Community Nights and Champions of Champions!
Hello Poet!
Hope you are having a wonderful week (and to those participating in the Sealey challenge, I hope reading is going well!). We have some unique and exciting events coming up in the next couple weeks, so we wanted to pop in your inbox to let you know the scoop. Looking forward to seeing you at some (or even all) of the festivities!
Community Night: Multilingual Night!
Courtesy of our wonderful programming assistant Brynna Boyd, our next community night is coming up fast NEXT WEDNESDAY on 8/27. The theme is “Multilingual Night!” 🗺 We always love hearing open-micers use languages from around the world, so we have dedicated a night specifically to show off the beauty of multilingual poetry. If you would like to perform poems in a language other than English, now is your time to shine. WE ARE STILL LOOKING FOR SIGN UPS - to sign up, click the link here or email Brynna at brynna@bostonpoetryslam.com. Curious about what a “Community Night” is? Read our most recent newsletter to find out!
REMINDER: SLAM ADAMS 🎖CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS🎖!
The time has come! All winners from the last 8 months of Slam Adams will face off against reigning champion of champions Zeke Russell in a crazy slam at the Sam Adams Brewery in JP. The style of the slam is a bracketed series of head-to-head matchups. The matchups will be decided via random selection, which will be broadcast live TOMORROW, 8/20 on our Instagram - click here to follow us and turn on notifications to be alerted when we go live! Come one, come all, to find out if we will crown a new champion, or if Zeke will successfully defend his title.
Your competitors for this year’s Champion of Champions are… 🥁
Tru Kwene
Aparna Paul
Will Leonard
Jennifer Martinez
Amy Argentar
D Ruff
René Ramos
Michaelis Lee
And of course… reigning champion, Zeke Russell
This is the biggest Slam Adams of the year - distract yourself from the chaos of Boston Move-In Day and grab a spot to watch (PRO TIP: Judges get in free! As long as you’re unbiased and don’t intimately know any of the slammers, you’re qualified to judge - just say so when you walk in, and we will tell you everything you need to know.)
The CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS Slam Adams is taking place MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 1ST, at 6pm at the Sam Adams Brewery in JP! We hope to see you then.
Upcoming at the Cantab:
8/20 - Jess Yuan
8/27 - COMMUNITY NIGHT: Multilingual Night
9/3 - Daniel Garwood
9/10 - OPEN POETRY SLAM (psst… this is one of the first opportunities of the year to qualify for Team Selection in 2026 - more on this in September’s newsletter!)
Even more poetry!
Still looking for more open mics of all shapes and sizes? Check out this unique, seasonal open mic hosted by BPS staff members, Aparna Paul and Amy Argentar, in collaboration with the 💐Somerville Community Growing Center🌱!
The Poetry in the Garden open mic has been going on all summer and is culminating its 2026 run on Tuesday, August 26th at 6pm at the Somerville Community Growing Center. The theme of the open mic is Sky, so bring some high-flying haiku, whimsical work, or even poems that give you the (sky) blues. Come on by and sign up for the open mic, listen to a feature by beloved community member and poet Otto Vock, and participate in some art! See below for an example of the art created at a previous Garden Mic earlier this summer.
About Boston Poetry Slam:
The core Boston Poetry Slam show runs at the Cantab Lounge in Cambridge, Mass. every Wednesday night, giving poets a chance to share their work in the open mic or slam and featuring a headlining poet or theme slam. Doors @7:15, show starts at 8pm. 21+. $4 cover (cash preferred, Venmo available). Follow our Instagram (below) for the most up-to-date info. The show and its community are curated entirely by unpaid volunteers.
The show and its community are curated entirely by unpaid volunteers. Boston Poetry Slam Inc is a registered 501c3 non-profit organization in the United States. Donations (https://bostonpoetryslam.com/donate) are tax deductible to the full extent provided by the law.
Website: https://bostonpoetryslam.com/
Instagram: @bostonpoetryslam
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bostonpoetryslam
Our official zine, The Cantabernacle, is available online and at our Wednesday night shows! Submissions are also now open for the next issue, so please send us your work at michael@bostonpoetryslam.com
Questions? Comments? Concerns? Fill out our anonymous feedback form and/or contact questions@bostonpoetryslam.com
Newsletter Credits: Written by Amy Argentar, edited by Michael F. Gill