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The wall at BYU\u2019s venue The Wall.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I find amazing is how many people just happen upon an open mic and just happen to have a poem they can read,\u201d says Marianne Hales Harding, co-founder of\u00a0Provo Poetry<\/a>. \u201cIn the past few years, especially, there have been more and more opportunities for writers to gather with like-minded folks and share their work.\u201d<\/p>\n A sample poemball:<\/strong><\/p>\n Dominion<\/strong><\/p>\n by Dennis Clark<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The locals call it \u201cBrickyard Beach\u201d because I have to comb the beach and sift a thousand<\/div>\nProvo Poetry is back with\u00a0Pioneer Book<\/a>\u00a0at 450 West Center Street to host a night of community poetry and open mic storytelling on\u00a0May 5th, 2017<\/span><\/span>, from\u00a07:00pm \u2013 9:00pm. Be prepared for<\/span><\/span>\u00a0poetry slam performers and other locals who come to celebrate the spoken word. Those who sign up to read will receive a free poetry book of local community poets, donated by the Rock Canyon Poets.<\/span><\/div>\n\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n\u201cWe get a wide variety of poets at these sorts of events,\u201d continues Hale Harding in an email exchange, \u201cfrom performance poets who loom large behind the microphone to more low key poets who are nonetheless quite engaging, from high school poets to retirees, from conservative viewpoints to more liberal viewpoints. It\u2019s often a real cross section of Utah County.\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\nThe upcoming Art Stroll, also May 5th, is a perfect night to enjoy the charming heart of Provo. Red-brick buildings, kiosks plastered with local flyers, and rows of mom-and-pop shops remind one of the growing pulse of Provo. \u201cAs we near summer, I long for my walks to Pioneer Book where I\u2019d linger and read behind the shelves. On my way, I liked to stop for a \u00a0mouth-watering pastry at Enliten Cafe (the turtle cheesecake is my favorite),\u201d says Fabian Trujillo, a local poet and Provo Poetry volunteer.<\/span><\/div>\n\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\nThese open mics are a unique experience, sometimes breath-taking. Provo Poetry was founded at the beginning of last year by Hales Harding and Trish Hopkinson, two fast-moving poets with the work ethic of honeybees. These two have their hands in other pots and jars as well\u2014including the creation of Provo\u2019s poemball machines. For just a quarter, you can encourage and be a part of the Utah literary art scene. Feed a quarter into the machine, and enjoy a short tidbit of a poem. The machines are available at Pioneer Book or\u00a0Enliten Bakery & Caf\u00e9.<\/a>\u00a0Poems include work from top Utah poets, including Rob Carney, Meg Day, and others. Among these, poemballs also feature local writers who often visit Enliten\u2019s\u00a0Thursday<\/span><\/span>\u00a0night creative writing open mics.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\u201cAll we did was organize what was already there in the community,\u201d says Hales Harding, referring to the Poemball program, \u201cand make it more accessible \u2026 bite-sized! When you think of the hundreds and hundreds of poemballs that have been tenderly folded (by hand!) and sent out into the community one by one, you start to get an idea of 1) the desire of the general public for poetry [and] 2) the long reach of one great idea.\u201d<\/div>\n<\/div>\nThe group also reguarly pairs poetry and graphic arts by doing chalk art poetry. Poems have appeared on the Provo Chalkboard (on the house next to\u00a0Sodalicious<\/a>, billed as Utah\u2019s \u201cfavorite soda shop\u201d) and\u00a0The Wall restaurant\u2019s giant chalkboard on the campus of nearby Brigham Young University campus. \u00a0We\u2019ve \u201cgotten a lot of good feedback on those, \u201d reports Hales Harding, though occasionally, chalk being water-soluble, they get rained out.<\/div>\n\n\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\nRain or no, Provo Poetry\u2019s mission is to nurture the artistic soul of a small town-city, and \u201cto make public the potential of poetry and document the profound way that language stirs our feelings and changes the world\u2013one word at a time.\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n*<\/div>\n\n
\nit\u2019s littered with the broken bricks and clinkers \u2014
\nsome burnt, some swollen, some almost dead ringers \u2014
\nthe workers culled at low tide, loading scows
\nfor over fifty years and up to eighty
\nthousand bricks a day.\u00a0 Some immigrants
\nand Chinese contract workers did that dance
\nwith some few islanders.\u00a0 The load was weighty.<\/p>\n
\nchunks, adorned with barnacles, to find
\nmost of a brick that didn\u2019t make the scow
\nbut has enough of bulk to show the brand
\nwhen joined to other pieces \u2014 an opinion
\nbuilt into many island homes:\u00a0 dominion.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\u00a0*<\/span><\/div>\nTo learn more, get in touch with Provo Poetry \/\/<\/span>provopoetry@gmail.com<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n
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