This Dove’s work flies oh-so smoothly

And so the third day of Get Lit! 2005 is over, and the first night of major guests has passed. It was sparsely attended, with maybe a third (which is generous) of the 750-some seat The Met filled. But as always, quantity doesn’t always reflect quality.

The night ended big, with Christopher Howell , following the intermission, introducing the evening’s main draw, former poet laureate Rita Dove . Dove is a poet whose work, Howell said, conveys a sense of magical restlessness.” “Always the signature element is grace,” Howell said. “ Her poems just seem to flow.”

And flow they did, in a calm, cool and controlled performance that seemed, following the fire of Robert Bly , maybe a bit too cool. What Howell said is true: Dove read several poems, particularly from “American Smooth” – at one point even showing off a dance move – and the quality was clearly there. Problem is, especially with a poem such as “Brown,” which comes from Dove’s latest collection “American Smooth,” the effect is stronger on the stage than when Dove read it.

The poem relates Dove’s trying to buy a dress to wear to a dance party, the effect that being one of only three black people in a room of white faces, all the conflicting emotions culminating in these final lines:

“Don’t
get me wrong: I’ve always loved
my skin, the way it glows against
citron and fuschia, the difficult hues,
but the difference I cause
whenever I walk into a polite space
is why I prefer grand entrances –
especially with a Waltz ,
that European constipated
swoon.

The dress in question was red.”

That pause before the final line is important. In her delivery, it lost its power. Not her fault completely. The audience reacted as if the poem were already over. My suggestion would be for anyone curious about Dove’s poetry, try reading some of it for yourself. It’s that good.

And now day five of the nine-day festival proceeds.