Cantab Recap For Wednesday, March 26th, 2025

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We had quite a Wednesday last week! Before I get into a brief recap, I wanted to acknowledge the passing of Jeff Taylor, a beloved poet in the local scene who we lost far, far too soon. His impact was wide-reached and he inspired several poets. We encourage you to check out The Garage Poets and his own personal work online to consider and pay respect to his legacy. There is a page set up for donations to Jeff’s family here.

Moving into the open mic, we had a few tributes to Jeff himself, including his longtime friend and collaborator Anna Geoffrey, and Zeke read a wonderful cover/tribute poem during the smoking section. Throughout the mic, there were several themes of tenderness. Jordan took us through a touching metaphor about mental health, and Ash and Kaitie D brought us wonderful new pieces. First timer (and waitlist warrior) Ayonna blew us away with a very unique, interactive performance about memory that had the audience repeating “a memory of a memory of a memory of a time” as a slow murmur/beat to her poem. Also, we got to wish Will Leonard a triumphant 1-year Cantabiversary!

The ✏️Line of the Wednesday✏️ goes to Kaitie D. with “The closed sign swung across our body like a warning”

The writing prompt for last week was: “Write about a person or a thing you’d like to see remembered in this world; write a spell or use your words to invoke someone or something into the room with you”

Now, our feature! Jelal Huyler told us his story in a series of exhilarating performances, effortlessly weaving through wordplay while making each word hit the audience exactly where they were supposed to. All the sudden we were in scenes from his childhood and his dissociation at once. He spoke directly to this audience about our shared dissociation due to both what causes revolution and revolution itself. Repeating mantras like “we won’t fall,” and “hip hop,” he encouraged us to let the poems wash over us. Unsurprisingly, we sold out of his new book, and the room left bustling with conversations about his work.

Tonight: we have an incredible feature!! Catherine Weiss is a poet and artist living in Western Massachusetts. Their poetry has been published or is forthcoming in BOMB, Tinderbox, DIAGRAM, Up the Staircase, Fugue, and Taco Bell Quarterly. Catherine is the author of three poetry collections, most recently Big Money Porno Mommy, from Game Over Books in 2025. More at catherineweiss.com.

See you then!

– Amy ✈️

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Cantab Recap For Wednesday, March 19th, 2025

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Hi Cantab! Our show is every Wednesday nearly without fail. How much more orderly can it get? Also every Wednesday, we hear strings of words in poems that no one has ever spoken before. How much more chaotic can it get? We saw both ends of the spectrum during our second-ever Chaos vs Order slam, which you’ll hear more about in a moment, but for now let’s remember what happened on our wonderful open mic!!

There was an undercurrent of rage going on this past Wednesday, including second-timer Casey’s impassioned poem on standing up for themselves and their community against oppressive politics, and first-timer Aidan, who made a great debut as well. In some orderly fashion, Isaiah gave us a choice between a poem on Fleabag or a poem on Survivor (we chose Fleabag). On the flip side, Cameron did an incredible poem that began with a minute-long Nicole Kidman impression, reciting her iconic AMC Theaters introduction, then transitioned into a piece about togetherness. Striking a similarly chaotic note, surprise visitor Christopher Clauss from Slam Free or Die debuted a new poem on horror movies and suspense, going slightly over time but serendipitously allowing the host at the time (me) to act herself into the poem, becoming the monster the suspenseful music was alluding to. The chaos cake was taken, however, by occasional open mic-er Rin Ramos, reprising their iconic comedic bars and one-liners, one of which being so iconic that the whole audience chimed in during the punchline of “CHUM BUCKET.”

The ✏️Line of the Wednesday ✏️ also goes to Rin, with “I can’t think of a rhyme, POET QUACKERY.” Our writing prompt of the week was simply to write about “sweet resistance / the next generation.”

Then, the Chaos vs Order slam. We began with a show-stopping sacrificial round of Kai vs TJ (literally, the lights went out!), and barreled right into the orderly chaos of it all. Team chaoes featuried a cheetah girls group piece, not one but TWO puppet pieces, a bee defying all laws… of gravity, a crowd walking classic, a suspicious series of Amazon packages, and a case of stolen identity. Order responded with heartbreaking contrapuntals (Logan’s was so beautiful that even after Amy (aka me) beat him by a nose, she gave him her wings–used in her piece–as a token of her appreciation for his art,) a ghazal about egg salad (who could’ve known we would gain such enlightenment about egg salad, while not even eating egg salad), and an incredible, genius, and vulnerable group piece about OCD with two team members droning compulsive thoughts behind the main reader (Myles Taylor). Lastly, Ed Wilkinson turned out to be an order team DOUBLE AGENT, going up for team order and reading a chaos poem (which backfired as he ended up sweeping the round for team order anyway, how chaotic of a result!). Nearly every round was decided by a single vote, and the winner was decided by a single round! The winner was … drumroll please….

