Anthropoetry

Presented with a trademark mix of free-verse poetry, rap, beatbox and a healthy dose of satirical humour, the text is underscored live by use of guitar, keys, drumpad and live-looping technology.

How do we express our spleen? Whose business do we stick our noses into? When did we start wearing our hearts on our sleeves, and why are we up to our elbows in heels and bums? BBC R4 Slam Champion Ben Mellor takes you on a stand-up poetry and music fuelled tour around the body, attempting to get the measure of modern life. With sounds, beats, beeps and whistles by Dan Steele.

Anthropoetry is inspired by anthropometry, the study of measuring the human body. Informed by science, politics, comedy and hip hop, combined with searing social and political commentary and some personal body and soul searching, Ben presents a set of brand new spoken word poems and stories that get to the heart, or the bottom, of modern life.

The show premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2012 as part of PBH's Free Fringe. It received four four-star reviews, and was featured on Mervyn Stutter's Pick of the Fringe.
It has since gone on to performances at Fringe World, Perth, where it was runner up in the 720 ABC Performance Award, and Adelaide Fringe, where it received a BankSA Fringe Weekly Award.

In 2013 it returned to the Edinburgh Fringe at C Nova, where it received further four-star reviews and another selection for Pick of the Fringe.