First of all, we’re so excited and thankful that we have received funding from the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council for Day of the Dead Poets Slam 2016! This grant is going to make it possible for us to make Day of the Dead Poets Slam bigger and more exciting than ever before!
We’re expanding the event this year into a three day celebration, Nov 3 – Nov 5, 2016. This even is co-presented by the Rochester Art Center, and all activities will take place in the Grand Lobby. Thursday Nov 3rd will be a youth poetry showcase, with the theme “My Story, My Voice”. Kids from grade 4 through 12 will be invited to sign up to read their own poetry based on that theme. I’m excited to see what they come up with!
Friday Nov 4 will be the VIP, or Very Important Pachanga. Pachanga is a Spanish word for party, and we’re inviting everyone to come meet and party with the poets, artists, event organizers, and Rochester Art Center staff! There will be snacks and drinks, crafting and free art supplies, and some preview performances by our poets. There will also be artist talks by our five participating artists. Each of these artists will have designed and installed their own altar, which will be displayed through the week. In addition to these artist-designed altars, there will be a community altar where you are welcome to place letters, drawings, or special mementos in honor of your loved ones who have passed away.
On Saturday Nov 5, we will be combining our event with RAC’s Free Family Day! We’ll be at the Grand Lobby from 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM, and everyone is invited to come make crafts related to Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead. Families will be welcome to contribute to the community altar, and we will be educating those who may not be familiar with Day of the Dead about its history and cultural significance.
Saturday night will be the big event, Day of the Dead Poets Slam! There will be eight poets competing in this themed Poetry Slam, but none of them will be using their own poems! Instead they will each be performing as their favorite late poet, using costumes, props, and makeup, to enhance their performance! These eight poets will become their favorite dead poet for the evening, bringing them back to life through performance and poetry. In past years, it has been so cool to see an entire audience get excited about poetry, listening to poets like Walt Whitman, Langston Hughes, Federico Garcia Lorca, Sappho, Sylvia Plath, and more!
If you’re interested in competing, we’ll be posting a call for poets to audition later this summer, so stay tuned for that! Always feel free to contact us if you have any questions, too. 🙂
McKay
Co-Director, Rochester Art Ensemble
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Interested in more? Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rochesterartensemble/
Instagram:@rochesterartensemble
Co-presenting organization, Rochester Art Center: http://rochesterartcenter.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rochartcenter/
