Tuesday, October 26, 2010

The Inspired Word's Shimmying the Spoken Word with Sugar Shack Burlesque - Thursday, Nov. 11!




The Inspired Word Presents "Shimmying the Spoken Word with Sugar Shack Burlesque," featuring original work from some of New York City's most original performers - burlesque superstars such as Dr. Lucky, Darlinda Just Darlinda, Tigger!, Bunny Love, James Habacker, The Incredible Edible Akynos, Nasty Canasta, RunAround Sue, Cherry Pitz, Scooter Pie, Clams Casino, and Mary Cyn.

You've seen them bare their souls in dance, now listen to their spirit in words.

A spoken word poetry event unafraid to push the envelope!

There will also be a 5-slot open mic (open not only to poets and spoken word artists but fiction/nonfiction writers, comedians, monologists, singers, and musicians).

What: Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word NYC spoken word poetry event

When: Thursday, Nov. 11, 2010

Where: (Le) Poisson Rouge (downstairs Gallery Bar)
158 Bleecker Street (between Thompson and Sullivan)
Manhattan, New York City
http://www.lepoissonrouge.com/Phone:

Time: 7:00pm

Cover Charge: $10

Must be 21 years of age or older. Please make sure to bring ID.

**In collaboration wth Sugar Shack Burlesque**


http://www.sugarshackburlesque.com/

*****

Performer Bios:

"The Godfather of Boylesque" & "The Original King of Boylesque" JAMES TIGGER! FERGUSON is a Stripperformance Artist/Actor/Dancer who has performed in New York & abroad for 22 years. A Pioneer in the 90s burlesque revival who has been stripping for over 18 years. Won the 1st-ever Mr. Exotic World title (Best Boylesque) at Burlesque Hall of Fame in Las Vegas 2006. Won 5 Golden Pastie Awards, including "Most Likely to Get Shut Down by the Law" & "Most Unpredictable Performer." Named the Top Male Burlesque Performer of 2009 in an international online poll. Called "the Boylesque King...a heart-pounding climax" by LA Weekly, "hysterical and acrobatic"..."waspish élan" by The New York Times, "disturbing, funny and oddly riveting all at once" by Vancouver Sun, "delightful...simultaneously hilarious and titillating" by TheaterMania, "the taboo-defying dynamo" by NEXT Magazine. He has acted in Shakespeare, Apollinaire, Wedekind, Horváth, Williams and numerous original works with Taylor Mac, Julie Atlas Muz & other geniuses. Recently performed in: Denmark, Cyprus, England, Hungary, Netherlands, Sweden, Portugal, France, Vancouver, Toronto, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Chicago, Minneapolis, Key West, Richmond, DC, Sag Harbor & Provincetown.www.facebook.com/TiggerJames

MISS MARY CYN is a classically trained actor with a BFA from NYU who takes her clothes off in bars. In the world of burlesque she is known for extreme geekiness and epic debauchery. As a writer she is building a name for herself through her heartfelt prose, deeply personal stories, and hot sex scenes. She has three blogs and is currently writing a novel about two people who fall in love and probably shouldn't. Look her up on facebook under her muggle name, Alithea Howes.












Called "a burlesque queen" by the New York Times, “spectacular” on the New York Post’s Page Six and an “NYC Culturemaker” by Time Out New York, CLAMS CASINO is a nationally recognized producer and one of New York's favorite stars of the bump 'n' grind. She has brought her unique mix of sexy hilarity and curvaceous glam to a wide variety of stages across New York City, and to Las Vegas, Boston, Washington DC, Key West, Atlanta, Toronto and many more cities around the country! In summer 2008 Clams was the winner of two coveted trophies, for “Most Innovative” and “Most Comedic” at the Miss Exotic World Pageant, sponsored by the Burlesque Hall of Fame. She is also a Golden Pastie Award winner at the New York Burlesque Festival. Clams has a BFA in Playwriting from Ohio University.






Internationally-renowned artstar (and reigning Cheese Queen of Coney Island) NASTY CANASTA is frequently hailed as a genius of the neo-burlesque scene. A "burlesque queen" (The NY Times), 2nd Runner Up at the 2010 Miss Exotic World Pageant, and "Brooklyn's greatest burlesque star" (The Brooklyn Paper), Nasty is the co-producer of Pinchbottom ("Best Burlesque in NYC" - NY Magazine, "Most Innovative" - Burlesque Hall of Fame) and the impresario behind Sweet & Nasty Burlesque. In another life she was the creator of Man Of Infinite Desire, a one-person show based on the Faust legends, and the co-author of Wuthering Heights, an 80's teen-movie version of Charlotte Bronte's Wuthering Heights.








