South African Poets Join Hundreds of DC Area Teens for High School Poetry Slam Festival
Washington, DC – The nation’s capital is home to both the youth and adult reigning national poetry slam champion teams from 2014. The Beltway Poetry Slam Team won the National Poetry Slam and the DC Youth Slam Team won the Brave New Voices International Youth Poetry Slam Festival. With the two highest ranking poetry slam teams in the nation working in local after-school programs through nonprofits Split This Rock and poetryN.O.W., the national capital area is about to explode with poetry in the 4th annual Louder Than a Bomb DMV Teen Poetry Slam Festival (LTAB) April 18 – May 2, 2015.
A special delegation of South African poets that the DC Youth Slam Team met in 2013 in the City of Tshwane are making their first trip to the United States to teach classes, facilitate workshops, host slams, and perform at LTAB. Their visit to DC is through a Sister Cities International Arts Grant from the DC Commission on Arts and Humanities. LTAB kicks off with “Crossing The Street” on Saturday, April 18, 2015 at the historic Paul Laurence Dunbar High School, 101 N St, NW at noon. The Festival brings together over 25 high school poetry slam teams for two weeks of poetry workshops, open mics, MC competitions, film screenings, discussions, and a slam tournament, culminating with the Grand Slam Finals Saturday, May 2, 2015 at the University of the District of Columbia Theatre of the Arts, 4200 Connecticut Ave, NW featuring award-winning poet Danez Smith.
Over 200 student poets participated in the regional festival and competition last year, with Cesar Chavez Public Charter School winning the 2014 championship. Woodrow Wilson Senior High School in Washington, DC won the competition in both 2012 and 2013. Each school club brings a team of 4-6 students to perform their own original individual and group poems in multiple rounds of poetry slam. Registration for local high school teams is open now until April 1, 2015. Teams may register online at this link: http://poetrynowva.com/ltab-dmv-2015-1
The goal of LTAB-DMV is not solely to promote a culture of literacy, critical thought, self-confidence, and powerful public speaking, but also to purposefully bring students together across dividing lines like region, race, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, socio-economic status, and politics, to listen to, learn from, and bond with one another. There is vast inequality in the DC area. These students are speaking up about that, sharing their experiences, and speaking out on many other important issues. They deserve to be heard.
According to one student participant “[LTAB] is an amazing way to bring people from all different backgrounds together to learn and grow as people and as poets. I met and spoke to people I would not have otherwise, and it felt great to be in a space where people understand you when you open up on stage.”
Most Festival events are free. The Preliminary Slams, Semi-Finals, Youth Open Mic, and Finals are ticketed events. Please see the schedule of festival events below.
Festival Events
Crossing The Street – Sat. April 18, 2015 11am – 3pm Dunbar High 101 N St, NW
Youth Open Mic – Sat. April 18, 2015 5 – 7pm Busboys and Poets 5th & K, 1025 5th St, NW
Preliminary Slams
● Mon. April 20th 6:30 – 9pm @ Busboys and Poets 14th & V, 2021 14th St, NW
● Tues. April 21st 6:30 – 9pm @ Busboys and Poets Shirlington 4251 S. Campbell Ave, Arlington, VA
● Weds. April 22nd 6:30 – 9pm @ Busboys and Poets Hyattsville, 5331 Baltimore Ave, Hyattsvile, MD
● Thurs. April 23rd 6:30 – 9pm @ Busboys and Poets Brookland 625 Monroe St, NE
Floetic Friday Open Mic – Fri. April 24th 5:30 – 8pm @ Metro Teen AIDS 651 Pennsylvania Ave, SE
Poetry Prom – Fri. April 24th 8pm – 12am @ Josephine Butler Center 2437 15th St, NW
Anacostia Community Museum Slam – Sat. April 25th 5 – 7pm @ Smithsonian ACM 1901 Fort Pl SE
Brookland Spring Concert – Sun. April 26th 2 – 6pm @ Brookland Arts Walk, 7th & Monroe, NE
Film Screening & Workshop – Tues. April 28th 4 – 7pm @ Split This Rock 1112 16th St, NW
Semi-Finals – Weds. April 29th 5 – 9pm @ True Reformer Bldg 1200 U St, NW
Louder Than A Library – Thurs. April 30th 6 – 8:30pm @ Anacostia Library 1800 Good Hope Rd, SE
Finals – Sat. May 2nd 7 – 9:30pm @ UDC Theatre of Arts 4200 Connecticut Ave, NW Bldg 46
Visit www.LTABDMV.com for more information.
Louder Than A Library
In partnership with DC Public Libraries, we are hosting a series of Louder Than A Library teen poetry workshops leading up to the Festival and the culminating Louder Than A Library Showcase Performance and Open Mic on April 30th. All are free and open to the poetry-loving public.
Workshops
Ø Tues. April 7th 5 – 7pm @ Bellvue Library 115 Atlantic St, SW
Ø Tues. April 14th 5 – 7pm @ Anacostia Library 1800 Good Hope Rd, SE
The Louder Than a Bomb DMV Teen Poetry Slam Festival is a joint venture between poetryN.O.W. and Split This Rock, with generous support from Busboys and Poets, the National Endowment for the Arts and the DC Commission on Arts and Humanities. Part of the global Louder Than a Bomb network, LTAB-DMV is one of many regional LTAB’s across the world working with Young Chicago Authors to bring their successful after-school team poetry slam program to teenagers everywhere.
Email SLAM@SplitThisRock.org for more information.
Split This Rock, 1112 16th St, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20036 – 202.787.5210
poetryN.O.W.
JBT 