Born in Moscow in 1983 and raised in Stuttgart, Nikita Gorbunov first found his voice in the rap scene of the 1990s—before ultimately discovering his passion for literature on the poetry slam stage.

“Bring ’em up! Bring ’em up! Bring ’em up!” shouts the crowd at the AvantGarden in Montrose. Although it may seem like a loud rap or hip-hop concert, under the back patio’s twinkle of firelights and ...