TEAM CHAOS!!!!!!!! *chaotic celebratory horn noises*

That’s right, team chaos took the crown, meaning a total of one win for team order, and one for chaos in the record book. Who will break the tie next year? [Editor’s note: if we count the sacrifice round, each team won 4 rounds this past week, which seems pretty neat and orderly, so maybe the captain of the winning team who happens to be writing this recap should re-consider who actually won]

TONIGHT!!! Our feature is Jelal Huyler. Jelal Huyler is a biracial-Black poet (and devout lover of yamz) who does not condone linear time.

/ he is the author of the book of poems, A MAN WAS LYNCHED TODAY (GAME OVER BOOKS)

/ his voice and work have been included in the documentary “Cracking the Codes: The System of Racial Inequity, exploring race and restorative justice in the United States”

/ published individual works can be found in 580 Split, The Change Agent, Drunk in a Midnight Choir, Likely Red Press, & some other too and shit.

It’s not a show you want to miss!

See you then,

– Amy ✈️

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Cantab Recap For Wednesday, March 12th, 2025

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Hey Cantab! We had quite the open mic and quite the feature last week! The open mic featured very unique performances from several newcomers, including Autolycus performing a wonderful and hauntingly beautiful David Lynch cover. On the flip side, Edie reprised their classic poem that tells the story of a…. close-call interaction with Obama, and Jack did maybe his fourth or fifth performance of “Impulse Control Freak” while stating “this is not a rehearsal.” Kaitie D and Meg Ford also provided some notably stunning, emotional, and beautiful poems on the mic.

We also had a haiku slam! In a serendipitous victory, first-timer (ever!) Anna took it all home, with charming haiku on unifying topics like cheese. Ripley came in a close second with some half-improv’d haiku, and notably Shawn gave the audience two fantastic mustache-themed haiku (costume violation pending).

The ✏️Line of the Wednesday ✏️ is actually a simile of the Wednesday, with “cloistered like a colostomy bag” from Fiona.

Our feature was the great Kelsey Bigelow, who had us gasping in shock, and exclaiming things like “wow,” “beautiful,” and “Io-WHAT?!” during her set. Her poetry was powerful and touched on several complex and important aspects of mental health, including the body’s response to trauma, familial relationships, and breaking generational curses. Kelsey performed as if she cooked each phrase and made sure it was the exact right temperature. She then plated it, served it to the audience, and, in the beats between phrases, seemed to gauge exactly what type of food we should try next. It was a beautiful feature, resulting in a long line of folks waiting to buy her merch at the end.

We also are officially re-starting our weekly prompts on the mic! Last week’s prompt was:

“Lacuna” is an English word for a word in another language that has no direct translation in English. With this in mind, what is something you wish others understood about you, or a culture or community you belong to? This will be the basis of the prompt:

Think about the last time you remember feeling something you did not have the words to describe. Begin by writing into or around this personal “lacuna.” Be as abstract as you need to. Be cyclical. Can you end up where you started? If you get stuck, use your senses. Imagine art, imagery, sensations, you’ve encountered, that bring you back to the moment you felt what you wish to describe. Then inscribe. Or, write about how it feels to struggle against the indescribable. As you explore this space beyond the limits of language, can you invent your own to name your experience? Or find one in a language you don’t speak yet? If you can, or if you do, you’ve found the title of your poem. Enjoy your journey, and good luck! 

Tonight is the return of the CHAOS VS ORDER SLAM! Reigning champs Team Order will be throwing tightly-crafted form poems head-to-head against Team Chaos’ pieces, which will break the rules of slam, open mics, and maybe the laws of physics. Tune in to find out. The teams are FULL, but feel free to contact us if you’d like to be on a waitlist in case of drop-outs.

See you then!

