Back by popular demand, again hosted by Jason Collett, the Basement Revue unfolds nightly at Luminato Festival, with each evening’s program remaining a mystery right up until show time. Impromptu appearances and unscripted performances are all part of the fun. And since The Revue serves as the official, nightly after-party for all festival artists, there’s no telling who you’ll be rubbing elbows with at the bar or who’ll decide to leap onstage.

This year Jason is joined by poet and editor Damian Rogers as co-host and co-curator at The Revue. With years in the scene, she has edited books by musicians such as John Fahey and Bill Callahan and contributed lyrics to recordings by Jason Collett and Blue Rodeo. Her poems have appeared in Brick Magazine, The Walrus, Lemon Hound, and on the odd bathroom wall.

Photo by Freddie Mojallal

Given this dynamic duo, I thought it would be great to hear more from Jason and Damian. This way, we can learn more about them, and their work together at Luminato this year. Here is our great interview.

Jason: After several successful years, how do you keep the Basement Revue at Luminato fresh each and every year?

Jason: We draw from a wealth of talented artists that live amongst us, and often they come to showcase talents they’re not necessarily known for – Rich Terfry telling weird stories, John K. Samson reciting poetry, The Sadies backing up Margaret Atwood…

Damian: In your own words, how does your writing compliment Jason’s vision for each night’s programme at The Revue?

Damian: As the resident poet and the series literary curator, I’m able to suggest writers who might not be well known outside publishing circles. Jason and I share some aesthetic leanings, for sure, and I think each year my instincts sharpen for what will work on this stage. It’s a balance between presenting challenging, interesting artists and making sure that the audience doesn’t end up alienated. Personally, I greatly prefer reading poems in front of music fans to reading in more traditional poetry venues. The crowd at the Revue never fails to impress me with their openness and ability to listen deeply.

Jason and Damian: As curators of The Revue this year, does each night’s programme have a previously decided theme in terms of music and literature? Or is it something that happens more organically, so to speak?

Damian: We generally don’t follow a specific theme for each night, but we definitely consider the potential chemistry among the musicians and writers when scheduling people. And then sometimes surprises happen — like last night, when George Elliott Clarke got to talking with Ryan Myshrall from Oldies 990 before the show and suddenly Ryan was backing George’s reading on bass. You can’t always plan for things like that, we just try to keep things open enough that connections can be made naturally.

Jason and Damian: You’ve collaborated in the past. Could we look forward to another collaboration in the near future? What is in store for each of you next?

Damian: My second book, Dear Leader, is scheduled to come out next spring with Coach House Books. In the meantime, I’m heading to Boulder, Colorado, at the end of this month to study collaborative performance at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics. The future is unwritten, but I’d love to collaborate with Jason again.

Jason: I’m just writing (time permitting) for the next while. Thanks for asking about collaboration though, it allows me to remind Damian to send me some orphaned bits of writing  to see if they might find a home in song.

Sounds like we may be privy to some future project not too far ahead. I know, I’ll be looking forward to it.

I attended The Revue earlier this week. I saw singer Bebel Gilberto there, heard the country music sounds of Little Orton Hogget, and also danced with indie rock musician Rich Aucoin under a large parachute. How often does one get to end a weeknight on such a hight note? With both Jason and Damian curating The Revue, I can assure you it is absolutely a lot of fun!

You can join in the fun for another three nights at the Edward Day Gallery, at the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art. The party begins at 11pm each night. General Admision, cover $20. This is a 19+ Licenced Event.

Photo by HyeM.