Gulf Oil Spill: Poems of Protest and Relief - June 9 in NYC

Gulf Oil Spill: Poems of Protest and Relief
Date: Wednesday June 9th
Time: 7:30PM
Venue: Happy Ending Lounge, 302 Broome Street between Forsyth & Eldridge

$5 Suggested donation. All proceeds will go to the Alabama Coastal Foundation

Featuring: Ted Dodson, Jeffery Berg, Micheal Myron, Curtis Jensen, Ken Walker and more...

Hosted by Southern Writers NY http://southernwritersny.wordpress.com/

The Inspired Word/Thursday, June 10 @ (Le) Poisson Rouge - Carvens, Seary, Ormerod + open mic!

Mike Geffner presents The Inspired Word, featuring Carvens Lissaint, Jane Ormerod, JF Seary, and a 10-slot open mic!

Where: (Le) Poisson Rouge (downstairs gallery)
158 Bleecker Street (between Thompson and Sullivan)
Manhattan, NYC
http://lepoissonrouge.com/

Time: 7pm (open mic signup starts at 6:30pm; ask for Adrian or Marvin)

Cover Charge: $10

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

*****

Carvens Lissaint is a young performance artist, native from Haiti who resides in Washington Heights, New York. He first established himself as a spoken word artist in 2006 and went on to win multiple poetry slams in the tri-state area. He was the 2007 Grand Slam Champion of the highly acclaimed New York Knicks Poetry Slam, a member of the 2008 Newark, NJ slam team that placed 6th in the Brave New Voices National poetry competition, 2009 Slam Global Grand Slam Champion, a member of the 2009 Urban Word Nyc poetry slam team, 2009 Robert Redford Speak Green Team and has won poetry slams in various venues including the Bowery Poetry Club and the famous Nuyorican Poets Café. He has mentored and Coached the New York University Collegiate team and the New York City youth team in 2010. Carvens also debuted his one-man show called “Walk” (directed and co-developed by Queen GodIs, choreographed by Nicco Anann and sponsored by Urban Word NYC in collaboration with DTW) at Dance Theater Workshop where he was noticed for his high energy and crowd-capturing Theater skills. He is currently signed to Penmanship Books Publishing and has touched stages across the country performing at the Sundance Film Festival and in the United States Green Build Council. He hopes to share his art with the world, and become a better being of the universe.



Jane Ormerod is the author of Recreational Vehicles on Fire (Three Rooms Press, 2009), 11 Films (Modern Metrics, 2008,) and the spoken word CD Nashville Invades Manhattan. She is host of the reading series Emotional Rescue at The Cornelia Street Café, performs throughout the United States and beyond, and is a founding editor at Uphook Press. “One of the most imaginative, persistent poetry visionaries… (Jane’s) signature style is beyond belief—moving lightspeed with an astoundingly unique beat and the ability to communicate with complete command of language,” said Daniel Yaryan, producer of the San Francisco poetry series "Sparring With Beatnik Ghosts."



J F Seary is an educator/poet/actor. She has been writing and performing her poetry for over ten years. Her performance career began at Binghamton University. Since then she has performed at the Nuyorican Poets Café, the Bowery Poetry Club, Cemí Underground, 5C Cultural Center, Binghamton University, Cornell University, Columbia University, Penn State University, Rutgers University, University at Albany, SUNY Stony Brook and other venues. Seary is currently a member of the NYC Latina Writers Group, The Fantastic Latina Playwright's Lab and she is on tour with Urbintel's "HerStory."



*****

Mike Geffner
Founder/Producer

Marvin Mendlinger
Assistant Director

Erik "Advocate of Wordz" Maldonado
MC

Eliel Lucero
DJ

Adrian Wyatt
Open Mic Mistress

Marron Cox
Hostess Extraordinaire

The Inspired Word on Thursday, May 27 - Tara Betts, Dasha Kelly, Rich Villar, Open Mic!

Mike Geffner presents The Inspired Word, featuring Tara Betts, Dasha Kelly, Rich Villar, and a 10-slot open mic!

When: Thursday, May 27

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: 7pm (open mic sign-up starts at 6:30pm; ask for Adrian or Marvin)

Cover Charge: $10

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

*****

Recently named one of Essence magazine’s 40 favorite poets, Tara Betts is the author of Arc and Hue. She teaches at Rutgers University. She represented Chicago twice at the National Poetry Slam, coached youth who went on to Brave New Voices, and appeared on HBO's "Def Poetry Jam". Her writing has also been dramatized for the stage in several productions, including Steppenwolf Theater's "Words On Fire" and "Fingernails Across the Chalkboard". Her work has been published in Essence, Bum Rush the Page, Gathering Ground and both Spoken Word Revolution anthologies.