– Amy ✈️

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Cantab Recap For Wednesday, March 5th, 2025

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Happy Wednesday, everyone! It is I, Amy, back after taking February off from recap-writing (thank you Michael and Zeke for doing such a wonderful job!). After an incredible team selection finals show two weeks ago, it was great to have everyone back for a regularly-extraordinary night at the Cantab!

We began the evening last week with a fabulous workshop from Brenda Echeverry on blackout poetry, complete with a huge assortment of materials and craft supplies for attendees to create their own masterpieces. It created such a welcoming environment for creativity!

Then, our fabulous open mic. Jack Chasse came back to the mic with the iconic black gloves and *bars*, and Erica Garcia, pulled from the waitlist, did a wonderfully structured poem about waiting… for the bus! We had several solid debuts from a handful of first timers like Dawn and Nikolai, while regulars like Kai Wallin performed a poem in the form of a Yelp review for their ex. Let’s just say it was a lower-than-3-stars rating, but a 5-star poem!

The ✏️Line of the Wednesday✏️ goes to Erica Garcia, with “The bus is a lie meant to keep me in the cold and in the dark”

Another aspect of this past Wednesday was the addition of a last-minute guest host! Several of our regular staff were out last week, so newly-selected 2025 Slam Team member Jennifer Martinez stepped in to host a section of the mic! Jenn showed off very impressive hosting skills and heroically led us through the middle of the open.

Our feature was Ephraim Nehemiah, who effortlessly and seamlessly wove through banter, stand-up, and of course POEMS during their feature. Their poetry was expertly performed, and Ephraim told us their story through poems about home and homelessness, experiences with racism, their relationship with God as they grew up, and finding yourself. The “holiness to whoreishness” pipeline references were particularly memorable. They also led the audience through a couple activities relating to embracing yourself, from a few collective deep breaths, to affirmations, to eventually encouraging the ENTIRE audience to name out loud one thing they like about themselves. It was a centering, beautiful feature.

TONIGHT!!! Tonight’s feature is Kelsey Bigelow! Kelsey Bigelow is a poet and speaker based in Des Moines. She spends her time working as a mental health poet, sharing this therapeutic tool with audiences of all ages across the world. She is the author of four poetry projects, including her latest book “Far From Broken.” Her work is published with several small presses and journals. Kelsey is a 2024 Pushcart Prize nominee, a 2023 Button Poetry Video Contest Finalist, and a 2023 Central Avenue Poetry Prize finalist. As a performer, Kelsey has worked with organizations such as The Mayo Clinic, NAMI, Planned Parenthood, and more. Videos of her work can be found on Button Poetry, Write About Now, Ghost Poetry Show, and elsewhere. She’s the founder of the Des Moines Poetry Workshop, the chair for the Iowa Poetry Association Poetry Slam, a teaching artist in the Des Moines community, a director for the BlackBerry Peach National Poetry Slam, and a founding member of the 2025 io-what poetry slam team.

See you then!

– Amy ✈️

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Cantab Recap For Wednesday, February 26th, 2025

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Michael: We did it, we survived team selection finals night! First of all, THANK YOU for showing up, because not only did we sell out as soon as we opened, but so many dedicated people waited upstairs to get in! Finals night may officially be too big for our basement dive bar! Our open mic was short and sweet, with an incredible pulse of anticipation. Let’s go to our tournament director Zeke Russell for the slam recap of our biggest night of the year.

Zeke: As much as I hyped this slam up, it was even better than advertised. 9 poets competed over three rounds and blew the doors off the building.

Hosting the show was the pride of Lowell, Massachusetts, Anthony Febo. His energy and excellence hyped the crowd up before a single poet hit the stage, and we were ready for poems.

The two runners up from our preliminary bouts honored the stage by performing in the sacrifice spots.

Kelsey Kessler gave us an encore of her haunting piece about Rosemary’s Baby and the challenge of living in certain kinds of bodies. The judges gave it a 23.8.

Isaiah brought us a poem that was not about Survivor but instead explored the interplay of rules, law, power and compassion. The judges gave it a 25.6…but after a 1 point time penalty (CURSE YOU LINEAR TIME) the result was a 24.6.

Brynna kicked off the slam proper with a poem exploring the perils of navigating whiteness. They got a big bump up from the two sacrifices with a 26.8.

Aparna’s first poem of the night was an examination of identity and erasure with a stunning and complex weaving metaphor that carried the poem. The judges were into it and awarded Aparna a 27.1.

