Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Celebrate National Poetry Month With A 7-Day Poetry Tour



April is National Poetry Month and if you are hungry for poetry in L.A. you can get your poetic appetite fulfilled every day of the week.


           On Friday, April 1st at the Poetic Research Bureau in LA a reading is scheduled with Lisa Fishman & Richard Meier, doors open at 7:00 PM and it is $5 to attend. One of the best places for poetry, Beyond Baroque in Venice has several events a week and what could be better than poetry by the sea? You can visit them on Saturday, April 2nd to see a reading from the Dirty Girls poetry anthology hosted by Rene Diedrich, followed by DOWN, DIRTY AND NEUROTIC at 7:00 PM, a mix of provocative humor & drama. Events held at Beyond Baroque are $7. Also on the 2nd, a free haiku workshop is offered at the Huntington Beach Central Library at 2:00 PM, in the Balboa Room. At 6:00 PM in the Grand Ballroom of the University Park Campus  Visions & Voices: The USC Arts and Humanities Initiative is putting on a free Asian American spoken word event as well, which will appeal to a wide audience and is possibly the most promising production of the evening.
 
            While there aren’t any open readings scheduled for Sunday, April 3rd, The Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades is a great choice to inspire the muse. At 1:00 PM they have a very intriguing event happening. Poet as Orpheus with Two Sirens, an examination of ancient art focusing on sculptures from 350-300 BC. To attend I recommend making your appointment early and remember to sign up 15 min. before the event takes place. While you are there, visit the Getty book store and pick up a book of poetry from their very impressive collection.

          Monday, April 4th there is a brand new open mike event at Weber’s Place Sports Bar & Grill in Reseda, hosted by Jason Brain, sign up starts at 6:30. This is a weekly event where readers can channel Poe with cocktail in hand and it's free. Tuesday, April 5th you have two events to choose from. The ever-faithful Cobalt Café on Sherman Way, held every Tuesday, is a staple and while it’s not the classiest place on Earth, the quality of talent that gravitates there is among the best I have experienced. This event is hosted by Rick Lupert author of Sinzibuckwud! and the cost to attend Cobalt readings is always minimal. Da Poetry Lounge, held every Tuesday at the Greenway Court Theater is located right next to Fairfax High at 544 N. Fairfax in LA. This is an excellent venue to experience the charms of spoken word. A grand choice, but come early because poets and readers are literally dying to enter the realm. It is $5 to attend this reading. 

         Wednesday, April 6th at 7:00 PM, The Flypoet Showcase at The Savoy is stellar & your best bet for poetry. Scheduled to perform is Ainsley Burrows, Bluz & Norton Wisdom painting live on stage! This event is held the 1st Wednesday of every month. While open readings can be hit or miss, this event features touring poets and music guaranteeing a cosmic experience. This event is $15 and worth every penny, you can come early and take advantage of $5 martinis unti 8:00 PM. Another choice on the 6th is the Beyond Baroque Poetry Workshop at 8:00 PM, a highly recommended event and it’s free. 

         On Thursday night, April 7th, Feral Fusion held at the Amsterdam Cafe of North hollywood owns the night with an exciting array of unique and eclectic spice. A weekly event infusing live music with poetry and may be the most exciting thing the valley has to offer the poetry community. This event begins at 8:00 PM. Also, every Thursday night at 7:00 PM, Jason Brain hosts the weekly Soapbox Sessions at the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in Encino by the carousel. This is a free event offering a twist to traditional open mikes, incorporating comedy, live musical acts and poetry. While the formula could use a rethinking, as poets may find it a rough transition following comedic acts, Jason does a great job. He is an enthusiastic, humble and talented host, very connected to the poetry community.


       So, whether you are strapped for cash or have a crunching schedule, poetry is not dead. You can find the pulse of poetry in LA too, if you seek it. 

       If you plan to perform at any of these events, I recommend arriving 30 minutes before the event begins for sign up. To view the full schedule of events and for more detailed information visit my blog: Edgar & Lenore's Publishing House.



~Apryl Skies
Sherman Oaks Poetry Examiner

A 7 Day Poetry Tour For April: National Poetry Month

This is the Full schedule of the best events happening  the first week of April to celebrate National Poetry Month. Make sure if you plan to perform for open mike events I recommend arriving 30 minutes early. 

