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Love, Exciting and New

I'm more of a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants sort of gal, but for all you planners, here's the fudge on St. Valentine's Day, Wednesday, February 14, 2007.

Love is Observable: Observable Readings Does Valentine's Day @ the Royale, 8:00 p.m.

I've been through diamonds, I've been through minks, I've been through it all: love stinks. Are you single? Cynical? Both? Come congregate with your kind at The Royale on the night of Valentine's Day, with your Delilah-style hostess, Julie Dill. Sign up to vent your spleen on stage, or just watch as the loved and the lost render their favorite love songs, torch tunes, and kiss offs into performance poetry. You'll laugh. You'll cry. You'll drink beer and cocktails. And you'll forget all about what's-his-name. Come because you're angry, come because you're bored, but most of all, because love is like a cloud, it holds a lot of rain, oooh, love hurts.

Seriously, though the catharsis is more complete if you pick a gutwrencher, your song doesn't have to be a downer. We'll need a change-up after one of us polishes off her Debbie Gibson hat and lays her pain on the stage.

I'm stopping by Costco for a case of Kleenex. 

Tell your friends! Even better, bring them and don't tell them what it is! And who really needs an excuse to go the Royale?? Good food, great drinks, and superb company. You are welcome.

KDHX-cellent

We caught the last 20 minutes of Literature for the Halibut last night on KDHX, your community radio station. Stefene Russell does such a great job on the air. It's so much fun hearing friends' voices on the radio. I wish we'd caught the program earlier because I don't know who was reading the fiction segment and it was driving me crazy. She sounded so familiar to me. Community radio is crazy important to me and my people (see the linkable peeps to the left). Rob Levy kept me company during two years of Wednesday night drives home from SIU Edwardsville, and Monday mornings just wouldn't be the same without the bagpipery I've grown to know and love. Today at 2:00, I'll be glued to my radio for Sherry Danger's Dangerous Curves.

I even have a $75 William Shatner CD to attest to my love of community radio. As much as I hate to be pushy, You should give them money, too! If nobody clicks that link and gives money to KDHX in the next hour, I'm gonna club this baby seal. That's right. I'm gonna club this seal to make a better deal. You know I'll do it, to, 'cause I'm crazy!

Rockin'

In a world where nobody pays attention to poetry, a brave and simple man happened upon a gimmick. It all started with Three Stephanies (or two Stephanies and a Stefene)...

Stephanie Young, Stephanie McKenzie and Stefene Russell.

...then came last year's sensational, brilliant, and critically acclaimed, The Five Aarons Reading.

McCollough, Tieger, Belz, Kunin and Kiely

...and this Thursday (January Fourth [happy birthday, Mom!]), Aaron Belz and his Observable Readings series presents "Rockin' Robins," the feel good reading of the month. Robyn Schiff makes a return appearance on a St. Louis stage (readings@the contemporary with Julie Dill and Nick Twemlow), while Robin Behn and Robin Schaer come to us for the very first time. Farm Team opens with an acoustic set prior to the poetry. The event starts at 8:00 at the Schlafly Bottleworks. Come on, it's Thursday. What else could you possibly have to do? Besides, you don't want to leap into the 10 Jens without a Rockin' Robins warm-up.

[update]

Robin Behn was wow. I can't wait until she comes back to St. Louis. I've never been so enraptured at a poetry reading as I was Thursday night. Her reading reminded me of interpretive dancer Suzanne Muldowney, with whom NPR did an interview around last Halloween, on her performance art portrayal of Vlad the Impaler. Robin Behn wasn't nearly as insane different, but as engaging and absorbingly fascinating.