"Oceans to Sail" Showcase Featuring Saul Williams and Guests Saul Williams is no stranger to conversations that permeate the collective minds of the diaspora. Reparations are within reach and he has a list of demands waiting to unravel from the tip of his revolutionary tongue. Bolstered by the work of … Continued
Black Lives Matter Vancouver is the local chapter of the international group of activists calling for an end to police brutality, and aiming to lift up Black voices. Curated by Cicely-Belle Blain and hosted by Holly Bishu, this showcase gives space to the artists within the movement, paying respect to … Continued
Van Slam Team Finals Celebrate the 21st annual Van Slam Finals Night with visiting feature Desireé Dallagiacomo. Vancouver's top nine slam poets of the season compete for a spot on this year’s team to represent Van Slam at major tournaments and festivals across North America. Poets gain points by ranking … Continued
Our monthly youth poetry slam series continues in April but with an extra special bit of spice and hot sauce as we are also part of the Verses Festival of Words. Now that our playoffs are complete we’re going to have a fun slam for cash and prizes. We’ll also … Continued
Our monthly youth poetry slam series continues in April but with an extra special bit of spice and hot sauce as we are also part of the Verses Festival of Words. Now that our playoffs are complete we're going to have a fun slam for cash and prizes. We'll also … Continued
2017 Van SlamTeam Finals is part of Verses Festival of Words again! #VS17 #VersesFestival Celebrate the 21st annual Van Slam Finals Night with visiting feature Desireé Dallagiacomo. Vancouver's top nine slam poets of the season compete for a spot on this year’s team to represent Van Slam at major tournaments … Continued
Geist is the Canadian magazine of ideas and culture — fact + fiction, photography and comix, essays, reviews, and the weird and wonderful from the world of words. Issue 104 will be launched this night. Oratorealis publishes biannually Canadian spoken word and experimental poetry. Oratorealis is thrilled to be launching their … Continued
Amber Dawn, Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, Kama La Mackerel, and Kai Cheng Thom In this femme-focussed showcase, we are gifted the opportunity to the bear witness to brilliant magic born of community and coven, care and creativity among four radical, vulnerable, and fiercely capable femmes, building each other up in a … Continued
Shhh… Before you speak a single word in the festival, trained stage actor and performance poet, Johnny Trinh, nourishes our understanding of breath and body, expanding our skills of projection and protecting what is for vocal performers, our most valuable instrument. Lengthen the lifespan and strengthen the health of your … Continued
Poets participating in the Canadian Individual Poetry Slam are required to attend this orientation.The focus of CIPS Tournament Director Johnny Trinh will be on making sure everyone is aware of the rules and format of the tournament, the location of the venues, community resources available to them, and the … Continued
What better place to proclaim your love for whatever turns on your nerdy nature than at the Storm Crow Tavern, the geekiest gathering place in Vancouver? Costumes are welcomed in the audience or for performers. Go on, dress up, and step up to the mic. You will be in raucous … Continued
An international movement cultivating global Radical Self Love and Body Empowerment. Believing that discrimination, social inequality, and injustice are manifestations of our inability to make peace with the body, our own and others, The Body Is Not An Apology fosters global, radical, unapologetic self-love which translates to radical human love … Continued
Mashed Poetics is a night of spoken word and music mash up. We pick a music album, find a cover band and ask poets to write new poems based on the songs. Then we do it all up live with the poets performing in between songs. Mashed Poetics has been … Continued
Guided by two qualified facilitators, Deirdre Lee and Melanie Matining, this talk is likely to engage with a number of topics that challenge and re-form our collective ideas of activism in the arts. "Deirdre Lee is a poet & performer, a writer & a survivor. An artist who works in … Continued
On the heels of their groundbreaking, tender, illuminating show Mel Malarkey Gets The Bum Rush, Charlie Petch breathes new life into old vaudevillian form. Learn the versatility and depth of long form cabaret-style storytelling, as Petch teaches us how to transform performance poetry into mesmerizing theatre that gives both audience … Continued
