AN APPRECIATION: Marc Smith

There are some nights I will just never forget. Here are three. (1) A rainy, Spring night in 1980 on the campus of Northern Illinois University at DeKalb: The first time I saw "Macbeth" staged. (2) Friday, January 14, 1994, a God-forsaken, ice-cold night outside, but a warm, welcoming, elbow-to-elbow crowd inside the Private Arts reading in the Deson-Saunders Gallery on West Superior: My first big public reading of one of my short stories. (3) Last night, at the Omaha Healing Arts Center in Omaha, Nebraska: The first time I've ever seen poet and Slam-impresario Marc Smith perform. Don't ask why someone who writes a blog called ChicagoWriter had to find this great Chicago voice and performer in Omaha, Nebraska, when Marc has been performing at the nearby Green Mill for 25 years; but, know if you want to gain some insight into the power of theater, the thrill of great writing, and life -- yes, capital-L Life itself -- see Marc Smith for yourself.