10 Incredibly Interesting Inspired Word Facts

10 Incredibly Interesting Inspired Word Facts

1) One of our venues, le poisson rouge at 158 Bleecker Street, was once the Village Gate, where jazz legends like John Coltrane, Coleman Hawkins, Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Bill Evans, Dave Brubeck, Nina Simone, Herbie Mann did their thing and Aretha Franklin made her first New York appearance.

2) We've featured two Emmy nominated actresses, Amber Tamblyn and Jill Eikenberry.

3) One of our venues, 116 MacDougal St, is actually a converted coal cellar.

4) Our stage has been graced by a Golden Globe winner, Grammy winner, Obie winner, and Tony winner.

5) We produce a yearly breast cancer fundraiser, dedicated to the memory of the late Dorothy Geffner, the mother of IW founder Mike Geffner who died of breast cancer in 1972.

6) We've featured an American Idol finalist, Anwar Robinson, who placed 7th in 2005.

7) One of our venues, One and One’s downstairs Nexus Lounge, was a speakeasy during Prohibition.

8) One of our venues, The Soho Playhouse's Huron Club, was once a popular nightclub for the corrupt Tammany Hall political machine at the turn of the century. Prominent regulars included "Battery" Dan Finn and the infamous Jimmy "Beau James" Walker, known as "The Night Mayor" due to his predilection for jazz clubs and chorus girls.

9) One of our venues, 116 MacDougal St, was once The Gaslight Café aka The Village Gaslight, which showcased beat poets Allen Ginsberg and Gregory Corso in the late 1950’s and where Bob Dylan recorded his first album.

10) Series founder Mike Geffner, a former journalist, interviewed thousands of celebrities during his 30-plus-year career, including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (for 10 days straight in Beverly Hills and Scottsdale, Arizona), President Nixon (twice), and Dennis Hopper (during a round of golf in Simi Valley).

Interview with Inspired Word Host/HBO Def Poetry Star Gemineye

2011 Individual World Poetry Slam Champ Chris August + Poet Stephanie Rogers & Open Mic - Wed, Jan. 25

The Inspired Word presents the 2011 Individual Word Poetry Slam Champion Chris August + spoken word poet Stephanie Rogers & our amazing 20-slot open mic open to all types of artists (comedians, musicians, storytellers, fiction/nonfiction writers, as well as poets and spoken word artists).

Hosted by HBO Def Poetry star Gemineye.

*****

BIOS:

Chris August was crowned the best performance poet in the country last year, winning the prestigious Individual World Poetry Slam in Cleveland, Ohio. He is a special educator, writer and activist from Baltimore, Maryland. He has been involved in the national performance poetry community since 2002, and has been published in numerous collections and toured and competed throughout most of the country.



*****

A spoken word performer, former competitive storyteller and a Twitter-wiseass, Stephanie Rogers realized her love for the written word early, reciting poetry in her community church. However, thanks to a congregation member appropriating a particular favorite reading, she was inspired to create her own poetic works. Since receiving her Bachelor’s Degree from the College of Mount St. Vincent, she has been published in the Iliad Press Anthology “MUSES” and Playboy Magazine, participated in workshops with Cave Canem and Urban Word, and has performed in open-mic poetry events in New York and New Jersey. She’s been a featured performer at STARK Wide Open, as well as the famed Nuyorican Poets Café. Recently she’s been embraced by the The Inspired Word community, as well as the Open Mic Joint and considers both venues her poet/performer homes. Her first book, “Just Something I’ve Got to Say”, dedicated to the middle-finger moments of city living, loving and writing will be released in January 2012. Her ambition is to take her poetry to the four corners of the US (perhaps two in Canada), to finish and produce the one-act plays she started in college, and to use her writing in a positive fashion; a little scathing, sometimes amusing, but always inspiring.



*****

When: Wednesday, Jan. 25 , 2012

Where: 116 116 MacDougal Street (between Bleecker Street and Minetta Lane) Downstairs Lounge Manhattan, NY 10012 (212) 254-9996 (917) 703-1512

By subway, take the A, B, C, D, E, F to West 4th Street-Washington Square.

Doors open for open mic sign-up @ 6:30pm

Show starts @ 7pm

Cover Charge: $10

NO AGE LIMIT.

