Poetry Out Loud
Recitation and performance are major new trends in poetry. There has been a recent resurgence of poetry as an oral art form, as seen in the slam poetry movement and the immense popularity of hip-hop music. Poetry Out Loud builds on that momentum by inviting the dynamic aspects of slam poetry, spoken word and theater into the English class. The National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation have partnered with the Utah Arts & Museums Literature Program to support the expansion of Poetry Out Loud, which encourages Utah’s youth to learn about great poetry through memorization and performance.
For full details on this exciting national poetry recitation contest, visit www.poetryoutloud.org. To get involved in Utah's Poetry Out Loud activities, contact David Pace via email or call 801.533.5760.
2012 Poetry Out Loud
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MarKaye Hassan with Utah Poet Laureate Katharine ColesThe Utah State Poetry Out Loud Finals Contest was held at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, March 13, 2012, at 7 p.m. with students from 16 high schools participating. Judges were Utah Poet Laureate Katharine Coles, Plan-B Theatre Company Producing Director Jerry Rapier, poet and USU English Professor Shanan Ballam and Utah State Office of Education Literacy Coordinator Tiffany Hall Kate MacLeod provided music during the interludes.
Top honors went to MarKaye Hassan, a senior at Logan High School. She received $200 and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., where she will compete in the national finals in May for bragging rights and a $20,000 scholarship. Her school also received a $500 stipend for the purchase of new poetry books.
Runner-up was Shannon McCullam, a senior at Box Elder High School in Brigham City. She received $100 and her school received a $200 stipend for the purchase of poetry books.
The 2012 Poetry Out Loud National Finals will take place May 13-15, 2012, in Washington, DC, at the Harman Center for the Arts.
Watch Videos of the Six Finalists
MarKaye Hassan
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Shannon McCullam |
Lexi Crandall |
Rowan Hadlock |
Abigail Lyons |
Nick Peterson |
2011 Poetry Out Loud
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The Utah State Poetry Out Loud Finals Contest was held at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center in Salt Lake City on Thursday, March 14, 2010, at 7 p.m. with students from 10 high schools participating.
Top honors went to Shannon McCullam, a junior at Box Elder High School in Brigham City. She received $200 and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., where she competed in the national finals in April 2011. Her school also received a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry books.
First runner-up was Alyssa Hall, a senior at North Sanpete High School in Mt. Pleasant; second runner-up was Samara Wells, a senior at Monticello High School.
2010 Poetry Out Loud
The Utah State Poetry Out Loud Finals Contest was held at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center in Salt Lake City on Thursday, March 11, 2010, at 7 p.m.
Congratulations to winner Caroline Liston from Box Elder High in Brigham City. She will represent Utah in the National Poetry Out Loud competition in Washington D.C. Lexi Crandall from Meridian School in Provo and Laura Lighty from Judge Memorial in Salt Lake City also received award certificates.
2009 Poetry Out Loud
Janna Tessman, a senior at Salt Lake City's East High, represented Utah at the national Poetry Out Loud finals in Washington, D.C. on April 26-28. As the Utah winner, Janna received $200 from Poetry Out Loud, and East High received $500 to purchase poetry books for the library.
The 2009 runner-up was Katie Harrington from Judge Memorial Catholic High School in Salt Lake City. The state finals featured students from 10 Utah high schools, from Ogden to Payson. Judges were Anne Cullimore Decker, Katharine Coles and Rob Carney. Blue Haiku provided music during the interludes.