Teacher`s Guide - Tilles Center for the Performing Arts

Teacher’s Guide
In a seamless blend of hip hop, theater, improvisation and stand-up comedy, The Mayhem
Poets take poetry to a whole new level. This engaging, dynamic performance reflects the
thoughts, issues and concerns of young people and utilizes an array of poetic inspiration,
from Dr. Seuss to Maya Angelou.
The Mayhem Poets
Table of Contents
Attending a Performance at Tilles Center ....................................... 3
Your Role As an Audience Member ................................................ 4
About The Performance .................................................................. 6
About the Mayhem Poets ............................................................... 7
Meet the Mayhem Poets ................................................................ 8
Spoken Word & Slam Poetry........................................................... 9
Activities Before The Performance ............................................... 10
Activities After The Performance .................................................. 12
The Poet Tree ................................................................................ 18
Glossary of Terms.......................................................................... 22
Elements of a Show....................................................................... 24
Places in the Theater..................................................................... 26
Resources ...................................................................................... 27
Emergency Cancellation................................................................ 28
About Tilles Center........................................................................ 29
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ATTENDING A PERFORMANCE AT TILLES CENTER
The concert hall at Tilles Center seats 2,200 people. Hillwood Recital Hall seats 500 people.
When you attend a performance at Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, there are a few
things you should remember.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE
 LIU Post Public Safety will direct buses to parking areas.
 Groups will be seated in the theater on a first-come, first-serve basis.
 Plan to arrive approximately 30 minutes prior to the show.
 Performances cannot be held for late buses.
 Remain seated on the bus until instructed to unload.
 Shows generally run one hour.
ENTERING THE THEATER
 Please stagger chaperones throughout the group to help keep students in line and moving quickly to the seating area.
 Groups are directed into the theater in the order that they arrive.
 Tilles Center cannot reserve seats for school performances.
BEING SEATED
 Upon entering the theater, ushers will direct students and teachers row by row. It’s possible that classes may be split up into two or more rows. With adequate adult supervision, a group split into two or more rows should have enough chaperones to ensure
safety. We recommend that a teacher/chaperone sit at the end of each row.
 Please allow ushers to seat your group in its entirety before making adjustments. This
allows us to continue seating groups that arrive after you. You are free to rearrange students to new seats and to go to restrooms once the group is seated.
Please Note:
 CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF 4 ARE NOT PERMITTED IN THE THEATER UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES – PLEASE MAKE CHAPERONES AWARE OF THIS POLICY.

TILLES CENTER RESERVES THE RIGHT TO REMOVE STUDENTS (UNDER SUPERVISION OF
THEIR TEACHER OR CHAPERONE) FROM THE VENUE SHOULD THEY BE OF INAPPROPRIATE
AGE OR A DISRUPTION TO THE PERFORMANCE.

FOOD AND DRINK ARE NOT PERMITTED IN THE LOBBY AREAS OR THE THEATER. UNFORTUNATELY, WE CAN NOT PROVIDE SEATING IN THE BUILDING FOR STUDENTS TO EAT
BAGGED LUNCHES.
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YOUR ROLE AS AN AUDIENCE MEMBER
TO THE TEACHER:
An essential component needed to create a live performance is the audience. Please talk to
your students about what it means to be an audience member and how a “live” performance
is different from TV and movies. Please share the following information with your students
prior to your visit to Tilles Center. Some performances may involve audience participation so
students should behave appropriately, given the nature of the performance and the requests
of the artists on the stage. By discussing appropriate audience behavior, as a class ahead of
time, the students will be better prepared to express their enthusiasm in acceptable ways during the performance.
ENJOY THE SHOW
So that everyone can enjoy the performance:
 There is no food or drink permitted in the theater or lobby areas.
 Photography and audio/video recording are not permitted during the performance.
 Please turn off, and put away, all electronic devices, including cell phones, portable games,
cameras, and recording equipment. Keep them off for the entire performance. The devices
may interfere with the theater’s sound system as well as being disruptive to both the audience and the actors. And please – no texting or checking messages during the show!
 In the theater, talking, eating, and moving around disturbs the performers and other members of the audience.
 If something in the show is meant to be funny, go ahead and laugh.
 Please do not leave and re-enter the theater during the performance.
 There is no intermission so make sure you visit the restroom prior to the start of the
show.
DISMISSAL
After the performers are finished taking their bows, please remain in your seats. A Tilles Center representative will come onstage to provide directions for dismissal.
Thank you for your cooperation
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YOUR ROLE AS AN AUDIENCE MEMBER (con’td)
BEING AN AUDIENCE MEMBER:
Audience members play an important role— until an audience shows up, the performers are
only rehearsing! When there is a “great house” (an outstanding audience) it makes the show
even better, because the artists feel a live connection with everyone who is watching them.
When the “house lights” (the lights in the part of the theater where the audience is sitting) go
down, everyone feels a thrill of anticipation. Focus all your attention on the stage and watch
and listen carefully to the performance. The most important quality of a good audience member is the ability to respond appropriately to what’s happening on stage… sometimes it’s important to be quiet, but other times, it’s acceptable to laugh, clap, or make noise! If the audience watches in a concentrated, quiet way, this supports the performers and they can do their
best work. They can feel that you are with them!
The theater is a very “live” space. This means that sound carries very well, usually all over the
auditorium. Theaters are designed in this way so that the voices of singers and actors can be
heard. It also means that any sounds in the audience - whispering, rustling papers, or speaking
- can be heard by other audience members and by the performers. This can destroy everyone’s concentration and spoil a performance. Do not make any unnecessary noise that would
distract the people sitting around you. Be respectful!
