Douglas Kearney, The Techniques of Acting

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As Douglas Kearney makes clear, “objects make shoddy models.” With lyrical verve, he dissects the objectified black stereotypes of television and film, the drug dealer, athlete, servant, and more, to expose the “spoo,”of the inner parts.

An excerpt:

shut-eyed children believe themselves invisible.

do likewise with eyes open for biz.

      yes  yes  yes  yes  yes  yes  yes  yes
 
yes  yes  yes  yes  yes  yes  yes  yes  yes   yes

     yes  yes  yes  yes  yes  yes  yes  yes

note: a scripted response of no is a split-second aria.

on awards night wear white thank and thank

         and thank.

DOUGLAS KEARNEY is the author of Patter (Red Hen Press, 2014), The Black Automaton (Fence Books, 2009), and Fear, Some (Red Hen Press, 2006). He has received residencies and fellowships from Cave Canem, The Rauschenberg Foundation, and others. His work has appeared in a number of journals, including Poetry, nocturnes, Pleiades, The Boston Review, The Iowa Review, Ninth Letter, Washington Square, and Callaloo. Raised in Altadena, CA, he lives with his family in California’s Santa Clarita Valley and teaches at CalArts.