A wrinkled brow, cringing teeth, and longing eyes. No word is ever spoken, yet a poet displays a myriad of emotions. The pace quickens and his voice rises. He never said he was anxious; nevertheless, it was very obvious. The poet jumps as the music rises with clashing sounds proclaiming the exhilaration. The mounting bliss is relayed without ever uttering a word. No innuendo is lost. No assumed beat or underlying tone is overlooked. A performance poet is able to show emotion through a combination of diction, tone, and expression that extends much further any amount of written work ever could. One particular poet that is able to do this is Beau Sia.
He captivates the attention of the crowd when he begins his poem with a plea. Without the knowledge of the crowd, he actually introduces his theme, a device only possible in a performance poem. The begging intonation of his voice and the desperately grasping motions of his body exaggerate his expression and succeed in implying the irony of his performance. His Gary Coleman impression and Nsync dance moves provide humor to juxtapose the underlying seriousness of his message. He plays on the Americanized stereotypes of Asian culture with flamboyant imitations and stereotype jokes. His frustration with these stereotypes as well as his struggle to succeed artistically is displayed by his dramatically performed concluding hyperbole in which he proclaims, “Give me a chance, and I’ll change the world!” The audience adds to the performance by providing reaction to his humor and rolling with the pace of his diction.
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