Poet, teacher, and publisher Matthew P. Gallant grew up in Massachusetts and taught high school in New Hampshire for many years before relocating to Washington, D.C. in 2012. The author of a dozen chapbooks and a forthcoming full-length collection, his poetry has appeared in journals such as Mothman, Whistler’s Shade, Wind in the Timothy, and the anthology 2010 Poets’ Guide to New Hampshire. Matthew teaches high school English at a charter school in Washington, D.C.
Paula J. Lambert is a poet residing in Dublin, Ohio. Her first full-length collection of poetry, The Sudden Seduction of Gravity, is available from Full/Crescent Press. Her chapbook, The Guilt That Gathers, was published by Pudding House Press in 2009. Lambert co-facilitates Peripatetic Poets, a Columbus-area open mic reading series and specializes in the field of Writing as a Healing Process.
Doors at 6:30, show at 7 – all ages and free free free; coffee and snacks by donation.
The Duende Project (formerly “Duende”) is the poetry and music project of Tony Brown, veteran performance poet; Steve Lanning-Cafaro, AKA Faro, electric bass and Nylon string guitar; and Chris O”Donnell, drums. They’ve’ve released 4 CD/chapbook sets, Jim’s Fall, americanized, The Duende Project, and One Thing That Scares You onLoyal Weasel Productions, and perform in the New England and Eastern Seaboard regions regularly. Doors at 6:30, show at 7 – all ages and free free free; coffee and snacks by donation.
Bill MacMillan is the Co-founder of the Worcester Poetry Slam & Worcester Poets’ Asylum. He is featured in the documentary film SlamNation & was a member of the 1996 National Poetry Slam Championship Team from Providence. Bill Co-Hosted the 2005 Individual World Poetry Slam Championships in Worcester & the 2000 National Poetry Slam in Providence. His work has appeared in numerous publications including The Boston Globe, The Providence Journal, Worcester Magazine, The Worcester Review & Omnivore Magazine. Bill has featured at colleges, coffeehouses, festivals, clubs, and a truck stop. In his day job Bill works with untraceable weaponry. He lives & works in Worcester, MA. He is also a super osm painter, and tonight will be selling some of his work at the reading.
Wil Gibson was born from a good idea and a bottle of bourbon. He was raised in some of the poorest communities northern Illinois and eastern Arkansas have to offer. He now lives in Portland (the one in maine) and likes it a lot there (you probably would too). He writes too many love poems and not nearly enough of his novel. A proud (mistake prone) father of four who tries real hard and is still growing up. Doors at 6:30, show at 7 – all ages and free free free; coffee and snacks by donation.
Bobby Crawford is the treasurer, co-curator, and host of the Emerson Poetry Project, Emerson College’s slam poetry community. He has been a member of three College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational teams representing Emerson college, and was nominated for finals stage showcase ‘Best of the Rest’ in 2012. His work has been published in Gangsters In Concrete and The Emerson Review, and has been featured at several venues around New England. After the feature tonight, the Worcester Slam Team Finals for Team 2013 will happen! Doors at 6:30, show at 7 – all ages and free free free; coffee and snacks by donation.
Here’s your quick reminder – don’t miss Dan Lewis tonight at the Asylum!
Franny Choi is one of the few people to have been a finalist at the three most prestigious poetry slams in the country: the National Poetry Slam, the Individual World Poetry Slam, and the Women of the World Poetry Slam. She was also the top-ranking female poet at the 2011 Southern Fried Poetry Slam and the champion of 2010 Seoul Poetry Slam. Franny’s literary work has appeared in Indiefeed, Fringe Magazine, Tandem, Issues, The Java Monkey Speaks Anthology, the College Hill Independent, Angry Asian Man, and others. Her work in Fringe was nominated for a Pushcart Prize and a Sundress Best of the Net Award in 2011. She was also a finalist in the 2012 Write Bloody Publishing Company Manuscript Contest. She currently co-coordinates the Providence Poetry Slam’s youth program.
A five-time competitor at the National Poetry Slam, representing Manchester’s Slam Free or Die (2008, 2010), Worcester Poets’ Asylum (2009), and Boston Poetry Slam (
Houston Hughes is a wordsmith and a performer; a spoken word artist whose work covers comedy, drama, tragedy, storytelling, and political commentary, all expertly worded and performed with a tremendous stage-presence which lends his words even more power. Houston was introduced to poetry slam in 2006, and by 2010 had made finals stage at the Individual World Poetry Slam, placing him among the top 12 performance poets in the world. In the time in between, he won individual recognition at the 2008 College Union Poetry Slam Invitational tournament, led the Hendrix College team to win the Region 12 championship in 2009, and has been part of the Ozark Poetry Slam team for 2 years. He has toured across the country and has opened for a variety nationally known acts such as Saul Williams and Otep. He currently resides in Fayetteville, Arkansas, where he is part of the planning committee for IWPS 2012. Doors at 6:30, show at 7 – all ages and free free free; coffee and snacks by donation.
