Review: Daventry puts poetry into motion

Maggie Evans, the local poet who organised and lead the event said: “The evening was a huge success – it completely exceeded my expectations! The pub was full to the brim and many had to settle for listening to the poets from outside.”It may have come as something of a challenge to move around inside the pub but poetry was definitely in motion. There was no shortage of people who wanted to stand up and perform their material to the crowd.Maggie was initially worried about whether a poetry night would have any general appeal: “There seems to be this common consensus that poetry is a ‘highbrow’ form of communication which only appeals to the snooty, elite literati.” However the success of the night proved the opposite.

Jason, a regular customer of Early Doors, said: “I have to admit, I would’ve said I wasn’t much of a fan of poetry – it used to bore me stiff at school – but tonight surprised me. I haven’t laughed so much in ages; there was some really funny stuff!”The kinds of subject matters ranged from: the silly, the bawdy, concerns for the current social and political climate to the highs and lows of the human condition.

For some of the poets, it was the first time that they had ever performed in front of an audience; a daunting task, as anyone who has done it before knows. Nonetheless the room was full of encouragement and support for them.

Grahame Scott, a.k.a ‘Inappropriate Grahame’, performing on the night.

“What a great first night at Dane Tree Verse.The venue was perfect. The beer – superb!And the poets were on point, from adjective to verb;

all left hanging on every word.With subjects that varied from Unicorns to urinals.

I’ll definitely be going again.”

The landlady, Caroline Hawkey, said: “I am really pleased with how the evening went. There was a great turn out and such a mixture of ages and personalities. I can’t wait to host the next one.”The next Dane Tree Verse poetry open mic night will be on the Thursday August 30 and will take place on the last Thursday of every month thereafter.