Dasha Kelly believes in words. All of them. In her outreach work, Dasha uses words to bolster the confidences of youth, artists, college students, inmates, executives, community leaders and, of course, writers. An accomplished writer herself, Dasha has scripted successes in a number of areas: a published novel, several poetry recordings, a collection of works released with Penmanship Books, feature articles for national magazines such as Upscale and Black Enterprise, online commentaries and blogs, and even collateral copy for regional advertising firms. Dasha performed on the season six premiere of HBO presents Russell Simmons' Def Poetry Jam; and her one-woman show, Anthems for Grown Folks, is being developed into a traveling production.



Rich Villar's poetry and prose have appeared in the journals MiPoesias: The American Cuban Issue, OCHO 15, Rattapallax, and the first edition of the chapbook series Achiote Seeds (Achiote Press, Spring 2007). He is a co-founder and director of the Acentos Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the development and publication of Latino/a poetry. He lives and writes en la madre tierra de New Jersey.



*****

NOTE: One week from the day, Tara and Rich enter into wedded bliss!

*****

THURSDAYS WILL NEVER BE THE SAME! THE INSPIRED WORD HAPPENS EVERY SINGLE THURSDAY FROM NOW ON!

Mike Geffner
Founder/Producer

Marvin Mendlinger
Assistant Director

Erik "Advocate of Wordz" Maldonado
MC

Eliel Lucero
DJ

Adrian Wyatt
Open Mic Mistress

Marron Cox
Hostess Extraordinaire

The Inspired Word - Thursday, May 13! Jeanann Verlee, Jon Sands, ShadoKat + Open Mic!

Mike Geffner presents The Inspired Word, featuring Jeanann Verlee, Adam "ShadoKat" Bowser, Jon Sands, and a 10-slot open mic!

When: Thursday, May 13, 2010
Where: (Le) Poisson Rouge (downstairs gallery)
http://lepoissonrouge.com
158 Bleecker Street (between Thompson and Sullivan)
New York, NY 10012
Phone: (212) 505-FISH (3474)
Time: 7-10pm (open mic sign-up starts at 6:30pm; ask for Adrian or Marvin)

Cover Charge: $10

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

*****

Bios:

Jeanann Verlee is an author, performance poet, editor, activist, and former punk rocker who collects tattoos and winks at boys. Her work has been published and is forthcoming in a variety of journals, including The New York Quarterly, FRiGG, PANK, decomP, Danse Macabre, and The Legendary, among others. Her poems have also been included in various anthologies such as “Not A Muse: The Inner Lives of Women” and “His Rib: Poems Stories and Essays by Her.” Verlee’s first full-length book of poems, Racing Hummingbirds (Write Bloody Publishing), was released in March 2010. She has represented New York City three times at the National Poetry Slam under two of the most highly-regarded poetry performance series in the nation: Urbana Poetry Slam and The louderARTS Project. She lives in New York City.



Jon Sands has been a full-time independent teaching & performing artist since 2007. He's a recipient of the 2009 New York City-LouderARTS fellowship grant, and has represented New York City multiple times at the National Poetry Slam, subsequently becoming an NPS finalist. Jon has performed and facilitated workshops with university and arts organizations throughout North America, and is currently the Director of Poetry and Arts Education Programming at the Positive Health Project, a syringe exchange center located in Midtown Manhattan, as well as a Youth Mentor with Urban Word-NYC. Jon's poems have appeared in decomP magazinE, Suss, The Literary Bohemian, Spindle Magazine, The November 3rd Club, and others. He is also one-fourth of the nationally acclaimed electricity-fest, The SpillJoy Ensemble. Jon lives in New York City, where he makes better tuna salad than anyone you know.



A New Jersey Native, ShadoKat has exploded upon the spoken word scene rousing audiences across the United States and Europe while featuring at venues such as The Green Mil Theatre in Chicago, Club Cargo in London, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, and even garnering a 3rd place finish at the Apollo Theatre's renowned Amateur Night. In 2006, he reached another high level of acclaim when voters across the nation named him the National Underground Spoken Word and Poetry Award's Male Performer of the Year. Using hip-hop influenced style and cynical humor, his passionate messages don't shy away from various topics; speaking on social awareness, and community issues. His highly anticipated album, Rebirth of the Mic', was released in April 2006, and he won another National Underground Poetry Award in 2007 for his poem, “The Last Poet on the Open Mic”. In 2008, ShadoKat co-founded a touring poetry collective called “Words with A Pulse” and has been a featured performer and lecturer at many colleges and universities including Rutgers University, Depaul University, Virginia Tech and the University of Maryland. Currently he is working on his forthcoming Spoken Word Album and is performing as part of the Spoken Word Almanac Project creative cast.



