$10 Cover @ the Door / Start 7pm / Doors 7pm / Seated Show
Art Collins
Art Collins is a Boston poet who believes that there is extraordinary power in words and considers his poetry to be socially conscious as well as entertaining. He hopes that his brand of poetry will motivate action, provoke thought, and stimulate the mind of the listener. Art is Co-host of the Lizard Lounge Poetry Slam venue and was a member of 2008, 2010, 2016-2020 Lizard Lounge National Poetry Slam Team. He is an educator in the Boston Public School system and continues to perform his unique style of poetry with the aspiration of reaching a global audience.
Kayla McGuerty
Kayla McGuerty likes to consider herself a renaissance woman. With degrees in Criminal Justice, Theatre Arts, Psychology, and Applied Behavior Analysis, she dabbles in both the arts and sciences. By day she works as a BCBA with families affected by autism and other social disabilities. By night she is an avid reader, writer, actress, director, producer, and poet. She founded Spectrum Studios Theatre as a way to foster a creative and collaborative environment for aspiring artists both on and off the spectrum through workshops and productions. Currently, she is in the midst of running the Words of Wisdom Poetry Workshop Series hosted at our very own Lizard Lounge.
Lexi Wight
Lexi Wight spends her day attempting to help bridge worldwide cultural gaps, and her nights immersed in multiple different art forms. Throughout the week, you can find her loitering at some of her favorite spots. These include Bill’s open mic jam in Newton, where she has been knighted, and the Lizard Lounge’s Poetry Slam, where she has been featured. She has also been part of the Lizard Lounge slam team for the past three years, during which they performed in the Nationals in Atlanta, Denver, and Chicago. In addition, she has been a guest on 87FM’s Smokin’ Rhymes and the Boston Stoops podcast.
Michael "Warrior" Bonds
The Warrior Michael Bonds is a multi-talented nationally recognized and internationally respected Spokenword Artist, author, and motivator from right here in Boston. Straight out of Roxbury to be exact, Michael Bonds has grown to become an effective Motivational Speaker, Mentor, and Youth Worker for some of Boston’s highest-risk criminally active young men and gang affiliates. He has lent his poetic gift to causes related to human rights and justice and equality for years locally and around the country. Using his unique style of “in your face street powered Inthugligent poetry” he has performed at events and venues and several Ivy League colleges and universities here and abroad. He self-published not one but two books of his own works. “Gunz Poems & Rosez” published in 2005, is his very first manuscript. Most of the content of this book consists of some writings he compiled while in prison for 10 years. His second book “The Write” published in 2012 is a collection of different poetry writing styles. “The Write” proves that Michael W. Bonds aka Warrior is not only a performance Spokenword Artist, he is also a student of the art of poetry. He has an Associate’s degree in Criminal Justice from Bauder College Kaplan University and he is a trained Cognitive Behavioral Therapist and Prison Industrial Complex Awareness workshop facilitator. After serving 10 consecutive years in Massachusetts Correctional Institutions he was freed in 1999. He has committed his speech to these streets. For 17 years now he has stayed committed to spitting truth to power. The Warrior has dedicated his life to using his gift to gab for growth development empowerment movement and change. He is truly an art Actionist.
Jeff Robinson
St. Louis Missouri native, saxophonist, composer, radio disc jockey, actor, director, playwright, and poet, Jeff started the Jeff Robinson Trio in 1995 as a bridge between music and theatre. The "Trio" accompanies poets at the Lizard Lounge in Cambridge, MA, and has a weekly residency that has lasted nearly 20 years. The Jeff Robinson Trio has performed with some of the best poets in the United States of America, including Patricia Smith, Amiri Baraka, and Quincy Troupe, amongst thousands more.
Jeff is an alumnus of Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA, where he studied with saxophonists Bill Pierce and George Garzone. He's studied theatre with Oleg Tabakov, Artistic Director of the legendary Moscow Art Theatre Company, and Shakespeare scholar Kristin Linklater. Jeff's one-person show about jazz legend Charlie "Bird" Parker entitled "Live Bird" has appeared off-Broadway and in Charlie Parker's hometown of Kansas City, Missouri. "I knew Charlie as a man and not simply as a musical genius. Jeff portrays the Charlie I knew." Widow, Doris Parker
He has directed several plays, including Pearl Cleage's "Blues for an Alabama Sky," He received an Independent Reviewers of New England Awards (IRNE) nomination for Best Director. Robinson directed Craig Lucas's "Reckless" for Theatre Zone and also his self-scripted "Alley Cats" at the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) in Boston, MA, with the Baldwin Theatre Company.
He received an IRNE Award nomination for Best Actor for his portrayal of the 'Stage Manager" in Thornton Wilder's "Our Town" at the Wheelock Theatre, as well as his portrayal of Charlie Parker in "Live Bird" for the Baldwin Theatre. His radio show "Poetry Jam" was aired on WMBR 88.1 FM in Cambridge and streamed live. He has recorded for Rounder Records and is working on a new recording with his trio.