LIVE Chaos Poetry is a form of participatory poetic magic created by Queer Mystic Jason Wyman almost a decade ago.
Initially, it started as a performance installation in 2014 with musician Anne Carol Mitchell at The News, Fresh Queer Performance produced by Kolmel withLove at SOMArts Cultural Center (see the last video in the carousel for the performance.) As people arrived, Mystic Wyman invited audience members to join them at a circular table and to pull a card from the Tao Oracle, based upon the I Ching. Jason asked the audience member questions about what they saw in the card, why they sat at the table, and what they were seeking. While the other performers were on stage, Mystic Wyman crafted the interviews into poems. They then performed those poems in the round with Anne Carol Mitchell improvising a melody by looping her electric guitar.
That night, Mystic Wyman fatefully met performance artist Midori, and an art friendship immediately ignited. Midori asked Jason to perform a variation of their SOMArts performance for the Seduction, the Opening Night Reception for the Floating World exhibition at the Asian Art Museum in 2015. Midori requested that Jason interview people about their sexual desires and transform the interviews into haikus. Jason accepted the invitation and working the Andrea Fuenzalida and Vanessa Varko interviewed over 20 people over 4 hours.
Since then, Mystic Wyman has been honing their craft in blending inquiry, deep listening, magic, and poetry to create a form that reveals deep personal truths. After reading more about chaos magic by Phil Hine and Peter Carroll, Jason realized their craft was also part of a long line of Queer Mystics, and named the form Chaos Poetry.
The LIVE has been added for additional dramatic flair. LIVE Chaos Poetry just sounds a wee bit better.