"The Inspired Word isn't just a series, it's a movement."

For more info on The Inspired Word, check out our website @ http://inspiredwordnyc.com/

NYC Open Mic Joint Debuts @ The Nuyorican Poets Café! Saturday, Dec. 10

This Saturday night, history is being made – The Inspired Word and the famed spoken word mecca, the Nuyorican Poets Café in Manhattan’s East Village, join forces to present the NYC Open Mic Joint, hosted by former Nuyorican Slam Master Nathan P.

Founded by award-winning sports journalist and former Village Voice columnist Mike Geffner, The Inspired Word is one of the hottest open mic series in the country - graced by the likes of Grammy nominated singers, HBO Def Poetry stars, American Idol finalists, Golden Globe Award-winning actresses, and poets from The Best American Poetry anthology.

It’s open to all types of artists - comedians, musicians, storytellers, singers, poets, fiction/nonfiction writers, playwrights, spoken word artists, performance artists, dancers, ANYTHING and EVERYTHING.

So, if you’re looking for a cool downtown spot to do your thing, this is definitely the place.

All you have to do is bring the talent, we’ll bring the rest.

25 slots, 4 minute time limit.

The venue: Nuyorican Poets Café 236 East 3rd Street (between Avenues B and C) Manhattan, New York

Phone: (212) 505-8183 (917) 703-1512

Time: 6:30-9:30pm

Cover charge: $10

To purchase tickets in advance online, click on this link http://nyopenmic.eventbrite.com/.

NO AGE LIMIT!

For Nuyorican Poets Café info, please check out http://www.nuyorican.org/

Mike Geffner: Poem "Everywhere"

EVERYWHERE

I was 16 when she died

A slip on blackened ice

Strangely hard, obscured

Is how it began

A broken hip bone

X-rays with a suspicious blur

A diagnosis

No one saw coming

Everywhere, the doctor said

It was everywhere

She will be dead, he said, in six months

Because it was everywhere

Except everywhere didn't understand who she was

It took three years and six months and 14 days and 4 hours and 17 minutes

To kill her

A month before my high school graduation

When I was 16

And every time I think of her

Now 40 years later

I am 16 again

And alone

And crying

Like never before, never after

The only boy I know

Without a mother.

- Mike Geffner

HBO Def Poetry Superstar Shihan + Singer Jazz Horn, Welsh Poet Rhian & Open Mic - Thursday, Nov. 17

The Inspired Word presents HBO Def Poetry superstar Shihan + singer Jazzmeia Horn + Welsh poet Rhian + 15-slot open mic open to all kinds of artists.

Hosted by Def Poet Gemineye.
*****
Shihan is undoubtedly one of the most dynamic spoken word artists of our generation. He made seven appearances on HBO Def Poetry and is the first and only poet to have a poem named “Download of the Week” on iTunes. He was the National Poetry Slam Champion, twice National Poetry Slam Finalist, and has been featured on a variety of media outlets, including NBC, Oprah Winfrey's Oxygen Network, Al Gore's Current TV, Nike Battlegrounds, Reebok, Adidas, NBA, CNN, Artisan Films Belly DVD, Complex, Billboard Magazine, several national commercial spots, five national tours (including the Tony Award Winning Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry Jam International Tour) and two upcoming Spoken Word documentaries (SP!T and the sequel to the 1997 cult doc Slam Nation, Slam Planet). His ability to transcend cultural and generational boundaries has made Shihan a much-sought-after talent.







With a name like Jazzmeia Horn, she was obviously born to be a songstress in the great tradition of America's classic music, a throwback to the days of Ella and Lena and Nina and Billie. With a voice so irresistibly smooth and grounded in the utmost respect for the vocabulary of the song, she'll take you on a luscious journey down memory lane. "I approach a song with moral and reasonable certitude that lies within my voice," she says. She has performed at such notable New York City jazz clubs as Fat Cat, Miles' Cafe, and Dizzy's, and has been a Downbeat award-winning vocalist three years in a row. For more info, please visit http://www.theartistryofjazzhorn.com/.



