HAIKU DIALOGUE – All the World’s a Stage – curtain call – long list

Comments (31)

1. wow, so many fine ones… love them all!
   A great showcase of creativities!.

   Cheers! and Congratulations!

   Anna Yin

2. thank you alex and all the people behind stage for including my offer amongst these highly kudos-worthy works.

   i love this senryu….the humour and how it updates previous historical customs and remedies….for the ‘just in case’

   he tucks her cell phone
   into her coffin
   just in case
   —Cindy Putnam Guentherman

3. Thank you Sari and Alex for your comments.
   The haiku highlights a troubling dilemma for
   those involved.

4. All the World’s a Stage is certainly true of haiku poets, too. As I was writing a blog post about this week’s list, I realized that five continents and twenty different countries were represented in this list.

   Using Eavonka Ettinger’s haiku:
   star attraction
   for each curtain call
   the sun bows low

   Eavonka Ettinger
   the sun is constantly bowing to the poets as the earth moves around it.

   As many unique takes of the prompt as the countries the poets represent. If only the world could take up haiku as a discipline, maybe there would be global peace, but I digress.

   1. I feel deeply honored to have you use my poem to express this sentiment, Nan.

      I completely agree that haiku can and does lead to more peace within and without.

5. I love how this one gives such dignity to a seemingly insignificant life:

   clean out
   a mummified lady bug
   between old books

   Deborah Karl-Brandt
   Germany

6. Cost of living
   Money flies out the window
   Before curtain falls

   Cost of Living is a play about living with disabilities

7. Thank you Mark for your comment on my haiku.

8. drawing the curtains
   I see Birnam Wood
   outside my window

   Adele Evershed
   Wilton, Connecticut
   —
   Of the many excellent verses, this one jumped out to me, waking me up, this muggy, cloudy, morning in Melbourne. (which is about as far from the British Isles as is Wilton, Connecticut.)

   “All the world’s a stage ” , indeed, from a literal theatre’s stage to the protagonist’s bedroom window.

   I like the humour of the reference to the Scottish play (which is certainly not a humorous play). I like the (intended or not) connection between Wilton, Connecticut and Shakespeare’s Scotland via prophesying witches.

   What could “seeing Birnam Wood outside the window” one morning mean? A predicted downfall of some kind, I imagine. Perhaps getting the sack from one’s job? The specifics of this downfall is left to readers. Whatever it is, I like Adele Evershed’s humorous dramatizing of the mundane.

   1. Thank you for commenting on this poem. It certainly has a tongue-in-cheek way of looking at one’s impending doom! That is also what I came away from it thinking. The first sign of the impossible fall — it’s all downhill from here, folks.

      curtain call
      a poor player
      struts upon the stage

      Sarah E. Metzler

      This one pairs well with that one, I think. Both allude to Macbeth realizing the futility of his situation as a way to comment on modern life. In this case, Metzler condenses Macbeth’s “poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more,” his lament that life is short and meaningless, to a kind of mocking jest at the actor on stage who, after the play has ended, is in fact doing just that — strutting upon the stage, perhaps still performing in some way, taking his accolades maybe a little too seriously in contrast to the message of that despairing soliloquy.

   2. Thank you Lorin- your comment made my day!
      There were so many wonderful ku with Shakespeare references. I particularly liked
      curtain call
      Hamlet and Ophelia
      finally holding hands

      Marianne Sahlin
      Sweden

      As it made me smile.
      I was thinking that all us Shakespeare lovers should collaborate on a collection and call it Shakuspeare!

      1. Thank you so much for commenting on my haiku, Adele! I loved your Birnam Wood poem – subtle dark humour at its best. And yes, there is obviously material for a Shakuspeare collection!

      2. Some of those which did refer to Shakespeare slipped through my net due to my ignorance of the work of deceased playwrights! I think I’ve spotted them all now, however.

9. Thanks Alex for this entertaining selection. I enjoyed looking out for those set during a theatrical curtain call, although I think these were my favourites:

   his last curtain call
   …makeup free

   Margaret Mahony – because I like clowns (my interpretation)

   alone
   in the mirror
   I practice his smile

   Evan Spivack – could be about acting, or something much darker

   1. The Spivack poem makes me think of The Talented Mr. Ripley, so I also immediately went to “something much darker”! Thanks for the comment.

10. Wow! What a collection of wonderful poems from poets and friends I admire so much. I’m delighted to be among you. Thank you, Alex, for this prompt. It was so inspiring.

