Sunday, January 20, 2013

I’m not a poetry reader by any means but I enjoy hearing it read aloud. This afternoon our friends, Geoff and Brenda, held a poetry performance in their home, in much the same way as we host our house concerts. The presenter was Jeffrey Renn, who worked for many years at the Shaw Festival and has been a member of the cast in many other live productions. He now lives in Powell River and is in the process of mounting a show that he hopes to take into schools and onto stages all across Canada. His repertoire today included a number of BC poets, as well as many poems about coastal living. He told us a bit about each of the poets as he performed their pieces.

And in case you think the whole thing was just a bit “hoity-toity”, we all joined in on a recitation of Alligator Pie by Dennis Lee which lightened everyone’s mood.

Alligator pie, alligator pie,
If I don’t get some I think I’m gonna die.
Give away the green grass, give away the sky,
But don’t give away my alligator pie.

Alligator stew, alligator stew,
If I don’t get some I don’t know what I’ll do.
Give away my furry hat, give away my shoe,
But don’t give away my alligator stew.

Alligator soup, alligator soup,
If I don’t get some I think I’m gonna droop.
Give away my hockey stick, give away my hoop,
But don’t give away my alligator soup.