EVERY Wednesday: The Berkeley Slam
8:30 pm, $7/$5 with student ID, (poet sign up @ 7:30)
Starry Plough- 3101 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley
If you think you hate poetry, you haven't been to a slam!
Performance poetry is hybrid art form, half literary writing and half mixture of theatre, stand-up comedy, and dramatic monologue. Slam is a poetry competition (gasp!) that brings out some of the finest performance poets in the nation today.
Every week, we host internationally renown performance poets, an improvisational house band or DJ, and more! The Berkeley Slam is arguably the West Coast's best attended & beloved slam: we host 100-300 audience members every week at The Starry Plough! Find out why!
Watch as the finest performance poets and spoken word artists compete for cash, audience love, and a slot on Team Berkeley 2004- the top 4 poets of the season get a free trip to St. Louis for the annual national competition.
Top winners of each weekly slam accrue points and cash for their efforts. All poets are judged by 5 (random, lottery-picked) members of the audience! Anyone can sign up for a chance to read! (Poet sign ups are at 7:30, and slots fill up fast. Don't be late!)
The Berkeley Slam was voted Best of the East Bay!
"moving verse"- New York Times 3/3/03
features calendar:
October 8: Amalia Ortiz (TX)
October 15: Corbett Dean (AZ), The Slam's 5th birthday! Come celebrate!
October 22: TBA
October 29: Three Guys from Albany
November 5: The Berkeley Slam presents... Chicken Grease!
A hip-hop slam hosted by Nazelah Jamison (ex-Spearhead), Karen Ladson, & DJ Tek Neek. featuring: Nercity Blues
November 12: Blair from Detroit
November 19: Team Monterey 2003
November 26: TBA
December 3: The Berkeley Slam presents... Chicken Grease!
A hip-hop slam hosted by Nazelah Jamison (ex-Spearhead), Karen Ladson, & DJ Tek Neek. featuring: TBA
December 10: Sini Anderson (founder, Sister Spit)
December 17: TBA
December 24: an open mic (no slam) hosted by Charles Ellik
December 31: no Berkeley Slam!
Added by daniland on October 8, 2003