Oh Cantabbers, we all were absolutely HAUNTED last week with our After Dead Poets Slam! The open mic consisted of Kai mourning the death of their youth (also known as turning 25), Shawn declaring his distaste for metaphors (in certain contexts), and Sonya coming back for a great sequel after a great debut last week (keep coming back!).
This week’s ✏️ Line of the Wednesday ✏️ goes to Daniel, with: “I want to speak with jaguars, like my ancestors after walking on water”
Brief interlude to say that this last Thursday, we had five fabulous slammers compete in Slam Free or Die’s Spooky Regional! It was an absolutely stunning slam, everyone did INCREDIBLE. If you want the full details on what went down, catch a summary in our upcoming NEWSLETTER! Sign up here. I will say we at the Cantab are very proud, because our team came out VICTORIOUS!!! Congrats to the following poets and thank you to SFOD for hosting.
- Myles Taylor
- Katya Zinn
- Kris Cho
- Jennifer Martinez
- Aparna Paul
Speaking of slams, time to talk about the amazing, undead, Zeke-Russell-hosted After Dead Poets slam! Dead poets from the likes of Frank O’Hara, Dylan Thomas, Ezra Pound, Miguel Algarin, Seamus Heaney, Gertrude Stein, Rainer Maria Rilke, and Julia de Burgos were revived on the stage in the first round, and the poets that helped form the bridge that connected the dead poets from the afterlife to our current reality performed in the second round. The shenanigans this week must have to be Michael F. Gill, who after a great Frank O’Hara cover, performed his poem “Collapsible Universes,” which resulted in him completely exiting the basement (and eventually returning).
In the end, Kaitie D. (Julia de Burgos) won the slam, with March Penn (Gertrude Stein) placing a close second. Thank you to our judges and our wonderful-as-always host Zeke Russell, and of course, congratulations to our spectacular top 2 poets (and their deceased counterparts), who now qualify for our 2024 Slam Team!
This week, we are having a LATE NIGHT OPEN MIC! There will be NO FEATURE, doors will be at 9, and the mic will be at 9:30. To emphasize the slumber-party vibes, we will have a twist on our usual open mic. Choose “TRUTH” to do your poem as you brought it — no shame! Choose “DARE” to get a slip of paper with an on-stage poetry dare — work a new word into your poem somewhere, start your set with a haiku, or perform your poem in a way you never would have expected. So, we ask you: TRUTH OR DARE?
See you then!
-Amy ✈️
Our upcoming features
First timer? Looking for show info? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions!
Sign up for our monthly Newsletter
Check Out Our Poetry-Themed Missed Connections Form
Our community survey
Boston Poetry Slam Online