For May we find ourselves back in the region, in Leicester city centre. Take a walk along the High Street to The Big Difference, an independent music, comedy & arts venue, which hosts a regular spoken work night, on the 2nd Monday of each month.
This is Get Mouthy
Originally started by local poet Samantha, upstairs at The Firebug in September 2022, it was taken over and relaunched in by July 2023 by Carolina Rodrigues & Kyle Coare, in it’s current home at The Big Difference
What I first wanted to know, was what inspired them both to take over and relaunch Get Mouthy?
For Carolina, the main reason she wanted to relaunch Get Mouthy, was that she “really liked the family that had been created over those few months. At the time, I felt the poetry scene was very male dominated and not very queer, so it was important to be to continue a night that successfully has brought femme presenting people together.
Get Mouthy had been the first time that I started to perform in the UK and wanted to make sure there was a space available for people to grow and express themselves, as it had been for me”
Prior to to hosting the relaunched Get Mouthy, Kyle admits that he had no intention of running a night, “But then I had been going to the first version of Get Mouthy a lot and saw a growing community.
I also love the punk ethos of poetry nights, where we just sort of do it, creating a vibe and a buzz that spreads between everyone. So when Samantha said she was giving it up, I thought maybe it was time for me to give something back.
I have also seen the amount of talent we have in the midlands, and further afield, and I wanted to give them a chance to share their work, whilst also being a good place for new people to get on a mic, learn a little, gain some confidence, and give them a boost on their journeys”
What makes Get Mouthy special and stand out from other events?
Carolina: “Get Mouthy is a special event because of the people that are a part of it.
Right from the start, Kyle and I wanted to continue to create a space where everyone was welcome, but also where the midlands could come together.
It was important for us that our night focused on celebrating diversity and bringing people from different backgrounds together. Leicester is a rich place, but a lot of times culture and creatives are overlooked.
We have tried to create a community that is built on acceptance, supporting and love; a space were newcomers can find courage, and more experient poets can share new work and get constant feedback.
If was also important to us that we made it our own, and a reflection of the people that come to our events. We focus on bringing diverse headliners from different cultural and social backgrounds and give new poets a chance to headline for the first time”
Kyle: “We have a really friendly ‘family’ vibe, some of the best parts of the night are where we’re just chating before the show, or during breaks.
We want everyone to feel welcome, safe and comfortable, so that when they get up on stage they know that they are going to be okay.
It’s all about building a community – from the audience to the poets and us as hosts, we want it to feel both fresh and fun, but also somewhere that you can share your heart and soul.
Anyone who has been to one of our events will also know about the communal poem, which is a chance for me to make a fool of myself in front of a crowd of people – We ask everyone in the audience to give us a line of poetry, and at the end of the show I read this on the mic without having looked at it previously, which goes about as well as you can imagine! We also have a ‘secret poet’ box, if anyone wants to have a poem read but doesn’t feel ready to get up on stage themselves. (They can also DM us these)”
What else would you like to bring to the local poetry/spoken word scene, and what are your hopes and plans for the future?
Carolina: “For me, in the future, the ultimate goal is to bring everyone together and focus on creating a Festival and a Mentorship program.
Nottingham and Derby have been able to develop something consistent and that allows the community to prosper. One of the biggest challenge young poets face is understanding the next step in their careers. Through a mentorship program we could pair up more established poets with people looking to network and improve their skills, in an exchange or knowledge and community guidance”
Kyle: “I want us to continue to find new exciting poets, giving them a chance to grow and develop their poetry. Whether that is through workshops or social meet ups”
Regularity: Monthly
When: 2nd Monday of every month at 7:30pm
Where: The Big Difference Basement, 68 High Street, Leicester, LE1 5YP (w3w = ///slime.sadly.police)
Approx 16 minutes walk from Leicester rail station, or approx. 2 minutes walk from Highcross Rooftop car park.
Disabled access: No
Bar: Yes
Cost: £3 OTD
Further details/Social Media: Get Mouthy’s Instagram page or their ‘Mouthing Off’ blog
Carolina is a spoken word artist and filmmaker, currently collaborating with the Nottingham Poetry Festival as a Production Assistant.
She is also participating in the Young Producers Programme, managed by City Arts, Wordplay 24, a collaborative poetry exhibition, opening at the beginning of June.
At the end June she will also be finishing her artistic residency at Cecília Zino Foundation, with the exhibition being displayed in Funchal until the beginning of August.
You can find more information about Carolina’s work on her Instagram page
In Kyle’s own words “As always I’m working on a few books, a possible audiobook, always recording videos, and I hope to get out to more open mic/spoken word nights up and down the country”
He adds “I know there are so many incredible poets/artists and it always inspires me so much to see them, whether it is in a small bar, a library or a fancy venue”
He posts poems most days on his blog and across his socials, and all of his books are available on Amazon and “make great bricks, so if you buy enough you could create a house”
You can find all of Kyle’s links via his LinkTree
For other events at his venue, check out The Big Difference’s website
Whilst you’re here, why not read Spoken Word Spotlight April 2024 – Club Verbal Discharge, London
Image credits: Spoken Word Spotlight banner: Scott Coe
All other images courtesy of hysteria.mov – more about them on their Instagram page
Click here for a full list with links to all the 2024 spotlights
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