*****

The NEW 10-slot OPEN MIC will go to the first 10 people to sign up at the door. Get there early. Each reader gets 2 1/2 minutes.

*****

Mike Geffner
Founder/Producer

Marvin Mendlinger
Assistant Director

Timothy Prolific Jones
Series Consultant

Sherri Eldin
MC

Eliel Lucero
DJ

Marron Cox
Hostess Extraordinaire

Adrian Wyatt
Open Mic Mistress

Poetry of Resistance - Thursday, May 13th

Poetry of Resistance
"Unnatural Disasters"

A Reading Sponsored by:

The NY Activists Poets' Roundtable and the Brecht Forum

Thursday, May 13, 7:30 PM
Brecht Forum: 451 West Street (at Bank Street)

Suggested donation $6, $10. No one turned away.
For more information email speakarttopower@optimum.net or call 917-602-4070

The Inspired Word - Friday, April 23 featuring Ngoma Hill, Jared Singer, Jade Sylvan + NEW Open Mic!

Date: Friday, April 23, 2010
Time: 7-10pm
Location: (Le) Poisson Rouge
http://lepoissonrouge.com/
158 Bleecker Street, New York, NY 10012
Phone: (212) 505-FISH (3474)
Cover Charge: $10

At (Le) Poisson Rouge, the hottest club in downtown Manhattan, The Inspired Word presents (in alphabetical order) Ngoma Hill, Jared Singer, Jade Sylvan. +Plus the NEW 8-slot open mic!

*****

Ngoma is a performance poet, multi-instrumentalist, singer/songwriter and paradigm shifter, who for over 40 years has used culture as a tool to raise sociopolitical and spiritual consciousness through work that encourages critical thought.He has been published in AFRICAN VOICES MAGAZINE, LONG SHOT ANTHOLOGY, THE UNDERWOOD REVIEW, SIGNIFYIN' HARLEM REVIEW, 'BUM RUSH THE PAGE/DEF POETRY JAM ANTHOLOGY,POEMS ON THE ROAD TO PEACE (Volumes 1,2&3)-Yale Press and Let Loose On the World(Celebrating Amiri Baraka at 75). He was featured in the PBS Spoken Word Documentary, "The Apro-Poets" with Allen Ginsberg. Ngoma has hosted the slam at the Dr. Martin Luther King Festival of Social and Environmental Justice Festival (Yale University-New Haven, CT) for the past 14 years. His latest C.D. "State of Emergency (The Essential Ngoma) Is a 2 Disc "best of "compilation is available on CDBaby.com and iTunes.com -For further info go to http://www.ngomazworld.com/ or check out myspace.com/notyouraveragestringthing.



*****

Jared Singer is a poet and audio engineer who lives in New York City. While he may have physically grown up with his peers, he has never forgotten the imagination, magic, and nerdiness that were cornerstones of his childhood. He hopes to remind others of these more creative times. He has been published by The Legendary and has also appeared on the Indiefeed Peformance Poetry Podcast.



*****

Jade Sylvan's first full-length collection of poetry, The Spark Singer, was published in 2009 by Spuyten Duyvil Press. Her first novel, Backstage at The Caribou, was published in 2009 by Ray Ontko & Co. She has performed and facilitated writing workshops across the country. Despite promises from adults that she could do anything if she set her mind to it, she never learned how to whistle as a child. She is currently at work on a second novel, an album of songs, and more poetry. You can find her at http://www.jadesylvan.com/.



*****

The NEW 8-slot OPEN MIC! Slots will go to the first eight people to sign up at the door. Line starts at 6:30pm. Get there early. Each reader gets 2 1/2 minutes.

*****

Please join us for an awesome night of passionate words.

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

The Inspired Word Blog is Up and Running!

Please make sure to visit my new blog:

http://inspiredwordnyc.blogspot.com/

It's now the official of my all-star poetry/spoken word events @ (Le) Poisson Rouge in Manhattan, New York City.

The Mighty Third Rail @ Mike Geffner's Inspired Word - Feb. 26, 2010

Find The Inspired Word on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word dazzles the night every second and fourth Friday, 7-10pm, @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!

Def Poet Shanelle Gabriel @ The Inspired Word

Find The Inspired Word on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word dazzles the night every second and fourth Friday, 7-10pm, @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!

Poet Ainsley Burrows @ The Inspired Word

Find The Inspired Word on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word dazzles the night every second and fourth Friday, 7-10pm, @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!

Def Poet Bonafide Rojas @ The Inspired Word

Find The Inspired Word on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word dazzles the night every second and fourth Friday, 7-10pm, @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!

