In a tight, low-cut black dress, Molly Rose, graduate student in English, stands at the microphone at La Boheme Tuesday night, shouting out scores written on memo boards by audience member judges.

“Nine point six! Eight point five! Nine point nine!” she yells above catcalls.

The room is ambiance itself, dimly lit, full of people reclining on couches. Rose stands in front of two stained glass windows. With every score she calls, the audience shouts and claps — or registers their disagreement in low-hissing boos.

The room is charged with energy as the audience critiques the judges. From the amount of shouting and cursing, it’s clear this isn’t a standard academic poetry reading. This is the poetry slam at La Boheme, 2900 West St., and Rose is the slam mistress.

Since March of this year, La Boheme has been host to the monthly poetry slam on the first Tuesday of every month.

More than 50 people attended last Tuesday’s slam, where eight poets performed their poetry. Poem topics ranged from the current political climate to sex and even mix tapes.

“It’s poetry for the people,” says Jim Coppoc, graduate student in English and co-founder of the slam at La Boheme. “It’s accessible. The slam is for everyone from high school students to professors.”

The poetry slam is open to anyone who wishes to participate. Each poet reads one poem per round. The poet is then given a score by randomly-selected audience members who also serve as judges. Points are given for performance and verbal prowess.

“No one really cares about the score,” Coppoc says.

“The points are not the point,” he says, quoting the slogan of Poetry Slam Inc. “The point is poetry.”

Along with Andrew Brodie of Ames, Laura Vasser, graduate student in English and the support of Peter Sherman, La Boheme owner and professor of aerospace engineering, Coppoc started the poetry slam in Ames to fill a space he felt was missing from the cultural landscape of Ames.

“A lot of people from Ames were going to the slams in Des Moines, Omaha and the Twin Cities. There was a need and an interest for an informal venue of expression,” Coppoc says. “Iowa State has lectures and readings, but people were hungry for something more alive.”

Vasser says she believes the audience participation accounts for the increase of interest in poetry slams.

“Usually poetry readings are a one-way thing,” Vasser says. “But at a slam, the audience gets to interact with the poets, making it a shared experience.”

“The slam is getting stronger every time,” says Sherman, who agreed to host the slam at La Boheme as part of his continuing commitment to cultural events in Ames.

“Students need to have a dynamic and invigorated life instead of binge drinking five days a week,” says Sherman.

“Students need a holistic education and tonight’s poetry slam is a perfect example of this.”