I walked into the Revue Café in Tower District and glanced around with excitement because somehow Fresno got creatively cool.
Not to discredit the arts of the city, but I left Kerman (a neighboring town 15 miles south of Tower District) as an 18-year-old in 2001 and moved to Southern California where poetry readings and pleasant murals align every other block.
Since getting into the arts in my early twenties, I hadn’t taken the time to explore Fresno’s during my short holiday visits over the years, but since moving back I did some research with hopes of discovering that the 5th largest populated city in the state would have some inspiring entertainment to offer.
I goggled “Fresno Arts” and was directed to the www.fresnoarts.net site. Within that site I found The Beat Down Competitive Poetry Slam and within the dark red walls of the Revue Café, I found my inspiration. Fresno does have poetic talent and there is a perfect venue for it.
The Beat Down gets up every second Thursday of each month inside the theatre portion of Revue Café. With a few rows of movie theatre seating, along with traditional café table and chairs, the event could not find a more appropriate setting.
The color scheme has character and the ambience is artistic. The dimly lit room uses professional stage lighting, retro movie posters like “King Kong” and “The New Adventures of Tarzan” align the walls and adorable lamps appearing straight from the set design of a Roger Rocka’s 1950’s theme production center around a roomy stage with two microphones.
The hosts are just as appropriate as the scene. Bryan Medina & Joe Osejo are a very funny duo with a great repertoire as they easily get the crowd excited and engaged. Medina has conquered the question “Are you ready for the next poet?” as the audience always responds, “You know it!”
There are 10 competitors, with a $5 pay-in fee ($3 for non-participants) and two rounds, each judged by 5 randomly chosen audience members. 10 being the highest and 50 for a perfect score, the r judges have a particularly difficult task on a good night.
Attending the first show of the year, Janurary 14th’s lineup blew me away. Love kicked off the topics and was covered a few times, reverting me back to my last relationship with a smile and overall joy.
A gentleman named Scurvy who co-hosts a relating event called the INNEREAR poetry jam boisterously bantered back and forth with word play of life saying “That television will steal your vision,” adding that he is “Just as paranoid as I need to be,” as he graciously surpassed the 3-minute time limit with “The Bright Side of Total Doom.”
Last’s month champion David Campos stole the stage presence with energy and ease with his humorous adolescent memory poem, but the twenty-something-year-old poetic piece of government property named Ben Woody delivered the best piece of political perspective my ears have ever heard.
A man of war, he could not have expressed his disapproval of America’s current stage of combat any more eloquently or sincere. It was fabulous and the judges, hosts and viewers all agreed with loud applause and a perfect score.
You will have to come out to next month’s show to judge for yourselves because really, this event is not to be slept on. You can gain a new perspective, entertain your ears and help keep the energy of Fresno’s arts up and at it. Make sure to come out to February 11th event, same place same time same fun.
Revue Café
620 E Olive Ave
Fresno, California 93728
(559) 499-1844
No comments:
Post a Comment