Bringing poetry to the people
‘Poetry is a disease . . . and it seems to be growing’
Apoetry renaissance sweeping the country is bubbling up a bumper bunch of bards in Levin. Really Alive Poets (RAP) was formed in Levin in 2019 and the group has grown steadily in number since, meeting regularly and holding public readings once a month at the town’s library, Te Takeretanga o Kura-haupo¯.
RAP co-ordinator Philip Grimmett said three new poets turned up “off the bat” to recite their work at the latest public reading day at the library.
“It’s amazing. Poetry is a disease . . . and it seems to be growing,” Grimmett said.
“We are tending to attract more and more poets. We simply organise it, as much as you can organise a plethora of poets.”
RAP member Roger Marcon said it felt like poetry had re-birthed after seemingly hibernating for decades, noticeable by the renewed interest in the art form and a new breed of poet.
“Poetry is undergoing a renaissance both in schools and in the wider community with a variety of groups and performance venues emerging to meet this trend,” he said.
“We are a part of that growth in interest.”
Marcon said anybody was welcome to listen or share their poetry and more poetry “slams” seemed to be happening all over the country,
not just in the bigger city centres.
Some of the modern poetry would have academics “squirming in their seats” but he felt the art of expression was ancient and, by its very nature, should not be stymied by strict parameters.
“All of our members write and share their own work which reflect a broad spectrum of styles and topics. We celebrate both traditional and modern poetry, including the work of poets from the Wellington-Ka¯piti Coast region,” he said.
There was never the wrong time to unleash your inner poet. He had heard of a similar group in a neighbouring town welcoming a new member who was 80 years old.
“We meet at midday on the second Tuesday each month in Te Takere to share our own and others’ work. In addition, we are available to share poetry with community groups and retirement villages, where we sometimes include a musical interlude in our programme.
“Members of our group also meet monthly in a private home where we challenge each other to write around a theme or to write a specific type of poetry.”
Grimmett said performance poetry added another dimension to the art. “There was, perhaps, the perception that poetry was something you had to stomach at school — a bit dry ball — but it can come alive with the spoken word and when you think about it the traditions have been oral, around the campfire speaking, telling tales,” he said.
“It’s an intense art form. It can’t be in the background, not like music. You have to switch your cognitive faculties off and enjoy it.
“You have to be head to head, eyeball to eyeball, ear to ear.
“It demands your attention.” RAP now occupied a cabinet space in Levin Mall where poems could be placed and read by passers-by and replaced every so often with new work.
It had also printed a booklet of work to which nine of the group’s poets had contributed, which is available for purchase at the library.