Chinese-American slam poet Alvin Lau kicked off Diversity Week on Oct. 16 in Ice Auditorium.
He didn’t so much recite poems or present poems, as he lived poems. After each flurry of syllables, his chest heaved as if his entire existence was crammed into each poem.
Unlike most performers, Lau did not mention the organ that served as a backdrop. With such an atmosphere, one couldn’t ignore the way the venue metamorphosed into a church of rhythmic words. Watching Lau was not unlike attending a brunch where Maya Angelou, Marshall Mathers, Lance Armstrong and Howard Zinn were seated at a table adjacent to your own.
Blending his biography with art, weaving memoir with performance, Lau used the intimate setting to converse with audience members during his set.
Augmenting artifice with interaction, the poet challenged those in attendance to be politically conscious and socially active.
Lau isn’t known for his subtlety, and his openness onstage rendered emotional reactions from those in attendance.
Covering such wide ranging topics as domestic abuse, parenthood, homosexuality, politics, love, cancer, sports, spirituality and the art of writing, the poet seemingly created a verbal mural by mixing mosaics that included scenes as diverse as breaking into a house dressed as a conquistador on Columbus Day, wiping eyebrows away after chemotherapy, hanging question marks like mistletoe, breakdancing on the sidewalks of Chicago, and witnessing two girls kiss in Canadian rain.
Featuring such lines like “as we watched you take an eight stroke lead at the Masters, it was like you were putting across the green hearts of every minority in this country,” Lau recognized aloud the responsibility that minorities in the media have, while simultaneously showing his devastating disappointment when hegemony stifles yet another social cause.
Many of his poems are posted to Youtube and other video sharing websites, and Lau is enthusiastic about the future of poetry and the wide audience such technology brings.
Lau also talked about the role poetry has played in his own life, speaking briefly about leading several poetry workshops he hosted around the nation.
He said that it is important to have a variety of writing prompts when hosting workshops for a variety of people. Writing poetry in a prison presents entirely different challenges than writing after pre-algebra class, though both are important to take into consideration.
Writing proved to be a lifestyle for Lau, but he entreated audience members that writing recreationally can be productive, if not lucrative.
The poet’s emotive attitude, conversational nature, overt agenda and penchant for rhythm characterize his act. His performance depended on participation of its listeners, not just during the show but afterward: as part of a community, part of a democracy and as global
citizens.
Whether poetry is something that hangs on your wall, or hip-hop is something that plays in your ear buds, Alvin Lau offers an experience that is sure to incite something in those that hear it.
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Greg Larson/For the Review
Greg Larson can be reached at [email protected].
