Hello poetry enthusiasts,

The Vancouver Poetry Slam Finals Night is only one month away. This is the biggest poetry night of the year, the culmination of eight months of qualifying and semi-final poetry slams. Eight of the best performance poets in the city will compete for four spots (and an alternate slot) on the Vancouver Poetry Slam Team, and the top poet will be crowned Grand Slam Champion. More importantly, this is your chance to experience some of the most incredible poetry being written and performed anywhere in Canada.

Finals Night this year will feature Individual World Poetry Slam champion, Joaquín Zihuatanejo!

When: April 19th, 2010, doors at 7pm, show at 8pm
Where: Rio Theatre, 1660 East Broadway (by Commercial Dr.)
How much: $12 in advance ($13 online), $15 at the door
(Group rates available for schools.)

Last year’s Finals Night featuring Shane Koyczan (now of Olympic opening ceremonies fame) was completely sold out, and we expect the same could happen this year, so get your tickets early.

You can buy tickets every Monday at Café Deux Soleils during the Vancouver Poetry Slam, or at any time online through our secure web ordering system at:

http://vancouverpoetryhouse.com/vanslam/153

Our feature, Joaquín, has been called by critics, “one of the most dynamic and passionate performance poets in the country, melding equal parts comedy, poetry, and dramatic monologue into a crowd-pleasing display of verbal fireworks…always thrilling, Joaquín’s hilariously manic presentation is full of compassion and nuance, never sacrificing substance for style, leading many to call him poetry slam’s answer to John Leguizamo.”

A National Poetry Slam Finalist, Grand Slam Spoken Word Champion, and HBO Def Poet, Joaquín has performed his poetry at universities, conferences and poetry slams all over the Unites States, Canada, Mexico and Europe.

In 2005, Joaquin was featured on season five of Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry for HBO. Filmed in front of a live audience at the majestic Supper Club Theater just off Broadway in New York City, Joaquin performed in front of a capacity crowd and received a standing ovation for his performance.