Applause is the best way for an audience in a theater to share its enthusiasm and to appreciate the performers, so feel free to applaud at the end of the performance. At the end of the
performance, it is customary to continue clapping until the curtain drops or the lights on stage
go dark. During the curtain call, the performers bow to show their appreciation to the audience. If you really enjoyed the performance, you might even thank the artists with a standing
ovation!
Enjoy the show!
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ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE
The Mayhem Poets have collectively channeled their brimming creativity in order to take
poetry to a whole new level. The three very talented poets that make up this innovative
group, Mason Granger, Scott Raven, and Kyle Sutton, have impacted many peoples’ lives
by sharing their original and inventive thoughts, ideas, and experiences. Their performance combines these elements with hip-hop, theater, improvisation, and stand-up comedy. This new approach to the much dreaded word “poetry” has successfully captured the
attention of a plethora of diverse audiences.
The poets connect with their audience through spoken word (or slam) poetry. This means
that they communicate with others by speaking verse out loud. The spoken word method
has been around for thousands of years, with its roots in ancient chants and tribal storytelling. Spoken word or song has also been a tradition in West Africa in order to pass on
important cultural and historical information from generation to generation.
During the performance, the poets focus their energy on the issues that many young people face. They find inspiration from creative influences such as Dr. Seuss and Maya Angelou. Their motivation has led them to craft many unique poems that address issues such
as ethnicity, diversity, different languages, beauty image, global warming, and acceptance.
The “hard truths” that they deliver to their audiences help to address difficult issues that
are often uncomfortable for people to speak about. This openness allows people to realize that everyone experiences struggle and obstacles at some point in their life. Their
combined individual artistic styles captivate their spectators while teaching important life
lessons.
6 The Mayhem Poets
Educational Materials provided, in part, from The State Theater in New Jersey
ABOUT THE MAYHEM POETS
New Jersey’s Mayhem Poets met as students at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, drawn together
by a shared passion for wordplay and open mics. In 2000 Kyle Sutton (aka Black Skeptik) and Scott
Tarazevits created an open-mic , called Verbal Mayhem. They wanted to reach out to people from all
different backgrounds through spoken word and believed that Verbal Mayhem was a great way to
achieve their goal. As time progressed, they not only reached their goal and impacted their campus,
but extended themselves to prisons, fraternities, churches, and hip hop/poetry fans alike.
After Verbal Mayhem’s success, Kyle and Scott decided to create their own show that would reshape
society’s view of poetry forever. Now, the
Mayhem Poets perform at a variety of venues;
from theatre festivals to Hip Hop or Rock concerts, community events to Youth Education
series. They have performed from New York
City to Ireland and even appeared on The Today Show. They travel to schools, high schools,
and colleges in order to inspire young people
to take an interest in literature and art. Their
poems comment on everything from literature
and school to politics and fast food. Eager to
spread their enthusiasm for their art form,
they have run a poetry day camp with writing,
performance, rapping, rhyming, hip-hop
dance, graffiti art, and hip-hop culture classes..
They want students to “pick up pens instead of
guns.” They have also organized many workshops that help to inspire people of all ages to
see poetry in a new light
The Mayhem Poets capture the audience’s
attention by implementing humor and wit into
their performance. For them, it is important to
help people see and appreciate the value of
classic and contemporary poetry and theater.
These theatre trained, comically gifted, lyrical
virtuosos are well-equipped with the truth and
are not afraid to share their wisdom with their
spectators. Their blend of raw elements of hip hop, theatre, improvisation, and stand up comedy has
won them the most diverse audiences in the world.
In 2007, Mayhem Poets won the Microsoft Idea Wins challenge, a national competition looking for
innovative ideas for new small businesses. They used the prize to open Slam Chops,
http://www.slamchops.com a spoken word poetry club in New York City. The New York Times has
described the Mayhem Poets as “an amazing ride.”
7 The Mayhem Poets
Educational Materials provided, in part, from The State Theater in New Jersey
MEET THE MAYHEM POETS
Kyle “Black Skeptic” Sutton was born in Michigan and
raised in Jersey, where he learned how to "lyrically split atoms"
and "Kill-em with Concepts." His smooth flowing, hard-hitting hiphop style and dynamic theatrical presence have garnered him poetry slam victories across the nation, and brought him all the way
to the Grand Slam finals at the legendary Nuyorican Poets Cafe' in
New York City. His recent solo hip hop project is currently being
shopped to major as well as independent record labels, and includes songs featuring the likes of superstars KRS ONE and Busta
Rhymes. With a B.A. in Spanish from Rutgers University, he can
communicate with a multitude of audiences and has led writing
and performance workshops around the globe. He dedicates all of his artistic endeavors to the
memory of his mother, Barbara Sutton.
Scott Raven was drawn to the stage since birth, his pacifier his
first microphone. As a teen he quickly became active in the local Jewish community giving Shabbat speeches and histrionic-filled haftorah
portions, assuring his Jewish identity would remain an important part
of his writing and career. His penchant for performance led him to
Rutgers University where he studied Theater and Journalism. After
graduation, he co-created Mayhem Poets blending his love for acting
and writing. Since then he has co-authored and performed in two full
length Spoken-Word Plays, Masque (2001) and New Street Poets
(2005), has taken Shakespeare and Voice classes at the Stella Adler
Acting Studio, and studied improv with the UCB. He is currently working on a collection of Shakespearean "Sconnetts", a fictional novel loosely based on his touring experiences throughout elementary and middle schools, and recently finished shooting both a commercial
and two independent films.
