stone,
Bobby Gibbs, Dave Keali'i, Erin Jackson, Gary Hoare, Nick Davis, Ryk
McIntyre and Trevor Byrne-Smith for their amazing efforts tonight.
Thanks also to the judges, Alex (our sacrifice poet), hosts Bill
MacMillan and Liz O, and the audience, we couldn't do this thing
without you.
So who won... congratulations to Bobby Gibbs, Adam Stone, Ryk McIntyre, Trevor Byrne-Smith and alternate Erin Jackson. They will represent Worcester at the 2008 National Poetry Slam in Madison, WI. |
| 06/01 | Simone Beaubien was the feature at the Poets' Asylum this week. She brought the great poetry and a fabulous, infectious energy that helps explain why she is so well respected in poetry circles. She mixed up mostly newer work with a couple of older pieces. It was fun stuff. Thanks for the words Simone. |
| 06/08 | Due to unforeseen circumstances the Poets' Asylum was note able to meet this week. |
| 06/15 | Thanks to those who came out to support the 2008 Worcester Slam Team during our annual Asylum Auction. We raised a bit over $150 before we decided there just wasn't the right mood or mass of participants to continue the auction. A couple of generous friends of the Asylum pushed the total over $300 with cash donations. We really appreciate the support. |
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| 07/27 | Thanks to everyone who came out to Jumpin' Juice and Java tonight for the Worcester Regional Slam. Team from the Hampshire and Emerson Colleges competed against the hometeam (that'd be Worcester) in a four round slam for glory, groupies and bragging rights. We heard some interesting work including a couple of group pieces. At the end of the night the scores were tabulated and Emerson took first, followed by Worcester and Hampshire. Everyone seemed to have a great time in Worcester's newest coffeehouse and the folks at Jumpin' Juice and Java enjoyed having us in the house. |
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| 08/10 | NPS '08 Wrap-up... Congratulations to SlamCharlotte for winning the
2008 National Poetry Slam. For the second year in a row the team from
Charlotte, NC took the top spot at NPS.
The final results from the qualifying rounds have been listed on the nps2008.com website. The hometown team, Worcester, finished in 30th place. They performed excellent work on stage and were featured in a showcase before one of the semi-final bouts. Updates during the week in Madision can be found in the Poets' Asylum Blog. Everyone is home now and resting up for the next great poetic thing. Thanks to everyone for their well wishes and support. We couldn't have done it without you! |
| 08/17 | We enjoyed a marvelous night at Poets' Asylum Sunday night with a packed open mic and excellent feature by Molly Meacham. The new venue, Jumpin' Juice and Java, was ready for us and we pretty well took over the place. There were a lot of new faces in the audience as well, we hope you'll join us again. Molly Meacham's feature mixed her own work with a handful of covers. She shared poetry about her family, her students and how women connect to their bodies. It was a great first feature at our new home. Thanks for the words Molly! |
| 08/24 | Our second week in a new space and another amazing feature. This week Eric Urban brought an action packed, multi-media performance and thrilled the gathered audience to a standing ovation. The Alphonso Rigatoni Show part II - Quest for Mars represents the sort of high energy for which Urban is known for. At times loud, almost always unexpected, filled with great laughs, pratfalls and snacks, this was a feature that won't soon be forgotten. Thanks for the words & creativity Urban! |
| 08/31 | We had a smaller audience this week however those who did come out were full of poetic appreciation and eager to hear good words. We welcome the 2 new readers who took to the mic this week - please come again. Our feature this week was local poet Jen Mahon. Jen shared an energetic set of both on and off page pieces. She touched on family, issued a call to help those in need, railed against "Don't Ask Don't Tell" and shared her heart through her words. Thanks for an great feature Jen. |
| 09/07 | Fun night last night at the Poets' Asylum with not one but two great features taking to the mic. After a packed open reading Victor Infante and Lea Deschenes shared a mix of work, mostly from their recently published books, City of Insomnia and The Constant Velocity of Trains respectively (both by Write Bloody Publishing). Between them they offered up poetry on fears, coming together, leaving and family. It was a great double set from two of fantastic local poets. |
| 09/14 | We had a well attended open mic that even included a segment of a poetic feud between 2008 Slam Team member Trevor Byrne-Smith and 2008 Youth Slam Team member Jeff Seagrist. We look forward to what may occur next in the open reading. Our feature, Adam Rubenstein presented a fine body of work about childhood and houses. He made many in the audience laugh and moved others with the quality of his work. Thank you, Adam. |
| 09/21 | Thanks to Lisa Beatman for being our feature this past week. She shared a mix of work from her two books by Ibbetson Press. Along the way she offered place poems for each of the Presidential and VP candidates, a mouse perspective on progress, the inner beauty found in flower arranging and her relationship with fire. Always nice to see an area poet as our feature. Thanks for the words Lisa. |
| 09/28 | It was a busy night at the Poets' Asylum this week with a handful of new readers, an overflowing open mic and a feature from Susan Elizabeth Sweeney. Family was the theme for the beginning of the set with poems about her father's teeth, her mother's hair and an older sister's voracious reading habit. The second half included an eclectic mix including a bit of erotica and Beth's only political poem. Thank you Beth for all the words. Thanks too to all who joined us this week. Please come again! |
| 10/05 | There was a packed house this week with another overflowing open mic and a feature by Jon Sands. A broad mix of styles & topics filled the open, from haiku to free verse, from the humorous to the ponderous. Jon Sands took to the mic after the open for an animated set. Moving with practiced ease from religion to accidents to a Midtown love note Jon captured the imagination and attention of the audience. Thanks for the great work Jon. |
| 10/12 | Congratulations to Alex Charalambides on winning the iWPS
Selection Slam tonight. Alex will represent Worcester and the Poets'
Asylum at the 2008 Individual World Poetry Slam this December
in Charlotte, NC.
