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Street Poet: from L.A.
by Brooke Glassman
Green neon flashing
Over fingers snapping
Journals open
Words floating
A fountain spilling constant water
saturated by poetry, trees, telephone
wires, streets,
Eternal mechanical motion.
Here at Home
An African drum beat keeps in time with the rhythm of the speakers. The outdoor stage is large and low to the ground, surrounded by white wrought iron tables, chairs and trees. People sitting in the courtyard are tinted by the flash of a neon sign over an arched trellis, welcoming its patrons and poets.
The rest of the world keeps going, but here in this Los Feliz coffee house, poets and writers participate in a tradition as old as the spoken word. From the Bible to Beowulf to the Beats, this legacy has found new life in the City of Angels.
Since the 1950s, spoken word performers have bridged the gap between poetry and acting. But over the last few years, with the explosion of the internet, writers and poets have descended upon coffee houses all over the city. Armed with notebooks bulging with their most heartfelt emotions and ambitions, they read before audiences hungry for something more than the latest revival of "The Glass Menagerie", or some sit com writer's attempt at a Neil Simon play.
In an era that has become dependent upon electronics for communication, these poets are taking back the stages of coffee houses and bars around Los Angeles, with only their voice, notebooks and a microphone. Within these local venues, the spoken word--poetry read or improvised aloud-- tells histories, traditions and emotions in a manner no computer could emulate.
Once considered a dying literary medium, this grassroots spoken word movement has been exploding across the nation, bringing poetry back to the forefront of America's art and literary spheres.  And here at Home, a local east Hollywood restaurant, this movement is proving age-old notions wrong, such as the idea that poetry serves an upper-class forum. "Spoken word reaches all races, classes, gender and ages. It is a communication tool and a vital instrument to taking language back on real levels," said Ben Porter Lewis, poet and leading member of the movement. "It has transgressed and is dominating the modern art scene. Spoken word has value, insight, and purpose [for people], Lewis said.
Lewis, with his short -cropped dark hair and wise, brown eyes, has published, or helped to publish, over 100 writers; he has also produced and performed well over 200 spoken word shows. His experience ranges from being featured in a Warner Bros. spoken word video, to being published in various periodicals based in Boston, New York, Denver, and throughout California.
Once regarded as primarily a literary tradition, this new wave of poets are standing on stages in bars, restaurants, auditoriums, concerts and coffeehouses, talking of life, love, war, racism, heartbreak and religion, to name a few. Although the spoken word and its followers are out in full force, many are unaware that there is a forum to recite and listen to poetry. Lewis believes that in Los Angeles, the reason for the relative obscurity of the spoken word is due to the overwhelming amount of art and performance art (art that involves movement) to be found here.
"Los Angeles is disenfranchised for several reasons. The proximity for one, since it is so spread out and also because there is such a focus on entertainment media. There is a different sort of relationship with
contemporary art in this city," Lewis said.
However, even with poetry readings being held within blocks or miles from each other, those that are attending are willing to make the trek and seem unaffected by Hollywood's dominance within the vast city.
"L.A. is a lot less pretentious, which is funny to think about. The poets here are down-to-earth and writing about real, relevant issues. They seem more urbanized," said Los Angeles poet, Helena Lazaro.
Lazaro also believes that the poetry scene in Los Angeles is not widely known due to a diverse art world, but adds that monetary reasons are also an issue."Since there are not a lot of publications advertising the readings, it is not commercial, so why would anyone pay attention to it if they are not going to make any money? If it were a lucrative business, it would be more glam, flash and show like the music industry," Lazaro said.
He adds, "Spoken word is the genesis of the hip hop generation."
Even children as young as five-years-old such as Raymond Joseph Van Holten Jr., are joining the ever growing group. At the Moon Dog Café on Melrose, Van Holten told the crowd of about forty, "This is poetry love. Poetry dear. We love our poetry. Poetry love. Poetry. Thank you. Good night." The small, blond boy, smiled wide and stepped off the stage into a wave of smiles and applause. Although Van Holten may be one of the youngest to address an audience in verse, women and men well into their nineties are also at hand.
Although the general support and enthusiasm of the readings is a constant, Los Angeles poet Rashawn E. Vaughn, makes clear that each area of Los Angeles has a different atmosphere, which directly relates to the expanse of the city and the diversity of its inhabitants. For example, Vaughn feels that the Los Feliz area has a more "Afro-centric" feel, whereas in West Hollywood, known for its predominately Gay population, the poetry caters to those in the area.
"Poetry readings are like blind dates. You never know what you're going to get," Vaughn said.
Within a city of millions, each dwelling is a self-sufficient world of cars and daily lives; there is a community that has paused in ever-flowing traffic to enjoy spoken word and a human-ness not readily found in Los Angeles.
Here at Home, with journals open and fingers snapping, a communal, respectful hush draped snugly around the audience, they listen and speak the spoken word.
"Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story..." Homer's The Odyssey.
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