Dominique Garay-Guest Columnist
I have been involved in performance poetry since about 1999 and slam poetry (performance poetry for competition) for just a few years. In 2003 I was on the first slam poetry team to represent Nebraska at the National Poetry Slam in Chicago. I was amazed at the talent and it was exciting to see so many people getting together to enjoy poetry. Recently I was very happy to have been one of the four poets selected out of a few hundred to recite or perform their poetry in a televised program along with Bill Kloefkorn the Nebraska State Poet and Ted Kooser the Nations Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize Winner for Poetry. It was quite an honor to be on the same stage with these two gentlemen who are masters of their craft. NETV filmed the show only two weeks after I had gone through a rough surgery. As the crowd cheered and rose to their feet after my final poem, I slowly made my way across the stage to take my seat and gingerly lowered my body into it. Smiling, I thought to myself, "There was no way I was going to miss this. I'm finally doing it and they're getting it. They're getting my message".
I hope to get more opportunities to share my art and work with others on bringing more beauty into the world. At this time I am finishing up the script to a one-hour stage show of performance poetry and vignettes (Brief scenes). Working in collaboration with Carol Svoboda (Co-Director, from LSE High Performing Arts) and Oscar Rios of the band Kusi Taki who will be the shows composer is very exciting. I plan to open here locally in Lincoln and Omaha, then tour stages throughout the Mid-West to K.C., Chicago, and Minneapolis. Hopefully I'll be able to take it to stages across the country and to both coasts. There are many ways to have an impact on culture and society. I'm happy to be doing my part as an artist.
Dominique Garay
For poetry books and information please send mail to:
Poet Poems
P.O. Box 23152
Lincoln, NE
68542
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