Poetry within reach
Kuala Lumpur’s first monthly spoken word and poetry open mic is growing in strength.
IT’S been just over a year now since Kuala Lumpur- based poetry open- mic night If Walls Could Talk began as a regular live series ( June 9, 2015, to be precise). To date, 20 editions of the If Walls Could Talk gigs have taken place at the Gaslight Cafe in Bukit Damansara in Kuala Lumpur.
For Melizarani T. Selva, who balances the If Walls Could Talk series with her day job as a journalist, it has been an exciting year. The popularity of the Walls events has been a pleasant surprise for the young poet.
“We started out with fortnightly shows in our first three months, and then we toned it down to once a month,” says Melizarani, 25, who founded Walls as a platform to encourage poetry readings and spoken word events in the Klang Valley.
“For the longest time, there never was a consistent platform or an open mic for poetry. Poets have had to share gigs with musicians – if there was an opening for them to perform,” she adds.
For Walls, the concept, since the start, has been to feature an established local or international poet, one singer- songwriter performing original work, and 10 to 15 slots for open- mic poets.
“My main motivation in starting Walls is to make poetry reading accessible and to create a space for local and young budding poets to perform in an intimate, yet interactive setting. The next thing is to also pay the featured acts,” says Melizarani.
In the first few editions, the attendance was nearly 50 people, but as the months went by, Walls began to gain traction and it has been consistently attracting more than 120 poetry enthusiasts to its shows.
“On average these days, we get 300 people wanting to attend. And there tends to be a line waiting to enter. We can and will only fit 120 people into the space for the safety and comfort of everyone,” says Melizarani.
A cover charge of RM18 at Walls ensures that the featured acts get paid. On Facebook, Walls has a following of over 1,700 fans, and all its activities ( and some live videos) are documented there. Aspiring poets who want to participate can contact the gig organisers through Facebook.
The featured acts have also given the show extra mileage – and an international presence. The show, through the months, has invited established names in poetry such as homegrown author/ poet/ photographer Bernice Chauly, Zohab Zee Khan ( Australia), Rochelle D’Silva ( India), Bill Moran ( aka Good Ghost Bill, United States) and Catherine Brogan ( Britain) to grace its stage. Hip hop artistes like Altimet and Dose Two have made appearances, too.
“For poets on tour, there is an emerging circuit which roughly reads Singapore- KLPenang-Bangkok- Jakarta- Manila. You can travel with words these days. It’s all about networking, making friends and finding connections in the poetry scene in Malaysia and beyond,” she adds.
Most of the local poets have also published their works, and Walls is an outlet for them to sell their books and merchandise. What are the poems about at Walls? “It’s a mix of everything. We get a lot of powerful poems dealing with issues both personal and on a national level,” says Melizarani.
The community of poets – young and old – in Malaysia is also a vibrant one.
“It’s a very strong indie setting here. It’s sort of similar to the independent music scene, we have many poets here who have books/ chapbooks to their name, and there are also acts like Wani Ardy And Guitar Polygamy with CD releases.”
Melizarani reveals that the past one year has seen 160 poets ( without repetition) taking part at Walls. Elsewhere, a “Poets In Progress” workshop series has also been added as a spin- off activity.
“We’re still getting a majority of new poets registering ( for the open mic), which is good news to show that the scene is growing.”
Despite the Walls series not touring nationwide yet, she says that many poets have come from outside the Klang Valley to participate.
“I can’t say its entirely a Klang Valley- based scene because Walls regularly gets poets coming from Penang, Perak, Malacca, Johor, Sabah and Sarawak,” she mentions.
On June 9, National Literature Laureate Datuk Abdul Samad Said ( or Pak Samad) and his son Az Samad, joined Walls for its first anniversary show.
Az says regular open- mic nights like Walls could eventually become a sustainable platform in the homegrown arts/ literature scene.
“Walls and similar events serve to provide a platform to connect creative people with the audience,” says Az.
“Such events are even larger abroad. The challenge is, of course. sustaining interest,” he adds.
Some regular performers at Walls include homeschool educator Angelia Ong and her young charges Team Demigods, a group of homeschooled teenagers with a bent for poetry.
According to Melizarani, Walls has a strong family- friendly focus and the inclusion of young poets aged 10- 14 has been a revelation.
“These homeschooled children have been enthusiastic about the poetry part of their extra- curricular activities. It’s good to see them so confident on stage while their parents have been supportive by attending the shows,” says Melizarani.
Ong mentions that the teenagers in Team Demigods, despite the members’ early nervous bouts on stage, have warmed up to poetry recitals.
“It is about building self- confidence and learning to express yourself comfortably.
Walls is an amazing event since you don’t have to be an experienced poet, or even want to be one ( to participate),” says Ong.
Since its first anniversary celebration, Walls has also gone on to organise its very first poetry slam – Slamokrasi, which took place at the recent Refugee Festival at the Black Box, Publika in Kuala Lumpur on June 25.
At the first Slamokrasi, judges called (“deciders”) gave marks using giant playing card suites from King to Ace, while “citizens” and picket- sign wielding “Skuad Sokong” cheerleaders kept the atmosphere intense.
The competitive Slamokrasi, which Melizarani calls a “progression” for the poets, takes in 10 poets for every slam. The next
Slamokrasi happens at Makespace, Quill City Mall in KL on Aug 6.
“One hope I have for Slamokrasi is to challenge the poets to get out of their comfort zone, to go out there and perform to people who might not know what poetry is about or only have a passing knowledge of it,” concludes Melizarani.
For more info, visit: facebook. com/ ifwallscouldtalkkl.