Originally from Willingboro, NJ, Mason Granger took his exceptional SAT marks & perfect score on the Math section of the NJ
High School Proficiency Test and, rather than parlaying them into an
ivy league scholarship, instead took them to Rutgers University to
pursue a life of poetry. Once there, Mason infused academia into his
creative writings, resulting in a style that both Einstein and Emerson
would admire. Sweeping thru the collegiate poetry scene like a
breath of fresh air, Mason hosted the campus open mic Verbal Mayhem for 3 years, eventually becoming the poet laureate of Livingston
College.
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Educational Materials provided, in part, from The State Theater in New Jersey
SPOKEN-WORD POETRY AND SLAM POETRY
Spoken-word poetry has been around for thousands of years. Before there was
written language, oral poets were the keepers of the history and mythology of their people.
Epic poems such as Homer’s Iliad and the Scandinavian saga Beowulf were passed down orally
for generations before they were finally written down. West Africa has the griot (pronounced
GREE-oh), a storyteller and historian who speaks or sings the history of his people. William
Shakespeare is probably the world’s best-known performance poet; his plays were written in
verse and were meant to be performed, not read. It was Shakespeare’s actors who wrote
down the text of his plays; if they hadn’t done so, we would not be studying and performing
these works today. In the 20th century America saw the rise of spoken-word poetry among
the writers of the Harlem Renaissance, the Beat Generation,
and the hip-hop scene. These artists used poetry to interpret
and comment on the social upheaval of their day and encourage ordinary people to tell their stories. Today’s spoken-word
poetry is heavily influenced by these earlier movements.
Slam poetry, an interactive poetry competition, is
thought to have begun in Chicago 1985 at a jazz club called the
Green Mill. A construction worker named Marc Smith, a.k.a.
“Papi” created a lyrical “boxing match,” pitting poets against each other one-on-one. The
judges were randomly-chosen audience members, who scored the poets on a scale from 0-10.
From there, slam poetry caught on in cities such as New York and San
Francisco. In New York’s East Village, the Nuyorican Poets’ Café became
the mecca of performance poetry. Slam teams sprang up all over the
United States and Canada. The best go on to compete in the National
Poetry Slam, an annual event occurring every summer since 1990.
Slam poetry uses elements of theater, hip-hop, music, and stand
-up comedy, as poets work to impress the crowd with entertaining, imaginative poetry. Poets sometimes wear costumes, incorporate songs,
music, or chants in their poetry, and can have a funny, serious, or political message. Official slam rules require a poem to be no more than
three minutes in length. In competition, props, costumes, and music are
A performer at the
Green Mill jazz club
not allowed.
This American-born art form has spread all over the world. You
can find poetry slams in such diverse countries as Australia, Austria, Bosnia, Great Britain,
Canada, France, Germany, Nepal, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, Singapore, and Macedonia. In this country, performance poetry can be seen on television and even
on Broadway, where Russell Simmons Def Poetry Jam won a 2003 Tony® Award for Best Special Theatrical Event.
9 The Mayhem Poets
Educational Materials provided, in part, from The State Theater in New Jersey
ACTIVITIES BEFORE THE PERFORMANCE
1. Review the elements of a poem (meter, rhyme, structure, etc.). Then, read a poem aloud
by an author such as Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, or Walt Whitman. What emotions
may have encouraged the poet’s writing? What are the themes of the poem? For example, you may choose one of these poems to analyze:
Among the Multitude, by Walt Whitman
My People, by Langston Hughes
Among the men and women the multitude,
The night is beautiful,
I perceive one picking me out by secret and
divine signs
So the faces of my people.
The stars are beautiful,
Acknowledging none else, not parent, wife,
husband, brother, child, any nearer than I
am,
So the eyes of my people.
Beautiful, also, is the sun.
Some are baffled, but that one is not-that
one knows me.
Beautiful, also, are the souls of my people.
Ah lover and perfect equal,
I meant that you should discover me so by
faint indirections,
And when I meet you mean to discover you
by the like in you.
2. Write your own poems. Pick any topic to write about. Then, have a poetry reading of
everyone’s work while comparing the differences between each poem.
3. What do you know about slam or spoken-word poetry? What about Def Poetry Jam? Do
you listen to rap music? Bring in some examples to share with the class. Then, compare
spoken-word poetry to written poetry. What are the differences and similarities?
4. What is “colloquial” speech? Explore the differences between Standard Written English
and colloquial speech. What can you say in colloquial English that would be unacceptable
in written English? Would you expect to see some of these differences in the performance
or would you expect the poets to use Standard Written English in the performance? Why
or why not?
10 The Mayhem Poets
5. Explore Shakespeare. Choose your favorite monologue or soliloquy and print it out in a
large font (about 18 pts.) Cut the paper so that there are only one or two lines of text on
each piece. Have one piece of paper for each student in class. You can break one line into
two so that each piece contains one thought or idea. Have students stand in a circle and
give each student a piece of the speech. Then, have students read their lines, one-by-one,
around the circle. Encourage students to play with their line and try reading it in different
ways. After going around several times, ask students to add a gesture or movement to
their line as they read. Then ask them to paraphrase their line in their own language. This
will help students to understand Shakespeare’s language and understand the elements of
performance.
6. Shakespeare wrote over 100 sonnets with Sonnet 18 as the most recognizable. Take one
of his sonnets and rewrite it as a spoken word piece using some of the tools in the “Poets
Tool Box” (on page 15).
SONNET 18
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this and this gives life to thee.
Slam Poetry isn’t the first time artists have used word play to get a message across to
their audiences. Rap musicians do it all the time, but even they weren’t the first. Singer
songwriters Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen have been using wordplay for years, and
they are only some of the latest in a long line of that tradition. The next time you listen to
your favorite song, see if you can pick out some of the techniques discussed in this guide.
