Bi-monthly poetry slams kick off in Sudbury

In 'slam poetry,' competitors take to the stage and have audience members judge them not only on their words, but also on their performance.

Myths and Mirrors Community Arts and Wordstock Sudbury Literary Festival are joining forces to start a bi-monthly poetry slam in Sudbury, Ont.

"I love that it brings people together in a way that is very animated," said Blaine Thornton, a coordinator with Myths and Mirrors, who will MC the series of poetry slams.

"Open mics, they tend to be very quiet. You sit at the front, you listen. But a slam poetry event is so animated. The audience is snapping, clapping, going, 'Ooh,' after."

Thornton first started participating in slam poetry events when they were attending the Ontario College of Art and Design University in Toronto.

They won some small competitions in Toronto, and also competed with the university's team in the United States.

The inaugural competition was at Sudbury's 'Little Montreal' venue on Friday, Sept. 19, and the plan is to hold regular events for the next two years.

"The winner of each slam poetry event will be invited to join the slam team," Thornton said.

"That slam team, in about two years, will go on a trip to a competition outside of Sudbury."

It will be free for people to attend the Sudbury events but competitors will need to pay a $5 fee to participate. The winner of each competition will get half of that money, and the rest will go to pay for the slam team's trip in two years.

Thornton encourages people to attend first as audience members, and if they like what they see, they might want to eventually get on stage.