August 2015 |

WOULD YOU like to be Australia’s next slam champion?

For the first time ever, the Australian Poetry Slam is bringing a heat to Deloraine.

Since 2004, this competition has brought poets together from cities and regional areas to compete in the Grand Final for the opportunity to perform their own work, all expenses paid, at writers festivals in China, Bali, Sydney and Byron Bay.

The Empire Hotel on Emu Bay Rd will host the Deloraine heat on 25th August.

Everyone is welcome to participate all you need is your voice.

Speak, scream, howl or whisper your poems, stories, lyrics and monologue.

This is a literary performance with a difference, the audience is the judge!

Contestants are given a microphone, a live audience and two minutes to impress the judges with their original spoken word, poetry, hip hop, monologues and stories.

Slam heats will be held in city and regional venues across Australia.

The cost is $5.00 for participants and audience members.

Slam host, Yvonne Gluyas, is a Tasmanian writer, poet and three-times National Slam Finalist.

Three placegetters from the Deloraine heat will join with other Tasmanian heat winners (Launceston, Hobart, Burnie) to compete at the Tasmanian Final in Launceston on 15th September.

The first and second placegetters from the final will then head to NSW for the National Final at the Sydney Opera House on Sunday 11th October 2015.

As well as return flights and hotel accommodation (on the 11th), the winners will also be given a Festival Pass to the 'Word Travels Story Festival', three days (Friday 9th – Sunday 11th) of spoken word, poetry, stories, lyrics and monologues.

Judged by randomly chosen members of the audience, one person will be named Australian Poetry Slam Champion 2015 and will perform their own work, all expenses paid, in 2016 at the China Bookworm Literary Festival (China – March), Sydney Writers’ Festival (May), Byron Bay Writers Festival (August), and the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival (Bali – October).

Dinner is available from 6:00pm and the Slam starts at 7:30pm.

Make a booking by calling the Empire on 6362 1029 and say 'poetry'.