DARLINDA JUST DARLINDA, a "Mastermind of Bizarre Extravaganza" as coined by the Village Voice, has been working as a Burlesque Performer and Producer locally (NYC) and nationally since 2003. She's crossed over into performance art with her year long "life as art" projects, “The Year in Rainbow” and most recently "The Year in Dance" www.yearindance.com. In February 2007 Darlinda was honored to perform with Julie Atlas Muz at PS122 in The Divine Comedy of an Exquisite Corpse. In October of 2007 Darlinda participated in the Feminist Neo Burlesque Symposium at The Central School of Speech and Drama at the University of London.In October 2009 Darlinda participated in Taylor Mac’s The Lily’s Revenge as The Bride Love. Darlinda is one half of the Burlesque duo The Schlep Sisters, co producing such shows as Menorah Horah and The Burning Bush vs.The Second Coming. Darlinda is a current faculty member at the New York School of Burlesque.Darlinda is also a proud co-producer and member of the national touring group The Dangerous Curves Ahead: Burlesque on the Go-Go.Darlinda was proud to play Upscale Whore #1 on HBO's Boardwald Empire. She is also the proud winner of the Liz Renay look-a-like contest and the recipient of the 2009 Golden Pastie Awards for The Biggest Hair and Most Innovative and Creative!http://www.darlindajustdarlinda.com/ USA Today says “It’s hard to top Darlinda."


BUNNY LOVE has been part of NYC downtown performance scene for almost 20 years. As an actress, dancer, singer/songwriter, she is well known as an international Burlesque Star and Performance Artist. She is also a film maker who has produced 5 shorts, which have played at such notable festival as Slamdance, The NY Underground Film Festival, The Florida Short Film Festival and The Coney Island Film Festival. Always excited to venture into new areas of performance, she is looking forward to sharing her work in this spoken word show.










DR. LUCKY is a seasoned performer, writer and educator. For over a decade, Lucky has carved a space for herself with her unique comedic timing and over-the-top theatricality. Hailed a "Burlesque Expert" by NY1 and a "big, bad, bold drag queen" by Bust magazine, she has been featured on NPR's Morning Edition (twice), Time, Washington Post, The Toronto Star, and many others. Though a huge fan of hyperbole, the prefix to her name is the one "real" thing about her: she is the premiere burlesque performer in the world with a PhD. Since 2005, she has taught unsuspecting drama students at New York University how to twirl tassels and think critically about burlesque. She is also a faculty member at the New York School of Burlesque and has taught burlesque courses at BurlyCon, Burlesque Hall of Fame, CUNY, Toronto Burlesque Festival, Movement Research, among others. She co-hosts Legend Night at the Burlesque Hall of Fame (2008-2010), headlined the Toronto Burlesque Festival (2009-2010), and has performed at all eight New York Burlesque Festivals. She's presenting the WORLD PREMIERE of an EXCERPT from the biography she's been working on for the last three years - on DIXIE EVANS, the Marilyn Monroe of Burlesque. www.myspace.com/drlucky, www.facebook.com/doctorlucky, or www.youtube/doctorofburlesque.

SCOOTER PIE (with co-producer Runaround Sue) makes NYC dance with her at the weekly burlesque show-party "Shaken & Stirred", and brings "SPAM: Scooter Pie at Midnight" to Albany every month. Sometimes you can also see her naked-ish in other places.







Often called "The Moving Violation" and "The Make it Happen Girl", RUNAROUND SUE currently produces and performs regularly in NYC, Brooklyn, Massachusetts, Virginia, and Washington DC. She has had the honor of performing at the New York Burlesque Festival, Slipper Room, Starshine Burlesque, Sweet and Nasty Burlesque, The Jalopy Music School, Ars Nova, Galapagos, Public Assembly, The Living Theatre, The Palace of Wonders, and many other enchanting venues on both coasts and on both sides of the Mason Dixon line. Miss Sue has a background in performance and first appeared on the stage in a mother's day play presented by her kindergarten class. She played the little girl. She also spent many years developing the runaround part of herself through long and varied road trips during which she would say things like, "Can we stop by Memphis today?" and "How about we head North?" Eventually, she hightailed it to the big city where her sense of southern hospitality soothes many a broken heart.


