The Mic @ Micky’s is Back! This Wednesday, March 1, from 7-10pm the usual beats emanating from Micky’s WeHo will be joined by the sounds of poetry, live music, and comedy as the event re-launches back to its monthly Wednesday series for 2023, co-produced by the club and West Hollywood Poet Laureate Brian Sonia-Wallace, with special host Nate Lovell.
Since February 23, 2022, The Mic @ Micky’s has provided a safe, supportive space for WeHo’s LGBTQ+ and ally creatives to gather and share creative work. Over 400 performers have graced its stage, and it spawned a literary festival, a documentary film, and a poetry slam competition. You can regularly find talent agents casting for new TV shows, alongside WeHo regulars and dancers showcasing their unique voices before heading to the bars to work.
The Mic was on hiatus during the holiday months, but is back in force for this one-year anniversary show. Anyone can sign up for a 3-minute slot (first come first serve at the door, or online in advance) to share poetry, stories, music, comedy, and assorted shenanigans and/or hootenanny.
Next month’s Mic, on April 5th, will be a poetry slam competition in celebration of National Poetry Month. Tickets are $10 and the winner will take the door (around a $500 prize!). Competitors must bring 3 poems of no more than 3 minutes each, competing in 3 rounds with special guest judges. Email rentpoet@gmail.com if interested in competing, limit 8 slots.
The Mic @ Micky’s – Photo courtesy of Micky’s WeHo
The Mic @ Micky’s – Photo courtesy of Micky’s WeHoABOUT THE MIC
The Mic @ Micky’s (dubbed by the LA Times as “Pride’s hottest new club”) is a space for creatives to gather, collaborate, and share their work on the first Wednesday of each month. Located in the heart of one of LA’s oldest gay clubs, this space promises connection and community for folks across the LGBTQ+ spectrum (and allies!) before the untz untz starts.
West Hollywood bills itself as “the creative city,” and the goal of The Mic is to create a space where local creatives, from poets to musicians to live painters, can express themselves and work on their craft in community. The night is produced by Brian Sonia-Wallace and hosted by Sonia-Wallace and notable actor Nate Lovell.
ABOUT THE PRODUCERS
West Hollywood City Poet Laureate Brian Sonia-Wallace is an Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellow for LGBTQ+ poetry activism, and the author of The Poetry of Strangers: What I Learned Traveling America with a Typewriter (Harper Collins, 2020). His work has appeared in Poets.org, Rolling Stone, and The Guardian, and he teaches at UCLA Extension Writers’ Program. More at briansoniawallace.com and @rentpoet.
For the last 33 years, Micky’s WeHo has produced live events from cabaret shows to full-on concerts by LGBTQ community groups. The bar is the proud home of Showgirls with Morgan McMichaels, a Weho staple on Monday nights, as well as host Cake Moss’ popular Bring It To Brunch! Dragstravaganza on Saturdays at 1pm. Micky’s is always excited at the prospect of working with talented community members who share a passion for live performance and expression.
The Mic @ Micky’s happens on the first Wednesday of every month at Micky’s on 8857 Santa Monica Boulevard — doors and sign-ups for the mic at 7, show 7:30-10pm. Attendees can attend for free on a first-come, first-serve basis, or book their seat for $5 by visiting https://www.mickys.
Always a great showcase of diverse talents and sexy hosts Brian and Nate do a wonderful job.