Jarvis showed us the depth of his skill with an erasure of the executive orders targeting vulnerable citizens. This writer was impressed with the creativity and craft involved in this poem, the judges felt otherwise and gave the piece a 24.6

Next up was Logan with a touching poem about family, loss and what it is to know one’s self. The judges were apparently not in the same room as me and gave the poem a 23.8.

Amy gave us an elegantly constructed piece about siblings, art and identity. The judges responded with a 27.2.

Myles followed that up with their classic poem about gender myth and what it is to be a “Gender Fuck Angel.” The judges gave it a 28.0.

Katie’s first round offering was a tightly written piece about cancer, family and grief. The judges awarded it a 26.4.

Jenn was next with a raucous poem about love, capitalism and game shows. The judges chose love over money and gave the poem a 27.5.

Ilse closed out the first round with a fire cracker of a poem about identity, joy and finding oneself. The Judges were feeling it and gave a 28.5.

With only a one poem break Jen was back on the mic to kick off the second round with passionate devastating work about surviving trauma. The judges scored the poem a 28.3.

Brynna played with time and imagery in a piece about the changes in America in the last 8 years. The judges responded with a 26.7.

Logan’s second performance explored language, culture and heritage. The Judges chose to give it a 25.8.

Following that was Aparna with a stunning poem about colonialism and the nature of storytelling. The judges gave it a 28.5.

Next up in the second round was Myles with a poem about the beauty of work; the judges were paying a living wage and gave the poem a 29.1.

Ilse hit the stage next with their thoughts on progress, love, and a baby running in the apartment upstairs. The judges gave the poem a 28.4.

Katie lit up the stage with a stunning string of images about loss and love. The judges responded with a 27.6.

Jarvis poured joy all over the stage as they told us what they would do if the were the fortune giver. The poem earned a 28.2 from the judges.

Amy closed the second round with a poem about grief and the power of memories through the lense of Alex Trebek’s ghost, and the answer the judges gave: What is a 27.8?

The audience was on the edge of their seats and we finally got everyone waiting upstairs into the venue for the third round.

First up was Aparna with a fever dream of a piece about motherhood and mortality. The judges scored it a 28.8.

Ilse thundered onto the stage telling us about the poetry of romanticism. The poem was rich with language and emotion. The judges responded with a 29.5.

Myles’s final offering was a complex piece about masculinity, survival and what it truly means to be punk. The judges decided the poem was punk as fuck and gave it a 29.5.

Katie returned to the stage with the final installment in their ghost trilogy. It was a haunting, delicate performance that caused audible gasps from audience members. The judges gave the poem a 29.4.

Jen was next and told us a story of cataclysm, and survival. That earned them a score of 29.2.

Amy told us the story of the Chicago Rat Hole and the power of legacy. Amy’s final poem of the night scored a 28.1.

Jarvis wowed the audience, and this writer, with a classic piece about love and survival. The poem was scored a 29.4.

Brynna’s last poem wove a complicated tale of living through the things that are supposed to kill us. The judges scored the poem a 29.1.

Logan closed out the slam with a nuance and emotional piece about queerness and chosen family. The judges did their final work of the night giving it a 27.5.

After we mathed it out, our top five performers are now the 2025 Boston Poetry Slam team! The final results were:

  1. Myles Taylor – 86.6
  2. Ilse R – 86.4
  3. Jennifer Martinez – 85.0
  4. Aparna Paul – 84.4
  5. Kaitie Dilán – 83.4
  6. Amy Argentar 83.1
  7. Brynna Boyd 82.6
  8. Jarvis Subia 82.2
  9. Logan Lopez 77.1

Huge thanks to everyone who competed, judged or sacrificed, and to Febo for making the whole thing happen.

Michael: As a little bonus, everyone who participated in the slam was given an award, and the audience responded to each award with the chant of “Thank you [poet’s name], we see you poet” which was extremely heartwarming, and just what we all needed as Wednesday night stretched into Thursday morning. We are lucky to be able to share nights like these together as a community.