THE INCREDIBLE EDIBLE AKYNOS is a New York City burlesque performer who's also acted, produced, written articles, and done choreography.

CYNDI FREEMAN is an actress and playwright. She also performs burlesque as Cherry Pitz and produces Hotsy Totsy Burlesque with co-producer Joe the Shark. As a story teller she co-produces The Standard Issues story telling show in Brooklyn with her husband Brad Lawrence and performs at story t elling shows throughout New York, including The Liar Show, Stripped Stories, True Tales of College. A Moth Grand Slam winner she teaches story telling with the Moth Outreach program. Currently she is developing a solo show entitled Wonder Woman: A how to Guide for Little Jewish Girls. She resides in NYC.



JAMES HABACKER is the artistic director of the Slipper Room and creator of such infamous characters as Mel Frye, GoGoat Boy, and Chester Mackeral. He conceived the idea for the Slipper Room, the hotbed of burlesque in New York City, while he was running his successful dance club, Plush, in the Meat-packing District. As a child he often put on his own elaborate shows using kids from around the neighborhood. Not very interested in the theater options that were available to him, he spent most of his youth concentrating on visual art, limiting his performance to fronting a series of bands. While getting his MFA in visual art at Bennington College, he began to develop his performance style, bringing together his varied interests from dada to vaudeville. He performed his routines at Bennington and various bars in the East Village. After getting his degree and opening his first club, he began hosting performance parties in Plush’s upstairs lounge. In the early nineties, the Meat-packing was still an edgy part of town, but in 1999, as the stench of meat was replaced by the stench of gentrification, he opened his new theatre, The Slipper Room, on the Lower East Side.


www.cafepress.com/ssburlesque
www.sugarshackburlesque.com
http://sugarshackburlesque.blogspot.com

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Sunday, October 24, 2010

Brian Dykstra, angela kaRIOTis, Jennifer Blowdryer Headline The Inspired Word Oct. 28!




Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word NYC poetry/spoken word event featuring the dazzling lineup of writer/spoken word veteran Jennifer Blowdryer, HBO Def Poetry star Brian Dykstra, and performance artist angela kaRIOTis. PLUS - a 12-slot open mic (open not only to poets and spoken word artists but fiction/nonfiction writers, comedians, monologists, singers, and musicians).

When: Thursday, Oct. 28, 2010

Where: One and One Bar and Restaurant (downstairs Nexus Lounge)
76 East 1st Street (corner of 1st Avenue)
Manhattan, NYC
http://www.oneandoneny.com/Phone: (212) 598-9126

Time: 7:30pm

Cover Charge: $10

Must be 21 years of age or older. Please make sure to bring ID.

*****

Bios:

Jennifer Blowdryer got her dumb name from a punk band she sang for as a kid, The Blowdryers, in San Francisco, y'all. She has a few books out that are available at wildly varying prices on Amazon, ABE, and Alibris, and is currently working on a documentary, The 86ed Project, and a book called The Bitches Guide to the Lower East Side. blog.jenniferblowdryer.com



Brian Dykstra is a poet, playwright, and actor. He is probably the only person to have appeared on an episode of Chappelle's Show and HBO Def Poetry in the same season. Currently he's gearing up for S.W.A.P. '10 with the S.W.A.P. Poets for their December dates at The Tank, and his one-man Xmas show for adults, called HO! at 79th street Theatre Lab - Now called The Drilling Company Theatre. Those two shows are going up at about the same time, so if he has to be at two places at once, he'll burn that bridge just before crossing it. He's writing a play about the failure of Education in this country and how artistic expression in students is suppressed called "Education" while also writing a hip hop play about how easy it is to sell out called "The Tyranny of Clarity." He's just back from playing Ellyot Chase in Private Lives.



A lithe and vital writer-performer, angela kaRIOTis possesses the raw energy to light up a small city. But it’s her sly and engaging use of language that makes her work memorable in dynamic performances that are serious and seriously funny. Her first solo show, REMINISCENCE OF THE GHETTO & OTHER THINGS THAT RAIZED ME was described as “Inspiring, enlightening, funny, heart-breaking and boundry-breaking” by NYTheatre.com. Angela has brought her unique performance style across America to venues such as The University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA-Live), Contact Theater in Manchester, UK, Legion Arts in Iowa and the Hip Hop Theater Festival. Winning a National Performance Network Creation Fund Award, she created her newest solo show, STRETCH MARKS: remix a fetal heartbeat and bust an amniotic flow. STRETCH MARKS is playing in New York City in November 2010. For artist info and video visit http://www.angelakariotis.com/