Forty of Canada’s best slam poets sling metaphors and match wits in four-minute and one-minute rounds. These Day One bouts at Cafe Deux Soleils are two of eight preliminary competitions that take place on Thursday and Friday nights here and at Havana Theatre during Verses Festival. The scores from these eight … Continued
Forty of Canada’s best slam poets sling metaphors and match wits in four-minute and one-minute rounds. These Day One bouts at Havana Theatre are two of eight preliminary competitions that take place on Thursday and Friday nights here and at Cafe Deux Soleils during Verses Festival. The scores from these eight bouts … Continued
Mike McGee knows how to throw a good party. Join in the latest edition of this epic bash, where Mike introduces us to talented and charming pals he has gathered along his journeys. The night begins with Sheri-D Wilson launching her new collection of poetry, ‘The Book of Sensations,’ and … Continued
Moving beyond reacting to the systems that oppress us, and into future-building for the world/s we want to manifest, we will create work in our voices and perspectives that the universe urgently needs to hear. Youth can sign up to work with two deeply thoughtful and experienced mentors/community activists and … Continued
The tension builds as Canada’s best slam poets show us their strongest two and three minute poems to decide who will advance to finals. These Day Two bouts at Cafe Deux Soleils are two of eight preliminary competitions that take place on Thursday and Friday nights here and at Havana … Continued
Canada’s best performance poets show us their strongest two and three minute poems to decide who will advance to finals. These Day Two bouts at Havana Theatre are two of eight preliminary competitions that take place on Thursday and Friday nights here and at Cafe Deux Soleils during Verses Festival. The … Continued
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Guided by two qualified facilitators, Sonmin Bong and Jen Sung, this talk asks participants to explore Kiberlé Crenshaw’s model of intersectionality in relation to artistic communities. "Sonmin Bong is a first-generation Korean immigrant feminist who works, plays and, most importantly, loves on unceded Coast Salish territories.She is a host and … Continued
A showcase featuring recently created work by youth, and a set by each of poets Amal Rana, Molly Billows, and jaye simpson. Some of the performances will have been created the day before at the Radical (Re)Imaginings workshop with facilitators/youth mentors Rana and Billows, and some of it will be … Continued
The top 12 poets from prelims advance to this bout. Who will claim the title of 2016 Canadian Individual Poetry Slam Champion? This closing match includes a feature presentation by the one and only Sheri-D Wilson. Poets in the Finals will be performing three-minute poems. The first round will consist … Continued
House concert, poetry and story performance, potluck, party, and some Louisiana hospitality. Chicken Session #26 is a Sunday afternoon backyard brunch with Poet Al Mader and Musician Lexi Marie, as well as debut work by others in 12 open mic spots beforehand. Bring food to share! Noon -- Food and … Continued
Every year we like to set aside one poetry slam where we invite poets to break the poetry slam rules to see what sort of creative mischief they can come up with. Poets are encouraged to use props and costumes or to perform group pieces and cover poems to use … Continued
The Summer slam season is here which means an altered format from the rest of the year. During the Summer season poets are asked to perform up to 2 minute, 1 minute and 4 minute long poems. 12 poets in the first round 6 in the second and the top … Continued
It’s that time of year again! We need to crown our 2017 Queer Slam Champion. Without putting too many definitions on what a Queer Slam is, this competition will showcase, express, and celebrate the work of Van Slam’s writers of queer poetry. Featuring Jillian Christmas, the winner of 2016's Capturing … Continued
The Summer slam season is here which means an altered format from the rest of the year. During the Summer season poets are asked to perform up to 2 minute, 1 minute and 4 minute long poems. 12 poets in the first round 6 in the second and the top … Continued
This will be the final poetry slam before the start of the 2017/18 youth slam season so break out your new poems and test them in front of an attentive and appreciative audience. There will be two 3 minute rounds in the competition plus a poetry open mic and of … Continued