I've talked about my obsession with the talented and passionate Penn undergrads and alumni who specialize in spoken word. Specifically, over the years, Caroline Rothstein (C'06, The Excelano Project) continues to wow.
Earlier this month, Caroline performed another fierce piece about her love for the 1993 Chicago Bulls you've got to see.
After the jump, even if you're not a basketball fan, I encourage you to watch the entire 7 minute video to enjoy her enthusiasm, hear her Penn basketball references, and most importantly, learn about why she holds onto the memories of the Chicago Bulls and the deeper, chilling meaning she reveals at minute 6:09.
Over the past few years I have been amazed at the Penn alumni and undergrad talent that has come out of this new genre of entertainment called "spoken word".
After the jump, watch a great new passionate video from Carlos that you'll all get a good chuckle from...and find out how he had gotten cast in a big Hollywood movie!
I've said it once and I'll say it again. I LOVE these Excelano Project undergrads and alumni. Their form of art, the spoken word, is loaded with emotion and passion.
Usually, you serenade me in your Manhattan arms
But tonight, you hold me in Brooklyn
Like you were waiting for me
With your open doors
I’m not afraid that you will leave me if I cry too much
Because even at night
You ride on the local C track
You’re that reliable
Hold my torso on your bench
I’ve only had to stand once
There’s always an open seat for me
You are the only thing in my life I’m not afraid to depend on,
Other than myself; even though sometimes you’re late
I still know that you will catch my salty tear drops the way
Buckets catch ceiling leaks when bathtubs overflow
I am a pool of anguish tonight
I whisper in your sultry ears in springtime and
Don’t even have to ask permission
I’m afraid that a human would leave me if I cry too much
You remind me of myself
The way your open doors
Let strangers walk on uninhibited
And tell you their stories
I am chapters of open notebooks
And pages of hidden diaries
Filled with secrets because everyone
Rides me for my reliance
I hold messages in the cracks and crevices
Of my brain synapses
The way your dim lights
Flicker at dusk
Your train cars bound by chains of dependency
I feel like you will always catch me – unconditionally
You’re the only one I trust to bear my burden without
Having to take your needs into consideration
I will see you on Sunday
I hope my tears are gone by then
And I look forward to our two hours together
The one uptown into Fort Washington
And the one back downtown into the West Village
I could linger in our routine for decades
I never expected that an East Village girl like myself –
So happy on the Lexington line I ride on my own side –
Would find comfort in you:
Knight of the West Side highway, 8th Avenue,
And tracks deep enough to soak my tears
2) And check out this impassioned, chilling piece Caroline did called "For Bernie Madoff" at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York City, during a Friday night slam. Enjoy this as Caroline holds no punches!
If you like the above, then you'll be interested to learn that Caroline recently released a new *chapbook called "This Book Wrote Itself" (her "For Bernie Madoff" piece is in this book). She had a release show which took place in an Off-Broadway theatre called the Tank where she did a solo show featuring pieces from the new book.
Keep up with Caroline and get her new book on her blog HERE
*A chapbook is a book of poetry. It's typically a book that a poet puts out on their own, so mostly self published/printed, etc.
Have you been watching Russell Simmons' "Brave New World" on HBO? If you have, you would have seen great performances from our Team Philadelphia .
Highlighted this week on the show were moving performances from Alysia Harris' (C'10, The Excelano Project) and Josh Bennett (C'10, The Excelano Project, Brave New Voices 2008 slam champion).
Watch Alysia's "That Girl" piece above ... it's yet another performanceof hers that will give you the chills!
If that's not moving enough, then watch Josh's "Carbon Copy" piece above where he honors his love for his father directly in front of him.
On a related note, it turns out that Alysia and Josh met in their high school days at a diversity conference where they were both performing spoken word (and even dated for a bit!).
While the show has only aired 2 episodes, from the site, it looks like we should be expecting another performance from Aysha El Shamayleh (C'10, The Excelano Project) sometime soon.
Over the years on DT, I posted about The Excelano Project, a captivating group at Penn that performs the Spoken Word.
Apparently, 4 members of this group have caught the attention of Russell Simmons and will be starring in Simmons' new HBO show "Brave New Voices" debuting this Sunday night at 11pm ET/PT.
Per the HBO site, the show is "one part Def Poetry Jam and two-parts documentary" which "features the finest young spoken word artists in the country".
Representing from Penn are Josh Bennett (C'10), Aysha El Shamayleh (C'10), Alysia Harris (C'10), and Chloe Wayne (C'10).
While my #4 and #3 picks for my "Penn videos that will give you the chills" have been beautifully made films, yesterday I introduced a powerful spoken word video as my #2 pick.
The more I experience these Spoken Word performances from our Penn community, the more I really like this genre.
...Which brings me to #1 pick today from an award winning undergrad with tons of passion and an interesting background story to match.
Click here to check out my #1 pick! Raw truth and expression is what you will find in Alysia Harris' (C'10, The Excelano Project) April 2007 Spoken Word College Nationals winning performance of "What's in a Soldier".
