WordPlay @ YCA | Say What Magazine Online

In a less-than-crowded room of about 15 people, the atmosphere was welcoming and peaceful at Young Chicago Authors. As you walked in, you sensed the vibe of friendship. A place where everyone had something in common. Poetry was their voice. A voice that echoed off the brick walls and bounced into the minds of all-too-knowing friends.

WordPlay, a weekly creative writing workshop and open mic, is a place to experiment and practice new material in a welcoming environment without fear of ridicule or judgement.

?WordPlay is a place where you can say stuff to people that listen,? said Sharrieff Muhammad, host of WordPlay on Tuesday. ?I started coming in 2002 and I keep coming back because it?s real.?

WordPlay has been around for over 10 years and is the longest running youth open mic in Chicago. It was created because, like any creative writing endeavor in Chicago, ??.there was an eternal need for a safe space where young people can express themselves,? said WordPlay Director Robbie Q. Telfer.

Every week there is a featured speaker. ?We try to get a diverse group of people, not only by demographics but their style and way of art as well,? stated Telfer. ?We also only get nice people since the budget was cut. So no jerks,? he jokingly responded.

This week?s featured speaker was Defcee?s Adam Levin. (To hear some of his work, visit his site, www.defcee.bandcamp.com.)

In addition to?the featured speaker, many other poets from around the city, such as Emanuel Vinson, Britteney Black Rose Kapri, and Sketch 185 all graced the floor of YCA?s Wordplay open mic.

Vinson performed a piece entitled, ?Your Face.? He performed in a captivating way that left you feeling as if you knew exactly what he was speaking about. After walking away his lines still reverberate through the minds of those that attended.

Another well-known poet in the open mic/spoken word community is Sketch 185, who performed a piece he calls ?New Age to the Middle Finger,? a personal remix to Nas?s song ?New York State of Mind.?

Wordplay is every Tuesday, 6 to 9 p.m. at the Young Chicago Authors offices in Wicker Park.

Source: http://www.saywhatonline.org/2011/06/29/wordplay-yca/

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