Every year for the last 12, Bay Area literary arts luminary Youth Speaks has presented their infamous Bringing the Noise for Martin Luther King Jr, to a packed house. This annual event features young poets and a diverse array of performers speaking their peaces, frustrations, and truths. I am sure that given California's passage of Prop 8, the recent execution of Oscar Grant and the election of President Barack Obama, this year's performances will feature a wealth of both hope and outrage. Both are healthy and both are necessary. Thankfully, both have an amazing forum in which to sound off.Youth Speaks' Marc Bamuthi Joseph closes out last year's Bringing the Noise celebration with a profound environmental plea.
This year's theme, "A Certain Kind of Fire," can be interpreted in a variety of ways. It may be interpreted as a description of the kind of fires that have scarred Oakland's downtown lately, or the fires of hope that have brought us to the cusp of a new era. Either way, BTN is always an amazing and memorable event that flourishes in its ability to deviate from the limitations of Slam poetry. It was actually at this event, seven years ago, that I first performed my poetry. It was also here that my uncle Robert and I read a poem on the oiligarchical rule of America in the Middle East. So come out to The SCO on the eve of the inauguration, and witness the coming together of generations, mediums and voices in an epic tribute to MLK, the past, our present and our future.
Show starts at 7pm
Monday January 19, 2009
Herbst Theater
401 Van Ness (in the War Memorial Veterans Building)
San Francisco, CA
This event will sell out, so act quickly!
For advance tickets go to www.cityboxoffice.com, or call 415.392.4400
General Admission: $16, Youth Under 20 & Seniors Over 65: $6
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