The Boston Poetry Slam and the House Slam Present: THE GRUDGE REMATCH, April 17, 2016

The Grudge Match is back! April 17, 2016. Banner by Emily Carroll, photos by Marshall Goff and Rich Beaubien.

The Grudge Match is back! April 17, 2016. Banner by Emily Carroll, photos by Marshall Goff and Rich Beaubien.


THE GRUDGE MATCH: House Slam vs. Boston Poetry Slam
Sunday, April 17, 2016
ONCE Ballroom, 156 Highland Ave., Somerville
doors at 6:30pm, show 7pm-10pm
all ages, 21+ to drink
$10/advance or $15/door (click for tickets)
click for Facebook event


It’s time to celebrate National Poetry month! The House Slam @ the Haley House Bakery Cafe and the Boston Poetry Slam @ the Cantab Lounge are proud to present the return of last year’s GRUDGE MATCH POETRY SLAM between the two venues… 2016: The Rematch!

On Sunday, April 17, greater Boston’s oldest and freshest slam venues will face off against each other in a head-to-head poetry battle for big-city bragging rights. Captain Porsha Olayiwola (House Slam) and Captain Simone Beaubien (Boston Poetry Slam) will lead their teams in the seven-round slamstravaganza, wherein all poets will present new work written EXCLUSIVELY FOR THIS SLAM on topics selected by the Captains.

The slam will be judged by five hyper-critical American-Idol-style judges whom you wish would just start a poetry troupe already: Dark Noise Collective founder Franny Choi, Chicago breakbeat poet Eve Ewing, NOLA poet and Harvard thinker Clint Smith, MTV writer Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib, and hip-hop-poetry icon Jared Paul.

ANNOUNCING THE TEAMS AND TOPICS FOR THIS YEAR’S MATCH:

  • Simone Beaubien vs. Porsha Olayiwola: RECIPE POEM (sacrifice round)
  • Nora Meiners vs. Jordan Peterson: NATURAL DISASTERS
  • Emily O’Neill vs. Angelica Marie: DISINHERITANCE
  • Manvir Singh vs. Oompa: THE SPACE-TIME CONTINUUM
  • Jess Rizkallah vs. Ashley Davis: LIVING IN THIS BODY
  • Joshua Elbaum vs. Jayy Dodd: BLOSSOMING
  • J.R. Mahung vs. Melissa Lozada-Oliva: HOMELAND
  • Chloé Cunha vs. Erich Hagan: SWEAT IN YOUR EYES

The show opens promptly at 7:00 with performances from musician Brian McCarthy, comedian Wes Hazard, and poet Muggs Fogarty. The slam will follow, hosted by New Hampshire punk/poet/unflinching individual Emily Eastman.

This show is all ages, although is recommended for teens and up; you must be 21+ to drink, of course. Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door, and all proceeds go to help send the House Slam and Boston Poetry Slam teams to the 2016 National Poetry Slam in Decatur, Georgia this August.