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Friday, October 22, 2010

Faulkner's Legendary Nobel Prize Speech - A Must-Read for ALL Writers



William Faulkner's speech at the Nobel Banquet at the City Hall in Stockholm, December 10, 1950:

I feel that this award was not made to me as a man, but to my work - a life's work in the agony and sweat of the human spirit, not for glory and least of all for profit, but to create out of the materials of the human spirit something which did not exist before. So this award is only mine in trust. It will not be difficult to find a dedication for the money part of it commensurate with the purpose and significance of its origin. But I would like to do the same with the acclaim too, by using this moment as a pinnacle from which I might be listened to by the young men and women already dedicated to the same anguish and travail, among whom is already that one who will some day stand here where I am standing.

Our tragedy today is a general and universal physical fear so long sustained by now that we can even bear it. There are no longer problems of the spirit. There is only the question: When will I be blown up? Because of this, the young man or woman writing today has forgotten the problems of the human heart in conflict with itself which alone can make good writing because only that is worth writing about, worth the agony and the sweat.

He must learn them again. He must teach himself that the basest of all things is to be afraid; and, teaching himself that, forget it forever, leaving no room in his workshop for anything but the old verities and truths of the heart, the old universal truths lacking which any story is ephemeral and doomed - love and honor and pity and pride and compassion and sacrifice. Until he does so, he labors under a curse. He writes not of love but of lust, of defeats in which nobody loses anything of value, of victories without hope and, worst of all, without pity or compassion. His griefs grieve on no universal bones, leaving no scars. He writes not of the heart but of the glands.

Until he relearns these things, he will write as though he stood among and watched the end of man. I decline to accept the end of man. It is easy enough to say that man is immortal simply because he will endure: that when the last dingdong of doom has clanged and faded from the last worthless rock hanging tideless in the last red and dying evening, that even then there will still be one more sound: that of his puny inexhaustible voice, still talking. I refuse to accept this. I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance. The poet's, the writer's, duty is to write about these things. It is his privilege to help man endure by lifting his heart, by reminding him of the courage and honor and hope and pride and compassion and pity and sacrifice which have been the glory of his past. The poet's voice need not merely be the record of man, it can be one of the props, the pillars to help him endure and prevail.



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Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Poetry Inspired By Life’s Most Treasured Moments



Carol Calkins started writing poetry after a close friend passed away earlier this year. She never knew that poetry was her gift until the words began flowing from her effortlessly. The passing of a friend left Carol with a gift that she is now sharing with the world.

Her first poem which was inspired by the loss of her friend is listed below:

We Said Goodbye a Thousand Times
Don’t be sad about my parting
Don’t feel like you never said goodbye
For you and I both know deep in our hearts
That We Said Goodbye a Thousand Times
And shared so much love and joy every day

Be happy that I am now at peace
Be joyful that I have lived a wonderful life
Be happy that we have shared so much together

And remember I am always with you in a thought and a sigh
Every day when you see the beauty in nature think of me
Every day when you see the colorful flowers think of me
Every day when you see a frisky animal prancing around think of me
Every day when you look into the eyes of someone you love think of me

And know beyond a doubt that I am with you in everything you do
And know beyond a doubt that I am with you in everything you say
And know beyond a doubt that I am with you in every quiet moment of your life

Don’t be sad about my parting
Don’t feel like you never said goodbye
For you and I both know deep in our hearts
That We Said Goodbye a Thousand Times
And shared so much love and joy every day


After this first poem came through Carol, she began seeing poetry in every aspect of life, from new beginnings, to the special people and moments in life, to precious endings. In nine months Carol has written over 400 poems and has compiled her first book, Bring Poetry to Life, which is being released on Amazon on Wednesday, October 20th.

Whether we write poetry ourselves or just love the messages they teach us, we can all relate to the beauty that it invokes in our lives.

Grab a copy of Carol’s new book today, and pick up an extra copy for a friend and receive free shipping.

To find out more about Carol’s new book and to purchase your copy visit www.bringpoetrytolife.com


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Monday, October 18, 2010

Poets Gemineye, Lea C. Deschenes, Victor D. Infante @ The Inspired Word - Oct. 21




Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word NYC spoken word poetry event featuring poets/spoken word artists Gemineye, Lea C. Deschenes, and Victor D. Infante. In addition, there's a 10-slot open mic (open not only to poets and spoken word artists but fiction/nonfiction writers, comedians, monologists, singers, and musicians).

