KGB Season Finale

Last night's season finale reading at KGB was a reminder of why this series continues to thrive: a packed house of "fit" listeners (including many poets: I spotted Lawrence Joseph, Karen Volkman, George Green, Leonard Schwartz, Mary Donnelly, David Sewell, Amy Lawless, Gabriella Torres), two gracious hosts (Laura Cronk and Michael Quattrone), and four strong poets at the top of their game.  Each poet read for twelve to fifteeen minutes. 

Star Black (aka Etoile Noir) started things off with sonnets and this memorable three-liner:

If

If Hitler had been a better painter . . .
If Reagan had been a better actor . . .
If Bush had kept drinking . . .

She was followed by Matthew Zapruder, funny and smart as always.  Then a short break for the smokers to smoke and others to do what others do in dark bars.  Deborah Landau followed the break with her new nocturnes: moody, dark, sexy, provocative. The audience was rapt. Can't wait for the book!

David Lehman closed out the reading with poems from Valentine Place ("A Little History" and "Boy with Red Hair" among them) and "The Kiss," a poem he wrote in 1972 and recently re-discovered.

Michael and Laura will return this fall with another great line-up.  Stay tuned.

-- sdh