Rhian is a poet, singer and songwriter. Her first collection of poems Clueless Dogs is due to be published by Seren in February 2012. Rhian's pamphlet Parade the Fib, (Tall-Lighthouse), was awarded the Poetry Book Society Choice for autumn 2008. Rhian has been published in the Times Literary Supplement, Poetry Review, Arete, Stand Magazine, the Spectator, Poetry London, Poetry Wales, Planet and the London Magazine.


*****
When: Thursday, Nov. 17, 2011

Where: One and One Bar & Restaurant (downstairs Nexus Lounge) 76 East 1st Street (corner of 1st Avenue) Manhattan, NYC Phone:(917) 703-1512

Doors open for open mic sign-up @ 6:30pm

Show starts @ 7pm

Cover Charge: $10

NO AGE LIMIT.

Please join us on Tuesday nights as well for our all-open mic nights! Same time, same place!

Videos - HBO Def Poetry Star Beau Sia @ The Inspired Word

HBO Def Poetry Star Beau Sia @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word, Thursday, Sept. 22, 2011, One and One Bar/Restaurant, Nexus Lounge, Manhattan, NYC. Hosted by Gemineye.

Spoken word poet Beau Sia has toured Europe and the U.S. and was one of the true superstars on HBO Def Poetry. He authored the poetry book A Night Without Armor II: The Revenge as well as the spoken word CD's Attack! Attack! Go! and Dope and Wack. His work also appears in numerous anthologies including Bum Rush the Page: A Def Poetry Jam, and he has appeared in several documentary films, Slamnation, Slam, and Race is the Place. He was featured in the 2000 ESPN X Games and on Hardball with Chris Matthews, Last Call with Carson Daly, Showtime at the Apollo, The Today Show, and The Tony Awards. His film career expanded to include Hitch, with Will Smith, and The Manchurian Candidate, with Denzel Washington. He is one of the original cast members in Def Poetry Jam on Broadway, a 2003 Special Event Tony Award Winner.

This event was funded in part by Poets & Writers, Inc. with public funds from New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.

Videos - Poet Patricia Smith & Novelist Bruce DeSilva @ The Inspired Word

The married couple of poet Patricia Smith & novelist Bruce DeSilva @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word, Thursday, Aug. 4, 2011, One and One Bar/Restaurant, Nexus Lounge, Manhattan, New York City. Hosted by Nathan P. Patricia Smith is the author of five books of poetry, including "Blood Dazzler," a 2008 National Book Award finalist, and "Teahouse of the Almighty," a National Poetry Series selection. In addition to appearing in The Best American Poetry 2011 and The Best American Essays 2011, her work has been published in The Paris Review, Poetry, TriQuarterly and many other anthologies and journals. She is a four-time champion of the National Poetry Slam, the most successful poet in the competition's history. Patricia is the editor of the anthology "Staten Island Noir" and teaches at CUNY/College of Staten Island and in the Stonecoast MFA program at the University of Southern Maine. For more info, please visit http://wordwoman.ws/.

Bruce DeSilva is the author of "Rogue Island," winner of the Mystery Writers of America's coveted Edgar Award for best first novel of 2010. The book has also been nominated for the Anthony and Barry awards and was a Publishers Weekly "first fiction" selection as one of the year's top debut novels. "Cliff Walk," the second book in the series, will be published early in 2012, and DeSilva is currently writing the third. DeSilva worked as an investigative reporter, editor, and writing coach at The Providence Journal, The Hartford Courant, and, most recently, The Associated Press, before retiring from journalism two years ago to write fiction. Stories he edited have won virtually every major journalism prize including The Polk (twice), The Livingston (twice) and The Pulitzer. His book reviews have appeared in The New York Times book review section, and he continues to review fiction regularly for the AP. For more info, please visit http://www.brucedesilva.com/.

The Inspired Word is New York City's hottest new spoken word poetry open mic series happening every Tuesday and Thursday night in downtown Manhattan, produced by longtime journalist and former Village Voice columnist Mike Geffner and hosted by HBO Def Poetry star Gemineye and the NYC spoken word legend Nathan P.