When: Thursday, Oct. 21, 2010

Where: One and One Bar and Restaurant (downstairs Nexus Lounge)
76 East 1st Street (corner of 1st Avenue)
Manhattan, NYC
http://www.oneandoneny.com/
Phone: (212) 598-9126
Time: 7:00pm

Cover Charge: $10

Must be 21 years of age or older. Please make sure to bring ID.

*****

Gemineye is an artist of the spoken word who can best be defined by his energetic, sharp, down to earth, in your face style of writing and performing. He appeared on three seasons of the HBO series Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry. Gemineye has traveled across the US performing for thousands of people. He has published his material in book and also on two of his own CD's and as part of two other compilation CD's. Gemineye began performing his art in 2001 after relocating to New Jersey where he still resides. During his time in NJ, Gemineye has been a member of the NJ National Poetry Slam Team 4 times, and NJ Grand Slam Champion 3 times. In addition to writing and performing, Gemineye has maintained a career as an administrator in higher education where presently he serves as Associate Dean of Students at a close by University.



Victor D. Infante is the author of "City of Insomnia" from Write Bloody Publishing. His poems and prose have appeared in numerous publications, including recently in Chiron Review, The Nervous Breakdown, Dark Horizons, Pearl and the Los Angeles Review, as well as anthologies such as Poetry Slam: The Competitive Art of Performance Poetry, Spoken Word Revolution Redux and The Last American Valentine: Poems to Seduce and Destroy. He was, until recently, the editor-in-chief of the acclaimed online literary journal, "The November 3rd Club."



Lea C. Deschenes resides in Worcester, MA and holds an MFA in Poetry from New England College. Her poetry has appeared online, on stage and in print. A former member of four National Poetry Slam teams and a coach to two more, she also dusts off her BA in Theater to perform. She has received a Jacob Knight Award, been nominated for two Pushcart Prizes and represented Worcester in the 2005 Individual World Poetry Slam. Her first full-length collection, "The Constant Velocity of Trains," is available from Write Bloody Publishing.



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Monday, October 11, 2010

The Inspired Word's (Le) Poisson Rouge Night - Thursday, Oct. 14!



Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word NYC poetry/spoken word event, featuring one-woman-show sensation Erica Bradshaw, Inspired Word "American Idol" contest winner Glennwood Urbz, and the angelic sound of singer/songwriter/musician Jenna Maranga. Also, a 12-slot open mic (open not only to poets and spoken word artists but also to comedians, storytellers, singers, and musicians).

*****

When: Thursday, Oct. 14, 2010

Where: (Le) Poisson Rouge (downstairs Gallery Bar)
158 Bleecker Street (between Sullivan and Thompson)
Manhattan, NYC

Time: 7pm (open mic sign-up starts at 6:30)

Cover Charge: $7 before 7:30, $10 after 7:30

Must be 21 years of age or older. Please make sure to bring ID.

*****

Erica Bradshaw is a professional Actor and emerging Playwright. She began her professional acting career in the world-premiere Off-Broadway production of Arthur Millers’, Mr. Peters Connections, starring Peter Falk, at Signature Theatre, NYC. She worked in various New York theatres until departing for Los Angeles in 1999 where she was a founding member of, ‘Bitches Funny’, an all female sketch comedy group opening for such acts as Andrew Dice Clay and Eddie Griffin at The Comedy Store and Masquers Cabaret. While in Los Angeles Erica performed in several productions including, Antigone. Tertiary. Sexxx (2001 LA Weekly Award Nominee Best Comedy Direction) and The Exonerated, (Nominated for five Ovation awards 2002). Moving to New York in 2005, Erica immediately landed a Court Clerk role on Law and Order: SVU, it was slated to be a one day day-player role and has parlayed into a five year recurring role on the hit television series. In 2009, Erica worked on ‘The Good Wife’, with Julianna Marguiles. So far in 2010 Erica has a Tribeca Film festival commercial and an LG commercial running. Also, Erica debuted her solo show, ‘White America Hero’ and most recently she played Larenz Tate’s sister – LaQueefa, on the F/X show ‘Rescue Me’ starring Dennis Leary.



