At the beginning of May, a national art project started here in Kansas City. This was first stop on a national tour for a conversation in the form of America Now and Here. Here’s how a Renga works — more than 30 Kansas City poets were challenged to write ten lines each….the subject that emerged is Kansas City, with references to cattlemen, ghosts, prairie grass, and Troost.
Most of these poets have stopped by KCUR to record their work, and we’ve been playing excerpts from this series throughout the month of May. Today on the show, we will hear the big poem, in its entirety, and how it all comes together. A tapestry of words, experiences, viewpoints and voices… all homegrown.
THE RENGA PROJECT INCLUDES:
John Mark Eberhart, Shavonne Standifer, Linda Rodriguez, John Hastings, David Arnold Hughes, Gabriela Lemmons, Greg Field, Jose Faus, Maria Vasquez Boyd, Ignacio Carbajal, Hadara Bar Nadav, Glenn North, Maryfrances Wagner, Xanath Caraza, Billy Brame, Craig Salvay, Gustavo Aybar, Natasha Ria El-Scari, Shawn Pavey, Silvia Kofler, Aisha Sharif, Michele Boisseau, Bob Savino, Phyllis Becker, Theodore Hughes, Desmond Jones, Nicole Higgins, Timothy Pettet, Corinna West and Sharon Eiker. With readings by Ashley Ferguson, Spencer Dudley, and Dan Verbeck. Produced by Andrea Silenzi.