Spoken word gets sexy in poetry slam
August 12, 2010 – The Drama for Life “Sex Actually” Festival is travelling around South Africa during August and September 2010, and will be using the arts to talk frankly about sex, HIV and AIDS and relationships. Add to this prizes to the value of R12 000, and you have an explosive mix of arts and sex-sational entertainment.
The Drama for Life (DFL) Festival, which is part of the DFL holistic arts programme, hosted by the division of Dramatic Art at Wits, will offer an array of theatre, comedy, spoken word, dance, poetry, art, film and workshops with one overarching intention: using creative means to stimulate discussions and influence behaviour around sex, HIV and AIDS and relationships.
Now in its third year in Johannesburg, the festival hits the road, and will debut in three other cities as well. It takes place in Johannesburg from August 21 to 28, 2010, in Cape Town from September 9 to 11, in Pietermaritzburg from September 15 to 16, and in Durban from September 17 to 18.
Among the highlights on the festival’s sex-sational entertainment menu is the “Lover and Another” Poetry Slam, which seeks to create an open and vibrant space for young people to talk. Aspiring poets will be required to perform a three-minute spoken-word piece on the theme.
Leading up to the competition are numerous poetry workshops that will be facilitated by professional poets and writers. These workshops are open and free to the public, and the closing date for entries is Friday, August 13 at 16h00.
Each workshop will focus on different topics to help the participants prepare for the competition and ensure that their poems and performances are of a high quality. They will be taught how to write around a theme, use appropriate language, develop the flow of their poems, transform the written word into a stage performance, enhance their stage presence, engage with the audience, use props and costumes, and make effective use of gestures and silence.
In addition, participants will have the benefit of a special workshop on copyright law, courtesy of the Wits Writing Centre.
The workshop facilitators will select nine participants to be mentored and go through to the regional finals of the “Lover and Another” Poetry Slam at the Wits Great Hall on August 21.
The national finals, which will pit Jo’burg’s most promising young poets against the top three poets from the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal, will take place at the same venue on August 27.
If you’re interested in taking part, visit the DFL offices of the 17th floor of the Wits University Corner, or call Ntombi on +27 11 717 4734.