09.11 Girl Power Rules!
By Jillian Locke
This month, we here at The Pulse would like to honor the fierce, powerful girls of the Worcester County entertainment scene!! We’ve chosen three ladies ~ a singer, a stand-up comedian, and a poetry slam aficionado ~ to represent all the amazing ladies who grace our local stages and keep us laughing, head-banging, and thinking! Each took some time out of a very busy schedule to share her beginnings, her inspirations, and her aspirations.
The Singer: Jessica Sierra fronts Mongrel, the band that’s been dubbed “the hardest working band in Boston” by Metal Edge and which won our 2011 Worcester Music Award for Best Live Act. Since making the switch from her previous band, Affliction, Sierra has been infusing Mongrel’s already metal/punk sound with, as she shared with pride, “…a touch of dripping sex…very aggressive with the right amount of passion ~ IN YOUR FACE POWER!” Singing came as naturally as speaking for Sierra, and began just as early. “My father and Uncle Dave coached me…but always told me I was a natural. It came as easy as breathing to me. Singing was, and continues to be, who I am.” With her chosen path in mind, Sierra naturally gravitated towards the music that spoke to her on a molecular level. “I’ve always loved heavy music…it called to me, and there was no way I couldn’t follow my craving for HARDER MUSIC!” The front woman feels no intimidation being the only female in Mongrel; in fact, she’s very comfortable commanding the music and the stage, which empowers AND inspires her. “I demand respect and I take it every time I take the stage. I make myself known, noticed, and respected. There is no feeling that compares to the feeling I get when I take the stage. This is an amazing life.”
The Stand-up Comedian: Sarah Blodgett also drew inspiration from her father at a very young age. “When I was growing up my Dad always thought I was funny. Every time I would make him laugh he would say to me, ‘Honey, you have found your calling. You are going to grow up to be a stand-up comedian.’ Of course, now that I’m moving back in with him, he’s like, ‘I should have said lawyer.’” Blodgett’s journey through comedy, especially as a female comedian, has required just as much leg work as the legal field might demand. “The biggest challenge about being a female comedian is the fact that you need to be 10 times funnier than the male comedians to be given the same amount of respect. It can be frustrating, but it does motivate me to work harder.” Blodgett draws her inspiration from life, the weight she’s lost since college, and other determined women who are just trying to make a name for themselves in a primarily male-dominated arena. “I’m really influenced by successful women in any field that are unique and use that to their advantage instead of trying to ‘fit in.’ I read an interview with Ivanka Trump where she was talking about trying to figure out how to be a woman in a man’s industry, and she finally just embraced her differences. I try to do the same with comedy.”
Poetry Slam Aficionado: “I’m a confessional poet in a lot of ways, except that my confessional is made out of circus mirrors,” confides Sarah Sapienza, a veteran of Worcester’s own Poets’ Asylum, a place she sees as “…one of the best and most supportive communities in the country.” At 15 years old, an already budding poet’s eyes were opened to the competitive performance-based world of slam poetry. “Because slam is a competition, it gave me an idea of how I could improve, and…I was able to add an element of theatre to what could have been, and I’m sure was, trite teenage poetry. Who doesn’t love angst set to scores?” Writing and performing poetry are not simply a past time for Sapienza; the fervor and spirit of rigorously developed intellectual composition with the goal of delivering intricate musings to a crowd of hungry ears and minds is precisely what makes this slam aficionado tick. “I’m a stage girl…I love being on it, sometimes writing for it. Writing will always be the priority for me, and I try not to bring anything to an audience that isn’t ready ~ but there’s something almost addictive about getting the three minutes slam allows you to get up in front of people and just effing dazzle…that moment when you realize you’ve got it ~ that never gets less awesome.”
www.poetsasylum.org/bts/sarah.html
These mighty, boldly tenacious, ROCKIN’ women are creating a serious statement and presence in their respective industries. Make sure to keep your eyes and ears peeled for their progress and contributions to the greater Worcester area! GIRL POWER RULES!
