May 24–31, 2001

arts picks|spoken word

Erotic Word A Go Go

Get freaky. Sensual. Sexy. Romantic. Edgy. Hot. Sticky. Provocative. Political. The cast of "Erotic Word… A Go Go" — a spoken word production exploring the many fantastic facets of love — does it all. As if the subject matter isn't sweet enough, the cast is a smattering of thick homemade cake icing. Lyrical heavyweight muMs the schemer joins Ursula Rucker (left), Larry Beyah, Ryva and Kimmika Williams onstage to speak the language of L.O.V.E.

From Nike TV spots to publishing work in The Source and The Quarterly Black Review to appearing in Bamboozled and the indie documentaries SlamNation and Freestyle, Bronx-born Craig Grant a.k.a. muMs is a jack of all trades. Actor. Writer. Poet. MC. Activist. Widely known as prisoner # 96J332, "Poet," from the gritty HBO series OZ, muMs is a veteran in the underground hip-hop and poetry scene. Honing his skills at the famed Nuyorican Poet’s Café, the schemer repp’d NY State Team at the National Poetry Slam Championships with his biting political verse and boom-bap-styled delivery. Kicking spiritual rhymes, muMs spouts pensive volumes: "I speak to the plight of black men, we get forgotten about with no body to rally us." Food for thought.

muMs and Ursula Rucker on the same bill? It’s word heaven. Ms. Rucker is the closing vocalist on the Roots’ albums. Yes, that voice that creeps up in your domepiece and slaps you hard in the face with a much-needed dose of reality you cannot ignore. Haven’t heard her yet? The time is now. Celebrate fantasy and awaken the senses with this tongue twistin’ verbal delight from a cast of world-class poets. And don’t forget your thinking caps; these rhymes go deep.

—Ainè Ardon-Doley

Sun., May 27, Doors at 6 p.m., open mic at 6:30, 7:30 p.m. showtime, $20, students $15. Freedom Theatre, 1346 N. Broad St., 215-765-2793.