Videographer: Denise Goins http://www.denisegoins.com/
 

Pics - Poet Beau Sia @ The Inspired Word in New York City

HBO Def Poetry superstar Beau Sia @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word Sept. 22, 2011 One and One Bar/Restaurant, Nexus Lounge Manhattan, New York City

Photos By: Raymond Hamlin

New Videos - Poetic People Power @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word

Poetic People Power (poets Tara Bracco, Justin Woo, Erica DeLaRosa, Frantz Jerome, Deanna Zandt, Jonathan Walton, Andy Emeritz) @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word on Thursday, June 2, 2011, One and One Bar/Restaurant, Nexus Lounge, Manhattan, NYC. Hosted by Nathan P.

Poetic People Power was founded by writer Tara Bracco in 2003 to create an ongoing project that combines poetry and activism. Each year, Poetic People Power commissions poems about social and political issues. For more info, please visit http://www.poeticpeoplepower.com/.

This show was titled "The Revolution Will Be..." and it focused on what protest and revolution means today. Inspired by world events and the Gil Scott-Heron poem "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised," the poets creatively explored this topic and shared their new work with the audience.

Back to the Future star James Tolkan recites Keats exclusively for Mike Geffner's Inspired Word

Veteran actor James Tolkan, who played the in-your-face Mr. Strickland in Back to the Future and chided Michael J. Fox's character, Marty McFly, for being a "slacker," beautifully recites the famous John Keats poem "When I have fears that I may cease to be" exclusively for Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word.

Filmed @ James' home in Lake Placid, New York.

James is also known for his roles as the no-nonsense Commander Stinger in the 1986 box-office hit Top Gun, the coldly determined District Attorney Polito in Sidney Lumet's Prince of the City, Napoleon and a Napoleon look-alike in the Woody Allen comedy Love and Death, Big Boy Caprice's accountant Numbers in Dick Tracy, a police officer in Masters of the Universe, and a government agent in WarGames. He made guest appearances on many TV shows as well, including Naked City, Remington Steele, Miami Vice and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

For more info on James, please visit http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0866055/.



When I have fears that I may cease to be
Before my pen has glean'd my teeming brain,
Before high piled books, in charact'ry,
Hold like rich garners the full-ripen'd grain;
When I behold, upon the night's starr'd face, Huge cloudy symbols of a high romance,
And think that I may never live to trace
Their shadows, with the magic hand of chance;
And when I feel, fair creature of an hour!
That I shall never look upon thee more,
Never have relish in the faery power
Of unreflecting love!—then on the shore
Of the wide world I stand alone, and think
Till Love and Fame to nothingness do sink.

- John Keats

Major Studio/Network Exec Eve Brandstein Joins The Inspired Word Family

Mike Geffner Preents The Inspired Word is thrilled to announce that Eve Brandstein has joined The Inspired Word family as Series Consultant. Her amazing passion, her innovative ideas, her undying love of poetry will make a great addition to the team.

Besides being a poet, Eve Brandstein has been a major studio and network executive, a producer, a film and theater director, writer/creator, and casting director. She is also an artist, teacher and workshop facilitator, who has led writing and performance groups.

Her poetry appears in national publications and she is one of the organizers of the celebrated reading series – Poetry In Motion, launched in 1988 with fellow poet, Michael Lally. Eve is once again producing Poetry in Motion as a monthly series at the venerated home of Los Angeles poetry, Beyond Baroque.

She is a publisher of The Hollywood Review an anthology of L.A. poets and also the author of “The Actor – A Practical Guide to a Professional Career” plus has published several collections and anthologies of poetry chapbooks. Recently she co-produced and co-directed 13 episodes of "John Waters Presents Movies That Will Corrupt You.” Currently she directed the premiere of Revisiting Wildfire which is at the Odyssey Theater., LA. As an accomplished artist her work is shown at TAG Gallery at Bergamot Station, Los Angeles.

Her next poetry collection will be published and distributed by Zeitgeist Press. For more info on Ms. Brandstein, please visit evebrandsteinproductions.com and http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0104843/.

