Invited to POETRY party...Help!!

[lucyandroger]

Hi all,

I''ve been invited to a poetry dinner party. We''re supposed to bring some of our favorite pieces to share. I haven''t really read poetry since high school so I''m kind of at loss. Can anyone suggest some poetry? Preferably something I won''t be too embarrassed reading to a bunch of work colleagues...

Thank you!

 

[Haven]

Yikes! That''s a scary prospect for anyone who isn''t comfortable delivering poetry in public.

You might want to check out Poetry Out Loud. It''s a national recitation contest put on by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation. They should have audio versions of the poems on the site, if I remember correctly.

It''s a great program, they used to send me their CD and book each year when I coached a high school speech team.

Poetry 180 has some great poems, too. It''s a Library of Congress program. Just type in a number a the top right to find a poem.

Just a tip--when you do read your poem, remember not to stop at the end of each line. Read it as the words should be read, not the form.

Have fun searching for poems! I''d give you a specific poem suggestion, but I have to say that the most rewarding part of this process will probably be searching through the work yourself and getting a feel for what you do and don''t like. Enjoy!

 

[princesss]

Date: 3/11/2010 11:49:17 AM
Author: Haven
Yikes! That''s a scary prospect for anyone who isn''t comfortable delivering poetry in public.

You might want to check out Poetry Out Loud. It''s a national recitation contest put on by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation. They should have audio versions of the poems on the site, if I remember correctly.

It''s a great program, they used to send me their CD and book each year when I coached a high school speech team.

Poetry 180 has some great poems, too. It''s a Library of Congress program. Just type in a number a the top right to find a poem.

Just a tip--when you do read your poem, remember not to stop at the end of each line. Read it as the words should be read, not the form.

Have fun searching for poems! I''d give you a specific poem suggestion, but I have to say that the most rewarding part of this process will probably be searching through the work yourself and getting a feel for what you do and don''t like. Enjoy!

+1!

But I will say that if you get reaaaaaaaaally stuck, "This is Just to Say" by William Carlos Williams is a fun one.

I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox
and which
you were probably
saving
for breakfast
Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold

 

[PumpkinPie]

great poem! I feel bad for whomever was looking forward to those plums..

 

[princesss]

Date: 3/11/2010 12:23:14 PM
Author: Maevie
great poem! I feel bad for whomever was looking forward to those plums..

Yeah. I just love (in theory) the idea of the unapologetic apology. "I''m sorry I ate them, I know you wanted them, but MAN they were good!"

 

[lucyandroger]

Haven, Thank you so much for the resources and the tip! Not only are we not comfortable reading poetry in public, but the guest list was undisclosed so we have no idea how many people will be there or who they are.

Princess, Thanks! That is a cute one!

I''m going to go through the links Haven posted this afternoon and post a few contenders for opinions.

 

[Haven]

The Poetry 180 poems are all more modern and easier to read aloud, I'd say.

I really like this one, #78:

Doing Without
David Ray

's an interesting
custom, involving such in-
visible items as the food
that's not on the table, the clothes
that are not on the back
the radio whose music
is silence. Doing without
is a great protector of reputations
since all places one cannot go
are fabulous, and only the rare and
enlightened plowman in his field
or on his mountain does not overrate
what he does not or cannot have.
Saluting through their windows
of cathedral glass those restaurants
we must not enter (unless like
burglars we become subject to
arrest) we greet with our twinkling
eyes the faces of others who do
without, the lady with the
fishing pole, and the man who looks
amused to have discovered on a walk
another piece of firewood.

ETA:

To be honest, I'd probably share one of my favorite Shel Silverstein poems if I were invited to this party. Seriously.
"Sick" is a fun one.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

What about Shel Silverstein (sp?)? lol He''s got a ton of fun, easy-to-read poems, that aren''t too deep or challenging to say out loud!

 

[Haven]

MC--Great minds! You posted your response just as I posted my ETA about Shel Silverstein!

I also love:

Put Something In

Draw a crazy picture,
Write a nutty poem,
Sing a mumble-grumble song,
Whistle through your comb.
Do a loony-goony dance
'Cross the kitchen floor,
Put something silly in the world
That ain't been there before.

Or, you could ask the host to read the first poem, and read:

Invitation

If you are a dreamer, come in,
If you are a dreamer, a wisher, aliar,
A hope-er, a pray-er, a magic bean buyer . . .
If you're a pretender, come sit by my fire
For we have some flax-golden tales to spin.
Come in!
Come in!

One of my creative writing classes used "Invitation" as the opening piece for a poetry slam we did for the entire school. It was awesome. He had a lot of energy and delivered it bent low in a loud stage whisper. So cool.

If you decide to go with a Shel Silverstein poem, be sure to bring a second one in case someone else reads your choice first. (Gosh, do I sound like a teacher, or what?)

 

[kenny]

Sounds like you don't want to go.
Say something came up and you can't go, or better yet just say it's not your thing.

It is okay to be yourself.

 

[karpouzi]

Ugh. I'm with Kenny. This is, IMO, a terrible idea for a work function. If you pick a really popular poem, it will look cliche. If you pick a really "accessible" poem, poetry snobs will think it's pedestrian or declasse. It's too easy to feel vulnerable at something like this--not something that should be put on by work IMO.

ETA: That said, I'd go through Whitman's Leaves of Grass and choose a passage that appeals to you, but not the "I celebrate myself..." part.

 

[lucyandroger]

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU Haven for that link to 180 poems. It was lifesaver.

Update:

We went to the dinner party on Sat. night. It was a very cozy crowd and I was the only person the host invited from work. It ended up being a ton of fun and I''m so glad that we went. Each poem led to interesting conversation about a topic that most likely never would have been brought up among people that had just met. My FI and I were really pleasanltly surprised.

 

[Haven]

You''re very welcome.

I was just thinking about you and wondering how the party went. I''m glad to hear it was a success, and a fun night, even!