Cantab Recap for Wednesday, April 12, 2017

National Poetry Month rolls on, and what better poet to hear a full set from than the month’s very namesake? Last night, a small and mighty crowd braved the malfunctioning subway to roll into the venue just in time for a riveting feature from April Penn. The weekly venue mainstay showed off just some of the five-to-six poems she writes per week and doesn’t get to read on the open mic, taking us on a sometimes-sweet, sometimes-sexy body-conscious journey to awaken us for spring. If the city’s public transportation woes kept you from seeing the set, don’t forget to ask April about a copy of her new chapbook, Dissolution.

The final slam in the 8×8 speed series was a real doozy, welcoming a full roster of eight gung-ho poets to the mic. After ties, upsets, and at least one pleasing dose of good old-fashioned heckling, the final two poets standing were Ron and Baudelaire. Ultimately, Ron’s stand-and-deliver narrative defeated Baudelaire’s mic-free untimed delivery, with a grand time had by all. Special thanks go to three volunteer judges last night, all of whom were consistent, fast, enthusiastic, and brand-new at the job: Grace, Sydney, and VJ.

Next week: poetry month marches on, now with a Champion of Champions slam! Kylie Noelle will be back from CUPSI to defend the championship title against the last eight 8×8 winners. Oh, and you may have heard that we are at last featuring Pizza Pi Press author and Northeastern coach JR Mahung. Get your bicycle, skateboard, and whirligigs in order in time to get a seat for this show!

Tips from the Bar: Polar Bear vs. Prop Penguin

On Tuesday, a polar bear at the Pittsburgh zoo lunged at a penguin backpack visible on the other side of the aquarium glass.

Consider a time you attacked a person or an idea, only to realize it wasn’t what you thought it was.

Cantab Feature for Wednesday, April 12, 2017: April Penn

April Penn, Cantab local favorite. Photo by Gregory Jundanian.

April Penn, Cantab local favorite. Photo by Gregory Jundanian.

April Penn’s work explores daily life in Boston as a queer artist and member of a co-op for people with autoimmune disease. She writes about chronic pain, sexuality, gender, and the internet. She has poems published or forthcoming in The Deaf Poets Society, La Redactrice, The Fem, The Offing, Maps for Teeth, Provocateur, and Hoax Zine.

Note that tonight’s open poetry slam will be a speed slam with 3-, 2-, and 1-minute rounds. Slam winners qualify for the 2017 World Qualifier.

This show in our weekly Wednesday series takes place at the Cantab Lounge, 738 Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge. Doors for the show open at 7:15. The open mic begins at 8:00 and the feature performs at approximately 10:00. An open poetry slam in the 8×8 series will follow. The show is 18+ (ID required) and the cover charge is $3.

Cantab Recap for Wednesday, April 5, 2017

At last, at last, it’s National Poetry Month! You know, the one time of year you can read about “Is Poetry Dead?” in ten percent of your major news outlets… But don’t worry, our literally underground poetry scene continues very much alive for 12/12ths of the year, which you already knew if you were out to see Robert Lashley on our stage last night. Robert brought us an intensely driven performance of his unparalleled lyrical, surrealist work. Still reeling from his performance? You can grab his book, Up South, online, straight from Small Doggies Press.

After the feature, of course, we slam: this week’s open slam featured four friends-and-foes facing off in the penultimate speed slam of the season. The final one-minute round came down to John Pinkham and Rachel Sahlein, both riding high on love from the judges in the first two rounds: John took the ultimate run, and the ten bucks, leaving Rachel standing to slam another day. Congrats to John, who qualifies for our Champion of Champions slam on April 19 AND our World Qualifier Speed Slam on May 3!

Want your own qualifier spot? You’ll just need to win the last slam in the 8×8 series next week. That’ll be the end of our night, of course: the beginning starts up with our (regular-length) open mic, and our feature will be the prolific, thoughtful, and rock-solid April Penn. Come through!

Tips from the Bar: The Oompa Prompt

Write about two parts of yourself that are at war.

Cantab Feature for Wednesday, April 5, 2017: Robert Lashley

Pacific Northwest poet and Small Doggies author Robert Lashley.

Pacific Northwest poet and Small Doggies author Robert Lashley.

A 2016 Jack Straw Fellow, Artist Trust Fellow, and nominee for a Stranger Genius Award, Robert Lashley has had poems published in such journals as Feminete, Seattle Review Of Books, NAILED, Drunk In a Midnight Choir, and The Cascadia Review. His work was also featured in Many Trails To The Summit, an anthology of Northwest form and lyric poetry. His full-length book, The Homeboy Songs, was published by Small Doggies press in April 2014, and his latest book, Up South, will be available in March 2017.

Note that tonight’s open poetry slam will be a speed slam with 3-, 2-, and 1-minute rounds. Slam winners qualify for the 2017 World Qualifier.

This show in our weekly Wednesday series takes place at the Cantab Lounge, 738 Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge. Doors for the show open at 7:15. The open mic begins at 8:00 and the feature performs at approximately 10:00. An open poetry slam in the 8×8 series will follow. The show is 18+ (ID required) and the cover charge is $3.

Cantab Recap for Wednesday, March 29, 2017

Happy National Poetry Month, Cantabbers! It’s been a wild beginning to spring for poetry, and making not one, but TWO sold-out pre-legendary shows happen (our eleven-person Finals and the third annual Grudge Match) has been an honor, a privilege, and a really good time.

