Brave New Voices Press Release
In April of 2003, a generation of young artists will converge on Chicago to participate in the spectacular, internationally renowned
National Youth Poetry Festival. Brave New Voices gathers, educates and showcases talented, dedicated and courageous young writers
from across the country. In its fifth year, The National Youth Poetry Festival creates a forum and community among an ever-growing number
of youth who are returning to literature and reinvesting in education through the power of the spoken word. Building bridges across radically
diverse ethnic, racial and socio-economic lines, The National Youth Poetry Festival is for a generation of young people speaking for themselves;
a generation documenting their days in journals, reciting struggles and successes on open microphones, teenagers transcending traditional
stereotypes by speaking their truths and listening to the truths of others.
The National Youth Poetry Festival includes youth open mics, an adult reading that features professional poets and performers, (inter)-national
community building and networking, panel discussions, workshops lead by professional writers and educators, and The National Youth Poetry Slam.
A Poetry Slam is an Olympic-style poetry competition where poets compete on teams in rounds with scores awarded by five judges. The National
Youth Poetry Festival uses The Poetry Slam as a tool to bring together the top young poets from around the country to share their work with their
peers and a larger audience. Run like an athletic tournament there are team “try-outs,” strategies implemented during the Slam and an adult “coach”
who mentors the young writers.
Across the country teenagers participate in poetry slams organized by teachers, schools, local poets, community organizers and youth workers.
Although the slam is a competitive event, where participants and organizers pour in hours and days of effort and dedication, competition is
de-emphasized and commitment to craft and growth in the writer and person are encouraged. From these local slams, 4-6 of the top poets (13-19
years old) will be selected to represent their city at The National Youth Poetry Festival. More than 200 young poets will participate in this year’s competition held in Chicago. We also will involve 500-1000 students from Chicago Public and
Alternative High Schools in the weekend festival. Past participants in The National Youth Poetry Festival have included teams from, Washington, DC,
Bosnia, New York City, Mexico, Seattle, The Navajo Nation, Connecticut, New Orleans, Ann Arbor, MI, San Francisco, Portland, Dallas, Los Angeles,
The Hopi Nation, Philadelphia, Louisville, Albuquerque, and Chicago. In 2003, we anticipate 25 teams from around the country will participate in
Brave New Voices.
Thursday, April 24 Crossing The Street, Harold Washington Library, 6-10pm After arriving in Chicago on Thursday, the teenagers will have an opportunity to meet and greet each other at an informal banquet with dinner music
provided by some of Chicago’s hottest DJ’s. After dinner, youth participants, representing many socio-geographic areas in America, will participate
in a session called, “Crossing The Street.” This hour to hour and a half session, peppered with active, loud ice breakers, one on one appreciative inquiry,
call and response and improvisational poetry games, will provide a fun, relaxed space where community can be built. Friday April 25 Workshops and Panel Discussion, Chicago International Youth Hostel, 9-11am Workshops will be lead by professional writers, poets, emcees and educators from around the country in various areas of interest including
Rockin’ the Page and the Stage by Patricia Smith, National Poetry Slam Champion and The Poetics of Place and Politics by Luis Rodriguez,
author of Always Running. Semi-finals National Youth Poetry Slam, Chopin Theater, 12-6pm The semi-finals will take place during this day on two different stages at the Chopin Theater. Each poet from participating teams will perform and
have an opportunity to witness other young poets from around the country. Classrooms of Chicago Public High School students will participate as
audience members. Native Tongues, Hot House, 8-11pm Home to Gwendolyn Brooks and Carl Sandburg, Chicago’s literary tradition is rich. The birthplace of Poetry Slam, and cradle to a thriving youth and
adult writing community whose influences range from traditional verse to the contemporary aesthetics of hip-hop poetics. In the literary world,
Chicago is as diverse and colorful as its 77 neighborhoods. Tonight, the city of big shoulders offers some of the most prolific and gifted writers living
within its canon. A reading and performance featuring national figures Luis Rodriguez, Patricia Smith, Reggie Gibson, Marc Smith (founder of Poetry
Slam), I Was Born With Two Tongues, the hip-hop crews All-Natural and Typical Cats, and other Chicago-based writers and musical groups. Saturday April 26 Workshops and Panel Discussion, Chicago International Youth Hostel, 9-11am Coaches’ Brunch and Planning Meeting, 10am An opportunity for the adult mentors and coaches to enjoy a meal and begin to plan next year’s Brave New Voices. At this meeting we determine
where The National Youth Poetry Festival will be held and who the organizing city will be. Semi-finals National Youth Poetry Slam, Chopin Theater, 12-6pm Finals, The National Youth Poetry Slam, Museum of Science & Industry, 8-11pm The culminating event of the weekend will provide an opportunity to showcase some of the most talented young writers in America in a one
thousand-seat theater. Six teams will qualify to compete on Finals stage and Slam against each other, hoping to bring bragging rights and The National
Youth Poetry Slam Championship back to their hometown. An audience of all ages and ethnicities, from all over Chicago-land, will witness four rounds of
poetic jousting.
Invited guests and celebrity judges such as Chicago Public School CEO Arnie Duncan, Oprah Winfrey, and the Chicago-born and internationally recognized
hip-hop artist Common will determine the winners. In Chicago, the last Saturday of April will be hot-even if it snows. Sunday April 27 Good-bye Brunch, Chicago International Youth Hostel, 9-11am My Kind of Town, multiple locations, 11-2pm
The
Chicago youth steering committee for the festival will serve as tour guides,
giving our out of town guests the opportunity to explore Chicago through the
eyes of their peers. Small groups will head out to visit Chicago’s museums,
take an architectural boat tour, and visit historical sites and other areas
of interest throughout the windy city. |