This Wednesday, our feature is Ephraim Nehemiah! Ephraim Nehemiah is a published writer, educator and award winning performance poet. Ephraim is the recipient of grants from PEN America, Gabrielle Bouliane Foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, and received fellowships from The Karamu House Performing Arts Theatre, Baldwin House Urban Writing Residency, and The Watering Hole Winter Retreat. Ephraim’s poems appear in various journals and publications such as Anxy Magazine, Flypaper, Lake Effect Anthology, UHURU Magazine, and Knights Library Magazine, where the poem “Jesus Christ Tries Talking to His Father Again” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Their performances have been featured on TEDx Talks, The Smithsonian Channel, The National Basketball Association, 2022 World Cup, AfroPunk, Season 1 of Snapchats Free Tuition, and various other channels. They are the 2020 Baltimore Grand Slam Champion, 2022 Southern Fried Poetry Champion and the 2023 recipient of the Peale Foundation Grit Fund for their work exploring Black Queer Artistry in Maryland. Ephraim is currently based out of Baltimore where they serve as a Teaching Artist. Their first full-length poetry book “The Autobiography of Absence” was published in 2021 with Twelve Arts Pres.

See you soon!

– MFG🚪& Zeke ⚾

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Cantab Recap For Wednesday, February 19th, 2025

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This past Wednesday at the Cantab brought both the highly political and the highly wacky! The open mic started off with Siraj’s anti-RFK Jr poem (and how it may have consequences for his job), David F’s free market critique, and newcomer Mazz’s gentrification poem with the call and response of “It’s time to leave.”

Then, things started getting wild. Danny Riordan brought us a poem in the voice of a turkey being picked by a couple, and framed it as a polyamorous (sorry, “birdsexual”) relationship, and then Cameron let all the wheels fall off by performing a piece about a lovelorn “silly little guy” entirely in a high-pitched, child-like/cartoonish voice. The whole room was in hysterics, and even Cameron couldn’t keep it together as Myles and Amy completely lost it in laughter. Edie then blew everything up with a poem of outlandish facts about himself, his family, and his hometown of Brockton. Who would guess that the front row was made up almost entirely of Brockton residents? What did Otto Vock think when they walked in as the poem ended with the logical-in-context line “Ronald Reagan helped me f%*k the police”? Who didn’t expect that Amy would read a poem a half hour later responding to Edie’s attacks on Chicago deep dish pizza? You never know what kind of ride you are getting on during the BPS open mic! And there was more going on that I haven’t even mentioned, like the welcomed returns of former regulars Lila and Stevie to the mic, and Siraj beating out Logan for the win in our monthly Haiku Slam.

Our feature was the Cantab/New England veteran and legend Mckendy Fils-Aimé! Mckendy brought us exciting new work from his upcoming 2026 book about Haitian superstition, generational trauma, and healing. After opening with an old favorite about growing up in Manchester, New Hampshire, highlights of the set included a pair of new poems that imitated the form of business documents to explore issues of identity, and some even-newer persona poems about the Haitian lougarou. Be sure to look out for Mckendy’s book next year, it’s been a long time coming!

This week…do we even have to promo this? It’s the FINALS OF TEAM SELECTION! This will be our biggest slam of the year, as our nine finalists will be going THREE rounds head-to-head to see which five will become the 2025 BPS Slam Team! Please note that due to this, this week’s open mic will be shortened, and the show will likely sell out early and often. We’ll be back to our extended open mic next week. Here are our nine finalists who will be battling it out:

Jennifer Martinez
Jarvis Subia
Kaitie Dilán
Logan Lopez
Ilse R
Brynna Boyd
Aparna Paul
Amy Argentar
Myles Taylor

See you there!

– MFG🚪

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Cantab Recap For Wednesday, February 12th, 2025

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Michael: It was another rowdy Wednesday at the Cantab this past week! On the open mic, TJ Jones read a POV-shifting / stop-starting correspondence poem that was dedicated to (2025 slam finalist) Logan Lopez. Cameron and Jack Chasse surprised with a wholesome (not a bad word!) group piece that highlighted both their musical/rhyming abilities as well as celebrating friendship. This recapper also immediately got a text from Amy Argentar (more on Amy’s poems later!) saying that the group piece was like the “the first person who invented peanut butter and jelly because at first you’re like ‘what?’ and then you’re like ‘oh OF COURSE’.” Also, shoutout to open mic-er Kyle who faked everyone out with their intro, “This is my first time….adjusting the mic.”

We couldn’t have a Valentine’s show recap without mentioning Kai’s beautiful haiku swap goodie bags that they made for everyone! Hope you all enjoy your Kai-kus. And now, here’s tournament director Zeke Russell with all the info on the big SLAM!

