Cantab Recap for Wednesday, October 12, 2016

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat Muggs Fogarty was in the house this week and blew. our. ever-lovin’. MINDS. In a feature that was fabulously worth the wait, Muggs settled into a rhythm early and brought us on a heavy journey through the darkness, only to shake us into the light at the end. What a lovely and thoughtful feature; huge thanks to Muggs for coming up from their home slam in Providence to share work with us. What a great night!

Finalized 8x8 standings for the fall championship scheduled for October 19, 2016.

Finalized 8×8 standings for the fall championship scheduled for October 19, 2016.

Our slam that night was hosted the the ever-excellent Tom Slavin, who paved the way for six poets to throw down for the final slam in the 8×8 series. The last round came down to John Pinkham and Adam Stone, both gunning for the win with big performances; bartender Adam took the win, the ten dollars, and the chance to challenge Jess Rizkallah at next week’s Champion of Champions slam.

But wait: that’s not all that’s on the docket for next week! Get ready to welcome 2013 NZ National champ (Yes, that’s NZ for NEW ZEALAND) Mohamed Hassan to a spotlight, followed up by our own National champ Marty McConnell coming to us from Chicago. It’s gonna be the biggest night of the fall, so get in the door early if you want to read, sit in a chair, or belly up to the bar!

Tips from the Bar: Did Someone Say Rhetorical?

Find a piece of media (song or poem, say) that asks a question. Answer it.

POSTPONED: Moonlighting: A Queer Open Mic and Reading Series RELAUNCH PARTY on October 13, 2016

POSTPONED POSTPONED POSTPONED POSTPONED POSTPONED

Due to staffing changes at Article 24, the Moonlighting show for tonight has been POSTPONED. But good news: the new staff at Article 24 is still quite enthusiastic about welcoming us to the venue, and we look forward to working with them! We expect to announce a new date for this show next week.

We thank you for your patience, and apologize for any convenience. We are impatient for Moonlighting to return and will keep you posted!

After a ten-month hiatus, we are exhilarated to announce that Moonlighting has returned! This reading is the RELAUNCH PARTY for our monthly LGBTA+ series, Moonlighting, now at a new location in Brighton. Click here for more information about the show.

The relaunch of Moonlighting will celebrate with a double feature! To be presented are Emannuel Oppong-Yeboah and April Penn.

This show in our monthly Thursday LGBTA+ series takes place at Article 24, 458 Western Ave. in the Brighton area of Boston. An open mic begins at approximately 7:00 p.m. and the headliners follow the open mic. The show is all-ages and a $3 donation is requested.

Cantab Feature for Wednesday, October 12, 2016: Muggs Fogarty

Providence poet Muggs Fogarty. Photo by Emma Glory.

Providence poet Muggs Fogarty. Photo by Emma Glory.

Muggs Fogarty is a current co-director of Providence Poetry Slam and the Director of ProvSlam Youth. A former Brave New Voices finalist, Muggs has represented Providence seven times respectively at National Poetry Slam, Women of The World Poetry Slam, and Individual World Poetry Slam. In 2015, Muggs became Providence’s GrandSlam Champion and was awarded full funding from the Rhode Island Council of the Arts Individual Project Grant. After graduating from The New School in 2013, Muggs has been working as a teaching artist with New Urban Arts, ¡CityArts!, and has coached multiple youth and collegiate slam teams. Their published work can be found in FreezeRay, Wicked Banshee, Bluestockings Magazine, and was recently anthologized in Glitter & Grit. Visit them at muggsfogarty.com.

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, October 5, 2016

What what what! Did you make it out to the Cantab last night to see our standing-room-only (barely) show featuring Neiel Israel, 2016 World Qualifier winner and Boston Poetry Slam IWPS rep in an extended play feature? If you didn’t know, now you know: Neiel Israel does NOT mess around. An hour of show full of your favorite work, a few new 30/30 pieces, and all her fresh-polished poems ready for the Individual World Poetry Slam next week in Flagstaff, Arizona, plus balloons, cake, and the first encore the Cantab stage has seen in some years: we know you got your $5 worth out of the dirty little basement last night. Watch this space for a link to follow Neiel’s scores next week, as well as some of your other favorite NorthBEASTers who are in the Arizona mix.