    It seemed impossible to find a favorite but then this one lit up the sky:

    display of fireworks
    without encore
    scattered stars

    Teiichi Suzuki
    Japan

11. Thank you Alex for including my haiku. I thoroughly enjoed reading each and everyone. Congratulations to all poets.

12. Thanks, Alex. A fine haul!

    Of the comparatively few haiku, I liked:

    taking a bow
    the backlit tassels
    of last summer’s weeds
    —Cynthia Anderson
    A clear picture with movement, allusion (bow, and tassels) and interesting seasonality

    encore crocus after the snowmelt
    —Sangita Kalarickal
    All in that word ‘encore.’

    squirrel-proof feeders
    the bushy tailed acrobat
    comes back for more
    —Vivien Eliades
    This can’t be a purely British problem! We had a whole summer of Man versus Squirrel (Cyril) over the bird feeders a few years ago. His heir this summer beats his chest after raiding the feeder.

    in the haiku/senryu crossover:

    one more waterfall—
    taking the scenic route
    back to the airport
    —Julie Bloss Kelsey

    Most opted for senryu. Amid the flood of death ones, I enjoyed the mix of warm humour, affection and irony in this:

    he tucks her cell phone
    into her coffin
    just in case
    —Cindy Putnam Guentherman
    Noticing the coffin/case as well…

    Several on the theme of characters leaving their stage personas for their real lives, also with haikai humour:

    on the stage
    after the final act
    Juliet’s toddler
    —Ravi Kiran

    And for me, rising above the rest for their detachment and at the same time, depth of meaning (clipped to my little file of faves), these two:

    all the dead
    holding hands
    curtain call
    —John S Green

    she
    becomes they
    curtain call
    —Ann Sullivan

    1. There was a lot of overlap in submissions for this prompt. I accepted quite a few variations on certain topics — it was interesting to see how a prompt can sometimes narrow possibilities by directing people’s minds into particular aisles.

       curtain call
       the Thane of Cawdor
       smiles at dave

       Herb Tate

       curtain call–
       Iago and Othello
       bowing together

       Ruth Holzer

       curtain call
       Hamlet and Ophelia
       finally holding hands

       Marianne Sahlin

       last bow –
       Juliet smiles at her husband
       in the front row

       Giuliana Ravaglia

       There were at least a couple of other submissions that were extremely similar to these ones that didn’t end up making the cut.

       Still, I think there were quite a lot of good takes on the overall theme, and your choices are strong ones. Thank you for the commentary.

       1. I enjoyed all these takes, as well as Ravi Kiran’s too.

       2. I enjoyed all of these and Adele’s nod to the Scottish play as well.

       3. Interesting. Thanks, Alex. I think it was an excellent idea for a prompt!

          Of the several where named characters reverted to their everyday lives, I singled out Ravi’s for (what I see as) its other layers: the choice of ‘Juliet’s toddler’ is not only humorous and appealing, but a moment ago the doomed lovers have killed themselves, heightening the contrast. The humour turns to irony on contemplation, the toddler a tragic reminder of what might have been. I think in this instance the ‘third axis’ referencing the great play is used to great effect.

          In others, reconciliation is an uplifting theme.

          Well done all.

       4. Thank you for including my haiku in this great collection, Alex, and for this prompt. I enjoyed all of the poems, but especially those dealing with an actual theatrical experience – I find it fascinating when the line between the play and reality is blurred.

13. Thank you Alex for including my haiku on the curtain call theme and congratulations to all the poets taking a final bow here! Much appreciation to KJ and Lori for all their tireless efforts on this weekly feature. This haiku particularly struck me. I liked it a lot and an interesting take on the theme:

    a false performance
    half his life
    now he comes out

    Ann Rawson
    Scotland, UK

    1. I like this one, too, and thinks it pairs well with:

       she
       becomes they
       curtain call

       Ann Sullivan

       Really interesting poems about gender for these prompts. I think the theatrical theme certainly lends itself to hidden identities and selves in flux.

14. For what it’s worth, four of my favorites:
    poetry reading
    a standing ovation
    for her cupcakes

    Randy Brooks
    Taylorsville, Illinois

    curtain call
    the temptation too great
    for the kitten

    Jenn Ryan-Jauregui
    Tucson, Arizona

    grade school play
    rocks, trees, and birds
    the first to bow

    Bryan Rickert
    Belleville, Illinois

    last bow—
    Juliet smiles at her husband
    In the front row

    Giuliana Ravaglia
    Bologna, Italy

    Also, I enjoyed reading the whole lot. Thanks!

15. My sincere thanks to Alex for selecting my haiku. My thanks also to Kathy, Lori, and the Haiku Foundation for all their behind-the-scene efforts.

16. What a great collection of haiku! Everyone, take a bow! For a poignant haiku, Valentina Ranaldi -Adams’
    one final
    curtain call . . .
    hospice center
    resonates with me, but then we recently lost a good family friend, who happened to be a thespian among his other civic duties.
    In the same vein, Christopher Seep ‘s haiku
    treatment ends
    I receive a
    bouquet of time
    resonates with me for the same reason. Our friend got more time. Christopher, I wish you a long, long bouquet of time, say 100 years.

    Jenn Ryan-Jauregui’s haiku about her rambunctious tuxedo kitten finding the curtains irresistible just made me smile.
    curtain call
    the temptation too great
    for the kitten

    So many more I love, but I bow out for now. Congrats to all! Thanks to KJ and Lori for your backstage presence, and thanks, Alex, for including my haiku in this collection. It’s appreciated, truly.

    1. Nancy, my sympathy on your loss. Thank-you for commenting on my haiku.

    2. Thank you Nancy. Yes my little tuxedo kitten’s antics certainly have provided me with a lot of poetic inspiration of late.

       1. I absolutely loved your poem, Jenn. It made me laugh because, well, kittens!

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