Poetry Slam and Rant
Yesterday afternoon I attended my first ever poetry slam. I've been wondering about slam poetry for a few years now, but between one thing and another I'd never actually been to a slam until yesterday. I had heard that they were loud and full of hecklers, but that was in America. Here in Galway, poetry audiences are quiet and respectful, even at slams. The slam took place at the Roisin Dubh, a pub which people frequently use as a landmark when giving directions in Galway. I'd never been in there before, and found it much like any other bar, except very crowded for 3:00 in the afternoon. About a dozen poets participated in the slam. First up was a young woman in a short, hot pink dress who did a piece about long-post-Woodstock wannabe psychedelia. I thought it was pretty good, but I couldn't follow the narrative thread of it at times, and her performance was a bit too nervous. She was the best of the first few in my mind. The next one I thought was good was a ma...