Participants celebrate at the “Meatgrinder Poetry Slam” finale. Credit: Courtesy of Mitch Worden
With the world in disarray and the future uncertain, the controlled chaos of rave music and poetry might help tune out that external noise — at least for one night.
A “Poetry Rave” will take place at local house venue, “The Pod,” Friday at 8 p.m. to benefit the individuals impacted by the closure of Kaleidoscope Youth Center’s LGBTQ+ housing program.
Local poets and DJs — including Typo Typo, Flwrstms and Boudica — will create a harsh sound of erratic, intense and emotional music for the community to dance their hearts out for a cause.
Donations will go toward transgender liberation organization Trans Experimental Action’s ongoing fundraiser.
“I want that energy — whether that’s political anger, whether that’s hope, whether that’s happiness, anger, whatever emotion you have,” said Mitch Worden, event organizer and poet. “The only thing I’ve told people is just go big with it. I’m banking on the fact that it’s gonna be a kind of chaos that is fulfilling.”
According to an Instagram post by Kaleidoscope Youth Center, the Housing Program began in 2019 to provide aid for young LGBTQ+ people facing homelessness. In 2024, the organization lost $500,000 with the reduction of grants and in September, it was announced that the Ohio Department of Health will not renew funds for the next fiscal year. With a lack of essential funding, the organization said the program is unable to continue moving forward.
“It is not okay that youth in our programs are facing the threat of returning to homelessness,” Kaleidoscope Youth Center said in the post. “And it is not okay that they are having to independently raise money to meet their basic needs.”
In the comment section of the organization’s post, members of the community shared how grief-stricken they felt following the news.
Current participants fear eviction, according to TEA.
TEA has already raised more than $25,000, just shy of their $30,000 goal. Influenced by a past community event held by the Central Ohio Trans Collective, Worden planned for the Poetry Rave to meet that amount.
“[I] was just like, ‘What if we came together again as a community — did something fun for a good cause?’” Worden said. “With the way things are going and how this current administration is defunding basically anything remotely related to LGBTQ+ organizations, it is very much like they are put in a hole that they cannot dig out of financially, and so it’s really unfortunate that this is a situation we’re in where we do have to do a fundraiser.”
Worden said the concept of a poetry rave is unlike anything they have ever done. They were inspired by local poet Zach Koun’s concept of “Full Chamber Poetry,” where poets read prose as a live orchestra improvised along with them. Instead of a symphony, Worden opted for EDM — electronic dance music.
“We take rave music, we take poetry and we just sort of throw it together,” Worden said. “I’m kind of living for the clash of it.”
Some poets and DJs have plans to collaborate, but Worden said that others are leaving it up to the moment.
“You’re given a canvas — throw something at it. And if it’s loud, then it’s going to be loud,” Worden said. “You know, we might not understand what’s happening, but we’re going to create an experience. [That] is the goal.”
Typo Typo, known as Cheshire, said they imagine it will be a “beautiful mix” of artists that do not often come together.
“A typical [DJ] set has the goal of just giving people a good time. Transcending their normal daily routine and telling some story, maybe evoking some specific emotion or set of emotions throughout your performance,” Cheshire said. “This is exactly what I plan to do. The poetry will simply add to that effect.”
The sudden halt of the housing program was not a surprise to Cheshire, but the reality is heartbreaking, they said.
“As a young queer person who’s struggled in most likely a similar way, it hits close,” Cheshire said.
Cheshire said they believe that community events like this are needed.
“I think the poetry rave could go two ways,” Cheshire said. “Either it’s an awesome event that raises a ton of money and creatively inspires everyone involved, or it does all of that and we keep doing it again and again.”
Worden said Cheshire and the other DJs are “phenomenal.”
“You hear the beat, and it’s like, even if you can’t dance, you’re dancing,” Worden said. “Yeah, because you have to. It’d be a disservice to the beat if you didn’t.”
Worden said they view poetry as incredibly personal. Though a rave seems unconventional for the art, they wish to challenge that narrative.
“They’re both very free because even in vulnerability, there is a liberation … whatever that internal barrier is that’s holding those emotions back — maybe you’re not fully tearing it down, but you’re whittling away at it,” Worden said. “And for me, rave parties, nightlife, all of that is its own form of liberation, that’s its own form of disconnect, and both can be their own form of rebellion.”
Worden said they take pride in joy being an act of resistance.
“Our existence is upsetting to people,” Worden said. “If people find my existence obnoxious, that’s sort of like, ‘Okay, you can try to do something about it.’”
Worden said the constant flow of upsetting and scary news is not easy to deal with and they urge the community to confront that with sincerity.
“We need to be honest with our emotions, especially nowadays,” Worden said. “We’re not fine, and it’s fine to say that we’re not fine.”
The address can be found via direct message to Worden or the venue on Instagram. A $10 donation is recommended.