Many thanks to all the poets who came out to perform: Danny, Tony, Rushelle, Bobby, Alex, Jeff, Nick, Dave K., April and Big Poppa E. Thanks too to the judges, host Bill MacMillan and most importantly the audience. We couldn't do this stuff without you. |
| 10/19 | Ryk McIntyre was our feature this week. He brought a mix of long-time favorites and new work to the stage, giving a well appreciated performance. With a catchy rap version of Shakespeare's finest and a new ABCs primer for sixteen year olds he offered fresh examples of what made him a member of the 2008 Worcester Slam team. Thanks for the word Ryk. |
| 10/26 | Crazy energy night at the reading this week. Some great work in the open with a couple of new voices joining the mix. We love to hear new voices; please come again. Following the open Andrea Gibson took the stage for a rollicking set of work. Known for heavily political work Gibson stayed away from that touchstone with the exception of one piece. The rest of her set hit on relationships, love and life. The audience was enthusiastic and the applause was heavy. |
| 11/02 | Perhaps the early fall of darkness kept folks away or maybe it was some little event in New York. Whatever the reason if you weren't at the Poets' Asylum you missed a fantastic feature by Samantha Barrow. Possessing a contagious energy and sensual wordplay Samantha delivered great words with great style. Her set consisted of a handful of sex poems, a political poem or two, words on abuse and recovery, some list poems, a honest to goodness villanelle and an touching tribute to Louisiana Route 82. It was a fine way to cap off the night. Thanks for the words Samantha. |
| 11/09 | Our feature this week was the incomparable duo of poet Tony Brown and bassist Faro, who together are Duende. They opened with a brand new piece entitled "Get Up" followed by another newer piece, "Ceilia". Duende kept the crowed going with a mix of pieces from their first cd, "Jim's Fall" and their more recent collection, "Americanized". The set included a solo by Faro performing Francisco Tarrega's "Capriccio 'Arabe". Duende got the crowd even more excited with "Classic Rock" and ended the evening with the beautiful " Where Do You Live". Many thanks to Duende for an amazing night. |
| 11/16 | Nice mix of folks at the reading this week with regulars and newcomers filling the seats for poetry. After a quick moving open mic our feature, Joaquín Zihuatanejo, took the stage. He performed some of his established work as well newer pieces, both of which were very well received. With a touch of the political and a beautiful turn of phrase he gave us lots to think about and a craving for more. Thanks for the words Joaquín. |
| 11/23 | Great feature this week from Asylum regular Heather Macpherson. With a mix of new work, older pieces and covers she rocked the mic. Hitting on relationships, rejection and love she captured the attention of the audience and held it firmly throughout her set. Great work all around. Thanks for the words Heather. |
| 11/30 | It is always nice to see folks who haven't made it to the reading in a while drop in and share their words. Following a cozy open mic we held an open slam with a twist. Two rookies signed up, honest to goodness never slammed before poets, and we gave them a 10 point bonus for taking the plunge. Scores were all over the spectrum, nice to see the range used as intended. Thanks to Phil, Zeb, Lisa, Danny & Jeff for taking part. At the end of the night Zeb, one of the rookies, won the slam and took a $25 prize back to college with him. |
| 12/07 | Michael Brown was our feature this week. After adjusting the mic he abandoned it for the first 4 or so poems, all strung together with a bit of song between each. He wandered through the audience, connecting with those gathered, discussing past lives, the archangel of jazz and a long slow death. He then took to the mic for the rest of his set, sharing tales of clockworks, some summer words for a cold night, a couple of covers from Off the Coast and more. A great set from an excellent performer. Thanks Michael. |
| 12/14 | This week the Asylum welcomed Karen Finneyfrock as our feature. Karen came to us via the just completed Individual World Poetry Slam in Charlotte, NC and had amusing stories from the gathering. Congrats go out to a recent Asylum feature, Joaquín Zihuatanejo, on taking the iWPS title. Karen's feature contained a mix of light humorous work and heavy-duty gut punch stuff. It was all great stuff and a wonderful performance. Thanks for the words Karen. |
| 12/21 | A winter storm ate the reading this week by which I mean it was canceled. We'll reschedule the planned features, Sam Teitel and Steve Subrizi for another date. |
| 12/28 | The Asylum closed out 2008 with a packed house and feature from new Worcester resident Mighty Mike McGee. Mike wowed the gathered with brilliant and dexterous wordplay. Working the audience he even managed to capture the attention of those not there for the reading, occasionally lulling them into silent appreciation of well-craft work. He filled his set with love letters, travel stories and dirty dimes, leaving all wanting more. Lucky for us that he's a local now. Thanks Mike and welcome to the neighborhood. |
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