"One and One: The Obscene Gravity of [the] Pear" - A Poem Curated By Joseph A. W. Quintela

One and One: The Obscene Gravity of [the] Pear A Poem Curated by Joseph A. W. Quintela   It is fascinating how photographs capture selves that we want [or don’t want] in certain moments.      -Rachel Eliza Griffiths, Mule & Pear (approximation, extracted from reading comment)   I have a habit that a lot of my heroes are dead.      -Paulie Lipman, The Obscene Gravity of Silence (approximation, extracted from reading comment)

When I tell

where the blood is, my

too-often, bull-mouth,

word-fracturing,

hissing, breeze-through-the-girl,

barbed teeth

coil. Part his lips,

thick as autumn vines, to grin flint at me

like a spike. Keep light out. And I must take

my own hand, all willow wispy,

as if it were a stave, but nowhere as strong,

brokenly bleating, Let the light through.

A thousand-throated neighbors

call beneath me

(nobody listen),

call me to say,

The men have left, except for the reporters,

the women like it here,

piled like a beige heap of trees,

to be ironed & mended. Cold shadow

of 3 fathers, all mothers have left,

but in their shadow

let me be the chandelier.

Family: where your body,

in its cradle, shared a name with

me. And

there is far more blood between us, if I'm answering

you. He

was soil and light in my lungs

where screams fired me back to nothing.

Truly, I wear golden lamps,

after midight raised me;

shaped us into lips of light opening

for his divine imagination

(& we would plague

again). The things

I have lived hold me now.

I am no more. Life,

a frament. And wish.

His sense of purpose. The clouds behind me.

The last body expands,

indifferent as the first luminous stain.

All I wanted was to tell him,

You, the others, Mr. President,

you, and the rest of your kind: be near me.

Us: where the blood tipped on the brink

learned beauty.

I was blood at their feet.

Stir the leaves & tell me

where the blood is going. Ancient,

bull-bellied clouds (slow death).

Our hips bleed

into surrender. Girl & woman:

so barbed.

Coil at the very root.

Thick as autumn vines, the barest glimpse

of my--(keep the light out!)--

own hand. I am 60 years old.

The forest, as if it were a stave of notes

grown crooked, brokenly bleating

in the shadow of a thousand-throated

third. A preserved hummingbird.

Listen to us: The tourists

weakened branches say to

whither and return to dirt. The men have left,

the women (I am not a murderer!) have

been piled. I've only ever loved.

I am a parolee, to be ironed and mended.

I have left you.

I am no one's daughter.      Blood

(Our)                                                   drips from the chandelier

 

[Joseph A. W. Quintela's Note: The poem presented here is a composite (or mash-up) of The Two Elizas by Rachel Eliza Griffith and Squeaky by Paulie Lipman. The title is a composite of the titles of their most recent collections. The two poets performed together on 8 September, 2011 as featured poets at Michael Geffner’s Inspired Word hosted at One and One in New York City. Poems used with the permission of the poets.]

 

Spoken Word Poet Dwayne Morgan @ The Inspired Word NYC Poetry Event

Spoken Word Poet Dwayne Morgan @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word, Thursday, July 7, 2011 @ One and One Bar/Restaurant, Nexus Lounge, Manhattan, NYC.

Dwayne Morgan began his career as a spoken word artist in 1993. In 1998, Morgan received both the African Canadian Achievement Award and the Harry Jerome Award for Excellence in the Arts. He is also the winner of three Canadian Urban Music Awards (2001, 2003, 2005). In 2005 he was recognized as Poet of Honour at the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word in Vancouver. In 2008 Morgan's contribution to the Arts and Canadian society were recognized on the Official Black History Month poster.

Videographer: Denise Goins (http://www.denisegoins.com/) and Alan Mohammed.

Poets David Lehman & Matthew Yeagar @ Big Apple BAP: NYC's Best American Poetry Poets

Poets David Lehman & Matthew Yeagar @ The Inspired Word's Big Apple BAP: NYC's Best American Poetry Poets, Thursday, June 16, 2011, @ One and One Bar/Restaurant, Nexus Lounge, Manhattan, NYC.

David Lehman is a poet, writer, editor, and teacher. He launched The Best American Poetry in 1988 and continues as the series editor of the acclaimed annual anthology. His own books of poetry include When a Woman Loves a Man (2005) and Yeshiva Boys (2009). The most recent of his seven nonfiction books, A Fine Romance: Jewish Songwriters, American Songs, won the 2010 Deems Taylor Award from ASCAP. Lehman has edited The Oxford Book of American Poetry. He teaches in the graduate writing program at the New School in New York City.