11 The Mayhem Poets
Educational Materials provided, in part, by The State Theater in New Jersey
ACTIVITIES AFTER THE PERFORMANCE
Writing Your Own Poetry
When the Mayhem Poets begin writing a new piece, the poem doesn’t just magically appear.
They have a process that they use to work out their ideas and then put them into creative,
powerful language. The exercises outlined on the next couple of pages were developed by the
Mayhem Poets to help students get their creative juices flowing and begin to think like poets.
Here are the basic steps:
1. Warm up your imagination
2. Find your words and rhymes
3. Make a personal
connection
4. Use the Poet Tree
5. Get ready to
perform
6. Hold your own poetry slam!
© Mayhem Poets
4
12 The Mayhem Poets
Warm up your imagination
Standing in a circle, toss a ball to someone across the circle. As you throw the ball, say a random
word out loud. The person catching the ball then throws it to someone else, saying a word completely unrelated to the initial word. Keep tossing the ball around the circle and saying your
words until your group has mastered the exercise.
THE NEXT STEP:
The ball is tossed and every time it is thrown, the words must be within a specific ENVIRONMENT (for example: circus, bowling alley, DMV, aquarium, beach, baseball game, classroom). As
the words are spoken, your teacher writes them down on the board. Keep this as a vocabulary
list for writing your own slam poems.
Using the word list you created in the ball-toss exercise,
create some different types of rhymes on the next page.
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13 The Mayhem Poets
Find your words and rhymes
Did you know there are all kinds of rhymes?
Using different types of rhymes will make your poems more interesting to the listener.
Varying your rhymes will also give you the freedom to pick the best words for the lines
instead of choosing a word only because it fits a particular kind of rhyme.
Here are some different types of rhymes:
There are normal rhymes, words like
gutter/butter/stutter
There are slant rhymes, where either the vowels or the consonants of stressed syllables are identical. Slant rhymes look like this:
Hellman’s mustard/General Custard/Mother Hubbard
There are multi-syllabic rhymes, used most often in hip-hop with a background beat:
I’m here to melt your ears with hot sounds
To grab the kids with adjectives and spit-on-the-spot nouns
Here’s an example of multi-syllabic rhyme in spoken word poetry that also uses
alliteration (repeating the same beginning consonant sound in two or more words in
the same line), onomatopoeia (where a word or phrase imitates the sound it is
describing), and internal rhyme (rhyming words within a single line):
I’m a blend of my friends, N’sync with their
idiosyncrasies
Merely mimicking their ticks and tocks
like Timberlake shaking and talking
while moon-walking like Michael.
Here are some additional suggestions for using rhyme in spoken word poetry:

Don’t stick to using only end rhymes (couplets).
•
Vary the rhyme scheme and rhythm to keep your poetry from becoming
“singsongy.”
•
Don’t settle for a particular word just because it rhymes. Choose the word or
phrase that best expresses what you want to say.
•
Remember: absence of rhyme is not an absence of rhythm. Pay attention to
crafting a good rhythm for your poetry.
•
Listen to hip-hop (mainly for rhythmic pattern).
•
Memorize lyrics.
•
Read aloud whenever possible.
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14 The Mayhem Poets
The Poet’s Toolbox
Spoken word poetry uses lots of other tools besides

rhyme to play with words. Here are some literary devices
and alternate ways of putting words together outside of
rhyme or in conjunction with rhyme.
LOL ____________________________________
CIA ____________________________________
BFF ____________________________________
Acronyms are letter abbreviations for proper
• Add your own ending to these clichés:
names and common phrases. (Text messaging has made
acronyms a big part of our language!) Spoken word poets
sometimes create their own versions of existing acronyms. For example:
KFC meant to me that I’d Kill For Chicken.
Cliches and popular phrases are a great way for a
poet to get creative. The best part about playing with
these well-known sayings is that your audience will recognize them immediately. There are lots of creative ways
to play with clichés:
• You can ADD YOUR OWN ENDING to them.
A stitch in time saves nine...
pair of pants from embarrassing a group of
13-year-olds at the school dance.
• You can CHANGE parts of them.
Stink bombs bursting in air giving proof
through the school that the drag is still
there…
Redefine these familiar acronyms:
People in glass houses
_______________________________________
Don’t put all your eggs
______________________________________
Sticks and stones
______________________________________
• Now try changing around the clichés above or
use your own.
______________________________________
______________________________________
______________________________________
• Take your own cliché, popular song, or phrase,
and reinvent it.
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
• You can USE ONLY PARTS of them.
Oh say can you see, by the dawn’s early
light,
that the chronically late have a date
for Saturday detention while the honors
student
will never get suspension.
Puns are another technique for playing with words.
For example:
Lord of the Ringmaster
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15 The Mayhem Poets
More Tools
Pop-culture references are another tool for connecting with your audience. Take several
well-known names, characters, titles, etc. and put them
together by free association.
Daniel Day Lewis and Clark Gable
Wheel of Fortune Cookie Monster Mash
with Alan Alda
Imagine U R Kelly...Clarkson on MTV,
BET VH1 o6 and Park.
Similes and metaphors find ways to relate seemingly different words and phrases. You can use the
following template to create your own similes:
Life is like a _____, which is like a
_____, which is like a _____.
For example:
Life is like a nose, which is like a
downward ski slope, which is like the
Batman franchise of movies thus far.
Life is like a remote control, which is
like replaying of events, which is like
a dream, which is like becoming a movie
star. which is like passing a kidney
stone, which is like fitting into a
mouse hole.
Breaking down words is a type of punning.
