At 8 P.M. on Tuesday, October 2, 2007, at the newly revamped O'Brien's Pub in Allston (3 Harvard Ave), an amazing roster of renowned performers including Regie Gibson, 1998 National Poetry Slam Champion; Danny Sherrard, 2007 National Poetry Slam Champion; Jesse Duquette from Emergency Music (Improper Bostonian's Best Local Rock/Pop Band of the Year, 2005); Ryan Lee Crosby (Best Singer/Songwriter, 2006 Boston Phoenix/WFNX Best Music Poll); Sodafrog (Tom Janovitz of the Shout Abouts); Corrina Bain, nationally renowned writer and performer; James Caroline, Boston Phoenix Poll's Best Local Author 2006 and a nationally acclaimed performance poet; and VERY special guests will host a party for a cause.
Admission to see this amazing roster of talent is a minimum donation of $12 (suggested donation $15 or more); this money goes to a great cause, so feel free to be generous. All admission-ticket holders are eligible to win gift certificates, drinks, coupons, gym memberships, t-shirts, and other prizes donated by local businesses including Harpoon Brewery, Horror Business, New England Comics, Women's Fitness of Boston, Proletariat, and the Other Side Café.
On the morning of August 27, 2007, Elizabeth Spence Cann was found shot to death in her own bed. Two of her daughters, 12-year old Brittney and 15-year old Danielle, were found on the floor of the hallway leading into her room. Both girls had been shot in the head and left for dead. The shooter, Beth's estranged boyfriend, took his own life early that morning. Both Danielle and Brittney survived, but face a long road to recovery. Their 17-year old sister Amanda was not home at the time. The girls' father Wayne and stepmother Melissa have been juggling the needs of the girls and of their two young sons.
The Spence, Cann, and Powers families are immensely grateful for the support and love that they have received from the community in the weeks following this tragedy. Members of the community have started a fund to aid in the girls' recovery, and the families hope to not only raise money but also awareness about the growing presence of domestic violence in our lives and communities.
October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month; this benefit show will not be an outpouring of grief. Kurt Vonnegut said of Regie Gibson, "When you perform, you are supersonic. ... You sing and chant for all of us. Nobody gets left out," and in the same spirit these performances will be a raucous celebration of life, sin, and joy.
All proceeds from the show will go to The Cann Family Hope Fund. To make a donation directly to the Cann family, visit www.edgewoodchurchofchrist.org, or mail a check directly to The Cann Family Hope Fund, North Easton Savings Bank, P.O. Box 495, Norton, MA 02766.