Part one of my recap of Columbus Arts Fest and my recuperation/ thoughts on the future…

It took me a couple of days to get over the beauty that was Columbus Arts Fest down at the Riverfront. It was my first time really visiting and getting to know the area. They’ve finished a couple of new parks, walking areas, a new stage– all of which are beautiful. And I got to be a part of it all.

If you don’t know much about CAF, it has a slew of artists, musicians, and yes, poets from across the nation (though, to be specific, the poets were all Ohio). There is almost every art form imaginable on display and for sale, and it is a wonderful way to get a taste of the Columbus art scene. The mister and I bought our first piece of art together– a print from an artist named Sooro Kim. The picture on his artist info page is the print we bought. It hangs next to our front door. now.

The Ohio Magazine Word Is Art Stage was at the entrance to the Festival. We got people coming and going, and it was great. People would turn their heads, stop and listen as the poets were performing. One of the volunteers told me that during my piece “Her Hips,” the people would keep turning as I repeated the phrase throughout the performance. He asked, “what is it about hips?” I could have gone on FOR YEARS.

The performances that I saw… amazing. I didn’t catch many because my mister and I wanted to do a little walking and exploring. Bless my mister; he enjoys poetry performances,  but he needs a break, periodically. I work with him.

But back to the performances:

The second runner-up, Rose Smith enthralled the audience. She has a masterful way of telling a story, describing a scene, and, honestly, I could listen to her all day long. The winner of the Arts Fest competition, Joanna Schroeder, amazed. She has a very unique take on the world, and it is reflected in her poetry. She also has a commanding stage presence, and it showed. I was impressed, indeed.

My performance? I enjoyed myself, from my signature piece “They Called Me,” to my newer formed pieces such as my Ghazal “Tonight” and “Her Hips,” I tried to give them every spark I had. It felt good. My mister said I had a very good command of the stage during my feature, which pleased me to no extent. That was my first major feature, and I wanted to have a nice ebb and flow to it.

The nicest thing about the performance, quite a few people I truly care about were there. Ed and Scott were running the stage– and Ed introduced me, which was a very nice moment. He and his wife were two of my first friends I made when I started going to Writer’s Block. They both mean a lot to me.

And, besides my mister, MY BROTHER showed up. I had never before performed in front of blood relatives. That really meant a lot to be able to see him and his friend in the audience. And he recorded it… I STILL need to get that video.

Anyway, here is a photo of myself, Rose and Joanna. I had to make sure I got a picture of the three of us together. Such a good memory to keep.

From left to right: Rose, Joanna and myself.

After the features, there was a Slam hosted by Scott (Woods, awesome poet… former President of Poetry Slam, Inc.). Myself and three gents. It was all in good fun and featured two rounds of poetry and a haiku round. The audience scored. And there were some interesting scores. I ended up last. A big, teddy bear of a poet, Brandon, won the night. It was well earned, and a lot of fun.

Sunday, I performed three pieces with The Secrets of Oshun. My friends, Vernell, Izetta and Tiffani are members of the group, and all had great performances throughout the hour. It was a good cap to the weekend.

To be continued…