If you ask Jay Bates, a local high school English teacher, Harry Potter doesn’t need any more publicity. Neither does J. K. Rowling, for that matter. “It worries me when I see students reading the same works by writers sold by the millions out of big-box bookstore chains,” says Bates.



In addition to teaching, Bates is noted creator, director, and producer of A River and Sound Review, a non-profit, live literary arts, music, and poetry show that he independently produces for radio in Pierce County. “The River and Sound Review program helps people here realize that local writers and local poets can be enjoyed as much as national writers,” explains Bates.



The next live production of River and Sound Review will be held tonight at 7 p.m. in the Puyallup Public Library. There, Pennsylvania poet, Philip Terman, will be welcomed as he reads from his new book, Rabbis of the Air. Terman will be joined by fiction writer, Elea Carey, and musical guest, Patrick Bradshaw. All this, plus an audience-engaging round of Name That Book and the next episode of an ongoing saga of the greeting card poet, Heathclif Beed, in As the Publishing World Turns. 



For Bates, a self-proclaimed literature lover and theater geek home-grown here in Tacoma, the overall mission of the River and Sound Review live and radio show started as a project while earning his MFA at Pacific Lutheran University. It was a way to introduce the Puget Sound region to great literature without boredom, condescension or the high-falutin’ attitudes that often accompany readings.



“Very simply put, the program makes a high literature reading series accessible to those who see themselves as the type of soul who would not normally attend a reading,” says Bates.



“There is a dryness that is very common at readings, even though the literature may be fine and great, but most readers aren’t dramatists or performers. What I wanted to do was give attention to language and great works, but do so with a format that is entertaining without being condescending to the language, or the audience. Many people find that River and Sound Review does that in a clever way.”



The venue is working for Bates because of the format he uses. There are many shifts and changes in the show. It opens with a monologue by Bates, then blends literature with music by having a local musician perform between readers to interest the audience. Also, audience participation activities and a radio drama keep people listening. The result? High literature becomes accessible in a hometown library. According to Bates, he plans the show in a way that changes it up just enough so people don’t have to sit through 60 minutes of dry literature reading. “Even for intelligent minds that can be taxing,” he explained. “River and Sound Review is done in a way that isn’t intimidating or pretentious. That is what turns people away from high literature.”



Because Bates self-releases the radio show, live River and Sound Review productions are recorded as an mp3 and downloaded to the Web. “By making the show available as a podcast, our audience has grown significantly. It’s grown to a point of being Puget Sound and even beyond. We’re reaching a bigger audience for our live show and our podcast,” explains Bates.



A River and Sound Review will be venturing out on a second tour production of the show. Catch the show performing live on Orcas Island on May 31 at the Orcas Center. Featured artists include poet Marvin Bell and the Olga Symphony. For tickets, go to www.orcascenter.org.  For information on upcoming shows or for information on how to donate to support the River and Sound program, please visit www.riverandsoundreview.org.



[Puyallup Public Library, Thursday, May 15, 7 p.m., free, 324 S Meridian, Puyallup, 253.841.5454]