Amy: Hey Cantab! Quick note: we now have an online form if you’d like to send us anonymous (or non-anonymous) feedback about any of our shows.
We had an incredible open mic this week, with bangers throughout the mic, so many that host Brynna was confidently proclaiming her section of the mic being “no skips” before it was even over! Ericka’s Star Wars / self-actualization poem got rave reactions, March had a sensational somewhat anti-slam piece (on the night of a great slam), and we got a showstopping debut from Wonderwoman, who started their performance by repeating “can you hear me?” from the back of the stage, then proceeding to do a great poem about their experience as a HOH individual. We also had a heartfelt debut from Tiff about her experience spending much of her childhood in her family’s restaurant. Additionally, we had two folks on the mic (Jamie and Walter) who last read here over three DECADES ago, in 1994! Both read fabulous poems, with Jamie even paying homage to Walter, who followed him afterwards on the mic! Ben Tolkin also paid homage, but to the names of about a dozen love song titles, which comprised the majority of his poem. David F blew the roof (well, first floor?) off the basement with his anti-ode to rhyming poems that, in true David F fashion, kept getting progressively unhinged until the audience was left awestruck. Rhyme on (or not), David F!
The✏️Line of the Wednesday✏️ goes to March Penn, with “Unlearning isn’t a strip tease of knowledge”
Michael: After the mic, we had our open slam! Of our eight slammers, THREE made their Cantab debut during the slam, and ONE made their first-ever slam debut. Shoutout to Hill, John, and Brianna: hope to see you on stage again soon! Early highlights of the slam included the captivating fanfare and lyricism of Jack Chasse, inspiring pieces from Edie, and powerful work by Keaton. But the final battle came down to impressive newcomer Rene Ramos against our very own BPS recap writer Amy Argentar. Amy stole the slam with an incredible trio of poems involving (among other things) Chicago rats, invasive fried chicken ads, and a surprising take on the mother-daughter relationship. Congrats to Amy, who despite being a mainstay of our show for the past two years, had somehow not previously won a slam outright at BPS!
Amy: Thanks Michael! This week: we have a feature by Mika Cuda! Mila Cuda is a caffeine-sensitive lesbian from Los Angeles with an unmatched enthusiasm for spiders. The former Youth Poet Laureate of the West Coast, their work has been featured on Teen Vogue, Button Poetry, Rookie, PBS and Poetry Online. A two-time winner of The Charlotte Paul Reese Memorial Prize for Creativity in Poetry, she now lives in Somerville, MA, with her partner and the seasons. Still (Game Over Books, 2024) is her first full-length collection.
See you then!
– Amy ✈️ and MFG 🚪
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