October 28, 2004
A NIGHT OF SPOKEN WORD AT INDIANAPOLIS' URBAN ELEMENT
Last night I happened upon a really Swedish event at Urban Element (901 North Pennsylvania Ave., Indianapolis, IN 46204). Urban Element's Night of Spoken Word was billed as an open mike for poets and other writers. Here's what it looked like:
By my count, 20 or so poets and writers spoke, the majority of whom appeared to be first-time visitors to our new neighborhood eatery. And, in an act that could only be described as odd and shameless, I spoke to the audience about a book I conceived with my friend Lee McDaniel, and then acquired while working as an Acquisitions Editor for Penguin Group (USA) / Alpha Books. The book, The Complete Idiotís Guide to Slam Poetry, provides readers with a behind-the-scenes look at the explosive world of Slam Poetry--a style of poetry composed for the purpose of being performed in front of a live audience in a competitive arena. Co-authored by Marc Kelly Smith, who is widely regarded as the founder of the Slam Poetry movement, and Joe Kraynak (a local writer of distinction), The CIG to Slam Poetry includes two audio CDs with 30+ slammin' tracks featuring today's hottest Slam poets.
Slam Poetry's roots can be found in Spoken Word Poetry, so speaking to the crowd about the CIG to Slam Poetry seemed like a natural fit. What wasn't necessarily such a natural fit was that I was stumping for a book published by my former employer, which is my current employer's chief competitor. Luckily, my current employer does not have a Slam Poetry offering, so the conflict-of-interest thing sort of gets tossed out the window on this one.
In addition to talking to the group about the book, I just so happened to have some of the book's companion CD tracks burned onto my laptop, which I was able to plug into Urban Element's sound system for the audience's listening pleasure. The group especially enjoyed hearing Regie Gibson's "All Praises Due".
Urban Element plans on hosting additional Spoken Word events in November and December. Call Shea, Maurice, or Mark at 317.331.4482 for dates and times.
Posted by Mikal at October 28, 2004 5:26 AM
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