Students to compete in second annual Poetry In Voice competition

Toronto, ON Poetry In Voice/Les voix de la poésie announced today that students from across Ontario and Quebec will participate in its second annual poetry recitation competition. Dedicated to promoting the art of poetry in the classroom and the community, the competition urges students to develop personal relationships with poetry through exploration, memorization, and performance.

Secondary school andCollège d’enseignement général et professionnel (CEGEP) students are challenged to memorize and recite a favourite poem chosen from the competition’s online anthology in front of their classmates. The contest then follows a pyramid structure that begins at the classroom level and ends on a national stage. Winners advance from classroom contests to school-wide competitions, provincial finals, and ultimately to the National Finals, which will be held every year in the spring, in a different Canadian city. The 2012 Quebec Finals will be held on April 2 at Cégep du Vieux Montréal. The Ontario Finals will be held all day on April 16 at the Isabel Bader Theatre in Toronto. The 2012 Grand Finals will be held the following evening on April 17 at 7pm at the same location in Toronto. More than $10,000 in prizes and school stipends will be given to the winners and their school libraries.

“We hope to introduce students across Canada to the joy of poetry through this competition,” said Scott Griffin, founder of Poetry In Voice, and founder/chairman of The Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry.

Students are encouraged to explore poetry in both official languages through the competitions online anthology, which features both Canadian and international poems. Competitors benefit from the introduction to the rich literary tradition of recitation and learn important public-speaking and presentation skills.

Poetry In Voice, which is run by Creative Director Damian Rogers and Francophone Director Sepideh Anvar, was amazingly successful in its inaugural year. The competition is growing rapidly, with more than 300 students from over 50 schools expected to participate this year, and online school registrations are already open throughout Canada for the 2013 competition.

 

About Poetry In Voice:

Poetry In Voice is a bilingual poetry recitation competition for secondary school and Collège d’enseignement général et professionnel (CEGEP) students. Founded by Scott Griffin, the competition aims to promote the art of poetry in both the classroom and in the community. More than $10,000 in awards and school stipends will be awarded at the National Finals in April. The competition will extend its reach across Canada in 2013.

 

About The Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry:

This trust was founded in April 2000 by chairman Scott Griffin, along with trustees Margaret Atwood, Carolyn Forché, Robert Hass, Michael Ondaatje, Robin Robertson, and David Young. By funding the Griffin Poetry Prize – the worlds largest prize for a first edition single collection of poetry written in, or translated into, English – The Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry aims to spark the public’s imagination and raise awareness of the crucial role poetry plays in our cultural life, a mission shared by Poetry In Voice.

 

Website: poetryinvoice.ca

Twitter: @PIV_LVP

Facebook: Poetry In Voice / Les voix de la poésie

 

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