Mahogany L. Browne @ Mike Geffner's Inspired Word - Feb. 12, 2010

Inspired Pics: Mahogany L. Browne @ The Inspired Word - Feb. 12

w/Timothy Prolific Jones, Media Entrepreneur, Poet, and Inspired Word Consultant

Photos by: William Fuentes

Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word - Feb. 26!

The hottest new poetry/spoken word series in New York City @ the hottest club in downtown Manhattan!

Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word
Date: Friday, Feb. 26, 2010
Time: 7-10pm
Location: (Le) Poisson Rouge
http://lepoissonrouge.com/
158 Bleecker Street, New York, NY 10012
Phone: (212) 505-FISH (3474)
Cover Charge: $10
Featuring the extraordinary lineup of Erik "Advocate of Wordz" Maldonado, Timothy Prolific Jones, Howard Treadwell, and The Mighty Third Rail.

*****

Timothy Prolific Jones is a writer and media entrepreneur born and raised in Long Island, New York. He is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of André Maurice Press, an independent book publishing company. As a poet, he has performed across the country in slams, open mics, community venues, prisons, and faith based institutions. He is writing four books concurrently, earning his stage name one pen stroke at a time. You can visit his blog, CorporateBboyism.com, find him on Twitter (@tprolificjones), or on Facebook.

*****

Paper, stages, mics and chastity belts, Erik "Advocate of Wordz" Maldonado rips them all! This Bronx native's bold and diverse tongue has been touring Poetry, Hip-Hop and theatrical venues for over four years now, as well as playing host to various writing and performance workshops all around New York City for the youth. He is the founder of HipHopPoetry[dot]com, which has received national media attention for its work off and online. Wordz is a member of the 2007 Nuyorican Poets Cafe's National Poetry SLAM team and is co-founder of "21 Poetz", "El Grito De Poetas" and "The Savants". He is a co-producer of the "21 Poetz Mixtape", and is currently in the process of finishing up several projects for the fall of 2007 which include his first 2 solo projects entitled "My Turn" (hip-hop spoken word CD) and "Advocate of Words" (book of self published poetry).

*****

The Mighty Third Rail is a three-man squadron combining the elements of hip hop poetry, beatboxing, violin and upright bass. It features the dashing Darian Dauchan on vocals, the indelible Ian Baggette on Bass, and the charming Curtis Stewart on violin. You can find them here on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Mighty-Third-Rail/199808423451?v) and on Myspace (www.myspace.com/themightythirdrail).

*****

Howard Treadwell is a New York native hailing from Mastic and Buffalo, New York. He believes in the beauty of razorblades and roses. A coping Manic-Depressant and survivor of multiple suicide attempts, he finds his reasons for living within the first breath of morning. Howard earned a spot on the Buffalo national slam team for two consecutive years (2006 & 2007), and became the city's Grand Slam Champion in 2006. He also coached the 2008 team. Howard is AMP|Indelible's Co-Editor-in-Chief, and its resident performance coach. He was recently a member of the Spoken Word/Hip-hop group 21poetz. Current literary projects include a chapbook entitled Dreams of Loisaida, and a poetic/prose autobiography entitled Native Blood, Barrio Soul.

*****

Please join us for an awesome night of passionate words.

MUST BE 21 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER TO ENTER. PLEASE MAKE SURE TO BRING ID.

*****

Inspired Staff

Mike Geffner
Founder/Producer/Director

Marvin Mendlinger
Assistant Director

Sherri Eldin
MC/Host

Justin Woo
DJ/Sound Genius

Marron Cox
Hostess Extraordinaire

Timothy Prolific Jones
Series Consultant

Jerry "Jerry T" Tarantola
Videographer

*****

Catch us on Twitter, YouTube & Facebook!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word happens every second and fourth Friday @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!
7-10pm.

Timothy Prolific Jones @ The Inspired Word

Find The Inspired Word on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word dazzles the night every second and fourth Friday, 7-10pm, @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!

Onome @ The Inspired Word

Find The Inspired Word on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word dazzles the night every second and fourth Friday, 7-10pm, @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!

Ilya Khodosh @ The Inspired Word

Find The Inspired Word on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word dazzles the night every second and fourth Friday, 7-10pm, @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!

Poet Tantra Zawadi @ The Inspired Word

Find The Inspired Word on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word dazzles the night every second and fourth Friday, 7-10pm, @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!

Poet Justin Woo @ The Inspired Word in NYC

Find The Inspired Word on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word dazzles the night every second and fourth Friday, 7-10pm, @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!

Poet Sabrina Gilbert @ The Inspired Word

Find The Inspired Word on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!

Twitter: http://twitter.com/InspiredWordNYC

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/NYCInspiredWord

Facebook: The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word dazzles the night every second and fourth Friday, 7-10pm, @ (Le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, NYC!