Tomorrow night, wicked wordsmiths throughout the Duke City have the chance to spit some game to their favorite Valentine at one of Downtown Albuquerque’s most inclusive clubs and walk away with a cash prize. Starting at 7 p.m. on Feb. 12, Burque Revolt hosts the third annual “It’s All Love” edition of its Poetry Slam and Open Mic at Canvas Artistry (1 Central Ave NW Suite 3A).
Mercedez Holtry is the founder, promoter, organizer and host of Burque Revolt. She says she wants to create a space for all people to feel empowered to speak their truth on the mic, and Canvas is the perfect “culturally artistic” venue for the battle. Until 9 p.m. poets of all ages are invited to compete.
“If you’re familiar with poetry slam, a lot of it can be very male dominated in the competition aspect,” Holtry says. “I wanted to give young people the opportunity to show up. I also wanted to create a space for women, women of color, and create safe spaces for our LGBTQ community. There’s a lot of intersectionality.”
There are 12 spots available for the slam, so if more than 15 people sign up, they’ll draw names for spots. The open mic starts at the beginning of the show, and everybody is welcome to participate in that.
There are rules to each elimination round:
Round One (12 poets): Any poem dedicated to the emotion of love is fair game. Poems about self love, love for your sweetheart — even a poem about how much you love your pet — it’s all good!
Round Two (six poets): In this round anything goes so grab the mic and go nuts. This is your chance to try out that new material you’ve been sitting on.
Round Three (four poets, one minute poems): The time limit for the “lightning round” is actually one minute and 10 seconds, but watch out for that time penalty.
Round Four (love haikus): The final two contestants will have a head-to-head, winner-take-all “haiku death match.” The crowd is going to choose words on the spot, and you’ll have to use those words in your haiku. Don’t worry, they give you a little bit of time to write it out. The winner walks with $200 cash.
Holtry says the competition is an opportunity for the voice of the next generation of poets to be heard by an audience that honors and embraces people from all walks of life, especially those who seek to disrupt the status quo.
“Canvas has a lot of art around. It’s run by a Chicano man. All of it ties in together as this space that feels welcoming, and it feels open to folks being their true, authentic self,” Holtry says.
Grab some Valentine’s Day threads from All Chola Chicana lifestyle brand and cultural boutique, who will be vending at the event, check out live painting by Albuquerque artist Patrick CloudFace and jam out to music from DJ Q.
Burque Revolt Poetry Slam and Open Mic
Feb. 12, 7 p.m.
Canvas Artistry
1 Central Ave. NW Suite 3A
All ages until 9 p.m.
Free