Performance Poetry

    Below are text links and video links from a August 6^th 2016 (8/6/16, or 20160706) poetry performance (with background rain forest noises to accompany the readings) of Janet Kuypers’ Austin poetry feature through Expressions (of Peace)! at Austin’s the Bahá’í Center in Austin, Texas hat incorporated poetry about peace into a show. Kuypers opted to sit in the lotus position on stage for the performance (and sat o a raised platform so audience members could see her during the live show).

    Because this was a peace-themed performance, Kuypers started the show talking about the Egyptian Goddess ISIS in comparison to what we now know as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, but transitioned into talk about peace to all living creatures (like animals, and being a vegetarian) with portions of her editorial from cc&d’s v249 21 year anniversary book Invisible Ink, until she ended with two poems on being a vegetarian. Kuypers also thought a appropriate title for her show would be “Thoughts on Peace”, especially because she ended the show with a poem that ends cutting in mid-sentence with “and I thought:” — where she sat for a moment in the lotus position like she was going to continue, then she closed her eyes and bowed her head as the entire center remained in silence until the rain forest music started to fade and she opened her eyes and said “thank you”.

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    Before the show started she also released copies to most some of the audience there of a chapbook of the writings she was performing in her show (in the order they were performed). All of the pieces from this reading were also released electronically in a “Thoughts on Peace” chapbook, which you can download as a PDF file for free any time.

Here is a listing with links to all of the writings performed in this live show:

“Queen ISIS (battling for peace)”
“Choices We Make”
“Everything was Alive and Dying (2016 cruelty to animals edition)”
“On a High Horse Like This”

    Below are video links from a July 2^nd 2016 (7/2/16, or 20160702) poetry performance (with accompanying guitar music by John) of Janet Kuypers’ Austin poetry feature through Expressions 2016: Poets Parliament! at Austin’s the Bahá’í Center (at 2215 E M Franklin Ave, Austin, TX 78723) that incorporated poetry into politics (and potentially solve political problems poetically). Because political pundits and talking heads are on many 24-hour news channels, Kuypers opted to “show” herself in tis show as a “talking head”, by not only remaining seated (like an anchorperson) but also filming herself on stage and simultaneously broadcasting her “performance” on a television right on stage next to her… Because in the past, when she has done this in Chicago shows, she learned that most audience members, like the average American, are often more fascinated with watching a television screen than watching a person live on stage.

    Because this was a politics-themed performance, and because the usually give away stickers to p[eople after voting to show the world they voted that day, Kuypers thought a appropriate title for her show would be “Voting for Change” (since a third party never can make enough money to spend their way into position in this country, there are usually only two viable candidates for any position, which usually forces the voter to chose between the lesser of two evils whenever they enter a polling booth).

    Before the show started she also released copies to most everyone there of a chapbook of the writings she was performing in her show (in the order they were performed), and all of the pieces from this reading were also released electronically in a “Voting for Change” chapbook, which you can download as a PDF file for free any time.

    Below are video links to the live performance of “Voting for Change” at Expressions 2016: Poets Parliament! in Austin.

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Here is a listing with links to all of the writings performed in this liveshow:

True Happiness in the New Millennium (2016 edit)
Orders
The State of the Nation (2016 edit)
Everything was Alive and Dying (2016 political edit)
a Great American (2016 edit)