I Offer Poetry

In this week's Side B episode Elizabeth is given a run for her money with the incredible spoken word poetry of Singapore's Victoria Lim. Religion, by Victoria Lim, is the first spoken word piece to be featured on I Offer Poetry and since it is a lesser known piece, it required our host to do a lot more supposition and exploration of her own feelings and relationship to the poem.

Poet Victoria Lim spent her childhood in Penang, Malaysia and moved to Singapore when she was nine. She began writing poetry in 2010 and became Singapore's National Poetry Slam Champion in 2013. Lim is a theatre practitioner and is especially well known for her contributions to performance poetry. She is a founding member of the all-female spoken word collective, Sekaliwags, and has performed at Lit-Up! Festival (Singapore) and Cooler Lumpur Festival (Malaysia).

Throughout this episode we engage with themes of growing up, indulging complacency, and what it means to be a modern romantic partner. Elizabeth sounds off on how she also sees the temptation to use religion as an escape from heavy thoughts and daily patterns.

"I love sharing contemporary poets, because I think that's something we miss out on. I've mentioned before I think we do a lot of reading the poetry of, quite honestly, dead white men in the American education system. And I think it's exciting to find new voices, but especially contemporary voices, and remind ourselves that poetry is a living breathing thing. People are still writing poetry." - Elizabeth Ellson

Timestamps:

00:00:48 Poem Reading (Elizabeth)

00:04:42 Author Info

00:06:30 Elizabeth's Relationship to the Poem

00:25:10 Pause / Poem Reading (Elizabeth)

00:30:17 Reflection & Invitation to Write Us!

Poem & Links:

Religion by Victoria Lim (© 2015)

The Icarus Delusion (V. Lim Poem)

Clotheshorse (V. Lim Poem)

Four & Twenty Blackbirds (Nursery Rhyme History)

I.O.P. Lexicon:

Banal: (adjective) devoid of freshness or originality, commonplace

Where to find our host Elizabeth:

@ellsonelizabeth | Twitter

Where to find us:

@iofferpoetry | Instagram

@iofferpoetry | Twitter

[email protected]

Produced & Edited by John Campione:

Campiaudio.com | @campiaudio

[email protected]

Music @zacharymanno | Art @sammycampioneart

There is a trigger warning at the top of this episode regarding suicide, as the poem in this week's episode deals directly with the topic. The discussion surrounding the subject is that of respect for the author's history, but also how the author chose a humorous lens to reflect a dark subject matter.

Elizabeth is eager to introduce her longtime friend, Lauren Flans. Lauren is a contemporary multi-hyphenate. She was a recurring cast member on MTV's Wild 'n Out and Comedy Central's Another Period. She's an active member of Lost Moon Radio, which is a live comedy and music group in LA and is the current co-host of Coming Out with Lauren and Nicole, a podcast where they host queer folks from all walks of life to tell the tales of how they came out.

In their discussion of Dorothy Parker's Resume Lauren notes how the author would likely be cancelled on Twitter, how being bitter and snarky made Parker hopelessly cool, and how she voluntarily offers poetry collections to friends. There are musings on Lauren's longtime crush on Jennifer Jason Leigh and Elizabeth shares a sexy little John Keats line.

"[Dorothy Parker] was smart and had this caustic wit and was living in the 1920's when everything was repressed and she was like 'Fuck everything!' and I just thought that was hopelessly cool."

-Lauren Flans

Timestamps:

00:00:00 Trigger Warning (Suicide)

00:00:48 Guest Introduction

00:03:05 Poem Reading (Lauren)

00:03:35 Author Info

00:04:50 Lauren's Relationship to the Poem

00:14:50 Pause / Poem Reading (Elizabeth)

00:16:30 Reflection & Offering

Poem & Links:

Resume by Dorothy Parker (© 1926)

Ode to a Nightingale by John Keats (© 1819)

The Portable Dorothy Parker

Far From Well (Parker's Review of The House at Pooh Corner)

Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle (Film © 1994)

The Algonquin Round Table

I.O.P. Lexicon:

Wit: (noun) the keen perception and cleverly apt expression of those connections between ideas that awaken amusement and pleasure, intelligence; astuteness.

