By now, I figure I’m fairly good at spotting signs of a promising open mic. For example, when I pass…
Every September, my home city of Raleigh gives its downtown over for a weekend to the arts. All forms. All…
The Triangle—where I call home—has its share of strong, steady poetry events—slams in Durham and Chapel Hill, page poet affairs…
It’s not always easy to tell whether an open mic is going to welcome poets. My research often turns up…
In the last 6 years, I’ve probably gone to more than 50 open mic nights. Each night featured anywhere from…
The Boston suburb of Jamaica Plain has a reputation for being eclectic and inclusive. For 25 years, the Midway Cafe has…
The folks at Trend Coffee & Tea House in Montclair, NJ, don’t say too much on their website about the…
As with most things, open mics run on a bell curve. Most are okay. Some are incredible. And yes, some…
Friends and fellow poets/performers, it’s happened again. In two years and 16 states (plus the District of Columbia), I’ve struck…
Across 16 states now, I’ve noticed a couple key ingredients in what makes a strong open mic—the kind that’s been…