TheSpeakeasyProject

speakeasy project

          Armstead Worthington

                 Thomas Y. Lynch

               (click to see intro)

The Speakeasy Project

In May of 2000, Armstead Worthington (The Easy Speaker) and Thomas Y. Lynch (Tlepathy) created a poetry movement within the Greenville, NC area called The Speakeasy project. The goal of this movement was to create an atmosphere where all poets could practice and discuss their craft. The initiative and the following grew as the two organized and hosted poetry readings in the downtown Greenville area. The Speakeasy project reached its 13^th reading, and had a following of almost 75 poets. The Speakeasy project stalled, as Armstead and Thomas pursued other endeavors.

In 2007, Armstead and Thomas rekindled the Speakeasy Project. Kicking it off with a poetry reading hosted at Hendrix theatre on the campus of East Carolina University. The event was a Jazz and Poetry reading with music provided by the ECU Jazz Studies group. Easy and Tlepathy have a vision for The Speakeasy Project to be a central source for all poets. The Speakeasy Project now is expanding its reach, via the web. Along with this website (speakeasyproject.com), the project also has a network (thenewspeakeasyproject.ning.com), where poets can converse and share their craft. In addition to hosting the two web vehicles, the project also is embarking into new territory – The PoDoc series.

The PoDoc (Poetry Documentary) is a series of six poetry documentaries. The series’ goal is to expose the craft of poets within our network, and to be a catalyst for the artistic community. Video is a perfect medium for poetry and combined with words and performance it becomes the ultimate art experience. You can watch excerpts of the first documentary (PoDoc 1.0 expression) on the network or in the vibrary on this site.

The Speakeasy Restaurant

The Speakeasy Project’s secondary goal, is to open a Jazz restaurant within the Greenville, NC area. The restaurant, which is to be named “The Speakeasy”, is in the preliminary stages of development. Poets, artists and musicians will be able to perform and showcase their craft at the restaurant. Below is the executive summary from The Speakeasy’s business plan.

“The Speakeasy -“a Jazz and Supper Club”, unlike a typical restaurant, will provide a unique combination of excellent food at reasonable mid range pricing with innovative cutting edge musical entertainment. The design attributes of the club give it a “retro-feel” but it has all the amenities of modern day comfort and convenience. The public wants (1) good food, (2) excellent service and (3) a pleasant environment in which to socialize. The Speakeasy will provide all 3 and an added feature of first-class entertainment.

In today’s highly competitive environment, it is becoming harder to differentiate one restaurant concept from another. The Speakeasy does this by being the only restaurant in this area that offers authentic “southern “soul food” cuisine” in an environment that is both elegant yet charming. Another unique feature of the restaurant is the entertainment everyday of the week. The restaurant will give its patrons live music the range from classical to “neo-soul.”

This plan is prepared to obtain financing for the initial launch of this concept. The financing is required to begin work on club and kitchen design, architectural plans, manuals, recipe books and menu development, site selection, equipment purchases, and to cover expenses for the first two years of business.

The financing, in addition to the capital contributions from the owners, will allow The Speakeasy to successfully open and maintain operations through year two. The initial capital investment will allow The Speakeasy to advertise and promote itself as a premiere dining spot within the Greenville area. The initial investment will also help establish the concept of the supper club in this area. A distinctive, mid scale, pioneering environment is required to provide the customers with an atmosphere that will entice them to invite family and friends to dine and socialize. Successful operation through year two will provide adequate cash flow to be self – sufficient in year three.”