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The Sedona Poetry Slam returns to the Mary D. Fisher Theatre in West Sedona for a poetry slam at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 4. Admission is free to all, thanks to the sponsorship of the Northern Arizona Book Festival, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that holds the annual festival the weekend of Thursday, April 9, to Sunday, April 12, in Flagstaff.
April is also National Poetry Month, so the best way to support poetry is seeing a showcase of the best poets in Northern Arizona. Many of the competing poets from the Sedona Poetry Slam will be showcasing their work, along with Flagstaff Poetry Slam, which are both festival partners.
Open Slam
A poetry slam is like a series of high-energy, three-minute one-person plays, judged by the audience. Slam poetry is an art form that allows written page poets to share their work alongside theatrical performers, hip-hop artists and lyricists.
Poets come from as far away as Phoenix, Tucson, Prescott and Flagstaff, competing against local poets from Sedona and Cottonwood, college poets from Northern Arizona University and youth poets from Verde Valley high schools. All types of poetry are welcome on the stage, from street-wise hip-hop and narrative performance poems, to political rants and introspective confessionals. Any poem is a “slam” poem if performed in a competition. All poets get three minutes per round to entertain and inspire the audience with their creativity.
Anyone can sign up to compete in the slam for the $75 grand prize and $25 second-place prize, paid. To compete in the slam, poets will need three original poems, each lasting no longer than three minutes. No props, costumes nor musical accompaniment are permitted. The poets are judged Olympics-style by five members of the audience selected at random at the beginning of the slam.
Email host Christopher Fox Graham [email protected] to sign up early to compete or by the Friday before the slam, or sign up at the door the day of the slam.
The Mary D. Fisher Theatre is located at 2030 W. SR 89A, Suite A-3, in West Sedona. Tickets are free. Call (928) 282-1177 or visit SedonaFilmFestival.org for more information.
Upcoming Slams
The final two poetry slams of the season will be held on May 9 and June 6.
The prize money is funded in part by a donation from Verde Valley poetry supporters Jeanne and Jim Freeland.
Founded at the Green Mill Tavern in Chicago in 1984 by Marc Smith, poetry slam is a competitive artistic sport designed to get people who would otherwise never go to a poetry reading excited about the art form when it becomes a high-energy competition. Poetry slams are judged by five randomly chosen members of the audience who assign numerical value to individual poets’ contents and performances.
Poetry slam has become an international artistic sport, with more than 100 major poetry slams in the United States, Canada, Australia and Western Europe. Slam poets have opened at the Winter Olympics, performed at the White House and at the United Nations General Assembly and were featured on “Russell Simmons’ Def Poets” on HBO.
For more information, visit sedonafilmfestival.com or foxthepoet.blogspot.com.
Northern Arizona Book Festival
The Northern Arizona Book Festival returns from Thursday, April 9, to Sunday, April 12, with events and activities for all ages, including readings from multiple local and regional authors, poetry slams, workshops and live performances in multiple venues across Flagstaff and downtown’s Heritage Square. Numerous authors from Sedona and the Verde Valley are scheduled to appear on panels, events and the book fair.
Haiku Death Match
The festival includes a Haiku Death Match, hosted by Graham and Flagstaff poet Josh Wiss at 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 11, at Flagstaff’s Heritage Square. A Haiku Death Match is a competitive poetry duel that is a subgenre of poetry slam. The event is a prominent feature at the annual National Poetry Slam, replete with full costume for the host.
Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry consisting of 17 syllables in three metrical phrases of five syllables, seven syllables, five syllables, but American haiku are simpler and only need to be 17 syllables long. The sign-up is open to all; poets will need at least 20 haiku to compete and can win big cash prizes.
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Event Venue
Mary D. Fisher Theatre, 2030 AZ-89A, Sedona, AZ 86336-5407, United States
Tickets
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