[*Also an exciting tip: If you sign up to be added to  Soapbox Sessions email list Jason offers the first few people who respond to his Thursday Morning email a guaranteed time slot on the bill. It's almost like being a part of an exclusive club :)]

Friday April 1st – 7:00 PM
The PRB @ The Public School
951 Chung King Rd.
Los Angeles, CA
$5

Saturday April 2nd – 2:00PM
Check their website for further details
681 Venice Blvd.
Venice, CA 90291
Ph: 310-822-3006
email:
info@beyondbaroque.org
$5-7

Saturday April 2nd – 6:00PM
The USC Arts and Humanities Initiative
University Park Campus
Grand Ballroom
837 Downey Way
Stonier Hall 203
Los Angeles, CA 90089-1142
$Free

Saturday April 2nd – 6:00PM
Huntington Beach Central Library
Haiku Workshop
7111 Talbert Avenue 
Huntington Beach, CA
$Free
Sunday- April 3rd – 7:30 PM
The Getty Center
17985 Pacific Coast Highway
Pacific Palisades, California 90272

Monday- April 4th - 6:30  PM
19312 Vanowen Street
Reseda, CA 91335
Ph: 818-343-4345
Free

Tuesday: April  5th - 9PM – 12AM
Da Poetry Lounge
Greenway Court Theater right next to Fairfax High
544 N. Fairfax
Los Angeles, CA
 $5

Tuesday: April 5th - 8:30PM
 22047 Sherman Way
Canoga Park CA
818-348-3789
$The price of a beverage or refreshment

Wednesday:  April 6th - 8:00 PM
681 Venice Blvd.
Venice, CA 90291
Ph: 310-822-3006
email:
info@beyondbaroque.org
$Free

Wednesday April 6th – 7:00 PM
at The Savoy
214 S. La Brea @ Manchester
Inglewood, CA 90301
$15

Thursday April 7th – 7:00
@ The Coffee Bean & Tea leaf
16101 Ventura Blvd
Encino, CA 91316
(818) 386-0935
$Free

Thursday April 7th - 8:00 PM

Feral Fusion
10905 Magnolia Blvd
North Hollywood, CA 91601-3904
818-506-1938
$Free


Wednesday, March 23, 2011

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Friday, March 11, 2011

Featured Poet Gloria J. Wimberley Of South Florida

Featured Poet Gloria J. Wimberley of South Florida



Reading Gloria J. Wimberley’s poetry is like taking a multi-vitamin for the senses. Her unique pairing of words is playful, honest and wise, a combination unmatched by many contemporary poets. While her work is thought provoking and sometimes emblematic, it is never intangible. In addition, Wimberley’s whimsical moniker seems suitable as her words have the ability to engage the readers leaving them wanting more to discover. Suffering from a paralyzing shyness as a young child, Gloria found solace in writing poetry. Gloria is clearly a natural born writer who finds her muse through dream recall and long winter walks among other inspirations.  

‘Originally from the woodsy warmth of a small town in the northern panhandle of West Virginia, Gloria J. Wimberley now lives with her husband and two daughters in South Florida where the eyeshine of gators and sky-blue "plumage" of plumbago are plentiful.’ When she is not writing or reading she enjoys spending time with her family & submerging herself in the simple pleasures of gardening…preferably without the intrusion of scream-worthy “monsters” such as camel-backed crickets and palmetto bugs. Gloria J. Wimberley now teaches at Broward College in Ft. Lauderdale, which she considers a “soul-soothing gift”. While Gloria prefers poetry as her primary writing medium she is known to write prose when inspired.
~By Edgar Allan Poet.com


Perennial: To the Pilgrim from the Gypsy

Our stony impasses
through the years
have been grown over
with fernfingers
stretching greenly
towards some apex...
Still-life pulsing
our conversations over coffee
are muskrose moments
flashing white
like a bulb
of lillies
ready to settle
into the warm darkness
of the soil
Our words creep
shadeward
but do not shun 
the cleansing slant of light
that flashes in the pan-tomime
of my flowering smile

Gloria J. Wimbereley © 2011



 Thorna Eldritch: Shadow of a Self-Portrait

The sky burns azure
the breeze breathes brisk
wish this warlock
weather
would whisk-whisk-whisk
me away
from the everyday
tsk tsk tsk
and the twin doppelgangers
of pain and risk
(they see with cloudy-eyed clarity)
~~     ~~     ~~     ~~     ~~     ~~
If only his member
were an obelisk
to which she could pray...
ejecta to wash
the reaching
tree-arms away
...from her snowpure
sepulchered
canvas
 
Gloria J.Wimbereley © 2011
 
To view more from this writer, her work can be found in Muse Cafe Quarterly, The Northern Virginia Review, Mothering Magazine,  Moondance Magazine, Literary Mama, Tapestry, Bolts of Silk, Sparkbright Magazine, Pink Mouse Pub, The Southern Ocean Review, Clockwise Cat, and on her blog, Dahlias.&.a.Chocolate.Typewriter.