The Stage Was Set Poem by Tapera Makadho

The Stage Was Set

Rating: 4.5


The stage was set
By the podium they packed
Waiting for the speech
That I would speak
Yet I had lost my notes

Then I was bolting to run
For I was incompetent and incoherent
Mistaken for beggars or thieves
Yet addressing doctors and chiefs

The stage was set
And the audience became hysterical
Over my slip of tongue
Then in gales of laughter

Later I gained momentum
As the hilarity subsided
For I was multilingual
I could speak with the gun
I knew poverty too
And I could speak silence loudly.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Daniel Brick 06 September 2015

The last three lines of this poem make it a vivid Poem of Witness (the preferred term for poems involving political issues) . The first part could be a Charlie Chaplin comedy or a Monty Python skit but suddenly you stop the gags and humor and focus tightly on changes taking place, and gradually what seemed to be a comedy of errors turns into a tragedy of power politics. The multiple tones are well handled for maximum effect.

1 0 Reply
Tapera Makadho 06 September 2015

Thank you so much, I appreciate it..

0 0
Chinedu Dike 26 May 2015

Lovely narrative piece of poetry, well articulated and nicely penned. Speech making requires confidence to overcome stage fright. Thanks for sharing. Please read my poem MANDELA - THE IMMORTAL ICON.

0 1 Reply
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