Opus provides poets the opportunity to experiment
By Greta Wilckens
U News: Monday, March 1, 2004
Saturday night's poetry performance by Opus proved to be a powerful experience. Opus is a recently formed
group of seven poets performing once a month at the 13th Street Bar and Grill.
"With Opus I wanted to get all the people I knew who were dedicated to poetry and willing to take a chance.
I wanted as many different styles and voices I could find," said Allen Heinrich, organizer of Opus. The seven
poets, Allen Heinrich, Iris Appelquist, Jas Abramowitz, Rachel Asbury, Lance Asbury, Nairba Sirrah and
Greg Soper, have unique performance styles that draw the audience into the inner wells of each poet.
"I enjoy the ability to move and mingle and combine with the audience. The show basically revolves around
the audience. There is no stage, no separation," said Lance Asbury. Though the 13th Street Bar and Grill
has no stage, it is a uniquely designed area which is perfect for performance.
"There are many entrance points and exit points around the room for you to interact with the audience, more
so than the layout of any other bar," said Sirrah. Part of what makes their performance so interesting is the way
the poets connect with each other.
"We have a very tight-knit group. I think all of us learn from each other, inspire each other and really fuel the fires
in all of us. It's also very supportive and comfortable to be given feedback about what works and what doesn't,"
said Rachel Asbury. The obvious bond between poets also gives them freedom to experiment with performance
style in many ways.
"I was impressed by the haiku part of the show that was transmitted between each of the performers. I was most
impressed that it happened with every performer in the troop," said Jack Moenkhoff.
The performers often played off the lead given to them from the previous poet. "This is probably the third time
I've been out to hear a large group of poets, so this is the first time I've heard the poets lead each other into their
poems. I don't know if that's a common technique, but it should be," said Jason Beason. The works performed
were well rehearsed and very revealing of the emotions of the artist.
"I think their poetry is very deep and thought out. I was totally impressed with the emotion that was brought out in
some of the pieces Iris did. And I enjoyed Rachel and her perspective on love and trying so hard in the wrong
ways," said George Brunts.
Opus plans to continue the monthly performances at the 13th Street Bar and Grill. "I chose the word Opus
because it is a continuing creation. Life is a continuing creation, so that's where poetry needs to be. It doesn't
need to be on a shelf with three inches of dust on it," said Heinrich.
http://www.unews.com/
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OPUS: They Put the Verse in Controversy
Local Kansas City poetry group is as thought provoking as it is well rehearsed
KC Aurora Micahel Cochran Apr . 19 . 2004
Opus, the band of merry madmen led by a guy who simply goes by Allen, choose words over knives and swords
to carve out their ideas. Every third Saturday of each month, these poets come together for an exciting full hour
of memorized pieces, either covering others or spouting original works, all the while maintaining a theme of the
night. For Saturday, April 17th, their amassed works revolved around the ideas of morality.
Some poems tended to sway towards political rights and slights of the good ol' US of A, while others emoted
powerful statements about rape and anti-spiritualism. No matter what the topic, Opus does a masterful job of
assaulting the senses with beautiful landscapes and haunting dreams. There is no doubt that they work long
and hard in order to make their performances truly great.
Comprised of Jas Abramowitz, Iris Appelquist, Lance Asbury, Rachel Asbury, Brian Harris (a.k.a. Nairba Sirrah)
Greg Soper and last but not least, that Allen guy. Some may know Allen through his many years of putting
sidewalk poems of his own in Loose Park or in front of Muddy's at 51st Street. Others could see Allen out and
about at various bars, always toting a pencil and notebook. The mysterious Allen appears to be everywhere
and nowhere at the same time. But when Allen speaks, everything comes from the heart. And that's no joke.
The man takes everything he can in, and with Opus he has the opportunity to pour it all out.
So what makes this group so special? For one, they seamlessly flow from poet to poet as if they were putting
on a play. One goes up, speaks, YELLS even, pauses…leaves the stage. And right behind is another poet.
They do the same. Soliloquies, it seems. But wait. A duo! And they really get the crowd going! They finish.
Someone is waiting right behind to do his thing. The hour presented is chock-full of poems, statements by
Bill Hicks, whatever. Content is always highly emotional, whether or not it's funny, depressing, or simply put,
to make one question his beliefs.
Opus performs exclusively at 13th Street Bar and Grill. Their next performance is on Saturday, May 15th.
Don't miss it, unless you're too jaded to care.
http://www.kcaurora.com/
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Poetry In The Flesh The following reviews are reprinted here as they appeared in their original form. Links to publications are provided at the end of each review.