Sardonic: (adjective) characterized by bitter or scornful derision; mocking; cynical

Caustic: (adjective) severely critical or sarcastic OR (noun) substance capable of burning, corroding, or destroying living tissue

Where to find Lauren:

@lauren_flans | Instagram

@LaurenFlans | Twitter

@comingoutpod | Instagram

@comingoutpod | Twitter

https://www.lostmoonradio.com/

Where to find our host Elizabeth:

@ellsonelizabeth | Twitter

Where to find us:

@iofferpoetry | Instagram

@iofferpoetry | Twitter

[email protected]

Produced & edited by John Campione

@campiaudio | campiaudio.com

[email protected]

Music @zacharymanno | Art @sammycampioneart

In our second Side B episode host Elizabeth Ellson dives into a brief but emotionally packed poem by Carol Ann Duffy.

This episode focuses on the pain, and considers the possible pleasures, of being in a long distance relationship. There is exploration of the poet's use, or lack thereof, of tenses and how much of a shift that makes in the longevity of both the poem and the love.

In her very musically enthusiastic way Elizabeth ties in a band, this time the Local Natives, and how their song sparked the memory of finding a poem that related to long distance.

"She's imagining the barriers in the landscapes between herself and her love. And even with those barriers, and the barriers of language, she says, 'I'm going to try.' There's this attempt to say, what does it mean to love you on the other side of this wide night?"

-Elizabeth Ellson

Timestamps:

00:00:29 Poem Reading (Elizabeth)

00:01:54 Author Info

00:04:20 Elizabeth's Relationship to the Poem

00:11:32 Pause / Poem Reading (Elizabeth)

00:14:51 Reflection & Invitation to Write Us!

Poem & Links:

Words, Wide Night (1990)

Maya C. Popa (Poet/Twitter Poetry Curator) https://twitter.com/MayaCPopa

COINS by Local Natives

Where to find our host Elizabeth:

@ellsonelizabeth | Twitter

Where to find us:

@iofferpoetry | Instagram

@iofferpoetry | Twitter

[email protected]

Produced & Edited by John Campione:

@campiaudio | Instagram

[email protected]

https://www.campiaudio.com/

Music @zacharymanno | Art @sammycampioneart

In our second episode Elizabeth completely ignores the fact that W. B. Yeats has a full first name, as she is on a nickname-only basis with him.

This episode features cinematographer, music video director, and filmmaker Will DaRosa. Will's rapidly-lengthening resume testifies to his dedication to his craft and his growing reputation as one of the fresh talents to work with on the Los Angeles indie-genre scene. As director/dp, his music videos have aired on MTV and VH1 and been viewed millions of times on Youtube. He is also the co-host/co-creator of 2001 The Podcast, which is available everywhere podcasts can be listened to.

In this episode Will discusses his love for cinema, finding this poem through a Steven Spielberg film, and worrying that maybe as a white man he shouldn't be "that guy" who talks about poetry. There is ample discussion over how popcorn reading in school made Will nervous and Elizabeth feel highly prepared. Also Audrey Hepburn gets a mention.

"This poem is… it's about humanity. [...] And then you have a robot reading it, there's just something chilling and terrifying about that… you have a robot that nearly is about to cry listening to another robot read a poem written by a human 300 years before it's, I don't know, the ending of that movie is chilling, but this is like a midpoint in the film, and you're really not quite sure. You know the character's journey, what they want, at this point in the film, but when he gets this poem, it kind of breaks his brain a little bit." - Will DaRosa

Timestamps:

00:00:25 Guest Introduction

00:02:55 Poem Reading (Will)

00:05:32 Author Info

00:07:00 Will's Relationship to the Poem

00:17:03 Pause / Poem Reading (Elizabeth)

00:25:05 Reflection & Offering

Poem & Links:

The Stolen Child by W. B. Yeats (© 1890)

The Wild Swans at Coole by W. B. Yeats

The Lake Isle of Innisfree by W. B. Yeats

Films:

Steven Spielberg's AI

Ridley Scott's Hannibal

I.O.P. Lexicon:

Solemn: (adjective) formal and dignified // not cheerful or smiling; serious.

Where to find Will:

@will_darosa | Instagram

@willdarosa | Twitter

@2001thepodcast | Instagram @2001thepodcast | Twitter

http://www.willdarosa.com/

Where to find us:

@iofferpoetry | Instagram

@iofferpoetry | Twitter

[email protected]

Where to find our host Elizabeth:

@ellsonelizabeth | Twitter

Produced & Edited by John Campione

@campiaudio | Campiaudio.com

[email protected]

Music @zacharymanno | Art @sammycampioneart

This is the inaugural episode introducing Side B - I Offer Poetry's 'minisodes', so to speak.

