Celebrating the depth and diversity of BC publishing
On Tuesday, Sept 5th at 6pm PDT, join Massy Arts Society and a collective of brilliant poet organizers for Under The Table Masks4EastVan Fundraiser featuring Jane Shi & Kay Kassirer.
There is a suggested donation of $10 to support Masks4EastVan, but this event is PWYC.
Doors and sign-up at 5:45, show starts at 6
(we run on crip time with the understanding that bodies and brains aren’t always on schedule)
We invite you to sign up for the open mic as Under The Table welcomes us to laugh, cry, celebrate and sit in the richness of queer and disabled life, writing and poetics. This month’s open mic will only have 5 spots to leave time for our wonderful DOUBLE FEATURE!
If you’re signing up for the open mic, when possible please come with a physical or electronic copy of the poem that can be shared with the ASL interpreters, to provide better access for d/Deaf & hard of hearing audiences.
We will have books for sale by our feature artists and organizers with all proceeds going to Masks4EastVan. Grab a copy of A Whore’s Manifesto, Leaving Chang’e on Read, and HIR: an LGBTQIA+ South Asian Zine.
Under the Table is an open mic series centering disabled and/or queer poets. This series was dreamed up out of a desire to share work, experience art, and connect with community in a covid safer, more accessible, and anti-oppressive space. Partnering with Massy Voices and Kickstart Disability Arts & Culture, Under the Table Open Mic Series will be on the first Tuesday of each month with some events in person at Massy Arts Society and others virtually on zoom.
Venue & Accessibility
The event will be hosted at the Massy Arts Gallery, at 23 East Pender Street in Chinatown, Vancouver.
Massy Arts Gallery is a single-level space, in one single room. The entryway to the building is 38″ wide, with a transition less than 0.5″. The front door is a push door that swings inward to the left. There is no automatic opening door or switch but the door will stay open until the show starts. There is one gender inclusive bathroom in the space. The door is not automatic. Pull to enter, push to exit. The width of the doorway is 90cm / 35.5in. The bathroom is 45sq ft. There are two sets of grab bars located behind and to the right of the toilet.The space is a scent-free space. We kindly ask that event attendees refrain from wearing scented products in the space. The venue has a scent free soap and uses scent free cleaning products.
ASL interpretation is confirmed for the event. Please note that there may be some hiccups in interpretation for poems they are not able to read beforehand. For more info on accessibility including transit and parking, seating, and venue measurements and floor plan, please visit: massyarts.com/accessibility. If you have questions about accessibility at this event please email us at patricia@massybooks.com or underthetablepoetry@gmail.com
COVID-19 SAFETY
Masks are required for this event (N95 masks are recommended as they offer the best protection) and will be provided for anyone who does not bring one. There will be an air purifier in the space as well as antibacterial microphone covers. The host and feature poet will rapid test before the event and we encourage attendees to rapid test before coming as well. We ask that you stay home if you are showing symptoms or had a recent exposure.
About Under The Table:
Under the Table is a space where the richness that is queer and disabled life and art, flourishes and finds a home. It’s a space to share work that’s asking to be told, but might not be welcomed in other spaces, if you are able to access those spaces at all. It’s a space where being queer and/or disabled (whether or not those specific words resonate for you) makes your work a brilliant fit, regardless of how queer or disabled you think the poetry you wish to share is, how connected you are to disabled and/or queer community, and whether you feel disabled and/or queer “enough” to participate. It’s a space to witness and engage with the work of incredible artists, anywhere on their path of sharing their work–from the person who has never shared in front of an audience, to artists who have read or performed work many times. It’s a space where there’s room to be scared, and choose to be in community, share, and engage with others’ work. It’s a space where we don’t claim to know all the answers, but are willing to be in the messy, nuanced space of learning together. Come to “Under the Table” to laugh, cry, celebrate, sit in discomfort, feel understood, and be together.
About Masks4EastVan
Masks4EastVan is a grassroots mutual aid project that distributes N95 or equivalent masks to neighbours in East Van that began in May 2022. We aim to make information about the importance of high quality pandemic protections accessible to the general public. We conduct home deliveries and have pop-up distribution events. Masks4EastVan was founded by two disabled and neurodivergent queer trans people of colour, and has expanded to be now run by a small group of volunteers. https://linktr.ee/masks4eastvan
This event has been made possible by Massy Voices, the Government of Canada, and Kickstart Disability Arts and Culture.
With Featured Poets
Jane Shi lives on the occupied, stolen, and unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səlil̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples. Her writing has appeared in the Disability Visibility Blog, The Offing, and Queer Little Nightmares: An Anthology of Monstrous Fiction and Poetry (Arsenal Pulp Press), among others. She is the author of the chapbook Leaving Chang’e on Read (Rahila’s Ghost Press, 2022) and the winner of The Capilano Review’s 2022 In(ter)ventions in the Archive Contest. Her debut poetry collection echolalia echolalia comes out Fall 2024 with Brick Books. She wants to live in a world where love is not a limited resource, land is not mined, hearts are not filched, and bodies are not violated.
Kay Kassirer (they/them) is a spoken word poet whose autobiographical poetry focuses on gender & sexuality, grief, disability, and sex work. Kay has toured internationally performing at venues like Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Busboys and Poets, and the Bowery Poetry Club. They have competed at over a dozen national and international poetry slam festivals earning their place on several competitive final stages. Kay curated and edited A Whore’s Manifesto: An Anthology of Writing and Artwork by Sex Workers published by Thornapple Press. Their work has been featured in numerous places, including Button Poetry, Slamfind, Write About Now, and Voicemail Poems.