Never Break the Chain: Last night at the Write Bloody reading in Boston
I am still drunk on words this morning. My head is still spinning from the uproarious, ridiculous and emotional experience that was that thing last night, that beautiful, madcap thing that was so much more than just another poetry reading. From Jeremy Radin's big-hearted bombast of an opener, to Mindy Nettifee's absolutely devastating elegy for Jack McCarthy that closed out the night, everything in that crowded room was perfect, each note built on what had come before and fed what followed. There was was an electrical current that flowed from performer to performer, whether they were doing new work, their "radio hit" or deep cuts, and there was a nice balance between all three that no one really discussed at length. It all sort of just happened. (At Derrick Brown's suggestion, I did "Another American July," from the book, which I rarely ever perform, and got the best reaction it's ever gotten, proving Derrick's got some good instincts. Lea performed her poem "Black Scarab," and absolutely destroyed.)
There was too much good on that stage to recap. There is no way to do it justice, from Cristin O'Keefe Aptowicz and Daniel Nester's dual-voice "porn pop-up ad sestina" to Daniel McGinn's full-forced postmodernism to Elaina Ellis' spare, heartbreaking poem to Buddy Wakefield's neo-beat visionary madness and on, and on, and on. So much. And it all fit together.
A lot of the energy in the room came from the rather deep-seated love the writers on the press have for each other. Some -- Derrick, Mindy, Daniel -- are among my oldest and dearest friends. Some, such as Jeremy and Elaina, I barely know at all, and I am already deeply in love with them and their work. That seemed to radiate. But moreover, if I'm completely honest, a good part of that energy came from the room, from that enormous crowd of people who had to wait out in the cold for a bit too long to get in, who was cramped in tight and most of whom had to stand or sit on the floor. I have never seen a crowd that big that was so enthusiastic, and so well-behaved. They listened without being dead. They were dead quiet when they needed to be, and raucous and noisy when that was required. If there was a circuit of energy running through the performers last night, it was running through the audience, too. They were connected in the moment, part of the experience. You could feel the energy they were giving off, and it was incredible. If last night was a success -- and it was -- then a good deal of the credit goes to those people who came in wanting so hard for it to be one of the best shows ever that they made it happen through sheer, positive willpower. I was in love with everyone in that room last night. Whatever happened there, it was magic, and it took every single person there to make it happen.
There was too much good on that stage to recap. There is no way to do it justice, from Cristin O'Keefe Aptowicz and Daniel Nester's dual-voice "porn pop-up ad sestina" to Daniel McGinn's full-forced postmodernism to Elaina Ellis' spare, heartbreaking poem to Buddy Wakefield's neo-beat visionary madness and on, and on, and on. So much. And it all fit together.
A lot of the energy in the room came from the rather deep-seated love the writers on the press have for each other. Some -- Derrick, Mindy, Daniel -- are among my oldest and dearest friends. Some, such as Jeremy and Elaina, I barely know at all, and I am already deeply in love with them and their work. That seemed to radiate. But moreover, if I'm completely honest, a good part of that energy came from the room, from that enormous crowd of people who had to wait out in the cold for a bit too long to get in, who was cramped in tight and most of whom had to stand or sit on the floor. I have never seen a crowd that big that was so enthusiastic, and so well-behaved. They listened without being dead. They were dead quiet when they needed to be, and raucous and noisy when that was required. If there was a circuit of energy running through the performers last night, it was running through the audience, too. They were connected in the moment, part of the experience. You could feel the energy they were giving off, and it was incredible. If last night was a success -- and it was -- then a good deal of the credit goes to those people who came in wanting so hard for it to be one of the best shows ever that they made it happen through sheer, positive willpower. I was in love with everyone in that room last night. Whatever happened there, it was magic, and it took every single person there to make it happen.
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