It hardly mattered that an ice storm raged outside or that the temperature sank below 20 degrees. This edition of the long-running annual showcase was top-heavy with feminist perspectives, queer notions, celebrations of the body, satiric commentaries on the state of the union, gender politics, sex, Michael Jackson and navigation through life with a skewered point of view. With a cast of poets and authors who have taken the label of “independent publishing” to a new level, this stop of the tour was full of humor, fury, eroticism and wit.
Oakland native and poet/playwright Chinaka Hodge served as the emcee and guided the audience through an evening of poetry and book readings, performances and filmed segments. Author/librarian/publisher Rhiannon Argo read from her book Girls I’ve Run Away With (Moonshine Press); jazz/hip-hop-infused poet/musician Lenelle Moise delivered a searing collection of poems as well as an hilarious take on Jackson; tech guru Jerry Lee Abram spoke about his risque adventures as a go-go boy and presented a short film; and former nightlife columnist/arts organizer/actress Beth Lisick spoke about the absurdity of everyday life. In addition, filmmaker/author Dia Felix read from her upcoming book, Nochita (City Lights/Sister Spit publishing); and body-image activist/lecturer Virgie Tovar spoke candidly about taking ownership of her body and self, inventing an image of herself that defied societal “expectations” of what a large person should feel about herself.
The result was an empowering evening topped with a short story from filmmaker and recent University of Chicago Mellon Fellow Chase Joynt.
Photos and text by Vern Hester