StAnza competitors win international poetry slam
A group of performance poets representing a St Andrews poetry festival have won a live "cyber slam" against their counterparts in Australia, without setting foot outside the town.
- By Craig McManamon
- Published in the Courier : 14.09.10
- Published online : 14.09.10 @ 01.42pm
The Fife team battling on behalf of the StAnza festival were up against the Overload Poetry Festival staged in Melbourne. Each entrant put their poetry skills to the test using Skype in a bid to outdo one another.
The inaugural event was performed in front of audiences at the Byre Theatre and the Wheeler Centre in Melbourne. It was also webcast so audiences around the world could share the battle of wits and verse.
After three rounds with some close calls in the scoring, the judges awarded StAnza a total of 468 points, and Overload 455.5.
The StAnza team had seasoned slammers Milton Balgoni as MC, Robin Cairns, Claudia Daventry, Ali "Harlequinade" Maloney and Kevin Cadwallender.
The judges and audiences in both hemispheres were impressed by Cadwallender, who impersonated a Dalek in one of his poems.
Both teams enjoyed a round in which they sent up national stereotypes, from tartan to corked hats.
StAnza director Eleanor Livingstone said, "The real triumph was being able to link up so successfully with Australia to create such an enjoyable event that brought together poets and audiences across the globe. We are grateful to James Waller of Overload for approaching us with the idea."
The Cyber Slam was then followed by Fife's Risk-a-Verse Open Mic, which included live and Skyped contributions. This too was webcast and the afternoon was studded with poetic gems.
Image used from Wikimedia Commons.
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