On April 7, Word Pie presented their first event, “An Evening of Poetry and Music,” held at Lightly Used Books in downtown Turlock. The hosts, Ricardo Friaz and Wesley Riddle, gave a taste of what Turlock residents could look forward to in the coming months.
Friaz is a current graduate student at California State University, Stanislaus, while Riddle received his undergraduate degree last year. 
Word Pie plans to be a monthly open-mic poetry and music show. With SLaM on RyE, a popular Modesto poetry slam held regularly for the past ten years, ending this month, now becomes a good time for emerging shows with similar formats to make themselves known. Friaz and Riddle believe they can make an impact on the local arts and entertainment scene. 
Their goal is not to feature the best artists, but to give all performers a stage. 
“It’s for anyone,” Friaz said. 
Riddle agreed with the open door policy and added his hope that Word Pie can become a platform for local artists to express themselves. When asked if Word Pie is an answer to the lack of poetry and music events around the surrounding area, he had one word.
“Exactly,” Riddle said. “We’d really like to have, hopefully, events where local artists can gather and perform.” 
An example of this came when local band Blunderbuss opened the night and contributed their creative music. At one point the three members created sounds just by slapping their pants.
“Our music is improvisational, we make it up right on the spot,” said Cameron Jackson, who played flute and harmonica among other instruments. 
Afterwards, the poets had their turn, with experienced page poet Kris Price starting off. His poetry featured vivid descriptions of everyday people, such as a woman who strolls around her baby child.
“I’m good friends with Wesley, so when he proposed he wanted to do something like this, I agreed,” Price said. “I’ve been hardcore writing page poetry for about over three years now. The Barking Dog in Modesto is where I typically read.”
In contrast to Price was Aaron Simmons, who had never participated in a poetry event like this before. His poems, although short, painted vivid pictures of life running too fast and the world crashing and burning. He enjoyed the experience and hopes for more. 
“That was my first poetry event, I had fun for sure,” Simmons said. “I would love to do more Word Pie events.” 
In between the poetry, more music came along, and even some stories and acting. Friaz and Riddle participated in their own event, with Riddle lamenting the woes of his old BMW car in a clever poem criticizing German engineering, while Friaz played a song on guitar and sang. 
Word Pie’s choice of venue came from the fact that Lightly Used Books sounded very open to the idea when first contacted and also supported the “open-door” policy that Word Pie promotes. 
“It’s a safe environment. We want people to feel welcome here,” Tim Brown, co-owner of Lightly Used Books, said. 
However, Friaz and Riddle mentioned the venue could change if Word Pie keeps going. Whether more events like this come from Word Pie regularly in the future is likely, but not guaranteed.  
One question is whether Word Pie can replace SLaM On RyE as the area’s premier ongoing poetry slam. Price believes “An Evening of Poetry and Music” set a foundation for their possible future success.
“It would be hard to say, it’s too early,” Price said. “What he’s doing stands alone in Turlock and if they continue to do it in Turlock, it will be brilliant. It can only get bigger from now on.”
The future success of Word Pie may also depend on connections. Similar to Price, Jaime Kulik (senior, English) wanted to support her friends. 
“I came because of Ricardo and Wesley,” Kulik said.
For more information about Word Pie, search for their Facebook page or visit www.alsofrightened.com/word-pie/.