Pick two words at random and look for alternate meanings
of each word or some part of the word. For example, the
sentence below plays on the word “parent” that is contained inside “apparent.”
It was apparent that the relationship
between my father and me was sinking.
Want to take it a step further? Here are some other
literary devices you can use:
Alliteration
Hyperbole
Oxymoron
Antithesis
Onomatopoeia
Personification
Find Your Words.
• Take a pop-culture icon, TV show. song title, etc.
and free associate.
___________________________________________
_
___________________________________________
_
___________________________________________
_
___________________________________________
_
• Write your own “Life is like a...” word association:
Life is like a
__________________________________________,
which is like a
__________________________________________,
which is like a
__________________________________________.
• Pick two of the words from the list below to use on
your own in a sentence or two, by breaking down the
words and exploring their alternate meanings:
deceive
demonstrate goodbye self-esteem
canteen
in-sync
mystery period
steal
mall
lapse
macaroni
righteous
nights
professor hostile
___________________________________________
_
___________________________________________
_
16 The Mayhem Poets
© Mayhem Poets
Make a personal connection
No matter how well you write, the best way for your poetry to resonate with an audience is for it to
have a personal meaning for you. By writing about specific ideas, issues, places, and things that matter
to you, you are opening yourself up to your audience and connecting with them on a personal level.
How do you write about things that have a personal connection for you? Start by making a list of
things you feel strongly about, whether they are positive or negative. Use this as a starting point and
use the exercises on this page to explore the topic further.
Exploring Your World
Personal Connection + Imagination
Explore your connection to an environment. Pick a
specific place that you have something to say
about. Free write about home, school, your job, a
favorite place you like to hang out and see where
that leads you.
Using the worksheet below…
The Place You Come From
2. In column B, list five things you’d find in three differ-
Fill in this poem about yourself. It does not need to
rhyme, it does not have to make literal sense—it
just needs to be true.
(Think of it as one of those “Mad Libs.”) When you
are finished, you will have a poem that you can
draw from to help with your slam poem, or it can
be a poem all on its own.
ent environments (five things total).
I am from ____________________. (where home
is for you)
I am from __________. (where you feel most comfortable)
I am from __________________. (your favorite
thing to do)
I am from ____________. (something from your
childhood)
I am from __________________. (your plans for
the future)
You can add as many lines as you want and fill
them in with whatever you want. This poem is all
about YOU.
Group Identity
Working in a group of 3-5, write a “boast rap”
about yourselves or a “message rap” about something you strongly believe. Share it with the rest of
the class.
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1. In column A, list five things that hold power in your
life, and choose one or two to expand upon if you feel
it’s too general. Example: Family (relationship to my
brother, my dad getting remarried).
Example: ENVIRONMENTS - circus, the shore, a mall /
THINGS - cotton candy, seashells, clothing stores, sale
3. Using something from column A, craft a few lines of
poetry using something from column B. (Use something from B to describe something from A.)
Example: Yesterday I went to the GAP and tried to return my brother for a pair of loosefit khakis, but instead
I got back these ill-fitting corduroys that annoyed me
more than my brother ever did.
A. Things that hold power
in your life
1.
B. Things you’d find in 3
different environments
1.
2.
2.
3.
3.
4.
4.
5.
5.
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Using the Poet Tree
1. Pick one word or environment.
2. On a blank Poet Tree (see the next page), list 4 or more words or phrases related to that word.
3. Choose one of those words to generate some related ideas to add to the Poet Tree: clichés and puns, acronyms, popculture references, etc.
4. Start a rhyme bank using normal, multi-syllabic and slant rhymes.
5. Find an emotional/personal connection to something in the tree.
6. Write a simple statement about poem’s overall concept. This can be the first line or last line of your poem.
7. Using your tree, begin crafting a few lines of poetry. Keep in mind you can follow this closely or more loosely as a way of
generating ideas and making connections. You can start writing full lines, too, throughout the process. Here’s Scott’s
“chicken” Poet Tree to use as a guide.
STATE POEM’S OVERALL CONCEPT
POET
PERSONAL
CONNECTIONS
Love to eat, eat unhealthy,
obsessive. I can make great
chicken noises, etc.
(and begin crafting poem’s first few lines)
I was addicted to chicken.
Boston Market would spark it, Popeye’s
would satisfy my late-night cries, KFC meant
to me that I would Kill for Chicken. I started
reading Chicken Soup for the Chicken Soul.
Did you see those breasts? I want to
lick those legs. Still salivating over those
mesmerizing thighs. Fast food wasn’t
enough slowly transform into a chicken…
TREE
RHYME BANK
finger licken, sicken, satisfy my
cries, thighs, quicken, things, onion rings, stings, tender, rocking,
bgocking,
side, wide, confide, slide, tide
ride, guide
RELATED WORD & PHRASES
turkey, salmonella, breasts, legs,
thighs, wings, marsala, murphy,
fast food, Purdue, skin, golden
brown, eggs, chicken comb, buffalo
tenders
POP-CULTURE
REFERENCES
Chicken Soup for the Chicken
Soul, Stella!!! to get to the
other side, Roy’s, KFC, Popeye’s, Kenny Rogers, Chicken
Holiday, Foghorn Leghorn,
Back to the Future
© Mayhem Poets
ACRONYMS
KFC
(Kill for Chicken)
CLICHÉS & PUNS
Play
with drumsticks, cockadoodle-doo, chicken contender, New York
Chickerbocker, fowl out,
hens and family hatch a
plan, sweating grease
18 The Mayhem Poets
STATE POEM’S OVERALL CONCEPT
(and begin crafting poem’s first few lines)
POET
TREE
PERSONAL CONNECTIONS
RELATED WORD & PHRASES
POP-CULTURE
REFERENCES
© Mayhem Poets
RHYME BANK
ACRONYMS
CLICHÉS & PUNS
19 The Mayhem Poets
Get ready to perform
Here are some activities you can do to help you get your poem ready for performance. They will help you work
on: creating an interesting and varied way of speaking your poem; projecting your voice and speaking clearly so
that you command the room when you speak; and creating a comfortable physical presence that enhances your
performance.