Our host Elizabeth Ellson is inviting the audience to join the poetry discussion. She lays out the format for Side B, which allows for two readings of a poem and the memory associated with that poem the first time it was discovered. The hope is that this short format will encourage podcast listeners to write in with their stories, which will allow IOP to share even more poetry and give life to the memories we hold on to.

In this specific Side B, Elizabeth shares the memory of an iconic Lifehouse song and how it prompts memories of the year 2000 and a series of growing up montages in her brain. Somehow she also ropes Shakespeare into the mix and brings out the immortalizing themes of his iconic Sonnet 18. Who doesn't love an excuse to rediscover long-dead poets you once read in English class?

Throughout the episode there is discussion of seasons changing, how our perceptions of love grow and evolve as we age, and what it might mean to be immortalized in a song or poem.

"[Shakespeare] is saying; time diminishes everything. [Time] changes the seasons, it changes how beautiful the sky is… He's got commentary on the weather changing and being for better or worse, but he's saying his love is more lasting, and therefore writing a poem to immortalize his love is what will give life to her forever."

- Elizabeth Ellson

Timestamps:

00:04:20 Poem Reading (Elizabeth)

00:05:18 Author Info

00:06:40 Elizabeth's Relationship to the Poem

00:12:10 Pause / Poem Reading (Elizabeth)

00:15:05 Reflection & Invitation to Write Us!

Poem & Links:

Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare (© 1609)

I.O.P. Lexicon:

Temperate: (adjective) showing moderation or self-restraint.

Where to find our host Elizabeth:

@ellsonelizabeth | Twitter

Where to find us:

@iofferpoetry | Instagram

@iofferpoetry | Twitter

[email protected]

Produced & Edited by John Campione:

@campiaudio | Campiaudio.com

[email protected]

Music @zacharymanno | Art @sammycampioneart

In the pilot episode, actor Yaani King Mondschein shares the beautiful poem She Let Go by Reverend Safire Rose.

As an actor Yaani is known for her work on Good Trouble, Sneakerheads, Bad Hair, Blood & Oil, and Saving Grace. Her exciting forthcoming project is the series Kings of Napa on the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) expected Spring 2022.

Throughout the episode we dive into what it means to let go and the opportunities to do that simply. The discussion swirls around faith, friendship, and relinquishing control over things we might be a little too precious about.

"I think, for me, what I got from this poem that stuck with me over these years, and I constantly go back to it, is that there are certain things you do just need to let go of, unceremoniously. And I know for me a lot of times I hold on to certain things that can be let go in this really simple way."

- Yaani King Mondschein

Timestamps:

00:01:00 Guest Introduction

00:03:21 Poem Reading (Yaani)

00:05:32 Author Info

00:06:19 Yaani's Relationship to the Poem

00:17:22 Pause / Poem Reading (Elizabeth)

00:22:25 Reflection & Offering

Poem & Links:

She Let Go by Reverend Safire Rose (© 2003)

I.O.P. Lexicon:

Confluence: (noun) an act or process of merging.

Where to find Yaani:

@yaanikingmonds | Instagram

@yaaniking | Twitter

Where to find us:

@iofferpoetry | Instagram

@iofferpoetry | Twitter

[email protected]

Produced & Edited by John Campione

@campiaudio | Campiaudio.com

[email protected]

Music @zacharymanno | Art @sammycampioneart

Hi, I'm Elizabeth Ellson, host of I Offer Poetry and I believe poetry should be as accessible as music.

I don't understand every song that's ever been written. If I don't understand a song, I listen to it a couple of times. I investigate it. This is an investigation into poetry and I welcome you to explore with us the idea that everyone can offer poetry.

Much like music, we may associate a poem with one specific phase of our lives. The poem can instantly bring us back, or if it's a new find, perhaps revive a feeling or shine light in a dark moment. I'm hosting people from all walks of life to tell the story behind what a poem means to them. I'm asking for the stories that make us fall in love with words.

There may be episodes that get existential, or engage your inner activist, or maybe make you feel a little flustered; ultimately we're here to experience how a poem becomes the words a heart holds on to.

For me, there's nothing more hardcore than vulnerability. At I Offer Poetry, we're a little bit linguistic, a little bit rock and roll.

@iofferpoetry | Instagram

@iofferpoetry | Twitter

[email protected]

Produced & Edited by John Campione

@campiaudio

[email protected]

Music @zacharymanno | Art @sammycampioneart