A Night to Remember

 On Friday night, I saw the poet Andrea Gibson perform at the Fonda Theatre in Hollywood. Having read a few of Gibson's poetry books, I was ecstatic to get tickets with one of my best friends, Joyce. Plus, we hitched a free ride with some of her classmates from a Gender Studies class, there was almost no traffic, and we found cheap parking in Hollywood ($2.00 an hour!). The night was already beyond my expectations.

I almost had a heart attack in the security line while they checked IDs to mark people who were over 21 (I thought the event might be 21+ and I had missed that memo). But everything was fine, and I entered the theatre. With a bar in the back and standing room only, the Fonda felt like a vintage version of the Observatory (one of my favorite LA venues).

Singer-songwriter, one-woman-band, Chastity Brown opened the show with her sultry voice and awkward interludes. She was so endearing, and I have already started listening to all her music on Spotify. Her songs covered everything from mental health to her experience with white supremacists to leaving behind toxic lovers. She finished her set by having the crowd sing along, and we stood, shoulder to shoulder in solidarity and love. It was a moment I will remember forever.

Then, Andrea Gibson came out, launching into poetry, jokes, and sing-song interludes that had me crying for a good two hours. Gibson speaks to the Millennial/Gen Z experience in so many ways. Working as an activist and an artist, Gibson collaborates with musicians to interweave spoken word with piano and vocals.

I don't think I can adequately describe how moving Gibson's poetry is - I would recommend watching it for yourself if you are interested. My favorite poem is titled "Angels of the Get-Through," which Gibson wrote for a best friend during that friend's worst year. Click here to watch Andrea Gibson read "Angels of the Get-Through."

Last semester was a really rough semester for me, and some of the repercussions of that semester still linger with me. It was fitting that Gibson performed "Angels of the Get-Through" while I stood by Joyce, who has also had a rough year. We have both leaned on each other to find strength when we thought we had none left.

 After the show, we waited in line for an hour to meet Gibson. I bought Pansy, Gibson's 2015 poetry book with some of my favorite poems in it, including "Angels of the Get-Through." We didn't get back to campus until 1am, but I couldn't sleep anyway, mulling over the words and events from the evening.

My three friends and I left the Fonda in a state of emotional rawness. Unfortunately, we came crashing down to reality when a man on the streets was very aggressive in pursuing us. I was sad to have left such a safe and loving space to return to Hollywood Boulevard and encounter the "real" world, one in which people use words and actions to violence each other.

Still, places like the Fonda Theatre do exist, and I am so passionate about art for its ability to speak out and to heal. I'm not going to surrender to an angry man (or one hundred for that matter), and I am going to pursue spaces of art and love, leaving behind my art and love for others. We are all angels of the get-through.