Syllable/Word Stressing
1. Working with a partner, pick a favorite line from one of the poems
you have written.
2. You and your partner take turns practicing your lines out loud,
emphasizing different syllables and words, using different vocal inflections and stresses. Give each other feedback on your line readings until you each find the best way to present your lines.
All in the Timing
1. Working in groups of four, each person picks a joke out of a hat or
comes in with one of their own.
2. Take 30 seconds to think about how you are going to deliver your
joke for the best effect.
3. Take turns telling your joke to the rest of the group, rotating so
each person tells her or his joke twice. Each time you tell your joke,
you should change the way you say it. For example: add pauses, slow
down or speed up, change the emphasis on certain words, or add a
rhythm.
Enunciation
No matter how well-written your poem, it’s no good if your audience
can’t understand what you’re saying when you perform it. Use some
of the tongue-twisters below to warm up your mouth before
delivering your poem. Start slowly and then build up speed as they
get easier.
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
Did Peter Piper pick a peck of pickled peppers?
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?
Learn to Project.
Choose a line from your poem to deliver to
your teacher, who will be standing at the back
of the room. While you’re performing your
line, the rest of your class will be talking at the
same time. (Volume levels of conversation can
vary to add effect.) Do your best to make your
line as coherent as possible to the teacher
despite the “heckling.”
Get Physical.
Having trouble figuring out how to move your
body during your poem? Pick one line in your
poem—it can be your favorite or the one
you’re not sure about. Find a pose or motion
to get into when you get to this line in your
poem so that the line is emphasized. Practice
getting into the pose and then try some different ways to get back into your normal
stance. If you are doing a motion, decide when
would be the best time to start and stop. What
this is starting to look like? Pick another line
and do the same thing. Don’t get too complicated, but don’t be afraid to move around and
get into your poem. You wrote it, so you get to
decide!
I am not the pheasant plucker,
I’m the pheasant plucker’s mate.
I am only plucking pheasants
‘cause the pheasant plucker’s running late.
The sixth sick sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick.
Red leather, yellow leather.
“Tongue-twister Telephone”
1. Work in a group of four people, sitting or standing in a line.
2. The first person in line is given a tongue twister. She or he
whispers it into the ear of the next person. who then passes on
the message, until it reaches the last person, who says it aloud.
3. Put two groups together and try it again. Then try it with the
entire class in one group.
20 The Mayhem Poets
Educational Materials provided, in part, by The State Theater in New Jersey
Hold your own poetry slam!
Now that you have written your own poetry, it’s time to hold
your very own poetry slam. Decide as a group whether or not the
slam will be competitive and whether you want to award
prizes for winners or all the participants. If you don’t think
you are ready for a poetry slam involving the whole school, have
a slam within your class and have students judge each other.
You will need an M.C. to host the event and a scorekeeper with a
calculator. Invite other students, teachers, parents, or staff to
serve as audience and judges. All a judge needs is paper and a big
marker. Instruct your judges to score on a scale of 1-10, with 10
representing the best poetry performance a judge has ever heard.
Contestants should be judged on the poem itself and on how
effectively the poem is presented to the audience.
While the official slam rules say that poems can be no longer
than three minutes and can’t include props, costumes, or music,
your group can have a little more fun with it. Take the time to add
in props, costumes, or music to give your poem something extra.
How intense can your battle get?
When the slam is over, publish a collection of all the poems
that were presented and distribute it to other classes.
Official Slam Rules:
No more than 3 minutes.
• No props.
• No costumes.
• No music.

Self Assessment Checklist
WRITING
Rhyming and Rhythm
Used rhyme where appropriate.
Varied rhyme scheme and used slant
rhymes.
Used internal rhyme.
Used alliteration.
Alternate ways of putting words together
Used inventive acronyms.
Took clichés and changed them around.
Incorporated pop-culture references.
Used puns, wordplay, etc.
Personal Connection to poems
Created personal connections.
Combined personal connection with
imaginative/creative concepts/ideas.
PERFORMANCE
Using voice to its full capacity
Enunciated entire poem clearly and sustained
energy throughout.
Stressed punchlines when appropriate.
Projected so everyone could hear.
Was aware of timing, pacing, and rhythm.
Using body to enhance performance
Incorporated gestures and movement.
Had poem memorized so hands were free
and body open.
Connecting with an audience
Looked at audience while performing.
Fed off the audience’s energy throughout.
Stayed focused during disruptions and
took in the unexpected.
Overall performance of poem
Used several performance tactics
throughout.
Used own unique distinct voice.
Took the audience on a journey from beginning.