Meanwhile, though, I guess we can’t all go to the southwest for the week… So those of us staying home will enjoy the enviable treat of a feature from the excellent Muggs Fogarty! At last, at last, we have rescheduled Muggs from a blizzard-time cancellation months ago, and so it’s well past time for us to welcome them to the stage. Remember, next week is also the eighth slam in the 8×8 series, which means it’s your last chance to grab a spot to challenge Jess Rizkallah at the Champion of Champions slam on October 19. What a month!

Cantab Feature for Wednesday, October 5, 2016: Neiel Israel

Neiel Israel, 2016 World Qualifier Winner.

Neiel Israel, 2016 World Qualifier Winner.

Neiel Israel is an internationally acclaimed poet, vocalist, and arts educator who reports that her first time performing a poem on stage came at the Cantab Lounge. Emerging from UMass Boston with a B.A. in English, Neiel quickly distinguished herself as a powerful and lyrical poetic voice in the Boston slam scene. As an international teaching artist, Neiel leads workshops and classes in creative writing for schools, community programs, and colleges, and she is presently the America SCORES Boston Poet in Residence. She was a five-time member of the Lizard Lounge National Poetry Slam Team (2011-2015) as well as the Lizard Lounge Representative for (2011) Women of the World Poetry Slam.

This year, Neiel was the top scorer in the Boston Poetry Team Selection Slams, cementing her spot at the top of the 2016 BPS team. She then went on to take top honors in the two-night, six-poem World Qualifier series to earn herself a chance to represent the Boston Poetry Slam at the 2016 Individual World Poetry Slam in Flagstaff, Ariz. Tonight will be a final fundraising push to send Neiel to the tournament in the American southwest; it’s a $5 cover charge to see her special extended set with no poetry slam tonight.

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 an extended set at approximately 10:00. The show is 18+ (ID required) and the cover charge is $5.

Cantab Recap for Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Thanks to all the good folks who came out last night for a great open mic and a feature from the SlamMaster! The slam was an eight-poet knock-down drag-out brawl, getting down to Brandon Melendez and Marshall Gillson in the final round. Marshall redeemed his loss from last Wednesday with a big finish over Brandon, qualifying him for the October 19 Champion of Champions match as well as the 2017 Boston Poetry Slam Team selection slams, which start in January (maybe you’ve heard).

Next week: grab a sawbuck and a friend and settle in downstairs for an extended feature set from our 2016 Individual World Poetry Slam representative Neiel Israel! We’ll be celebrating her trip to Flagstaff with a double-length feature of all the work you’ve been dying to hear (and plenty that you haven’t yet). Don’t forget: it’s a special $5 cover for this no-doubt-unforgettable show.

Cantab Feature for Wednesday, September 28, 2016: Simone Beaubien

Simone Beaubien performing at the 2016 Grudge Match at ONCE Ballroom. Photo by Marshall Goff.

Simone Beaubien performing at the 2016 Grudge Match at ONCE Ballroom. Photo by Marshall Goff.

Simone Beaubien is the SlamMaster of the Boston Poetry Slam at the Cantab Lounge, a franchise player since 2001, and the kind of jerk who books herself for a feature just about once every six years or so. She has been published exactly nowhere and has no books to sell you, so save your money and buy bourbon for someone you love (hint: could be yourself) instead.

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, September 21, 2016

It was the most bittersweet night of nights at the Cantab yesterday, folks: the incomparable Manvir Singh delivered a deliciously performed, fabulously crafted series of personal and fantastical narratives, all powered by his characteristic lilting and seemingly limitless energy. Yes! We shall miss him greatly in his indefinite travels: fortunately, he can be kept up with remotely on Instagram and at manvir.org.

The slam that followed also had the flavor of a gloriously surreal dance party: six experienced slammers threw down to fight for the ten-dollar prize, with Emersonian Emily Taylor and House Slam rep Marshall Gillson taking it all the way to finals. Despite a huge performance from Marshall, Emily took the big win and qualifies for the BPS team for the first time ever/so far/check out the list of 2017 qualified poets here.

Next week: we’re back with the seventh open slam in the 8×8 series. Our feature will be the SlamMaster who writes these recaps, so we’ll keep the exclamation points to a minimum. Come see some poems get read if you are into that sort of thing.

Tips from the Bar: While You Were Out

While you are away, your pet (real or imagined) has an unlikely job. Describe it and whether your pet is good at it.