22nd Annual Poetry Rodeo at Mercury Café May 6, 2011

Saddle Up for the 22nd Annual Poetry Rodeo’s
Round-up of Poetic Talent
Poetry lovers will sample a vast array of extraordinary poetic talent at this year’s Poetry Rodeo scheduled Friday & Saturday, May 6 & 7. The 22nd Annual Poetry Rodeo begins 6 p.m. on Friday and continues from 10 a.m. Saturday until 2 a.m. the next morning. Held at the Mercury Café, 2199 California Street, the annual round-up of area poets is free and open to the public.
Those around for the original “Podeos” will recall a full weekend crammed to capacity with poetry readings and other poetic activities. This year’s Poetry Rodeo will boast two days of near non-stop spoken word artistry from a diverse smorgasbord of poets, storytellers and poetry performers.
Poets in Performance
Poetry these days is no longer poets standing statically behind a podium. Poets now perform to music, collaborate in duos and trios, “slam” their poetry and/or devise other creative means of giving their words more ummph. That trend will be fully evidenced during this year’s Podeo.
Friday night will showcase a varied assortment of “Poets in Performance” as well as several storytellers. Saturday night will feature TVS & Two Fingers, a Fort Collins-based ensemble who specialize in using “sound art” to enhance their similes.
Their act will be followed by Art Compost & the All-Stars. Art Compost (aka Art Compost & the Word Mechanics) is a poetry-jazz combo which for more than 10 years has been backing up poets with improvised music. On Saturday they bring to the stage Ayinde Russell, Dee Galloway, Jared Smith, Lady Speech, Kit Muldoon, Bianca Mikahn, and Lenny Chernila – top-notch poets who have demonstrated a unique ability to combine words with music to bring poetry performance to new heights.
Poets & Non-poets Invited
The weekend kicks off with a salute to Denver poets passed-but-not-forgotten. Past poetic icons will have their words recited to the rhythms of a drumming ensemble. On Saturday morning non-poets are invited to read from the works of their favorite poets to the Mercury breakfast and lunch crowd. Poetry organizations such as the Lighthouse Writers, Columbine Poets and Art from Ashes will be on hand to showcase their members and offer information on their programs. Following these showcases, some of Denver’s top slam poets take the stage to warm-up the crowd for the evening festivities.
Both evenings will be capped by open mics in which anyone can sign-up. The poetry continues until the cows come home – or at least till they run out of metaphors. All activities are free and open to the public.
The Poetry Rodeo began in 1989 as an attempt to round-up poets of all stripes and colors from all along the Front Range for one weekend to share their love of the spoken word. Initially a 3-day event at the legendary Muddy’s Java Café, the Podeo moved to the Mercury Café after Muddy’s closed its doors. Continuing for 22 years, this is the first year in a decade the festival has expanded to two days.
For more information call 303-294-9281 or visit www.mercurycafe.com