Zeke: Hey there Cantabbers. Here’s your recap for the 2nd of two preliminary bouts in the 2025 BPS team selection tournament. 

We had two blistering sacs kick off our night:

·        Alex brought us a tale of retail therapy, mania and self-awareness. The score was a 25.9.

·        Cameron destroyed the fabric of reality with a poem ostensibly about shoplifting and punishment which used the phrase “Ripe Tush” to incredible effect. It earned a 26.4 from the judges. 

·        Aparna Paul led off the slam proper with a Cantab Classic about family, identity and truth. The judges were starting to warm up a little and gave it a 28.5.

·        Amy followed with a discussion of the body and the concept of fullness. The judges handed out another 28.5 for Amy.

·        Brynna broke open the scores with a poem about whiteness, objectification and the Minnesota Freedom Fund. It earned a total score of 29.4.

·        Next up was Otto with an examination of what it is to be an educator in modern America. It earned a 27.6.

·        Katya followed up with an impassioned piece about grief and loss. The judges awarded a 27.3. 

·        Ilse told us about the relationship between time and love which earned the first 10 of the night and a sky high 29.5.

·        Myles Taylor slowed down the tempo with a poem about queer identity and survival getting a 28.8 from the judges.

·        Rene brought the audience some skilled wordplay and a poem about mortality and grief. The judges responded with a 27.3.

·        Isaiah closed out the first round with a meditation on the act of voting, safety and the perennial TV favorite, Survivor. The judges seemed to be Love Is Blind fans and gave it a 27.3

Our host Zee rolled right into round 2!

    • Only separated from their round 1 performance by 2 poets, Myles told us about surviving capitalism as a working person and the perils of the bird flu.
    • The judges gave the poem a 28.2. Amy’s second poem explored the nature and shape of both bodies and pain. The score was a 29.1
    • Aparna’s final poem of the bout was a complicated form poem about place, humanity and rivers. The triple threat earned a 28.2. 
    • Otto returned to the stage with a piece about what it is to remember and forget. The judges forgot about high scores and gave it a 26.2, a score this writer felt did not reflect the poem. 
    • Katya took the patriarchy and the academy to task with a complex alliterative work that…after a one point time penalty…*shakes fist at linear time*  scored a 26.9.
    • Brynna’s encore of the night was a meticulously constructed piece about identity and flight. It scored a 28.8.
    • Rene’s second poem about mortality and dreams earned the poet a 27.5.
    • Next up was Isaiah who returned to Jeff Prost’s magnum opus to tell us about the nature of survival itself. The judges scored that poem a 28.5.
    • Ilse closed out the show with a poem about family, queerness and self. The room and the judges were blown away. No need for math on this one as the poem got tens across the board for the rarely seen perfect 30 (really a 50 but who’s counting.)

After the smoke cleared the standings were (finalists in bold, runner up in italics invited to be the sacrificial poet for finals):

Ilse 59.5

Brynna 58.3

Amy 57.6

Myles 57.1

Aparna 56.7

Isaiah 55.6

Rene 54.8

Katya 54.0

Otto 53.9

Michael: This week, our feature is veteran Cantab/Slam Free or Die poet Mckendy Fils-Aimé! Mckendy is a New England based Haitian American poet, organizer, and educator. He has received fellowships from the Callaloo Writers Workshop, Cave Canem, The Watering Hole, and Periplus. Over the span of nearly two decades, Mckendy has competed in several regional and national poetry slams, often representing New England. Recently, Mckendy ranked 2nd overall at the 2024 Midwest Mashup Poetry Slam, 3rd at the 2024 NorthBeast Regional Poetry Slam, and 1st at the 2024 Vox Pop Regional Poetry Slam. Mckendy’s work has appeared or is forthcoming in Adroit, American Literary Review, Bellingham Review, The Rumpus, and elsewhere. His debut poetry collection will be published by YesYes Books in 2026.

See ya!

– MFG🚪& Zeke ⚾

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Cantab Recap For Wednesday, February 5th, 2025

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Michael: February is the hottest month in the world of the Boston Poetry Slam, and we had a very packed show and slam this past week! Before we get to our epic slam, our open mic did feature some amazing highlights, like Marissa’s sexy-and-fun piece revolving around rhymes for “ratatouille”, River’s showstopping “Poem In Which My Fake Dick Sets Off The Security Alarm In The Airport”, and Maura’s crab-themed crossword/poem which had them filling out the answers as they read the clues out loud. During the smoking section, Kat Anderson gave a middle-school themed fun fact about each staff member, asking the audience to predict who was coming up next, which lead to some surprising guesses. Now let’s pass it over to our tournament director (and retired all-star slammer) Zeke Russell, for the big slam recap!