Barefoot and usually draped in a floral gown, Jenna Maranga utilizes her dark melodies and minimalist acoustics to whisk away an audience to a bygone era of musical purity. Currently a student at New York University's Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music, Jenna has just begun to perform on the beautifully chaotic streets of New York City as if they were the wooden porches of her backyard.



Glennwood Urbz, the winner of The Inspired Word's first ever American Idol Open Mic contest. was the Alabama Slam Champion in 2005 and Alabama's Spoken Word Artist of the Year in 2007. He's also the founder of Speak Art youth poetry and the co Founder of The Loveshooter Lounge Open Mic Experience. A lifelong resident of Birmingham, Alabama, he has performed in Miami, Las Vegas, Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, New Orleans and many points in between.




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Monday, October 4, 2010

Rachel Shukert, Emanuel Xavier, Deborah Collage Grison Headline The Inspired Word - Oct. 7!



Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word reading series, featuring Rachel Shukert, Emanuel Xavier, Deborah Collage Grison + 12-slot open mic (open to not only poets and spoken word artists but fiction/nonfiction writers, comedians, monologists, singers, and musicians).

When: Thursday, Oct. 7, 2010

Where: One and One Bar & Restaurant (downstairs Nexus Lounge)
76 East 1st Street (corner of 1st Avenue)
Manhattan, NYC
http://www.oneandoneny.com/
Phone: (212) 598-9126

Time: 7pm (open mic sign-up starts at 6:30)

Cover Charge: $10

Must be 21 years of age or older. Please make sure to bring ID.

*****

Rachel Shukert is the author the the critically acclaimed memoirs "Everything Is Going To Be Great" and "Have You No Shame?" Her writing has appeared in numerous publications including Salon, McSweeney's, Slate, Gawker, the Daily Beast, Heeb, and Nerve, and been featured on National Public RAdio. She has also contributed to a variety of anthologies, including Click: When We Knew We Were Feminists and Best American Erotic Poetry: 1800 to the Present. Her plays include Bloody Mary (NYIT nominee), Johnny Applef*&ker, Everything's Coming Up Moses, The Sporting Life and The Nosemaker's Apprentice (both with Nick Jones) and The Three Gabor Sisters, and have been produced and developed by Ars Nova, Soho Think Tank, the Williamstown Theater Festival, and the Ontological/Hysteric, as well as extensively throughout the Netherlands. With Julie Klausner, Rachel co-created, co-wrote, and co-starred in Wasp Cove, New York's favorite live prime-time 1980's soap opera. She is currently developing her first feature with Yarn Films in Los Angeles. Rachel is also a contributing editor at Tablet Magazine, and an alumnus of the Ars Nova Play Group. She received a BFA from Tisch School of the Arts, and now lives in New York City with her husband Ben and her bipolar cat, Anjelica Huston. For more info, visit http://www.rachelshukert.com/



Emanuel Xavier is author of the novel, Christ Like, and editor of several anthologies including the forthcoming, Me No Habla With Acento: Contemporary Latino Poetry. A spoken word/music compilation album, Legendary, and his new poetry collection, If Jesus Were Gay & other poems, were recently released. Recipient of the Marsha A. Gomez Cultural Heritage Award, a New York City Council Citation, and a World Pride Award, he has been featured on Russell Simmons presents Def Poetry and works for Random House. He also curates a monthly spoken word poetry series for El Museo del Barrio and was recently proclaimed a 2010 GLBT Icon by the Equality Forum for his activism and contributions to the gay community. www.emanuelxavier.com



Deborah Collage Grison is a native Chicagoan and has been writing and performing for over 20 years. She has shared the stage with some of the world’s greatest literarians and spoken word artists of our time such as Gwendolyn Brooks, Dr. Sonia Sanchez, Nikki Giovanni, Stacye Ann Chin, Regi Gibson, Saul Williams, KRS-One and The Last Poets. She received her Master of Fine Arts in Poetry from Sarah Lawrence College located in Bronxville, New York. Her work has been featured in various journals and anthologies. Collage’s first collection of work The Attic: words from the top (Writes of Passage Publishing Group) was published in 2001 received critical acclaim, as did her current publication A Love Supreme: a poemoir which was released in April 2010. This collection is a memoir told through poetry that tells the story of, with, to, through away from and back to the ultimate love of self, community, family, friendship and God. You can check her out at http://www.deborahcollagegrison.com/ or www.facebook.com/deborahcollagegrison.


*****

Inspired Word on Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC
Inspired Word YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord
Inspired Word Meetup Group: http://www.meetup.com/InspiredWordNYC/

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