Ways to connect: Bad Mouth performance group prepares for their quarterly show

In 2016, Rebecca Aronson wanted to get out of her house on the weekends and find other people who shared her passion of performing.

Aronson decided that if she could not find a group, she would make one, and Bad Mouth was born.

Ways to connect: Bad Mouth performance group prepares for their quarterly show

“I’m a poet and I wanted a venue for writers doing interesting things, and we love music, so we wanted to bring in some musical performances,” said Aronson.

Bad Mouth is a curation of performers who meet quarterly to present varying works of art. “Bad Mouth: Words, Music, Feelings” will take place at 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, at q-Staff Theatre, 400 Broadway Blvd. SE.

From live readings of short stories, essays and poetry to musicians showing off their latest songs, the Bad Mouth is centered around live performances of the work they create.

“I don’t want to oversaturate the group,” Aronson said. “I want this to be something people look forward to. That might change in the future and we might try to do shows more frequently, but right now this works best and makes it a special event for everyone.”

While the group focuses on highlighting local talent, in recent years Bad Mouth has featured performances by people from other parts of the country.

This year, the group will present performances from poets Radha Marcum from Colorado, Johnny Horton from Seattle, and local writers Greg Martin and Becca Yenser. Local musician and playwright Ermine will accompany the performers with her musical performances in between acts.

Each performer will have roughly 15 minutes to present their works. In between performances, guests are treated to a spread of food and drink that is included with their donation.

Out-of-towners might be performing, but that doesn’t mean they won’t be talking about the Land of Enchantment.

Take Marcum, who will be reading stories from her book, “Pine Soot Tendon Bones.” The book features several anecdotes about New Mexico and its history.

“Most of my writing refers to the New Mexican ecosystem, history and landscape,” Marcum said. “Even if I don’t live in New Mexico anymore, some of the poems take place there. I share so much history with folks from the Albuquerque area, and my poems reflect on those issues.”

When Bad Mouth reached out to her to perform, Marcum was pleased to work with the group.

“Bad Mouth always has a dynamic mix of voices and I appreciate them bringing so many voices together,” she said. “They speak to the whole community and like to be a part of the larger conversations.”

Marcum feels the Bad Mouth group is exactly what writing and music communities need.

“Places like Bad Mouth really are a unique opportunity for us to come together as a writing community and larger artistic community to raise awareness and to be together in community,” she said. “We’re always looking for ways to connect with more people and hear what’s going on with them. I think Bad Mouth creates that.”

The group has found its place at the q-Staff Theatre, where they feel right at home.

“A few years ago we started working with the q-Staff Theatre and I feel like that’s our home,” Aronson said. “They’re super helpful and set up mics and amps for us, since I don’t know how to do any of that. It’s been a great fit for us.”

For many of the performers past and present, Bad Mouth gives them the opportunity to interact with various styles of performance.