Stanza 2000 read and reviewed

Stanza 2000 Scotland's Poetry Festival

St. Andrews, Fife was the destination for two intrepid performance
poets from Aberdeen. Alighting from Ottaker's poetry day awards and
reading we travelled down to the second open mic of the festival at the
festival bar Aikman's. Arriving just as the set list closed we got on
the subs bench (was this a sign of things to come or would we get
centre stage?). Shanks and Russell a folk and blues duo warmed the
crowd up by mentioning the other day's big event of the national
country day in Nashville and decided to go down a country route to warm
up the local crowd of poets and students. Mixing covers with occasional
original tune the crowd slowly got restless. This was further
compounded by the resident poet Paula Jennings twee and quaint, nice on
paper poems but not stuff for performance numbers, before finally
delivering her coup d'grace of some real performance poetry in the form
of the menopause rap. What followed was a mixture of decent
performance's local student poets and the Lochgelly women's group. The
women's group shined as the best that was on offer and a break for more
S &; R and drinks set the clock ticking past twelve. Where are poems
to be read? The second half saw a string drop outs due to the lateness
of poets left and centre, surely! Then as sudden as the night had
started one of the local organisers drew it to an end. What, we're
subs! Fit aboot us or dunny yer ken Aberdonian. Feeling unjust and to
crowd of a dozen or so propping up the bar and draining the dregs of
their last drink. We performed, to a bemused official (they'd stay that
way but learn of 'real' performance poetry north east style, two quick
fire to the point entertaining ditties. A round of decent applause
followed and our names duly noted the Saturday night performance
caf?.
The festival headlined by the likes of Douglas Dunn, WN Herbert, Tracy
Herd, Edwin Morgan, Mark E Smith (of the fall fame that he does so
well) and with Les Murray as special guest. Was bigger, better and more
controversial than ever before. Day two for us (three for the festival)
involved us going to a talk by Douglas Dunn and Robert Crawford, big
wigs in St Andrews and Scottish poetry, on Robert Fergusson the focus
of the festival and the inspiration of that other Robert, Burns.
Needless to say the wine was more interesting than the talk and the
questions that followed. Thus we chose to miss the night's central
event the recording of the man's work by famous modern poets for Radio
3 to see that darling of John Peel's Radio 1 Mark E Smith do poetry.
Ably supported by Dundee poet WN Herbert who had odes to Scottish world
cup follies and Irvine Welsh. A quick to be bemused crowd (and emptying
one) was the mubbled neo-societian rants of Mark "I've a drink problem'
E Smith. Silence followed a brave on-core undemanded with Mr Herbert
and the crowd remained silent. Mr Smith then went to the bar. Seizing
an opportunity to entertain our intrepid performers grabbed the empty
mike (again officials looked bemused) and let off a tribute - 'Chances
and Chancer's'. The crowd responded for the first time with loud
appreciation, then our second performer went into over driving showing
what it was all about. With slam poems, raps and the occasional rant.
Needless to say we were heckled by a certain Mark E Smith and finally
got into this festival thing.
Day three started with a lunch time reading that made page 13 of the
Times. A Romanian rasputin cum Des Lynam read to a crowd of journalist,
photographers and poets i.e. 20 of us, of his life as a communist play
boy and world record setter (most sales poetry books) needless he read
in Romanian so no-one was any the wiser and Mark E Smith fumbled in
nearly picked a fight was a photographer and staggered off to the
closest pub never to be seen again. The poet Adrian Paunescu didn't
translate well and was saved by his 14 year old daughter who video'd
the event and sang his nationalistic tune at the end. Fuss over,
what?
This was our final day and our final performance so after this
preparation and practice was ensued before a 8pm date with the rather
large in poetry, life and personality Les Muray (surely he needs a Sir
prefix). To say he astounded would be an understatement. He did what he
does and read some of the most marvellous, thought provoking poetry the
festival would see, undoubtedly worthy of the world class tag. Inspired
and ready we went on to the performance caf? at 10pm to wait till after
midnight till it was our turn, patiently! We were entertain by London
performance poet Paul 'that's more like it' Lyalls and the Tartan ' a
bit less of please' Gussets. Then followed the open mic spots wisely or
not as we still had to drive back to Aberdeen we took spots first and
last warming the crowd and finishing them off with some real north east
performance stuff, stuff for a dark night, cellar bars and a dram of
whisky. All in all three nights, three performances and an untold
amount of poems, some good, some bad, some more than worth it.