In the Russell House on Tuesday, poet Alice Notley gave more than just a reading. The author of over 25 books of poetry, Notley exposed both work and emotion in an appropriately intimate space.
During her reading Notley shared mostly unpublished manuscripts. Before beginning she warned the audience that she had a cold, but it was only apparent after she had finished. Very engrossed in the work, she hardly spoke between pieces except for the occasional self-reflection. At the end of one poem she paused and then coyly said, “that is true,” before reaching for her water glass.
Her first set of poems was short and riddled with poignant phrasing. Following that were two longer story poems. The one entitled “God has Money” was a lyrical modern commentary dealing with distance, the middle class, and an unsolved murder close to home. She emphasized that the story was true enough that she had to protect the identities of parties involved.
Notley’s most revealing moment was also the most disarming one for an audience member. She shared sections from her new work “In the Pines” about a recent struggle with a serious illness. Drawing inspiration from a Leadbelly song with the same title, she went on to read “there’s a cure in each instant if you can keep it.” Twice during this recitation Notley bordered on tears. Despite this refreshingly real reaction, it was hard to connect with the piece when only listening to the vague and shamanistic text which seemed to be written only for Notley’s benefit.
“I think the great part behind Notley is that she is so engaged in her poetry – both physically and emotionally,” said Laura Rubin ’09. “While it may seem that her poems are at times inaccessible because they have such deeply rooted underlying stories, I admire the fact that her work is an expression of herself and that sometimes it is not meant for us to fully understand, but for her to purge her emotions.”
As far as the content of the reading as a whole, some audience members familiar with Notley’s writings were left wanting to hear the works that established her career.
“It’s nice that she read from unpublished material, but I wish she had shared some of her more well known works,” said Benedict Bernstein’09.
Notley was brought to Wesleyan by the Russell House and the Edward W. Snowdon Fund. She has received acclaim throughout her long career and earned distinctions like being a Pulitzer Prize finalist for her collection “Mysteries of Small Houses” in 1998. Her most recent publication, “Disobedience,” won the Griffin International Prize for Poetry.
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