Bowery Poetry Club
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The Bowery Poetry Club is a New York City poetry performance space founded by Bob Holman in 2002. Located at 308 Bowery, between Bleecker and Houston Streets in Manhattan's Lower East Side, the BPC provides a home base for established and upcoming artists.
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[edit] Building history
The original purpose of the building, built in the 1850s, was for a lumber yard. Its last incarnation before becoming the BPC was as a formica tabletop manufacturer that ran on DC current. Plywood scraps were used to heat the building via a pot-belly stove.
Currently, a group of arts-oriented investors owns the building. Other tenants include Washington Square Films on the 2nd floor, and the Crime Scene Bar on the ground floor next door to the Club.
[edit] Facts and features of the Club
- 2500 sq. ft. space
- 12' x 20' stage + green room
- Run by an all-artist staff
- Vox Pop Cafe in the front
- Full bar
- Community drop-space available for artist information distribution
[edit] Programming
Regular shows include:
- Amina & Amiri Baraka and Blue Ark
- James Blood Ulmer
- Anne Waldman & Jim Carroll
- Uncle Jimmy's Dirty Basement
- The Taylor Mead Show, every Friday at 6:30
- Poetry + Karaoke = Fun, featuring Hal Sirowitz
- Ladies at the Mic
- Shaba Sher, Persian poetry & music
- Beatboxers Summit
- The Peoples Poetry Gathering
- Slam! Every Tuesday with Urbana Three-time National Slam Champs
- Ed Sanders, John Giorno, Carl Hancock Rux, Toni Blackman, Tuli Kupferberg
- Rick Shapiro, the Lenny Bruce of Poetry
- Yusef Komunyakaa, Breyten Breytenbach, Jackson Mac Low
- The Segue Series, every Saturday at 4
- Praise Days: Bob Kaufman, June Jordan, Gregory Corso, Audre Lorde, Ted Joans, Dylan Thomas
- Emily Dickinson Marathon
- Bilingual Readings: The World of Poetry
- Eric Bogosian, Karen Finley, Danny Hoch, Sekou Sundiata, Sapphire
- Plus Poets’ Soapbox (speak your mind in poetry), Open Mics, performance workshops, International Poets, Spontaneity, and Simply GREAT coffee
- The O'Debra Twins' Show and Tell
- Bowery Kids! Up close and interactive entertainment for kids.
- Emanuel Xavier & The House of Xavier's annual Glam Slam
Additional programming is also provided by the non-profit Bowery Arts and Science, publishers of the Bowery Books series.
[edit] Trivia
- BPC's first show was on February 3, 2002: a Praise Day for Gregory Corso. There were no bathrooms, no chairs, no stage lights, and most importantly, no bar.
- Celebrities who have passed through the BPC's doors include: Matt Dillon, Fiona Apple, Saul Williams, Sarah Jones, Chuck Close, John Ashbery, Claire Danes, Patricia Clarkson, Patti Smith, Ani DiFranco, Michael McClure, Ted Joans, Robert Plant, Moby, Susan Sarandon
- Law & Order: Criminal Intent's Season 7, episode 7 was partially filmed at the BPC.
