Erotic Open Mic + Cuban and Henzbo!
Kristine stimulates the crowd, performing as “K Diddle”
On September 29, we had a rare Fifth Tuesday. We always try to do something different with it, so we took a vote and the people spoke: it would be an erotic open mic.
Then, a couple of days before the show, I got a call from Cuban, who was coming through the area on the return leg of his tour with Henzbo. Could they come through, he wanted to know? Absolutely!
And thus the seeds were sown for one of the best VerseWorks shows to date.
Now let me tell you: I have seen a number of erotic open mics/slams, and normally they are NOT my thing. It’s not that I’m prudish; usually they just turn into a gross-out session. But THIS one was great. We allowed one poem per poet, and each poet had to pick a new, sexy stage name. This meant that we got to guess who the poets were before they came up on stage: who is “Shay Rockaway”? who is calling him(or her)self “Passion Fruit”? I also think there’s something to be said for really knowing your fellow poets well. It’s more fun to see a poet you know and love take the stage under a new persona.
The open mic went on well into the night. We cheered and laughed and it was great. I think we’ll have to do this once a year or so.
Two of my favorite moments: Othello’s poem with Gina as his on-stage muse and Sonny Gee facilitating, and the first line of Kevin’s poem: “I am firm in my resolve, and my pants.” Hah!
Halfway through the open mic, we stopped to be treated to a hot feature by two of my favorite poets: Henzbo (of Bowling Green, and now Indianapolis) and Cuban (Duval, FL). These guys are full of energy, funny, just a great show. I felt bad that last time they came through we had a really small crowd. Not this time, though. The room was full, the energy was high, and our features loved it. They sold CDs and hung around for a while after the show. They later told me we were one of the best crowds they’ve dealt with.
All in all, a great night. Share your memories, words, or pics in the comments!
Posted: Oct 12, 03:20 PM by Chris McCormick Category: Shows
Tags for this article: erotic
Varty2197 · Mar 21, 11:07 PM
Very good, I really enjoyed it. Is there somewhere I can see more about it?