Zeke: I have one word and that word is: SPORTS! We had the first of our two preliminary bouts in the 2025 team selection tournament last Wednesday. 9 poets competed and gave us two rounds of beauty, art and miles and miles of heart.

Our two sacrifices kicked off the show. Mary gave us an intricate metered piece about growing up a woman that scored a 25.1. (NO CONTEXT!) Edie followed with a blistering take on the serenity prayer and resisting the forces that want to destroy them garnering a 26.6.

The first round was a whirlwind of talent and emotion:

• Keaton told us about a Halloween party and what it means to live in a body which earned a 24.5
• Logan brought us a layered, carefully constructed poem about family and despair which got a 24.9. Neither of these first two poets was enough to clear the sacrifice’s scores.
• However, Jarvis hit the stage with an anthem about the power of names and blew the scores open with a 27.7.
• Kelsey followed up with a complex metaphor exploring language and inheritance. I guess the judges weren’t listening to the same poem I was because it scored a 24.2.
• Kaitie D gave us a haunting poem about generational loss and what it means to love, pulling a score of 26.9.
• Jennifer Martinez mesmerized the crowd with a discussion of urban myths and the strange power of mirrors getting a 27.5
• Will Leonard performed their classic poem about water and the worst things that can happen to a person for a 24.9
• March closed out the first round with an automated customer service voice exploring the failed American healthcare system and existential dread for a 24.4

We didn’t even get a breather before ploughing into the second round:

• Kaitie kicked it off with a piece that used repetition and humor to explore the concepts of loss, rebuilding, and American Jesus. The score was a 24.7
• Second in the round was March with a tale of unmasking and queer identity which earned a 26.0.
• That brought up the top scorer from the first round, Jarvis, who told us about the return of La virgen de Guadalupe visiting modern America. The score was 26.9.
• Will’s second poem was a complex and surreal treatise on sex, gender and the itsy-bitsy spider. It scored a 25.8.
• Logan excited the crowd with a fan favorite about trans identity and what it means to come out. The poem scored a 26 .7
• Jennifer won the crowd with an impassioned love letter to homesickness, survival and love. The judges responded with a 29.4, the highest score of the night.
• Kelsey told us the tale of Rosemary’s baby and the commodification of pain which scored a 27.0
• Keaton closed out our night with a brand-new poem about work and its effects on the psyche earning a 25.1

When the dust settled, we had four poets headed to finals on the 26th and they were:

Jennifer Martinez 56.9
Jarvis Subia 54.6
Kaitie Dilan 51.6
Logan Lopez 51.6
Kelsey Kessler 51.2
Will Leonard 50.7
March Penn 50.4
Keaton Howl 49.6

A huge thank you to everyone who performed and to all who listened and judged.

Michael: This Wednesday, we’re doing it again! Round 2 of our Team Selection Preliminaries Slam will feature the following poets:

Ilse R
Brynna Boyd
Isaiah Newman
Katya Zinn
Renee Ramos
Otto Vock
Aparna Paul
Amy Argentar
Myles Taylor

Be sure to be here early, as these shows sell out fast! Open mic is at 8 pm, slam starts around 10!

See you soon,

– MFG🚪& Zeke ⚾

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Cantab Recap For Wednesday, January 29th, 2025

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We had another sold-out show this past Wednesday, with an open mic that simultaneously showcased how well the fun and mournful side of poetry can co-exist…3 minutes apart from each other! Donovan and first-timer Elizabeth brought us poignant odes to their LA homes amidst the ongoing fires, Max opened the mic with a moving tribute to his late friend and coworker Butch, and Sue Savoy devastated with a poem about the seemingly unassuming things she has said to people, and what they actually meant. Hunter brought us an excellent piece on being a restaurant server that worked its message through customer-server dialogue alone, and we got to hear revisions/reprises of earlier work from Kaitie D, Kelsey, and Isaiah.

