WHAT: Poetry in the Raw III WHERE: Victoria Event Centre WHEN: Sept. 28, 8 p.m. HOW MUCH: $12 advance at Solstice Café, $15 at the door
Think you have what it takes to stand up naked in front of a crowd and recite your most revealing poem?
On Sept. 28, 10 poets will be doing just that, uncovering their souls and bodies for the scrutiny and delight of dozens of people.
Poetry in the Raw is in its third year running, and the five-poet Victoria Slam Team is fundraising for the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word, which will be held in Victoria this year.
Missie Peters, Raw organizer and member of the slam team, first came up with the idea for the event after seeing one of her friends recite a poem naked at a party.
“I was amazed by how the poetry affected his body,” she said. “His stomach clenched, his toes curled and I thought, ‘Oh my god, this is beautiful. Why have we never seen this before?’ And then, ‘I have to do it.’”
While the first Raw performance was held in 2007 at the Solstice Café, this year’s will be in the larger Victoria Event Centre (VEC). The 19-and-over show has been a sold-out performance every year.
Last spring, the first Women in the Raw hit the VEC with overwhelming success as well. Peters says the next project will be to create an under-19 performance for high school girls, though he adds that this has a few more complications.
Peters developed Poetry in the Raw to be a co-ed event in order to illustrate the diverse effects poetry has on a cross-section of people and genders. She also wanted to promote seasoned and unseasoned performers this year, to increase the impact on the audience.
“The audience is most responsive to seeing a new person, a new body,” said Peters. “I want to give the audience as diverse an experience as possible.”
Peters chose performers whose stage performances match the message of the show. But while last year’s show had performers reciting one cover poem (from the artist of their choice) and one original piece, this year each performer will only do one original piece, given that the number of performers have doubled.
Peters says she’s honoured that people such as Ted MacGillivray, a senior poet, will be performing.
This year, Peters hopes the performances will be more theatrical. She has been working with performers, in what she calls a “director-like role,” to expand their acts to using props (including their bodies) more.
“The real trick is finding a poem that is worthy of being performed naked,” Peters said. “If there’s something you’re afraid to say, that’s what needs to be said.”
Scott Jones, who performs under the alias Skawt Chonzz, is another member of the slam team who will be baring it all in this year’s Raw. Jones says, as a massage therapist, he’s used to dealing with naked bodies, but he’s excited to see how well his confidence plays out on stage — especially when he considers that even his boss has bought tickets.
“In many ways I feel like I’ve dealt with all my body issues, but it’ll be interesting to see what happens,” Jones said. “The idea of nakedness to me, as a writer, is that you’re covering yourself in words. It’s like a cloak — you’re exposed, but not exposed.”
Jones hopes people will come prepared to have a good time, but also to get involved.
“Bring your eyes and ears, and something close to the openness we’ll be bringing you,” he said. “Hopefully, we can inspire more voices in the community too.”
Peters says the atmosphere at Raw events is usually one of extreme reverence and appreciation. She emphasizes that the show is not about exhibitionism, sexuality, or “tooting our own horn” — it’s about experiencing the poem, and the audience, in a different way.
And while there’s no alcohol at the event (a conscious choice, says Peters, to keep the audience attentive to the experience) there’s plenty to stimulate your senses. People should come prepared to participate — the audience will be invited to strip one clothing item at a time until the invigorating “pant-less intermission” may see most as bare as the poets.
Peters hopes Raw will galvanize the community to get excited about the upcoming festival but, she adds, if you see only one poetry show this year, this is the one to see.
“Poetry in the Raw is about making yourself more vulnerable,” Peters said. “We want to see people grow from this.”