Poetry and a Beverage has a large turnout

The International Lounge in the Taggart Student Center at Utah State University was packed with hundreds of students getting refreshments, listening to poetry, playing board games, and talking with friends.

On Saturday evening, Poetry and a Beverage, or Po Bev, had the largest turnout since the beginning of the school year.

“It’s not surprising when a lot of people come,” said Kaela Baucom, the director of Arts and Lectures – which sets up Po Bev. “But this is the most we’ve had this semester.”

Baucom said the number of students was probably between 800 and 1,000. She said there were about 300 seats in the front, where the audience watched performers, and they were filled. Besides those students, there were a lot of people standing throughout the lounge.

According to Baucom, Arts and Lectures sets up Po Bev to give USU students a different kind of activity to attend.

“It’s just different from all the other events, which is why I think people like it,” Baucom said. “Because you can go and sit down and listen, but you can also socialize with other people.”

Megan Frodsham, a member of Arts and Lectures, said students come for both the social atmosphere and the performances.

“Even if you’re not interested in listening to poetry or songs, you can still find something,” Frodsham said. “You can still talk to people. You can eat food. You can play games. It’s just a good atmosphere to be around other Aggies.”

According to Baucom, the only people who perform at Po Bev are students. She said this is an advantage because a lot of students do not typically get much stage time or get to know many people.

“It’s good for the students to be performing because then they get to meet other peers,” Baucom said. “And they get recognized for their talents.”

Frodsham said Po Bev gives students a chance to test out what they have prepared to perform.

“It’s a good atmosphere,” Frodsham said. “People are really nice. People are really accepting.”

“Coming up here, I used to do slam poetry, which is competitive poetry,” said Kaitlyn Lang, who recited an original poem at the event. “This is the closest thing we have at Utah State.”

According to Frodsham, there is typically one Po Bev per month, but there will not be one in December.

Frodsham said the next Po Bev will be on January 11.