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Poetry in Motion

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So what would you do if this guy hops on your Metro train and starts spouting verses from "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"? As an Angeleno, your first inclination is to ignore the guy -- or maybe call security. But put down the cell phone if you happen to hear haikus rushing through LA's train system tonight. The Poetry Society of America and the Metro Art Program have banded together to celebrate "National Poetry Month" with a series of performances dubbed, "Poetry in Motion."

During tonight's rush hour, from 4 to 6, LA-based poets (Ellyn Maybe, Jamie FitzGerald, Catherine Daly, John FitzGerald, Hélène Cardona, Michael C. Ford and Elena Karina Byrne) will recite works at the Seventh Street/Metro Center's Blue Line Platforms.

Another reading will take place next Thursday with Liz Gonzalez, Teka Lark Lo, Elizabeth Iannaci, Bruna Mori, Lynne Thompson, Steve Petersen, Sanora Bartels and Elena Karina Byrne from 4 to 6 pm at the Union Station Gold Line platform. Poets may also board trains and give readings on the rails.

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Now for those commuters who might be averse to the verse, let's be open-minded about this. Only call security if a questionable person starts reciting a poem that begins, "There once was a man from Nantucket..."

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