Downtown: Area poets struggle to revive club gatherings
A group of local wordsmiths seeks to regain the former glory of the Civic Situationz poetry club.
By JAY CRIDLIN
Published August 20, 2004
An hour before the sun melts into the horizon of the Hillsborough River, two poets take turns reflecting on the halcyon days of their poetry club.
"Civic Situationz used to be a wonderful venue, packed - packed! - with wonderful poets," says 14-year-old Asia Elliot.
That was only a year ago. On this early August night, in this newest incarnation of the poetry club, just seven poets perform in a tiny bandshell behind the Tampa Museum of Art.
"Hopefully, we'll get this thing back on track," said Jenny Bowman, 30, the club's president.
The 2-year-old poetry club, Civic Situationz, has been on a downward slide for the past few months, first losing its primary meeting place in Brandon, then many of its regular participants.
The club, once a haven for teenage Brandon poets, now meets at 7 p.m. on the first and third Thursdays of every month in the small amphitheater near the downtown museum.
Bowman, who performs under the name Joba Hylow, believes that despite the club's move to Tampa, there are still enough Civic Situationz alumni left in Brandon to bring the club back to life.
"I want this venue to continue," Bowman said. "It's just difficult when you switch your venue location to bring the people with you."
In 2002 and early 2003, Civic Situationz regularly drew standing-room-only crowds to Joffrey's Coffee Co. near the Brandon movie theater. Amateur poets of all ages - but mostly teens from local high schools - gathered to write, share and perform their work aloud.
The club was an undisputed creative success, if not a financial one. Most of the money earned through cover charges went into prize pots for regular poetry slams, or performance competitions between poets.
Club founder Philip Howze Jr. of Brandon moved to New York last year to pursue an acting and writing career, leaving the club in Bowman's hands.
Things changed rapidly after that. Without Howze's full-time leadership, Civic Situationz began to unravel. The club started losing money, and Bowman says it was difficult to persuade her fellow poets to raise more.
"It's frustrating when you have a passion and no help," she said.
One day, Bowman arrived at Joffrey's to find the club was no longer welcome. Coffee shop manager Lani Contis says the teens were using increasingly objectionable language, costing Joffrey's some regular customers.
"We were losing business because people would walk out," Contis said. "It was packed full, but when you only have about five or 10 people ordering drinks and then your regular crowd won't come in, it hurts your business."
Bowman said it was important for the group to have no language restrictions.
"While I don't necessarily condemn or condone it," she said, "it is art, and these are kids."
Bowman searched Brandon and Ybor City, but no other venues fit. For a while, Civic Situationz was kaput. Bowman was working with another local poetry group, The Write Side Poets Inc. in Tampa, and no one seemed to miss Civic Situationz.
Recently, she decided to resurrect the group. She called former members, including Elliot, and persuaded them to get together.
So far, though, response has been minimal. Elliot says most members don't even know the club moved.
"I've called people, I've e-mailed people," she said.
Still, Bowman was encouraged by the dozen poets and spectators who came to the Aug. 5 meeting.
"If I can get a good group of people again out at this location, then I might start up a slam again," Bowman said. "I'm willing and open for this thing to morph in another way."