Kat started a hosting bit that included reading quotes from the reality show Jersey Shore before introducing the next reader, which led later hosts Briana and Brynna to delve into own reality TV knowledge, and drop some fire quotes of their own. Will there be a reality TV found poem on the mic in 2025? Stay tuned! At the end of the open, we had Season 3, Episode 1 of our monthly Haiku Slam series, which was won by the outrageous Gel, who edged out an extremely cute and meta haiku series by Kai.

Our feature was Caleb “The Negro Artist” Rainey who gave us a selection of nearly all-memorized poems to savor slowly. A poet with a real skill for writing and sculpting poems about race relations with no excess, Caleb let the content speak for itself while also letting us into the genesis of his writing process between pieces. Highlights included an interactive piece that resituated playing the party game Taboo as a poem, a piece his mother asked him to write about his own family, and work from his “Poem Potluck” series, where community members volunteer a set of words that must all be included in a new poem. Thank you Caleb!

THIS WEDNESDAY: We’ve entered one of the most fevered and exciting times of the year — TEAM SELECTION SEASON! Over the course of February we will be selecting our 2025 Boston Poetry Slam Team, with the first preliminary slam happening this week! 17 poets will be vying to make the 5-person team, and tonight’s slam will feature the following poets:

Kelsey Kessler
Kaitie Dilán
Jennifer Martinez
Will Leonard IV
Keaton Howl
Jarvis Subia
Logan Lopez
March Penn

Be sure to get here early this month as these shows often sell out fast! Open mic is at 8 pm, slam starts around 10!

See you soon,

– MFG 🚪

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Cantab Recap For Wednesday, January 22th, 2025

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Hi Cantab! Reporting to you live from… a Wednesday! Last week’s show was thrilling, both in the fresh poems on the open mic as well as the powerful last chance slam. On the open, Cam S did a beautiful poem about dragons that put a smile on everyone’s faces. Loc came back to the mic to do an insightful poem on what it means to rewrite history. Mary F did a series of short work with “no endings.” Maura wowed the crowd with her oxymorons poem, commenting on her experience viewing houses on the Cape. Hallie, the great writer that she is, wove humanity, Whole Foods, and aliens into one amazing poem. Erica did a BEAUTIFUL piece about a past love, and to close out the mic, newcomer Rafi hit us with a unique and expertly written dog poem. The words “dragon,” “beat/beet,” and “history” were curiously prevalent during the mic.

The ✏️Line of the Wednesday✏️ is a TIE between Erica and Cam S.

Cam: “There were never dragons, just beasts our mind couldn’t keep”

Erica: “A certain forever started that day”

Then came our LAST CHANCE SLAM where a final 8 poets competed for the last two spots to qualify to try out for the 2025 slam team. Those poets were Tru Kwene, TJ Jones, Katya Zinn, Jarvis, Kai, Mugs Myers, Jack Chasse, and Edie. TJ Jones hit the audience in the heart with a contemplative performance, Jack Chasse characteristically captivated the audience with the speed and agility of his words, Edie called us all to action and pushed us forward with their poetry, Kai brought us to tears with their God/Father poem, Mugs returned to slam after years away, and Tru Kwene (of Lizard Lounge and National Poety Slam fame) showed us what it truly means to perform with confidence, to say every word with distinction and weight, and, of course, what it means to FIGHT.

At the end of the evening, it was down to two. Jarvis hit us with “Stay with Me” in the second round – an incredible piece that famously scored a 30 at NorthBeast in 2024. Katya also pulled out an old reliable – a gut-wrenching, beautifully written poem about speaking directly to those who’ve harmed you, which won her an award at CUPSI years ago. It came down to the wire, but Katya Zinn (a member of our 2024 team) secured the victory!! Stay tuned for our epic team selection slams that are starting next month.

Before team selection though, we do have a Wednesday… TONIGHT! And we have a feature. Caleb “The Negro Artist” Rainey is an author, performer, and event producer. He has published two books, “Look, Black Boy” and “Heart Notes,” released two albums, produced a short film with The Brucemore titled “Willing to Grow,” and starred in a documentary titled “The Negro Artist.” In 2024 he was the recipient of the Iowa Author Award for Poetry. He is the winner of several slams across the United States, placed 7th in the 2023 UNESCO Slam-0-Vision global poetry slam, and curates a community of spoken word in Iowa City through his high school program, IC Speaks, and producing events like the Mic Check Poetry Fest.

See you then!

– Amy ✈️

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