“Performance
poetry is less revolutionary than reactionary. It is a reaction to old
geezers like me, dowdy at their podiums, believing that they are a part
of Literature with a capital L, a part of something that will endure
for hundreds of years. Often boring the hell out of their audiences,
too, reading poems that only a select few appreciate. Performance poetry
is a turning away from the dull, a turning back toward the excitement
our ancestors felt as they sat close to the fire and listened to their
shaman tell stories.”
- Ted Kooser