Hullabaloo 2012: BC High-School Slam Poetry Championship

By dictionary definition, a hullabaloo is described as noisy excitement or fuss. And Hullabaloo 2012 should fit that description very well indeed!

Hullabaloo, B.C.’s High School Slam Championship for spoken word artists, will be causing a commotion for its second year in a row.
 
Last year, the slam poetry team from Reynolds Secondary in Victoria captured the inaugural title, with emotional poems that truly touched the audience (read our interview with the team). This year, the best teams in B.C. will be gathering in Vancouver from April 10 to 14, 2012 for more competition as well as various workshops.
 
Those in attendance will be treated to emotional and inspiring poems recited in a variety of styles, including rap, sonnets and free verse. The teams will perform against one another in front of a panel of judges, and will be eliminated over the course of week. The last team standing on April 14 will be named Hullabaloo champions for 2012!

Full schedule of events for Hullabaloo 2012

To get a taste of what you can expect at Hullabaloo 2012, check out these videos from some of the event’s headliners.
 
First up is Mary Pinkoski, who will open the festival as the featured performer. Pinkoski is an Edmonton-based spoken word poet who captained the Edmonton Slam team to winning the National Championship at the 2011 Canadian Festival of Spoken Word. A storyteller at heart, Mary has presented her unique style of spoken word throughout Canada and the United States. For more information, visit www.marypinkoskipoetry.com.

And check out Khary Jackson, aka 6 is 9, the feature performer on Saturday April 14th at the Arts Club Theatre Granville Island Stage. For more information, visit www.layitbare.com.