Before you watch it, note Alysia's story behind her spoken words:
"I wrote that poem because my father was in the army for 22 years and when he was sick he stayed on the amputee floor at Walter Reed Army Hospital. And it was really life changing to see people who were my age 18, 19, who were literally half the people they were before they left for iraq, no legs, no arms, disfigured for life, but all still optimistic and smiling. These men are my age and while I'm off in a classroom pouring over Russian literature these men are out there squaring off with death. And it just made me think. People are so quick to criticize the army and those who serve, but they have no idea about what they are willing to sacrifice."
So far, my #4 and #3 picks for my "Penn videos that will give you the chills" have been beautifully made films combining stylized photography, use of music and special effects.
Today I bring you an engaging video from one of our alumni jam packed with emotion and truth.
The more I write about alumni and undergrads, the more I'm realizing that not only is there a lot of talent out there, but our Penn folk have some powerful opinions and voices.
One such alum is Caroline Rothstein (C'06, The Excelano Project), a spoken word poet currently living in New York City. Her poetry is honest, real, personal, and political.
...Listen to the power behind her poem below, "They Call Me Granola" (put your headphones on..not safe for work). This is great...:
This past year, Caroline also self-published a book of her poetry called "What I Learned In College." Books are $5 and can be purchased by emailing Caroline directly at caroline.rothstein@gmail.com.
In addition to spoken word, Caroline keeps a blog that she began upon moving to Atlanta. You can find her adventures throughout the United States and deep into the streets of Manhattan.
Read "Life Worth", an excerpt/poem from Caroline's chapbook* "What I Learned in College"HERE
*A chapbook is a book of poetry. It's typically a book that a poet puts out on their own, so mostly self published/printed, etc.
"Life Worth"
He’d just bought a pair of shoes
Hundred dollar sneakers, shopping bag, right hand
He walks down Central Street in Highland Park, Illinois –
a brand name sidewalk with affluent stores
He knocks on the pharmacy window to buy Gatorade and a bag of pretzels but they wave him away –
It’s 4 PM on a Sunday and they are closing up shop
A senior at his high school pulls an illegal U-Turn
An elderly man stops short to avoid collision, skids onto the curb,
and throws my brother into the side of a store building
His head cracks open, his eyes close shut,
and his sneakers fling into the air as his spleen develops cuts
They do brain surgery, put him on respirators,
Rabbi Mason prays by his ICU bedside but he never wakes up
I’m crouched over his bedside begging him,
Yelling at him “Josh, wake up! Josh, please, wake up!”
He was only shoe shopping,
Walking side by side teenage girls that purchase emaciation on a hanger,
Which is really just a metaphor for
Shirts sewn in sweat shops by starving children
And studies say that executing killers costs more than
Keeping them in prison for the rest of their lives
And funeral prices are on the rise:
Cremation packages start at 2000, the average casket is 6000
28 dollars a month to purchase an orphan on the internet
13 bucks for a Japanese picture bride to weed the fields and strip sugar cane
Not too much for a mail order bride –
Choose her nationality, her body shape, and human pedigree
And since this is an unregulated business,
I don’t have fancy statistics to insert here: ____
About how many women are bought by strangers yearly
As we get a price check in aisle five
To bargain lives that we further judge when they die
My family goes to trial so the killers can pay for our loss in insurance
There’s no way to judge but the judge sits there asking me:
How much was his life worth?
My fifteen year old brother had 20, 000 dollars in savings
From selling beanie babies at a hundred times their cost
On an ebay auction block
650 dollars to buy an African teen on a Southern auction block
How much is a life worth?
We purchase human beings from fruitless trees
We consume materials and will them to our offspring
We hang child labor on manikins
We dangle death next to cash registers
We kill children in store front windows
And judge their worth in finances even though
The only bank in heaven is the locked vault of karma
The only currency in heaven is a set of intangible beliefs
The only worth in heaven can’t even be proven
How much is a life worth?
He was fifteen years old walking happy on a sidewalk
He was fifteen years old shackled standing on an auction block
He was fifteen years old starving sewing in a sweat shop
How much is a life worth?
Josh, wake up, Josh, please wake up
How much is your life worth?
It’s worth waking up every day to face the misery of death’s reality
It’s worth becoming straight edge
to never miss a single moment of sobriety
It’s worth my living breath to overcome death
Josh, you are what my life’s worth
Carlos Andrés Gómez (C'04), award-winning NYC poet and actor, has a voice. ...And it's channeled through his passion for the spoken word. After checking out his videos, the best word to describe this guy is captivating!
At Penn, Carlos was the founder of The Excelano Project one of the nation's premier spoken word/performance poetry collectives.
You may have seen him earlier this year on the cover of the February issue of Brass Magazine and on the most recent season of HBO's Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry.
His passion for this art form has opened doors into the acting world as well.
"Keep up the DAMN good work. It's not until I'm about to graduate that I really start to appreciate other Penn alums who try to keep the network going with websites like Dueling Tampons and more. Keep it up!"
