Thursday, October 22, 2026
The Merrick Public Library will be hosting its recurring Open Mic Night on Jan. 27 as a space for locals to enjoy poets, songwriters and spoken word artists expressing themselves.
The library has been doing poetry open mic nights regularly since the summer of 2023. Jessica Vanore, is a new face organizing next week’s, along with the administrative help of Rachel Sferlazza and the marketing support of Christina Bonfiglio-Scali. The current and most recent Nassau County Poet Laureates, Alan Semerdijan and Paula Curci, will be there.
“The mantle has kind of passed to me recently,” Vanore said of her role. “One of my predecessors was in charge. Now me and Rachel are the crew for it. I helped our previous head of the open mic, so I have been a part of all the ones we’ve done so far. This is my first time introducing things.”
The open mic nights happen almost every quarter, about three to four times per year, depending on local school breaks. People of all ages participate.
“It’s a really good place to help poets, song writers, spoken words make connections and build community,” Vanore said. “I want people to start coming and just build a place for them to speak and get their creativity out.”
Bonfiglio-Scali said that they usually get a larger turnout in the summer months because of the location.
“During the warmer months we do this in the garden outdoors, so it really sets a nice ambiance,” Bonfiglio-Scali said. “During the colder months we do this in the community room.”
While the open mics have been happening regularly for about a year-and-a-half, the organizers actually don’t know when the very first one was.
“It was something that was run sporadically,” Sferlazza said. “The first one I know of was in the very early summer of 2023. There could’ve been more before that, but if so I’m not aware of the exact date.”
The three organizers generally agree on what makes good poetry, though they each have a different viewpoint.
“There’s a couple different ways you could consider good poetry,” Sferlazza said. “Good is subjective, of course, to anyone. Overall you could look at a good poem in terms of its technical perfection — does it use a particular form or style well. Is the language particularly beautiful and sounds nice such as with alliteration, like ‘green grass.’ Then the other portion I would consider is whether the subject is expressed in a way that is artistic and speaks to people. The whole point of poetry is to convey a message or something about the human experience. So does the poem convey that in a way that other people understand and appreciate.”
And to all three library organizers, there’s more to it than just meter or rhyme.
“It’s something that I think creates an image in your mind, that you can really picture it,” Vanore said. “And it really just speaks to you.”
“I think that the real meat of what good poetry is for most people is, ‘Am I moved by this?’ ‘Is it thought provoking?’” Bonfiglio-Scali said. “It’s just something that strikes a chord emotionally. Like Rachel said, it’s subjective. But good poetry can be interpreted a million different ways by a million different people.”
The organizers are very excited about bringing poets in for the open mic, and want everyone to know they can feel like it’s a safe space.
“We’re encouraging an environment where people will feel comfortable sharing their creativity,” Bonfiglio-Scali said. “Just come to the library and utilize the space that we have to put their work out in the spotlight and to talk to people who are like-minded about poetry and creativity.”
But they want people to know that they don’t have to read any work to come to the open mic.
“And also just come in if you want to listen to poetry too,” Sferlazza said. “You don’t have to be a writer.”
The open mic will commence at 6:30 p.m. on Jan. 27. The Merrick Library is at 2279 Merrick Ave., Merrick. For more, visit MerrickLibrary.org.