Educational Materials provided, in part, by The State Theater in New Jersey
21 The Mayhem Poets
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
acronym—a word made from the initial letters of a term or phrase
alliteration—the repetition of a similar consonant sound, especially at the beginning of words that are
used close together
allusion—a casual reference; a slight or incidental mention
cliché—an outworn expression;
diction—the selection of words to express ideas in a literary work
free verse—poetry without a regular pattern of meter or rhyme
freestyle—spontaneous, on-the-spot oration of words, phrases, etc. often used in hip-hop culture accompanied by rhythm and rhyme
griot—a storyteller and historian who spoke or sung the history of their people (a West African tradition)
hip-hop—the stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rap
homonym—a word like another in sound and often in spelling but different in meaning
internal rhyme—rhyming words within a single line
irony—a contrast or discrepancy between what is said and what is meant or between what happens
and what is expected to happen in life and in literature
metaphor—a comparison between essentially unlike things without an explicitly comparative word
such as like or as
multi-syllabic rhyme (mosaic rhyme)—a rhyme in which two or more words produce a multiple rhyme,
either with two or more other words, as “go for/no more,” or with one longer word as “cop a plea/
monopoly,” usually used for comedic effect
onomatopoeia—a word that sounds like the thing or object it is describing
performance art—a popular name for art activities that encompasses elements of music, dance, poetry, theater, and video
personification—to give human characteristic and qualities to an animal or object
poem—poetry is an artistic art form, often written in verse and using rhythm to imaginatively express
an interpretation of a subject
22 The Mayhem Poets
rap—a genre of African-American music of the 1980s and 1990s in which rhyming lyrics are
chanted either to a beat or without accompaniment
repetition—when a word recurs more than once in a phrase or sentence to emphasize a point
rhyme—the matching of final vowel or consonant sounds in two or more words
rhythm—the recurrence of accent or stress in lines of verse
simile—a figure of speech involving comparison between unlike things using like, as, or as
though
stanza—a division or unit of a poem that is repeated in the same form either with similar or
identical patterns of rhyme and meter or with variations from one stanza to another
style—the way an author chooses words and arranges them in sentences or in lines of dialogue or verse to develop ideas and actions with description, imagery, and other literary techniques
syntax—the grammatical order of words in a sentence or line of verse or dialogue
tempo—the rate of speed at which a composition is played, spoken, or danced
tone—the implied attitude of a writer
23 The Mayhem Poets
ELEMENTS OF A SHOW
classic—having lasting significance or worth; enduring
climax—the crucial moment, turning point, or dramatic high point in the action of a play,
book, story, or film that can bring the previous events together, usually at the end
costumes—what the performer wears to help enhance qualities of the character that they are
portraying
curtain call—the appearance of performers or a performer at the end of the show to receive
applause from the audience. They enter in order of importance, with the stars coming last and
usually taking more than one bow
dialogue—conversation in a play, usually between two or more characters
director—a person who creates an overall concept for a production, supervises all elements of
the production and guides the performers in the show
dramatization—a work adapted from another medium, such as a novel, for dramatic presentation
interpretation—the expression through performance of a particular concept of a role, scene,
play, or musical composition
lighting effects—the atmosphere, moods, and time of day created by the use of light
monologue—a form of dramatic entertainment or comedic solo by a single speaker
music—patterned sound changes in pitch, rhythm, loudness, melody and other qualities, capable of setting mood, time, or atmosphere
narrator—a person who reads or speaks lines that advance a story, apart from the characters’
lines
producer—a person responsible for mounting and financing a production, selecting the material, choosing the creative artists, staff, and administration, arranging the publicity
props—a property which a performer handles on stage, ex: a wallet, an umbrella, or a letter
scene—unit within a play
24 The Mayhem Poets
scenery—onstage decoration to help show the place and period of the show
script—the written text of a play. It includes what is said and what is to happen
sketch—a hasty or un-detailed drawing or painting often made as a preliminary study
sound effects—sounds characteristic of humans, animals, objects, and forces of nature (e.g.
wind, rain) that can be performed live or pre-recorded
storyteller—one who relates stories or anecdotes
translation—changing the text from one language to another by selecting words that have the
same meaning and retains the spirit and tone of the text
25 The Mayhem Poets
PLACES IN THE THEATER
lobby—this is the first place you walk into, where the audience waits before the show
box office—this is where audience members can buy tickets to shows
house—the auditorium or area where the audience sits
orchestra seats—seats nearest the stage
balconies—upper levels of seating
light booth and sound booth—located at the top of the balcony or toward the back of the
house, the lights and sound for the production are controlled from these booths
stage—area where the performance takes place, often raised
wings—area to the right and left of the stage that the audience can’t see, sometimes scenery
is stored here, and performers come on and off stage from here
dressing room—place where performers put on makeup, change clothes, and store their costumes for a show
26 The Mayhem Poets
RESOURCES
BOOKS
AUDIO
Double Snaps, by James Percalay. Harper Perenni- A Light in the Attic, by Shel Silverstein. Sony Wonal, 1995. Clever put-downs; contains some explicit der, 1985.
language.
Eat Your Words, by Mayhem Poets. 2005.
Poetry Slam: The Competitive Art of Performance
Poetry, edited by Gary Glazner. Manic D Press,
Episode I, by Thought Breakers. 2004. Hip-hop.
2000. An anthology of poems by slam champions,
essays on how to run a slam, winning strategies,
ON THE WEB
tips for memorizing poems, and more.
poetryslam.com - General info, history, etc.
The Seventh Octave - The Early Writings of Saul
brickcity.net - Submit/post your own poetry
Stacy Williams. Moore Black Press, 1998.
online.
She, by Saul Williams. MTV Books, 1999. Poetry.
Organize a Poetry Slam - A detailed, practical
guide.
The Spoken Word Revolution, by Mark Eleveld.
Sourcebooks MediaFusion, 2005.
New Victory Theater’s Mayhem Poets School Tool
What Learning Leaves, by Taylor Mali. Hanover
Press, 2002. A collection of poems about teaching, Bowery Poetry Club
love, and dogs.
