When that arch fiend Drew Martorella suggest we do a Valentine's Day poetry reading with chocolate I thought, sure why not. You'd think after three decades here I'd know a trap in advance, but no, not me. But a very sweet trap it's been, if also very time consuming. Now, after reading thousands of terrific ove poems I've chosen 50. The 50 best love poems ever written? I make no such claim. Most of the chestnuts are missing--you've heard them before and you may already know them by heart, being as true lovers as ever sighed upon a midnight pillow, sighing to your beloved in blank verse, hallooiing her name to the reverberate hills. I hope so anyway. These 50 poems written over 3,000 years suggest not much has changed in the human love department. Sappho might be the most contemporary of all love poets, including Britney Spears (I thought about including Britney, but she didn't make the cut). The poems we have ordered for your delectation are about longing, loving and losing, about wooing and doing, about heartache and about bliss. We have eight wonderful readers: the insouciant Ben Bonenfant, the ravishing Saksia Kesners, the supercharged Persian, Hossein Forouzandeh, Leah "She's All Woman" Mills, Roy Ballard, crawling out of his tech hole with a song in his heart, the enchanting Faye Hunter, and an actual married couple, Lisa and Chad Siebert, very cute and possibly still in love (imagine that!). You can't go wrong with this octet; in fact you could hardly do do better.
One hour of Love Poetry. One show only: Saturday 14 February,5:00-6:00. Party begins at 4:30. $15 gets you your own bottle of champagne, lots of chocolate, an amazing flood of love poetry, and a space on the stage for the spontaneous orgy that will inevitably follow. f you don't have a partner we'll find you one--or you can find your own. A private room will cost you just a little more.
You are strongly advised not to miss this love fest. May Cupid be with you!