Matthew Yeager's poems have appeared in Best American Poetry (2005 and 2010), Bat City Review, NY Quarterly, Gulf Coast, and others. His short film "A Big Ball of Foil in a Small NY Apartment," was an official selection at eleven film festivals in 2009-2010, picking up two awards. Other recent accolades include the Barthelme Prize in short prose. He is the co-founder of Chicken Truck Productions and lives in Brooklyn, NY.

This inaugural Big Apple BAP: NYC's Best American Poetry Poets was a night celebrating New York City's finest poets, whose poems over the years have been honored with inclusion in the highly respected annual anthology, The Best American Poetry. http://www.bestamericanpoetry.com/

Hosted by The Best American Poetry's founding editor, David Lehman, the debut lineup included a dazzling array of accomplished poets: Mark Bibbins, Jennifer Michael Hecht, David Shapiro, R. Erica Doyle, Jerome Sala, Elaine Equi, Michael Cirelli, Stacey Harwood, George Green, Carly Sachs, Matthew Yeager, Amy Holman, and Vicki Hudspith.

It was a fabulous night of poetry.

Founded by award-winning journalist and former Village Voice columnist Mike Geffner, The Inspired Word is one of the hottest new poetry/spoken word series in the country, happening every Tuesday and Thursday night in Manhattan's East Village.

Venue: One and One Bar/Restaurant (downstairs Nexus Lounge)
76 East 1st Street (corner of 1st Avenue)
Manhattan, New York City

Filmed & Edited by: Laurence Wallace
http://www.laurencewallace.com/

Video - Spoken Word Poet Esoteric Structure @ NYC's Inspired Word

Spoken Word Poet Esoteric Structure @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word, Thursday, May 26, 2011 @ One and One Bar/Restaurant, Nexus Lounge, Manhattan, NYC. Hosted by HBO Def Poetry star Gemineye.

Esoteric Structure is a spoken word poet and the winner of the 2nd Inspired Word "American Idol" contest. He's also a clothing designer, illustrator and filmmaker. He recently completed a short film called "Dom & Magdalena."

The Inspired Word is New York City's hottest new spoken word poetry open mic series happening every Tuesday and Thursday night in downtown Manhattan, produced by longtime journalist and former Village Voice columnist Mike Geffner.

Venue: One and One, downstairs Nexus Lounge, 76 East 1st Street (corner of 1st Avenue), Manhattan, New York City.

Videographer: Amanda Hiciano

LOVE the poet @ The Inspired Word NYC Spoken Word Poetry Series

LOVE the poet @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word, Thursday, May 19, 2011 @ One and One Bar/Restaurant, Nexus Lounge, Manhattan, NYC.

Michelle Antoinette Nelson, also known as LOVE the poet, is a prominent poet/author on the national performance and literary art scenes, and in the field of creative writing education. She has appeared on CNN as a speaker at the Jena 6 rally in Washington, D.C., co-produced and appeared in "Passion Fruit Tea" (a short film based on her poem with the same name), released multiple spoken word CDs, and has performed on college campuses nationwide. Michelle is also an active member of the Maryland Speaker's Bureau, a member of the Punany Poets (as seen on HBO), the creator of Live Lyrics! Creative writing workshops, host of BE FREE Fridays, and an active member of Poetry for the People Baltimore. For booking and more information visit http://www.lovethepoet.com/

The Inspired Word is New York City's hottest new spoken word poetry series happening every Thursday night in downtown Manhattan, produced by longtime journalist and former Village Voice columnist Mike Geffner.

Filmed and Edited by: Laurence Wallace
http://www.laurencewallace.com/

Music by: Oveous
http://www.mocaarts.com/

HBO Def Poet Big Mike @ The Inspired Word Spoken Word Poetry Series

HBO Def Poetry Star Big Mike @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word, Thursday, May 19, 2011 @ One and One Bar/Restaurant, Nexus Lounge, Manhattan, NYC. Hosted by Nathan P.