Saul Williams’ website
Where the Sidewalk Ends: Poems and Drawings by
Education World® Great Sites for Teaching About
Shel Silverstein. HarperCollins, 1974.
Poetry
Poetry Portal - A bird’s-eye view of Internet
poetry.
Everypoet.com - “Every resource for every poet.”
VIDEO
Slam. Lions Gate, 1998. Rated R. A prison-andpoetry drama about a young poet’s rise to selfawareness, featuring Saul Williams.
Slam Nation: The Sport of Spoken Word. New Video Group, 1998. Not rated. The film follows slam
poets Saul Williams, Beau Sia, Mums the Schemer,
and Jessica Care Moore as they journey to the National Poetry Slam.
27 The Mayhem Poets
EMERGENCY CANCELLATIONS
Tilles Center Performance Cancellation Due to Inclement Weather
If schools throughout the area are closed due to inclement weather, Tilles Center performances will be cancelled. If, on the day prior to a performance, it appears that inclement weather
may cause a performance to be cancelled, all schools will be called by our staff to alert them
to this possibility. Schools should be advised to call 516 299-3379 the morning of the performance to determine if a performance has been cancelled. A message will be posted on this
number by 6:30 AM indicating if the performance has been cancelled.
If a performance is cancelled, Tilles Center will attempt to reschedule performances on a date
convenient to the majority of schools booked for the performance.
28 The Mayhem Poets
Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, at LIU
Post, in Brookville, New York, is Long Island’s
premier concert hall. Under the leadership of
Executive Director Elliott Sroka, Tilles Center
presents over seventy events each season in
music, dance and theater, featuring world renowned artists. The Center is also the theatrical home for many of Long Island’s leading arts
organizations, including the Long Island Philharmonic.
Among the artists and organizations that have been presented by Tilles Center are the New
York Philharmonic, Itzhak Perlman, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Wynton Marsalis,
Patti LuPone, The Boston Pops, Herbie Hancock, Soweto Gospel Choir, Emanuel Ax., Idina
Menzel, The Shanghai String Quartet, and Chris Botti.
Tilles Center has a 2,242 seat main hall and a 490 seat, more intimate Hillwood Recital Hall.
The smaller theater features chamber music, cabaret, solos recitals, and theater productions for children and adults.
School Partnership Program
An intensive part of Tilles Center’s Arts Education program is the School Partnership program,
modeled on the highly acclaimed aesthetic education program that has evolved over a 35 year
period at Lincoln Center. The Partnership is a comprehensive approach to teaching and learning about the arts, applicable to all grade levels and academic disciplines. The Partnership inspires students and teachers to approach the arts with an open mind and to gain insights into
the creative process. Attendance at professional performances at Tilles Center and viewing art
works at museums are combined with experiential in-school workshops. Led by teaching
artists and teachers, students explore their own artistic capabilities while strengthening essential skills – abstract thinking, teamwork, critical judgment, problem solving. Guided to a deeper
level of understanding, students learn what to look for, and listen to, in a performance or work
of art.
The School Partnership works with students pre k - high
school and provides professional development for teachers. New teachers who participate in the School Partnership program attend an introductory course in Aesthetic
Education, presented at Tilles Center for one week in the
summer.
For information about the School Partnership program and
other performances visit our website: www.tillescenter.org
or call (516) 299-2752.
29 The Mayhem Poets
ARTS EDUCATION STAFF
Dr. Elliott Sroka, Executive Director, Tilles Center
Stephanie Turner, Director of Arts Education
Deborah Robbins, Assistant Director of Arts Education, Study Guide Editor
For information call (516) 299-2752 or visit our website at www.tillescenter.org
Tilles Center for the Performing Arts
LIU Post
Brookville, New York 11548
516-299-2752
Tilles Center’s Arts Education Programs are made possible in part by public funds from the
New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency.
30 The Mayhem Poets
Tilles Center’s Arts Education Program is supported, in part, by its annual Swing for Kids Golf
and Tennis Tournament. We are grateful to the following supporters of the 2012 event for
enabling us to continue to provide the best in Arts Education to Long Island’s schoolchildren:
Albanese Organization, Inc.
Albertson Electric, Inc.
Americana Manhasset
The Bahnik Foundation
Bethpage Federal Credit Union
Birchwood Park Homes
BWD Group LLC
Thomas Calabrese
Capital One Bank
Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman LLP
Daniel Gale Sotheby's International Realty
Designtex
Deutsche Bank
DiFazio Power & Electric, LLC
Doris M. & Peter S. Tilles Foundation, Inc.
Empire National Bank
Estreich & Company Inc.
Farrell Fritz, P.C.
The Fay J. Lindner Foundation
Gamse Lithography
The Garden City Hotel
International Union of Operating Engineers
Local 30 & Local 138
Kaplan Development Group
Koeppel Martone & Leistman, L.L.P.
Brendan Lavin
Lawrence M. Liman
Rubin Magit
Sandra Marino
Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Breitstone, LLP
Murphy & Lynch, P.C.
New York Community Bank Foundation
North Hills Office Services Inc.
Northville Industries
Pasternack Tilker Ziegler Walsh Stanton & Romano LLP
Professional Evaluation Medical Group
Pyramid Air Conditioning
Ray Mignone & Associates, Inc.
Ruskin Moscou Faltischek, P.C.
Sholom & Zuckerbrot Realty LLC
Star Industries Inc.
Sterling & Sterling, Inc.
Steven A. Klar Foundation
Superior Air Conditioning & Heating System
The Tilles Family
Triangle Building Products Corp
Tummarello & Assoc., Inc.
The Weeks Lerman Group
Wells Fargo Advisors
Wesco Manufacturing Inc.
31 The Mayhem Poets