The Ill List

Volume One

Ever since the Winter of 2003 in a rural California town named Modesto, Sam Pierstorff a local poet, college English professor, and father organizes a world-class literary boxing match called The ILL List. This event is modeled after the original poetry slam invented in Chicago by Marc Smith with a three round format, random judges, and traditional rules of time limits, no props and original content.

The ILL List is a invitational only poetry slam that features a dozen of nationally renowned performance poets / spoken word artists, many of whom are regional and national poetry slam champions who have appeared on Russell Simmon's HBO Def Poetry Jam.

Through 3-rounds of original poetry, poets will match metaphors and battle rhyme, rhythm, and verse on their quest for cash prizes! Randomly selected judges from the audience, using Olympic-style scorecards award points to poets based on the strength of their poems and the quality of their performance. Audience members are strongly encouraged to root for their favorite poems as cuts are made after every round. Cheering, yelling, booing, hissing, whistling, and good-natured heckling are welcome and expected.

Since its inception this event is held at the historic State Theatre to a sold-out audience with numerous people outside waiting for a chance to get in. Every year this event is filmed by Poetry Slam's most renowned filmmaker, Tazuo Yamaguchi and published into a dynamic state of art DVD showcasing the poets who participated.

Round One caught me right off the bat, with Guinn's earth shaking plea to his mother in "Bastard", the sincerity of Knight's "Chameleon" and the tortured Rose in "Double Nagative. Estanislao and Mcgee bring the slam to new heights, and Round Two kicks in.....Estanislao and Mcgee again prove true poetic genious, and Drew and Kennedy amplify the set and that's why they coast into Round Three, where Mcgee's static gives you pause and Estanislao get's much deserved applause.