Big Mike has appeared on Russell Simmons presents Def Poetry Season 6, episode 39 and was a member of the 2005 Nuyorican Slam Team. In 2002, he read his first spoken word piece at Serengeti Plains in Montclair, NJ. Since then he has performed at colleges and universities up and down the East Coast, at the National Poetry Slam and the Southern Fried Regional Poetry Slam. In 2008 at the 16th annual Southern Fried Poetry Slam, He placed 1st in the Individual Poetry Slam Competition, and the New Jersey team placed 4th. He has been teaching elementary school for 16 years and is currently a 3rd grade teacher who uses the power of poetry to help his students, not only to write, but express how they feel. He has conducted creative writing and poetry workshops for students from grades 3 to 12 and is the founding father of the NJ Youth Slam Team. He also runs open mics and poetry slams for youth poets all over NJ. Big Mike the Home Movies DVD not only focuses on his poetry, but welcomes you into his home where anything and everything can happen. Bitter Married and Bald, his self-published book, is another journey into his poetry and the stories behind them. His debut CD Reality Bytez was released in 2004.

The Inspired Word is New York City's hottest new spoken word poetry series happening every Thursday night in downtown Manhattan, produced by longtime journalist and former Village Voice columnist Mike Geffner.

Filmed and Edited by: Laurence Wallace
http://www.laurencewallace.com/

Music by: Oveous
http://www.mocaarts.com/

The Best American Poetry Blog: "Inspired by The Inspired Word's Michael Geffner" by Stacey Harwood

This appeared yesterday on The Best American Poetry blog:

Inspired by The Inspired Word's Michael Geffner
By Stacey Harwood

I caught up with Michael Geffner recently, which, if you’re a facebook friend or are among his 8000+ twitter followers (@MikeGeffner), you know is no small feat. Geffner is founder, producer, and director of “The Inspired Word” (@TheInspiredWordNYC) series and as such he puts together a show every Thursday night, year round.

We met because Geffner is the mastermind behind this Thursday’s “Big Apple BAP: NYC’s Best American Poets” at One and One Bar & Restaurant (downstairs Nexus Lounge) 76 East 1st Street (corner of 1st Avenue) Manhattan. (Phone: (917) 703-1512. Cover charge is $15.) The program begins at 6:30 PM and brings together a blockbuster lineup of new and established poets, all of whom have been included in at least one volume of The Best American Poetry (Mark Bibbins, Jennifer Michael Hecht, David Shapiro, R. Erica Doyle, Jerome Sala, Elaine Equi, Michael Cirelli, Stacey Harwood, George Green, Carly Sachs, Matthew Yeager, Amy Holman, and host David Lehman.)

How did this award winning sports writer and journalist become a poetry impresario and what does he bring to the experience that sets his series apart from others?

Though he has a life-long love of poetry, Geffner was not part of the poetry scene until 2009 when he became involved in organizing shows for a restaurant in his Queens neighborhood.  When the restaurant closed, he decided to keep at it and scouted locations in Manhattan. At the same time, as he attended many readings and surveyed the landscape of NYC poetry, his vision of a successful series sharpened...

Please read the rest of the post by clicking here.

Video - Claudia Alick @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word

Claudia Alick @ Mike Geffner Presents The Inspired Word, Thursday, Feb. 17, 2011 @ One and One Bar/Restaurant, Nexus Lounge, Manhattan, NYC.

Alick is a playwright, performance artist, actress, producer, teacher, journalist, and HBO Def Poetry poet. She produces the outdoor performance series "The Green Show" for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, has guest-lectured at New York University, Montgomery College, taught with Arena Stage and The Shakespeare Theatre, and was named by American Theater Magazine as one of 25 theater artists who will shape American Theater in the next 25 years. She has also served as the Artistic Director of Smokin' Word Productions, authored and directed plays staged at The Kennedy Center, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, LaMama E.T.C., Cherry Lane Theater, and the Hip Hop Theatre Festival, and is a member of the award winning NY Neofuturists. She lives in Ashland, Oregon.

The Inspired Word is New York City's hottest new spoken word poetry series that happens every Thursday night in downtown Manhattan, produced by longtime writer/journalist and former Village Voice columnist Mike Geffner.

Videographer: Elaine Delehant

Music by: Toni Blackman, "Ha Ha."