By Sue-Ann Wayow
THE finals of the First Citizens National Poetry Slam will take place at the Naparima Bowl in San Fernando.
The event after two years will be held in person this Sunday at 7 pm.
In 2019, it was held at the National Academy for Performing Arts (NAPA) in Port-of-Spain.
Ten poets will be competing for a grand prize of $50,000.
Bocas Lit Fest, organiser of the event in a media release stated that it will be a joint celebration of 10 years of the Slam and 60 years of the Naparima Bowl, one of the country’s historical treasures and a much-revered landmark of the city of San Fernando.
In this anniversary year and echoing the 2022 Slam theme, “A Season of Change”, Slam enthusiasts can look forward to the lyrical stand-off between poets vying to dethrone the 2021 defending champion, Derron Sandy, to win the grand prize of $50,000.
Second and third place winners receive $20,000 and $10,000 respectively from title sponsor First Citizens.
CEO of the Bocas Lit Fest, Jean Claude Cournand believes that change can be positive.
He said, “From NAPA with a live audience of 1200 people in 2019, the Slam was nationally televised during the pandemic, reaching thousands of new audiences. This year’s move south to the Naparima Bowl again breaks ground, taking the Slam to more new audiences. We are pushing the boundaries of where and how the Slam is held in order to reach as many people as possible. That’s where poetry belongs.”
Tickets cost $200 via the Bocas Lit Fest website, at Paper Based Bookshop at The Hotel Normandie in St. Ann’s, and at the Naparima Bowl’s box office from 8 am to 4 pm, Monday to Friday.
2022 Finalists:
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Abdul Majeed Abdal Karim
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Alexandra Stewart
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Askala George
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Javaughn Forde
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Joel Philip
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Kevin Soyer
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Michael Logie
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Ronaldo Mohammed
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Shimiah Lewis
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Zakiya Gill
