Jazzin' it up

It's not every day that Spokane, WA sees celebrities like this. Pushcart Prize winner, National Book Award nominee, performer at Carnegie Hall, four-time national Poetry Slam champion; featured in the HBO series "Def Poetry Jam;" documented performing her poetry in a short film; instructor in poetry, performance and creative writing; inductee into the International Literary Hall of Fame for Writers of African descent. That's right, it's just one person with a boatload of accolades. Oh, and did we mention she's performed alongside Adrienne Rich, Sharon Olds, Rita Dove, Joyce Carol Oates, Allen Ginsberg, Walter Mosley, Gwendolyn Brooks, Billy Collins and Galway Kinnell? And even Viggo Mortensen, of Lord of the Rings fame?

Of course, it could be none other than world-renowned performance poet Patricia Smith, who will perform her poems alongside top local jazz musicians, melding music and poetry into one exciting evening, Wednesday, April 21, 7 p.m. at The Fox Theater.

Smith often explores the relationships between music and poetry, having worked with blues bands and improvisation jazz groups. She says of the experience, “Here's how it's worked with bands I've performed with before. I very seldom know for sure what I'm going to read until I'm in the venue. Instead, I share the tone of the poem—what it's about, how long it is, and if there are any special moments I should signal—once I begin, the musicians catch the rhythm and mood of what I'm doing. They inspire me and, hopefully, I inspire them. That's how the best performances are created.”

Local jazz musicians (and EWU professors) Todd DelGiudice, Don Goodwin and Rob Tapper will be joined by other locals to perform with Smith, drawing on their various experiences with the Spokane Symphony and Spokane Jazz Orchestra. Opening the evening will be the next generation of poetry performers, including the 2010 Regional Poetry Out Loud winner as well as the first place Get Lit! Youth, Teen and College Slam winners. The event is free for students with ID and $20 for the general public. Tickets can be purchased through Ticketswest.

Smith has received stellar reviews around the world for how compelling and energetic her performances are. One critic, Victor Infante, raved, “Smith epitomizes what a performance poet should be: supremely confident, radiating with presence, drilling each word for precise effect, no nuance or inflection too small for consideration.”

Smith is currently at work on the verse memoir Shoulda Been Jimmie Savannah and the young adult novel The Journey of Willie J.. Her fifth book of poetry, Blood Dazzler, was a finalist for the National Book Award.