Last Cuerna Slam, Wrapping it all up

On Wednesday I competed in my first real slam.
It's hard to believe, since I've been into slam poetry ever since high school, I've helped organize slams in the past and I'm doing a project on global spoken word. But it's true. The first time I ever competed in a real slam was on Wednesday. And it was here, in Cuernavaca Mexico.
I performed two pieces in english, and one in spanish.
Let's just say, the judges were super nice about the poem in spanish. Maybe it's the thought that counts, eh? :)
So if you just did the math, yes that means I made it to the third round. I came in 3rd, which was a huge shock (I wasn't expecting to get past the 1st round). And I was the only girl to make it into the top 4. (it's official. I don't care what anyone says, slam poetry is totally dominated by men!)
Anyway, it was lots of fun, and it definitely gave me a new perspective on my study.

Probably the most incredible and one of my favorite pieces of the night was a poem performed by a young man... whose name I can't recall at the moment. His stage presense was excellent but it was the "type" of poem that got me.

See, when one starts to attend lots of slams, one can begin to pick out "types" of poetry. There's the "diva/queen" poem. The "emo-my-exgirlfriend-is-an-evil-bitch-but-i-can't-stop-writing-about-it" poem. Theres the "I wanna be a __(enter clever contradictory descriptive word here)___" poem. The "fuck the police" poem. And then of course, there's the "meta-poem". This last type is usually pretty clever, and a great one to get the audience all ralled up by acknowledging that they're in the midst of a tradition that was recreated by Marc Smith in the 80s, but really has been around since.... whenever. Personally, I love these poems. Whereas the previously stated poems can be interesting and clever too, this last one interests me the most... probably because I've studied the development of the slam movement so much. What can I say, I'm a nerd and I like to see that some poets know their history.

So this poet, he did a "meta-poem". In spanish (obviously). And what really got me all excited was the fact that even here in Mexico this "type" can not only exist, but also cause the same response in the audience. People love to know about the ritual of spoken word. And they love it even more when you explain it to them through spoken word. It seems that poetry can cross boundaries that people sometimes can't cross.

It was the end of the cycle here in Cuernavaca, which is common, considering it is december. But at the same time, it could potentially be the end of the project, as Logan is going on tour next year with his group, Verbobala. The space was absolutely packed, and the poetry performances were outstanding, so I hope someone takes the initiative to continue the scene here. It would be a shame for it to fizzle out.

Speaking of disappearing, I'm about to leave Mexico. It's been pretty great here, and I'm not going to start with a goodbye entry just yet because I've still got 2 more days and 1 more performance to see.