First things first: announcing the 2017 Boston Poetry Slam team! After three heartwrenching rounds, the BPS Finals finished out like this:
1. Zeke Russell 82.9
2. Neiel Israel 82.6
3. Mckendy Fils-Aimé 81.1
4(t). Brandon Melendez 80.0
4(t). Em Taylor 80.0
6. Allison Truj
7. John Pinkham
8. Kieran Collier
9. Adam Stone
10. Kylie Noelle
11. Austin Hendricks

Slammers in bold will represent the team at the 2017 National Poetry Slam in Denver, Colorado this August 7-12. Yowza! Extra thanks to sacrifices Zenaida Peterson and Ron Prudent, as well as spotlight sorbet feature RebeccaLynn, for helping to make the night happen. And congratulations to all our slammers: for an unforgettable night that’s sure to go down in Cantab history.

Thanks, also, to our packed houses on Wednesday and Thursday this week; a full house for our triumphant finals (yay!) and an even fuller space at Oberon for our third annual defeat at the Grudge Match (wait, seriously) means that our team can look forward to a solid fundraising base to get to the National Poetry Slam. Our little $3 show couldn’t do it without you, folks; thanks for all the listening you do.

Next week: it’s National Poetry Month, and we know how to celebrate! With poetry, obvs. But, in this case, also with the dense and intense work of Robert Lashley, shining Pacific Northwest poetry star. See you then, glorious listeners.

Tips from the Bar: The Backstory Backstory

“Full Armed Man Rescues Puppy from House Fire.”

What’s the backstory?

The Boston Poetry Slam and the House Slam Present: THE GRUDGE MATCH, March 30, 2017

OBERON in Harvard Square welcomes the Third Annual Grudge Match on March 30, 2017!

OBERON in Harvard Square welcomes the Third Annual Grudge Match on March 30, 2017!

THE GRUDGE MATCH: House Slam vs. Boston Poetry Slam
Thursday, March 30, 2017
OBERON, 2 Arrow St. in Harvard Square, Cambridge
6:30pm doors, 7pm openers, 8pm-10pm poetry slam
18+, $12/advance or $15/door (click for tickets)
click for Facebook event

Get ready for the biggest National Poetry Month event of 2017! The House Slam @ the Haley House Bakery Cafe and the Boston Poetry Slam @ the Cantab Lounge are proud to present the third annual GRUDGE MATCH POETRY SLAM between the two venues.

On Thursday, March 30, 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. Poets from each team will use all the tricks of their trade— lyricism, comedy, political fury, and straight-up heartfelt personal narrative— to impress rowdy audience and all-star judges in the heart of Harvard Square!

The slam will be hosted by Emily Eastman and JR Mahung, with fabulous openers: comedian Wes Hazard, musical artist Artist: Black Venus, and hip-hop sensation Oomp Will! Our all-star no-holds-barred American-Idol-style judges will include notable poetry persons Alex Charalambides, Olivia Gatwood, and Jha D.

ANNOUNCING THE TEAMS FOR THIS YEAR’S MATCH:
* Simone Beaubien (BPS) vs. Porsha Rashidaat J. Olayiwola (HHS): (sacrifice round)
* Zeke Russell vs. Erich Haygun
* Rebecca Lynn vs. Jonathan Mendoza
* Evan Jymaal Cutts vs. Marshall Gripp Gillson
* Kye Noelle vs. Zenaida Peterson
* John Pinkham vs. Claudia Wilson
* Jess Rizkallah vs. Emmanuel Oppong-Yeboah
* Neiel Israel vs. Sam Rush

Tickets are $12 in advance/$15 at the door (see above for ticketing link). All proceeds will support the two slams’ trips to the 2017 National Poetry Slam in Denver, Colorado.

Cantab Feature for Wednesday, March 29, 2017: Team Selection FINALS

The Cantab’s Team Selection Slams are the venue’s biggest, wildest poetry slams of the year. The venue’s late-winter selection is one of the earliest in the country, which gives them extra time to prepare for this year’s National Poetry Slam in Denver, Colorado this August.

The top poets from semi-finals qualified to advance to the show. Due to ties, eleven poets have qualified to slam in the following order in the first round:
1. Zeke Russell
2. John Pinkham
3. Kieran Collier
4. Austin Hendricks
5. Em Taylor
6. Adam Stone
7. Kylie Noelle
8. Mckendy Fils-Aimé
9. Allison Truj
10. Neiel Israel
11. Brandon Melendez
sacrificial poets: Ron Prudent, Zenaida Peterson

RebeccaLynn, poet, bartender, regular, and uncompromising learner.

RebeccaLynn, poet, bartender, regular, and uncompromising learner.

Our long slam tonight means a special show schedule! After a very short open mic, the first round of the slam will begin, after which we will hold a short intermission.

After the intermission, around 9:30 p.m., spotlight poet RebeccaLynn will take the stage for a short (unscored!) spotlight set. RebeccaLynn is a student, poet, and angry bartender. Her art primarily focuses on her own navigation through life as a queer black woman. While applying philosophical concepts her art, her goal is to question what we know through her poems, and wants others to do the same. Get your drinks before the spotlight, since our bartender will be on stage! After the spotlight, our second and third rounds will take the stage (and, yes, the bar will begin pouring once again).

After three previous slams in the last two months, already requiring four pieces to slam plus a brand new poem, you can expect hot competition, tense strategic moves, and the most finely-polished performance work of the slam season. The top five poets at the end of the evening (no ties accepted!) will comprise the 2017 Boston Poetry Slam Team.

This show in our weekly Wednesday series takes place at the Cantab Lounge, 738 Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge. Doors for the show open at 7:15. A SHORTENED open mic begins at 8:00 and the first round of the slam begins thereafter; a short break will follow with the final two rounds of the slam taking place around 9:30. The show is 18+ (ID required) and the cover charge is $5; proceeds will go toward funding the team’s trip to the National Poetry Slam this August.