Accent Open Mic - MTL Event Series
YOU HAVE FIVE MINUTES. The audience watches from the tiled bar and tightly packed seating area of La Marche à Côté. Read whatever you like—whether your poetry is slam, literary, free verse, iambic pentameter, or experimental. Read in any language; beyond French and English, it’s not uncommon to hear performances in Spanish, German, Italian—you name it—as part of a multilingual venture. You can read poetry written by yourself or a favourite poet. You can even recite song lyrics or make it all up as you go. The only rule at Accent is that you must not exceed your allotted time.
At the four-minute-and-thirty-second mark, an elegant hand rings a golden bell to warn you that you’re approaching the end of your set. Then, a round of applause will usher you offstage as you rejoin the audience.
The hand belongs to Devon Gallant, editor-in-chief of Cactus Press and cohost of the evening’s shenanigans. Started in 2019 with partner in crime Luc-Antoine Chiasson, this bimonthly series, affectionately known by locals as “Accent Open Mic,” was founded from a desire to give writers in Montreal a platform to share their work on a continual basis.
Luc-Antoine Chiasson and Devon Gallant, Accent, 2019
I met Gallant in autumn of 2019, when I first attended Accent. Though I was a shy newcomer, everyone made me feel at home. Since those early days, I’ve read at Accent more times than I can count and published two works with Cactus Press—a chapbook and a full-length collection. But I’ve yet to hear the story of its conception. Over a beer, I ask Gallant about the series’ origins.
The seed was planted in the early 2000s, during a time when Gallant felt a void in the Montreal literary scene. A regular at Toronto’s Art Bar, he wanted to recreate that “vibe and electricity” in Montreal. While living in France, he found this magnetism at Spoken Word Paris. “It [was] filled with expats from every corner of the world. I had just finished writing S(tars) & M(agnets) and debuted almost all that material on their open mic after not having read in almost a decade. Montreal needed something like that, but I refused to believe I was the person to make it happen. Then I met Luc. A few years later, it happened.”
And is it ever happening. Each Accent features two poets. On this chilly February evening, we have Joseph Kidney and James Dunnigan. Kidney is reading from his chapbook, Terra Firma, Pharma Sea (Anstruther Press). Among his pieces is “When I Talk to Myself I Name-Drop the Furniture,” a title that gets a laugh from the audience before reeling us in with as much philosophy as art. James Dunnigan recites work from Windchime Concerto (The Alfred Gustav Press), as well as an “invective or curse poem” about the Russia-Ukraine war, aptly titled “In Utter Hatred, Vladimir” which sends goosebumps prickling along my arms.
The features are spaced throughout the evening, and around them, the open mic comes alive. Though the venue is packed, everyone who wants to read gets the chance. When I ask Gallant about this, he gets a thoughtful look in his eye, then says, “It’s such a novel idea that we don’t have a limit. I’ve never been to a place where there’s no limit. And it’s never been a problem [at Accent].”
So beyond the promised five minutes of glory, what keeps the locals coming back? “Community, for sure,” Martin Breul, poet and PhD candidate, tells me. “Hearing people share their work helps me stay motivated, gives me a push to write. It’s very open. You can just show up and say hi to people, talk about poems, and eventually, you’ll talk about the rest.”
James Dunnigan, Accent, February 19th, 2023
“I heard about Accent through British poet Frances Pope, who was at the time living in Montreal; she invited me to her Cactus Press chapbook launch,” says Samara Garfinkle, who when she isn’t writing poetry, works as a music teacher and soprano. Since her introduction to the scene, Garfinkle has published a chapbook of her own with Cactus Press, Dual Realms. In fact, many of the regulars at Accent have collaborated with Gallant to produce these beautiful, staple-bound ephemera. As emerging artists, it can be hard to find opportunities to publish work—submissions take place online through platforms like Submittable and it can be challenging to get your foot in the door. The Accent-Cactus connection humanizes that process and connects writers as friends.
“I think Accent owes its bubbling, diverse and welcoming atmosphere in large part to Devon Gallant,” adds Garfinkle. “I think newcomers feel more at ease sharing their work for the first time, particularly because Devon is so grateful; he’ll thank people for their reading and express that he’d like to see them come back. It’s also always nice chatting in the aftermath or during a break if you appreciated someone else’s performance.”
For some, performance is a vital stage of the creative process. “Every time I work on a new poem, I genuinely gauge it based on one question. ‘Is this something I would be enthusiastically presenting to the Accent crew?’ divulges Sierra Duffey. “Typically I love reading at Accent because it is a great environment to experiment and get honest feedback on my work. I always try to read pieces I am currently working with—work that feels exciting to me and work that matches the energy of the room.”
Joseph Kidney, Accent, February 19th, 2023
Duffey, who hails from Ottawa, has been coming to Accent since the summer of 2022. “I was new to Montreal, new to sharing poetry out loud, new to the community. But that didn’t matter. I was welcomed with open arms. I felt safe and heard presenting my art on the Accent stage. And also important—I feel safe presenting art with a bit of edge to it. Without getting controversial, I do think there are a lot of spaces that subconsciously funnel us into self-censorship, whether they intend to or not. Writers need to break the rules sometimes, need to push the edge of correctness a little bit—Accent gives us a space to do so without judgment or limitations. Each Sunday it feels like we are both celebrating and redefining what the Montreal literary scene is all about—and that is really special.”
I am inclined to agree with her. While listening, I can’t shake the feeling that something meaningful is taking place. Perhaps it’s the way attendees trickle in and out over the course of the evening: swinging the door open as quietly as possible to not interrupt whoever’s reading and leaving just as gently. Perhaps it’s the incredible variety of work being spoken into existence. Perhaps it’s the palpable community; the poets established and new shaking hands and congratulating each other on a verse well read. Whatever it is, I’m hooked.
Accent takes place at La Marche à Côté every two Sundays. For more information, follow the series on Facebook.
Willow Loveday Little is a Cactus Press poet. Her work has appeared in places such as The Dalhousie Review, The Selkie's Very Much Alive: Stories of Resilience anthology, HAL, The League of Canadian Poets chapbook series, yolk literary, and On Spec. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from McGill University and is the author of a chapbook, Xenia, and a full-length poetry collection, (Vice) Viscera, both out with Cactus Press.
“Alternately personal and esoteric, the substance of this debut collection defies categorisation, except that, as it reveals itself, so too does it the reader.”
(Vice) Viscera is now available in it’s second printing. Get yours now at Cactus Press.