On Being a Razor Babe. . .

I'm not sure exactly how I fell into this group of people.  It all seems like a blur when I think back.  But, after tonight there is no denying that I am a Razor Babe.

I guess it started with Sandra Hunter and my need to do something other than dance.  But, I never suspected it to go this far.  I mean. . .  A poetry performance group?

I never dreamt in a million years. And, yet, here I am, having completed my very first debut performance as a Razor Babe. 

We performed tonight at the Artists Union Gallery in Ventura. You could feel the damp ocean air and smell the briny tide at the door only a stone's throw from the surf.  There we were, in our new Razor Babe t-shirts, with our Razor Babe Chapbook, and videographers and photographers and me!

Surreal to say the least.  Of course performance in nothing new for me, but this venue, this format is very different. I am used to a world of movement, music, lighting, costumes and dance. This performance was about baring you soul as is no persona, no illusions, no tricks.  Pure. Simple. Human.

Yes, we perform poems, but I learned tonight that we are more than poets, we are storytellers.  There was something about our performance that made me feel connected to ancient civilizations.  Just as the orators of ancient Greece and Rome told their stories, we were telling ours. Words put together to create new worlds. I felt the Razor Babes transporting the audience to and from these worlds of  hopes, dreams, desires, and tragedies.  Moments of hysteria, laughter, excitement and poignancy wrapped up into one amazing trip.

We were telling our stories, yes, but I couldn't help but feel we were telling everyone's story. The story of being human, one poem at a time. A kaleidoscope of images and sense memories.  This ancient art of storytelling, engaging in who we are what we share, intoxicates me. 

Standing at the back and looking at the group, in our matching shirts with the edgy razor blade logo, I couldn't help but think: what a motley crew we are.  A mishmash of ages, races, stories, lives.  But, we come together and all of that disappears as create a safe space to share our poems and stories with each other and with the world. 

I am a member of a precious tribe of artists. 

I am a Razor Babe.

Here is our write up in the Ventura County Star:
http://m.vcstar.com/news/2012/mar/29/razor-babes-present-an-evening-of-interactive-3/

For more on Sandra Hunter's Workshops and Razor Babe events:
http://www.sandra-hunter.com/