Review: “The Champions”- Battersea Arts Centr
A night I’ll remember for a very long time - thrilled to be making my London debut as a guest of Apples and Snakes and sharing the stage with some great poets in an event billed as “The Champions of Slam Poetry.”
Compere Charlie Dark ably set the scene before inviting Inua “Phaze” Ellams to take the stage. Phaze had only walked into the venue 10 minutes earlier and was asked to stand in for the absent Deborah Ayekpa. You wouldn’t have known it however as he reeled off 10 minutes of dazzling verbal dexterity to a warm, early-doors reception. http://www.phaze05.com/wa/wamain.html
In a partnership forged at Glastonbury 2005, Phaze has joined up with Andy Craven-Griffiths, Andy’s (nom-de-plume’d) brother John Berkavitch and the man they call Polar Bear to form The Urbanian Quarter. Remember where you heard it first and watch them take the national scene by storm – guaranteed!
My own 15 minute set followed, felt good and seemed to be well received. Once accustomed to the harsh lighting which obscured the audience (60? 80?) sat in the dark and steeply-banked theatre-style seating, I enjoyed it greatly. So much so that I was buzzing for at least 24 hours afterwards, in fact! “Thank you, London and goodnight!”
A quick bar break later (BAC is an excellent multi-space set-up in grand, former Town Hall building) and we’re re-assembled for the second half which began with a bonus item on the recommendation of our compere. This was a single, new poem from Canadian Baba Brinkman currently in the UK touring his “Rap Canterbury Tales” which “does exactly what it says on the tin” to great effect by all accounts. Checkout http://www.babasword.com/
One-time UK Slam Champion, Bristolian Rebecca Smart was next and displayed her actor’s skills with a charmingly and touchingly delivered set covering toy boys, pre-menstrual rage, unwelcome spinster-hood and a yearning for motherhood.
Charlie Dark, himself an international poet, superstar DJ and all-round renaissance man, introduced headliner Shane Koyczan (that’s Koy-zan) as “quite simply the best poet I have ever seen in my life.” Shane’s Canadian national slam title 2005 and USA national slam title 2000, beating 250 poets in front of 5,000 punters, adds credibility to that claim. Thirty five all-to-brief minutes later and few, if anyone, present would disagree.
Shane has a way with words and a delivery that had the seasoned poets and actors present literally gasping, clapping and slapping their thighs mid-poem. So many memorable lines and images! My neighbour, and fellow Glastonbury 2005 veteran Anna Lindup (The Poetry Show collective and star of TV’s Tenko) was in tears, clutching her face for much of the set. Shane himself was close to tears as he ended his set with a stunning tale of sharing a hospital ward with a terminally ill 9 year old boy. Always accessible but by turns hilarious, deeply moving, and truly profound, often in the same poem, this was a truly awesome set which will live long in the memory delivered by a prodigious talent who deserves a much wider audience. Find out more at http://www.koyczan.com/ Shane’s collection “Visiting Hours”, with accompanying CD, is available now and comes highly recommended.
Once Shane had finished signing and selling a mountain of merchandise we mobilised a flotilla of cars across London to the National Film Theatre on the South Bank where Charlie DJ’d the night away under his internationally known Blacktronica guise. The poets, meanwhile, were outside on the banks of the Thames, putting the world and the Word to rights.
Tony Walsh
3rd June 2006
Charlie Dark is profiled at: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=871896
Apples and Snakes - http://www.applesandsnakes.org/
Battersea Arts Centre - http://www.bac.org.uk/
http://www.bacvenues.org.uk/
Compere Charlie Dark ably set the scene before inviting Inua “Phaze” Ellams to take the stage. Phaze had only walked into the venue 10 minutes earlier and was asked to stand in for the absent Deborah Ayekpa. You wouldn’t have known it however as he reeled off 10 minutes of dazzling verbal dexterity to a warm, early-doors reception. http://www.phaze05.com/wa/wamain.html
In a partnership forged at Glastonbury 2005, Phaze has joined up with Andy Craven-Griffiths, Andy’s (nom-de-plume’d) brother John Berkavitch and the man they call Polar Bear to form The Urbanian Quarter. Remember where you heard it first and watch them take the national scene by storm – guaranteed!
My own 15 minute set followed, felt good and seemed to be well received. Once accustomed to the harsh lighting which obscured the audience (60? 80?) sat in the dark and steeply-banked theatre-style seating, I enjoyed it greatly. So much so that I was buzzing for at least 24 hours afterwards, in fact! “Thank you, London and goodnight!”
A quick bar break later (BAC is an excellent multi-space set-up in grand, former Town Hall building) and we’re re-assembled for the second half which began with a bonus item on the recommendation of our compere. This was a single, new poem from Canadian Baba Brinkman currently in the UK touring his “Rap Canterbury Tales” which “does exactly what it says on the tin” to great effect by all accounts. Checkout http://www.babasword.com/
One-time UK Slam Champion, Bristolian Rebecca Smart was next and displayed her actor’s skills with a charmingly and touchingly delivered set covering toy boys, pre-menstrual rage, unwelcome spinster-hood and a yearning for motherhood.
Charlie Dark, himself an international poet, superstar DJ and all-round renaissance man, introduced headliner Shane Koyczan (that’s Koy-zan) as “quite simply the best poet I have ever seen in my life.” Shane’s Canadian national slam title 2005 and USA national slam title 2000, beating 250 poets in front of 5,000 punters, adds credibility to that claim. Thirty five all-to-brief minutes later and few, if anyone, present would disagree.
Shane has a way with words and a delivery that had the seasoned poets and actors present literally gasping, clapping and slapping their thighs mid-poem. So many memorable lines and images! My neighbour, and fellow Glastonbury 2005 veteran Anna Lindup (The Poetry Show collective and star of TV’s Tenko) was in tears, clutching her face for much of the set. Shane himself was close to tears as he ended his set with a stunning tale of sharing a hospital ward with a terminally ill 9 year old boy. Always accessible but by turns hilarious, deeply moving, and truly profound, often in the same poem, this was a truly awesome set which will live long in the memory delivered by a prodigious talent who deserves a much wider audience. Find out more at http://www.koyczan.com/ Shane’s collection “Visiting Hours”, with accompanying CD, is available now and comes highly recommended.
Once Shane had finished signing and selling a mountain of merchandise we mobilised a flotilla of cars across London to the National Film Theatre on the South Bank where Charlie DJ’d the night away under his internationally known Blacktronica guise. The poets, meanwhile, were outside on the banks of the Thames, putting the world and the Word to rights.
Tony Walsh
3rd June 2006
Charlie Dark is profiled at: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=871896
Apples and Snakes - http://www.applesandsnakes.org/
Battersea Arts Centre - http://www.bac.org.uk/
http://www.bacvenues.org.uk/
Tue, 13 Jun 2006 03:32 pm