-Mike Tate (C'10)
"Just wanted to send a note to say thanks for your continued work w/ Dueling Tampons. it's one of the various e-news blasts I read most days. I really liked the one about '3 generations at Penn'."
-Jody Girgenti (C'98)
"As an outsider to the entertainment industry and to LA, DuelingTampons.com gave me an excellent jumping-off point to start my job search. It enabled me to learn about Penn alums in the entertainment industry and conduct necessary preliminary research. From there I was able to reach out to our incredible alumni network, schedule introductory meetings and phone calls, eventually land an interview, and finally secure an internship at a top Hollywood studio."
-Steve Gottlieb (C'04)
"By the way, Dueling Tampons may be one of the greatest names for a penn-related website!"
Andrew Erace (C'07)
"Whenever I'm looking to waste time on the internet, Dueling Tampons is at the top of my list right up there with the Onion, the Superficial, and Leverged Sell Out."
Scott Kend (C'02)
"I love what you are doing for Penn with this website. Keep it up!"
Adam El Sehamy (C'09)
"Thanks for doing your part to unify Penn through Dueling Tampons--it's already been a great resource, and I'm only an incoming freshman. I am truly looking forward to my next four years at Penn and beyond. Thanks again."
-Haywood L. Perry III (C'12)
"Just want to thank you for all you are doing re: DT. You've reenergized my feelings toward Penn and now I have a son who will be applying to Penn"
-Joan L. (W'80)
"Great site. I've really enjoyed everything I've come across since I first came across it. Keep up the good work."
-A.J. Cabrera (C'04)
"Great site —when I first came across it, it took me by surprise. I hadn't used the phrase DT in years, you totally made me laugh. Thanks for that."
-Jason Seiden (W'95)
"I got all misty-eyed looking at the Dueling Tampons site. I mean it gave me sense memory of Penn... of the Walk when it was cold, or being in McNeill with Abiel, or being in German class, or taking 20 extra minutes to get to class because of seeing everyone I knew on Locust Walk, or people that sat in my classes that are now really famous or important... just a great site"
-Chris Hartwell (C'95)
"Love you website..! Very fun to read - I cannot believe what alums (that are WAY younger than us) are accomplishing...very cool...!"
-Dorie Clayman (C'96)
"I'm really digging your website. It's nice to have someone keeping track of all us Quaker over-achievers."
-Jeff Levin (C'07)
"Thank you for your website. I've not been in touch with Penn for YEARS, am speaking at the Bookstore and they wrote to me about Dueling Tampons. I've spent the afternoon going around inside it. so thank you!"
Michael Rosen
"Hey, I'll be entering Penn in the Fall as a '12 student. Just trying to get a feel for the campus before I come and Dueling Tampons seems like it has got a big place on campus."
-Eric Jacob Maltiel (SEAS'12)
"I love the way you are reaching out to Penn alums and this site...keep up the good work"
-Jennifer Merves Robbins (C'92)
"I just found dueling tampons, and im hooked. i had no idea so many alum do what i want to do when i grow up!" -Danielle Hannah (C'03)
"Dueling Tampons has an AWESOME reputation on campus here, and I see you and your site everywhere!"
-Matt Amalfitano (C'11)
"Your site's a great way to keep up with Penn stuff with a laugh. Thanks."
-David Toturgul (C'99)
"What you do on Dueling Tampons I think really provides many Penn students with inspiration for their future careers, as I know it has done with me."
-Ryan Townsend (C'08)
"I really like all the Penn stuff, makes me feel at home... I had a good laugh at the name of the website, it only took me a split second to get it!"
-Dan Gutin (C'97)
"Dueling Tampons is an awesome resource. Thanks for representing LA (my hometown!) and the entertainment industry!"
-Joey Volpe (C'09)
"your dueling tampons site rocks"
-Jordan Rockwell (C'00)
"Big fan of the website! I find it a must read!!"
-Troy Majnerick, Penn New Student Orientation Coordinator
"I just want to thank you. I am a cinema studies major at Penn and your site is an amazing creative and networking resource for me. I love it." -Dustin Blank (C'09)
"It's great to see you bringing together the community of Penn alums who took a possibly more interesting route and are doing some really cool things."
-Tara Todras-Whitehill (C'00, Eng'00)
"This is the kind of value-added, life-giving nectar that Matt spoons out so regularly, and for which I am forever...FOREVER...indebted to him."
-Adam Hellegers (C'96)
"The Dueling Tampons site is really impressive. I think Penn should just hand the alumni network over to you :)"
-Eric Barker (C'94)
Alumni Attending Events Because of DT:
"Logan [Levkoff] was here on Friday and was featured in the October 2 Penn Current and today's DP. I heard about her through DT.com, so thanks Matt!" -Fran De La Torre (C'04)
you've got to see.
Entertainment Related
Penn Memories
More Fun
Holiday Related Posts
Halloween
Thanksgiving
Hanukkah
Christmas
Mardis Gras
St. Patrick's Day
Easter