Bernadette Mayer -Review by Alison Cuthbertson

Although I had been slightly late the reading at the St Marks Church had not even started yet. There were so many people gathered for the celebration of Bernadette Mayer’s poetry. This was a very special event for us poetry kids given that Mayer is associated with the New York School of Poet, which makes her an important person within the community to study and know her works. The book that was read this evening was Eating the Colors of a Lineup of Words witch is a collection of Mayer’s poetry and is one out of several books from over the years.
Surprisingly there were many people reading Mayer’s poetry and not just her. After an introduction of the work a man named Michael Ruby took the stage and began the reading of a poem “Untitled”. As the night went on I was not able to catch all the names of the participants or the poems but some beautiful lines that I felt much taken by, such as “to grace every place with flowers… But for the grace of winds.” Another “Untitled Street Works” made me laugh from all the crazy things to do around the city like “confuse people in doorways for eight hours,” or “throw garbage cans away.”
The most memorable reader for me that night was Ann Waldman. The way in which she read demanded my attention. She sucked me in, making me unable to look away and every word was powerful. She had read a poem called “Eve of Easter” which is about the children of well know novelists and how Mayer is helping take care of them while at another person’s house. The connections between writers and poets is fascinating in a similar way to how musicians are also connected.
One other reader was Peter Gizzi, who is a familiar face from the reading at the Dia in Chelsea. AS I had mentioned in a past review of him, he had this casual and cool air about him. This attitude remain ever prevalent. He made Mayer’s work his own as did Waldman. He had made a comment on Mayer before he began reading and said that Bernadette Mayer has a “fierce heart in a broken world.” There were many striking lines in the poems he chose like “don’t be afraid of your own heart beating,” and “the man sewed his soles back to his feet.”
Unfortunatly I did not have any cash on me at the reading to purchase a book that night. This reading was very beautiful and Mayer’s words captivated me. I will be buying a few of Mayer’s books in the future.