Readings

Second Friday Notes - Poetry and music on May 11

May 11, 2012: Poets Ben Moeller-Gaa and Dena Molen, with musical guests Morgan Nussbaum and Jason Potter

May 22: Second Friday Notes  presents Ben Moeller-Gaa and Dena Molen with music by Morgan Nussbaum and Jason Potter at Whole Foods in Town and Country, at 141 and Clayton, 7:00 PM. FREE

Ben Moeller-Gaa is a haiku poet and a playwright living in St. Louis. His haiku  have appeared in four countries on three continents and in two languages, most recently in Shamrock (Ireland), A Hundred Gourds (Australia), Notes From the Gean (Australia) and Multiverses (USA) with a forthcoming haiku chapbook, Wasp Shadows, from Folded Word Press.

Ben's plays have been performed on several small stages in the St. Louis area. His play Digging Up Danny will be performed later this year at the Black Cat Theater in Maplewood by Panther Productions. Ben is a Contributing Editor to River Styx, a member of The Haiku Foundation, works for Sigma-Aldrich and can be seen in Wicked Pixel films.

A poet from St. Louis, Dena Molen believes that every person should have their very own “elevator poem” on hand, at all times. If you need help finding your personalized “elevator poem,” Dena would be happy to assist you. Meanwhile, you can find her crankn’ out verse and working toward her MFA in Creative Writing at Lindenwood University. Her poems have appeared in Bad Shoe and Literal Chaos.

Music is provided by Whole Foods associates Morgan Nussbaum and Jason Potter. Nussbaum is a local indie singer-songwriter who regularly performs with a local band. She released a CD in September.
Morgan Nusbaum: vocals, guitar
Jason Potter: beatbucket, percussion

May 22, 2012: Treasure Shields Redmond and Dwight Bitikofer with musical guest Raven Wolf

The St. Louis Poetry Center presents poets Treasure Shields Redmond and Jennifer Fandell, reading for "Poetry at the Point” Tuesday, May 22 at 7:30 pm at the Focal Point, 2720 Sutton Blvd. in Maplewood. Free. Doors open at 7 pm, or come early to the adjoining Maya Café.

A Mississippi native, Treasure Shields Redmond is a St. Louis based poet, performer and educator. Presently, she divides her time between being an assistant professor of English at Southwestern Illinois College, and doctoral studies at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Dwight Bitikofer has been active in St. Louis poetry and open mic circles. His poems have been published in Natural Bridge, Untamed Ink, Mid-Rivers Review and two St. Louis anthologies.  He was a winner in the 2011 St. Louis Poetry Center James H. Nash contest. He is a board member of both St. Louis Poetry Center and St. Louis Writers Guild. He curates the St. Louis Poetry Center  2nd friday notes poetry and music series at Whole Foods Town & Country. He emcees two local open mics and participates in others. He has several upcoming PoJazz performances scheduled with jazz musician Raven Wolf C. Felton Jennings II. Bitikofer is  a native of rural Kansas. He is publisher of Webster-Kirkwood Times, South County Times and West End Word community newspapers.

Raven Wolf, a professional, self-supporting street musician, plays alto and tenor sax, a variety of flutes and the djembe. His music is spiritual, but not religious. He also backs Bitikofer’s poetry during the PoJazz sets.

For the musical/poetry portion of this presentation, Spiritual Jazz Meets PoJazz with jazz artist Raven Wolf C. Felton Jennings II and poet Dwight Bitikofer, they will perform a variety of sets-- some with Raven Wolf soloing, some with Raven Wolf backing Dwight.